Local resident Nicole Patel and her Delysia Chocolatier shop was recently named a Top 10 Chocolatier & Confectioner in the Americas by the International Chocolate Salon and Taste TV for 2017.

By LYNETTE HAALAND
Four Points News

Nicole Patel, local chef and owner of Delysia Chocolatier — an award-winning chocolate company with over 60 handcrafted chocolates on the menu — is expanding the business she started nearly a decade ago.

“In 2017 we are trying to grow more here in Austin and become a household name and push more nationwide,” said Patel, a Steiner Ranch mother of two and former corporate America engineer.

She is well on her way. Delysia was recently named a Top 10 Chocolatier & Confectioner in the Americas by the International Chocolate Salon and Taste TV for 2017. This is the second time she has gotten this accolade.

Delysia has expanded its offerings to retail customers over the past year. It offers complimentary chocolate tastings hosted every weekend at its Culinary Center & Chocolate Boutique at 2000 Windy Terrace Suite 2C Austin 78613, near RM 620 N and Anderson Mill Road.

Patel is also introducing chocolate tasting classes this year as well as special events like its free Easter egg decorating competition, which is Sunday, April 9 from 12 p.m. – 5 p.m. Families are invited and kids can decorate a chocolate egg, and then Facebook followers will vote on their favorites. The winners will receive Easter themed chocolate treats.

Patel went to college at Texas A&M University and has a master’s degree in industrial engineering. She never imagined how her experience working at a Fortune 100 company as a supply chain and business process improvement expert would prime her for distributing her own products across the country.

“I made my first batch of truffles in 2006 when I was pregnant with my oldest,” she said.

She didn’t have a lot of extra money to go shopping and was watching TV when she came across a show on how to make candy truffles. “I thought, ‘this looks fun and easy, and I can do this,’” she said.

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Residents urged to give testimony

By TIM MATTOX
River Place Resident

The Texas legislature is considering a bill (Senate Bill 715) that would allow communities targeted for annexation, including River Place, to vote on whether or not the community should be annexed.

The River Place HOA board supports this bill and the efforts to prevent River Place from being annexed by the city of Austin.

The main reasons for the HOA board’s opposition are high taxes and diminished services. The average home in River Place would pay over $2,000 dollars in higher property taxes and significantly higher electric bills. River Place is already paying significantly higher water rates under the SPA agreement between the River Place Municipal Utility District and city of Austin.

Hearings on SB 715 will be held in the next three weeks on a Wednesday. There is only a 24-hour notice of when the bill will be considered by the committee and testimony allowed at the state capitol building.

All Four Points residents who support the bill should attend, sign in, and testify in support of the bill, as physical support influences legislatures.

If River Place is annexed, the city of Austin will look for the next target in the Four Points area which could be Steiner Ranch.

More information on the bill can be found at Texas Legislature Online, at www.legis.state.tx.us. Also setting up a MyTLO account will allow alerts sent when SB 715 is being considered in committee.

Vanessa Budde, a Vandegrift senior, finished the Austin Marathon in February and qualified for the 2018 Boston Marathon after less than two months of “serious” training.

By HADLEY HUDSON
Vandegrift Voice

Vandegrift senior Vanessa Budde — who trained for less than two months — finished the Austin Marathon just 25 minutes behind the winner and she qualified for the 2018 Boston Marathon.

Budde began training in January for the Feb. 19 Austin Marathon.

“When I first started training for it, I figured that I would just try to finish and I wasn’t going to try to qualify for anything or do anything great,” Budde said. “But then after I started training I realized that maybe I should actually try and set a goal for my time.”

To qualify for the Boston Marathon, the qualifying time for women aged 18-34 is 3 hours and 35 minutes. Budde set her sights on this goal for her first marathon.

“I started training a lot more when I made a goal, and then at the Austin Marathon I ended up getting a 3:29:05, so I qualified by a few minutes,” Budde said. “I’m pretty proud, when I first started I honestly didn’t think I was going to finish the run so I’m glad that I ended up qualifying.”

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The Barre3 Four Points ribbon cutting ceremony, hosted by the West Austin Chamber of Commerce, was held on March 21, the studio’s one year anniversary. Owner Sarah Regier (center, with large scissors) was joined by her staff and family for the event.

Sarah Regier (left) celebrates her first year in business at her Barre3 Four Points studio with her sons Gavin (left) and Griffin and her husband Mark.

By SARAH DOOLITTLE
Four Points News

Barre3 fitness studio, located in the Trails at 620 shopping center, celebrated its one year anniversary on March 21.

Steiner Ranch resident and Barre3 owner Sarah Regier taught at local studios for years, and explained that, “People had said to me over the course of the years, ‘Why don’t you ever open up your own studio?’… ‘Why don’t you open something in the Four Points area?’ And I kind of thought about it and thought, why don’t I?”

Regier previously attended college to be an elementary teacher but also got certified as an exercise instructor while still in school, which means she has over 24 years experience teaching fitness. She taught elementary school full-time in California until her first child was born, then continued to lead fitness classes. She’s worked at over 15 different gyms over the course of her career, and in addition to Barre3, is certified to teach a variety of workouts, including kickboxing, step aerobics, and pilates to name a few.

Barre3 first opened locations in Austin just over four years ago, and Regier immediately fell in love with the workouts and the company’s core values: exercise, nourish and connect.

After the Barre3 rigorous screening process for potential studio owners and prior to opening, Regier followed the Barre3 model, offering six months of free pop-up classes all over the Four Points area to introduce the community to the types of workouts they could expect.

Now in what Regier considers to be the “perfect location” in the Trails at 620 shopping center (near Napa Flats and Redfin Seafood Kitchen), the studio itself is bright and airy, with high ceilings and incorporating natural materials such as wood, bamboo and cork. A large play area for members’ children to use during classes is supervised by a staff member at all times to allow parents to take care of themselves without having to wonder if their children are safe and engaged.

“It’s a really unique amenity for a boutique exercise studio to have child care,” explained Regier, “because that’s not always available. Especially for us being in a community where there’s a lot of families, it’s really important,” and a part of the Barre3 business model.

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By KIM ESTES
Four Points News

All Leander ISD schools met state accountability standards for the 2015-2016 school year with six campuses in Four Points also earning Distinction Designations, according to the Texas Education Agency’s 2016 Accountability Report.

Vandegrift High School captured the highest recognition of LISD schools, achieving Distinction Designations in six of seven eligible areas in the report that was updated in November.

“We had six distinctions. The most you can have is seven,” said Charlie Little, Vandegrift principal. “We are doing awesome!”

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