Big Subdivision Set at Comal Ranch
By Roger Croteau, San Antonio Express-News
Jan. 5–NEW BRAUNFELS — Construction of a huge new subdivision is ready to begin on one of Comal County’s largest remaining undeveloped areas.
About 2,200 homes are slated to be built on the 2,900-acre Rompel Ranch, located on the north side of Texas 46 west of New Braunfels. Few ranches of that size remain in the fast-growing county.
The plat for the first phase of Vintage Oaks at the Vineyard, which includes 256 home lots, was approved Thursday by the Comal County Commissioners Court.
County commissioners said questions about water availability for that many homes have been answered. The Canyon Lake Water Supply Corp. will provide the water, and the homes, with minimum 1-acre lot sizes, will be served by septic systems.
“That is one of our biggest ranches left, and right behind it is another 800-acre ranch that is being bought by a developer,” said County Commissioner Jack Dawson, adding that Vintage Oaks promises to be a high-quality development with space set aside for a park and greenbelt.
It would be the second-largest subdivision in Comal County, behind only the 2,800-lot Mystic Shores, located at Canyon Lake, which was built by the same developer, Bluegreen Land.
Vintage Oaks would be larger than River Chase, a 1,700-lot subdivision on FM 306.
County Judge Danny Scheel said he knows of only one larger undeveloped tract in the county.
“It just bothers me to see all these ranches I remember as a child disappearing,” Scheel said. “It makes me sick to see them going away. But with the price of land, I can’t blame them for selling them.
“It just makes it so much more important that we preserve conservation areas as quickly as possible to ensure that future generations can enjoy part of Comal County like it used to be.” Bluegreen has its headquarters in Boca Raton, Fla., and has a regional office in Wimberley.
Commissioners urged Bluegreen Land representative John Lyon to set aside land for a new fire station.
“With 2,200 homes out there, and the way that whole area is developing, we need a spot for a fire station,” County Commissioner Jay Millikin said.
Millikin also said he was upset because the developer already was advertising lots for sale on billboards and radio spots before the subdivision even received county approval.
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