Fraser bill to give Oak Ridge residents restriction power

March 18, 2013, 9:00 pm by Adam Troxtell

In a packed Oak Ridge Community Center, residents show their support for a potential bill that would give them and similar communities in Llano more power to determine deed restrictions.

Residents of Oak Ridge find themselves in a difficult spot. They want the ability to make their own deed restrictions – statutes a property owner would have to agree to and abide by in order to live there.

Unfortunately, Llano County is too small and the city of Horseshoe Bay is too close.

The Texas Property Code allows subdivisions like Oak Ridge, in counties with less than 65,000, to develop a method to determine their own deed restrictions, but only if they reside outside of a city’s extraterritorial jurisdiction.

Since this is not the case for these residents, and others like them surrounding Horseshoe Bay, State Sen. Troy Fraser (R-Horseshoe Bay) is proposing a change.

"Title 11 is a good document; unfortunately, it doesn’t apply to you,” Peter Jones, Llano County Commissioner for Precinct 1, said about the section of the property code that applies to restriction amendments. "Currently, you don’t have the ability to have a democratic community. If you think it’s a good thing, the only way is to make a change in the legislation to allow Llano County and all of its communities’ to qualify.”

For the full story, see Tuesday's Highlander.