By SARAH DOOLITTLE, Four Points News

Thanks to recent rains, all six lakes along the Highland Lakes chain managed by the Lower Colorado River Authority are now at 100 percent of capacity after a prolonged drought from late 2010 to early 2015.

On Thursday, hydroelectric operations began at Mansfield Dam to produce electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. And on Monday, LCRA opened one floodgate in the dam.

“The rain in the Highland Lakes watershed has been more than lakes Buchanan and Travis can safely hold without allowing levels to rise significantly higher in the flood pool on Lake Travis,” said Clara Tuma, LCRA spokesperson.

The opening of the floodgate at 8 a.m. on Apr. 25 attracted a crowd of nearly two hundred, according to LCRA security officers stationed at a platform the base of the dam. LCRA temporarily opened the platform to allow public viewing of the opened spillway, and hundreds visited throughout the day on Monday to view and photograph this rare event.

LCRA general manager Phil Wilson speaks with media at Mansfield Dam on Monday, when one of the floodgates was opened. Hundreds of people came out to watch the event. Wilson, a local Four Points resident, was encouraged to see so many kids watching the event and seeing first hand how a dam works.

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By KIM ESTES, Four Points News

A local craft brewery took name-calling to heart and defended itself against a big Colorado brewery to win exclusive rights in Texas to a contested moniker, said Max Schleder, president of Oasis Texas Brewing Company.

The tale of two ales began when New Belgium Brewing Company of Fort Collins claimed the trademark, Slow Ride, the name of a beer made by both it and Oasis Texas Brewing.

Just this past month, however, the two breweries reached an agreement giving Oasis Texas Brewing exclusive rights in Texas to sell its American Pale Ale under the Slow Ride label. Continue reading →

By CASSIE MCKEE, Four Points News

Landowners of a 42-acre tract at the southeast corner of RM 2222 and City Park Road are requesting a zoning change in order to develop a 325-unit apartment complex.

The land is owned by longtime landowners often known as the Champion sisters.

If approved, the apartment development would occupy 10 of the 42 acres.

In addition to the apartments, the zoning application states that the developers also plan to build a 50,000-square-foot general office building and a 42,000-square-foot medical clinic; however, there have been negotiations to possibly drop the office and retail portions of the development in an effort to gain the support of nearby neighborhood groups. If that happened, the remaining 35 acres would remain a conservation easement with no future development allowed.

An apartment complex is proposed at this intersection of RM 2222 and City Park Road.
Credit Google Maps

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By CASSIE MCKEE, Four Points News

While there seems to be a lot of support among River Place residents to stop annexation by the city of Austin, determining the best way to do so is proving to be a bit more challenging.

Pat Reilly, president of the River Place Municipal Utility District, said most people in River Place do not want to be annexed by the city of Austin, they would rather be disannexed. “It’s just how we get there that is the issue,” he said.

Ken Bartlett

Art Jistel

Four candidates are running in the upcoming election to fill two seats on the River Place MUD board. Longtime incumbent board members Art Jistel and Ken Bartlett are running along with River Place Homeowners Association President Scott Crosby and newcomer Scott Agthe, an attorney who says his sole reason for running is disannexation. Continue reading →

By CASSIE MCKEE, Four Points News

Anyone who grew up in Texas more than likely has fond memories of Big Red, the classic red soda.

Gary Smith

For the past eight years, Big Red Inc. has been headquartered right here in Four Points. Four Points resident and former COO of Red Bull, Gary Smith, purchased Big Red in 2007 and moved operations to its current location on River Place Boulevard. The company has 25 employees in Four Points and 75 across the country working in distribution and sales.

Since taking over the company, Smith has been on a mission to expand the Big Red name and grow the company from a regional brand to a national one.

“People love Big Red and it continues to do well,” said Thomas Oh, senior vice president of marketing at Big Red. “We’ve outgrown the industry for the ninth year in a row.”

In addition to the popular red soft drink, Big Red has been working to acquire some new brand names. In 2012, Big Red acquired Hydrive energy water. Then, in 2014, the company purchased a zero-calorie energy drink called Xyience (pronounced zi-ence). Continue reading →