Fitzhugh residents, activists granted hearing for controversial concert venue

DRIPPING SPRINGS, Texas (KXAN) – A fight over a proposed outdoor concert venue in Dripping Springs will now have a state hearing.

The Rockingwall Ranch Event Center  – a planned 5,000-seat amphitheater on Fitzhugh Road – has faced pushback from nearby residents and environmental groups since it was first proposed nearly four years ago. Blizexas LLC, the California-based developer behind the project, wants to build the venue just across from Carrie Napiorkowski’s driveway.

“We are a direct contributor to Barton Creek, so we feel it’s our responsibility to make sure our water stays clear – not only for us, but for all the drinking water,” Napiorkowski said. “This is an irresponsible location.”

The developer applied for a permit through the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) to irrigate up to 12,000 gallons of treated wastewater per day on the property, which sits near Barton Creek.

“This is one of the worst projects we’ve seen in Central Texas,” Mike Clifford, the Edwards Aquifer Alliance technical director, told KXAN last year. “If it moves forward without major changes, it could have devastating environmental consequences.”

TCEQ received 80 public hearing requests and objections to the permit. Last week, the agency granted a contested case hearing for some challenging the project. The case will move to the State Office of Administrative Hearings, where a judge will hear testimony and review the permit. 

“We’ve gone through three and a half years of battle so far,” Napiorkowski said. “We’re going to keep pressing on as much as we can.”

“Most of us are actually pro-capitalism, but there has to be responsibility with that, and this is a very irresponsible location,” she continued.