Lew Adams, Steve Winn’s new neighbor next door, took him on a guided tour not long after he purchased the 1,400-acre Hill Country property. Adams, an environmentalist of 78 years, is the fierce guardian of a Central Texas gem you probably haven’t heard of. The family has worked hard to keep this nature reserve in Roy Creek Canyon a secret for as long as possible. It is located 30 miles west of Central Austin. Those lucky enough to descend into the lush, two-hundred-foot-deep gorge, following a rugged path that snakes through jagged limestone boulders and native flora sprinkled with wild turkey feathers, have done so only by invitation from the Adams family. Visitors will understand the reason behind this strict gatekeeping when they see the crystal pool, which is usually 17 feet deep and cold even in the summer.
Winn and his wife Melinda were the honor guests on this spring day in 2019. Winn, a real estate and technology entrepreneur who has made his fortune, was amazed by the trees. He surprised Adams when he compared the scene to a cathedral. Adams hoped that Winn would be more aware of the importance of protecting the land and springs he had purchased next door after his immersion in this space.
Roy Creek Canyon is home to hundreds of plant species and a recently discovered salamander species. It’s one of the last remaining examples of Central Texas’ biodiversity. The arrowheads that litter the area indicate that Indigenous peoples have been frequenting the springs for centuries. For the previous eight decades, swimming in the creek has been restricted to the Adams family, their close friends, and the birdwatchers and naturalists that have made up the network.
A visitor to Roy Creek in the summer of the 1970s might have seen Governor Ann Richards and the journalist Molly Ivins on a large boulder near the water. Adams remembers that “Molly used to come up and tell the raunchiest stories you’ve heard in your entire life.” Ann was no exception. Both women knew that the location would remain hidden from the public eye, and they were responsible for any dirty dishes that they may have left in the cabin.
Adams said to me in October last year, as we sat on a picnic bench near the creek: “My parents kept this place so silent because they didn’t like people changing it.” It’s good and bad. “It’s both good and bad.”
In the next few months, Winn’s company will finance Mirasol Springs – a luxury resort development and housing project that could transform this mostly untouched land.
The fight over Roy Creek, like most other battles over a small piece of land, is part of a larger struggle.
One side is the Lew-Adamses of this world, environmental purists who believe that the most beautiful parts of the Texas Hill Country must not only be left undeveloped but also restored to their original state before heavy land use. Developers, on the other hand, are using the booming population in and around Austin and San Antonio, as well as the fact that only 5 percent of this region has been designated for conservation, to bulldoze parts of Hill Country.
An aerial view of the land that will soon be home to both Roy Creek Canyon and the Mirasol Springs development.Photograph by Nick Simonite
Mirasol Springs positions itself as a sustainable growth model or a third alternative. Jim Truitt told me, during a tour of the project site, that “advocates for conservation and development must be able coexist, and embrace the important elements of both sides.” “Regional development will come, and it must be cooperative.”
Mirasol Springs will include a 70-room hotel and 39 residential lots. The hotel also manages thirty cottages. The hotel will offer a spa and walking trails as well as an organic farm and the Pedernales River for kayaking, fishing, and canoeing.
The proposed capacity of the resort is modest compared to other Hill Country resorts. Omni Barton Creek Resort & Spa is a good example. It sits on 4,000 acres and has around 500 rooms. More than two-thirds of Mirasol Springs, or about 1,000 acres, will be converted into a conservation easement. This move ensures that Winn’s land, which covers more than half of Mirasol Springs, will remain undeveloped. A University of Texas field station will also be located on the site, which will conduct biodiversity research. Winn, via email, told me that Mirasol Springs would demonstrate a new design standard for Hill Country, one that embraces eco-sensitive development and design, restoration, and education. The project offers a rare opportunity to create an environment that is unlike any other in the state. It will set a new standard in development and education.
Adams remains convinced, however, that Mirasol Springs will eventually cause serious damage to Roy Creek Canyon. The project, according to Adams and other locals, represents a shift in philosophy for a region of Central Texas with a high concentration of conservation easements that preserve sensitive natural areas while limiting building. This is partly due to the extraordinary cluster of natural wonders that are within a few miles distance of each other, including Hamilton Pool Westcave Outdoor Discovery Center and Roy Creek Canyon. The area is extremely fragile. This is made worse by the fact that the Trinity Aquifer from which Mirasol intends to draw its water is in decline. The Pedernales River, on which the resort will also depend for water during extreme drought conditions last summer and this year, has stopped flowing.
Christy Muse is the co-founder and former Executive Director of Hill Country Alliance. The nonprofit organization is dedicated to protecting Hill Country habitats. To their credit, Mirasol representatives paused to listen to what locals had to say. They were sure they were doing something great but soon learned that many people in the area didn’t think the same.
The developers held a number of meetings with residents in the area and were bombarded by media coverage. They reduced the number of they planned to build and barred residents from digging wells.
The entire process was a nightmare for Adams and other neighbors. They’ve discovered that neighbors have little power to stop landowners like Mirasol from developing their property.
Tap water from the springs at the Adams family residence.
The drought in Central Texas, combined with the rapid growth in Austin and San Antonio, has led to a plummeting of water levels in the Trinity Aquifer. This limestone ribbon that runs north from South-Central Texas to Oklahoma provides a large portion of drinking water to the Hill Country. The “dry line,” also known as the 100th Meridian, the boundary that separates the humid Eastern United States from the drier lands in the West, is moving eastward. It has shifted 140 miles in the last century and is now located about 30 miles east of Austin. This leaves the entire Hill Country dry. This region has experienced severe droughts before. In the years between 1949 and 1957, rainfall in Texas decreased by half, and temperatures increased, resulting in some of the driest seasons on record. Around 800,000 people lived in the Hill Country at the time, including the capital. Nearly three million people live in the Hill Country today, and the number is growing rapidly. Austin is one of the fastest-growing cities in the United States.
Jacob’s Well, a popular swimming hole in New Braunfels, stopped flowing this summer for the first time. Comal Springs in New Braunfels, whose water is sourced from the Edwards Aquifer, also stopped flowing last summer.
According to Doug Wierman, who served as a member of the Hays Trinity Groundwater Conservation Board, there’s a good chance that Central Texas’s springs could become a thing of the past. Wierman explained that as development moves away from the I-35 corridor to the West, we are losing one of these iconic preserves at a time. He compared the growth with a steamroller driving west. “Roy Creek does not appear to be unique.” Many of these springs are hidden away in the Hill Country. But as land is divided, development is added, and groundwater is pumped more, they’re disappearing.
Mirasol’s developers claim that, while Wierman believes that even minimal pumping can lead to the demise of Roy Creek, there is enough groundwater to allow for the project’s use during droughts without affecting local springs. The developers claim that less than 5% of the project will have waterproof covers, which prevent rainfall from being absorbed by the ground. Mirasol’s planner said, “Unlike other developments, we are not looking to squeeze as many houses onto the property as possible.”
Mirasol will use rainwater and reclaimed wastewater to help offset the use of precious groundwater. Truitt noted that “every rooftop on the property will be required” to collect rainwater. Deed restrictions prohibit herbicides, pesticides, non-native plants, septic tanks, and private wells. “The goal is redefine what responsible development in the Hill Country could look like.”
The development acquired a contract with the Lower Colorado River Authority to pump surface water from nearby Pedernales River, which has stopped flowing both this summer and last. Truitt stated that it would only operate groundwater pumping if the LCRA terminates its original contract. At this point, the development would be required to comply with state law as a utility and provide residents and guests with a reliable and consistent water source. Developers say that groundwater will never be used to irrigate landscapes.
It’s impossible to estimate how much water Mirasol uses once it opens its doors to the public. Mirasol has a contract with the LCRA that allows it to pump approximately 100,000 gallons per day from the Pedernales, even though developers expect to use much less. This is except in certain drought conditions. According to water availability studies, developers estimate that the contract will supply about 80 percent of water for the project. The developers say that the aquifer in the area can provide the remaining 20 percent.
There is no doubt that the Highland Lakes are approaching a crisis as long-term dry spells and lowered lake levels have become a permanent part of Central Texas’s life. Climatologists have already predicted the conditions in Texas could lead to a megadrought lasting decades by the turn of the century. Some experts have begun calling on the LCRA for more conservation efforts. Because Central Texas is still experiencing severe drought conditions, the LCRA has implemented the first phase of a contingency plan, which asks customers to reduce their water usage voluntarily. Lake Travis and Lake Buchanan, the two largest lakes in Central Texas, are already below 50% capacity. If the level drops another 10 percent, up to 900,000 square feet, the LCRA will implement mandatory water use reductions among customers, including Mirasol. In a July news release, John Hofmann, LCRA Executive Vice President of Water, said that the lake levels were decreasing due to the fact that there was little water flowing in and the ‘heat domed’ region has been roasting since early June.
Truitt stated that if the LCRA terminated its contract, the site would also build storage tanks to fill when there is abundant water. The developers know that the storage tanks will not last forever, but they are confident in their ability to supply enough water. Truitt says that developers share a common interest in maintaining the flow of the creek. Things could have been worse if someone else had purchased the land on which Mirasol builds. A developer could have built homes on the site without preserving land.