WilCo Officials Celebrate Brushy Creek Trail Completion

WILLIAMSON COUNTY, TX — County officials on Thursday — and likely for days, weeks and months to come amid the doldrums of coronavirus — are celebrating the opening of the Brushy Creek Regional Trail Phase V located in Precinct 1.

The .9 mile segment of the trail starts near the shore of Brushy Creek at the northwest corner of the Creekside Plaza Shopping Center in Round Rock, located at Chisholm Trail and Round Rock Avenue. The project was designed by RVi Planning + Landscape Architecture, while contractor Chasco Constructors, started building the project in October 2018.

All told, the project cost approximately $3.1 million financed with 2013 voter-approved Williamson County Park Bonds and a Texas Department of Transportation grant of $826,000 funded by the Federal Highway Administration.

The Brushy Creek Regional Trail Phase V project has one entrance and exit and has a marked dead end where trail users must turn back around and follow the same route to exit the trail, officials explained in an advisory. The trail incorporates the natural beauty of the creek with man-made elements, such as an elevated boardwalk, as well as a stunning 100-foot steel pedestrian bridge that spans the width of the creek.

“I am excited for today’s opening of this segment of the Brushy Creek Regional Trail" Senior Director of Parks Russell Fishbeck said in a prepared statement. "This section of trail is absolutely beautiful. There are so many wonderful spots to stop and lose track of time listening to the rippling water of the flowing creek. The pedestrian bridge is a sight to see and a perfect photo stop for your next Instagram post. Come take a stroll and enjoy the wonderful outdoors."

The Brushy Creek Regional Trail is part of the overall Williamson County Trails Master Plan. The trail is being developed in phases through multiple cities, and aims to ultimately be a connecter from Cedar Park to Hutto. The next phase of planning, which was made possible through the voter-approved 2019 Williamson County Park Bonds, includes hiring a consultant to further plan, design, and facilitate construction of the approximately 1.5-mile gap between this trail and the Brushy Creek Regional Trail that currently ends along Hairy Man Road.

“This is a fantastic trail for all of our residents. As the song I wrote for the ribbon cutting video states, ‘One day it’ll go further east and west. Today you’ll have many smiles, but for now, it’s .9 miles,’” Williamson County Precinct 1 Commissioner Terry Cook observed. “I look forward to the next phases of the trail when it will connect to Round Rock’s Heritage trail to the east and to the existing Brushy Creek Regional Trail to the west.”

Given the ongoing — and seemingly growing — reach of the respiratory illness pandemic, Cook and Fishbeck on Thursday invited guests to a virtual ribbon-cutting ceremony that was presented as a sing-along style video. Other consultants, including Chasco Constructors and RVi Planning + Landscape Architecture, were also featured in the virtual ribbon-cutting ceremony.

To be sure, it's a project worth singing about. To watch the entertaining online event, visit https://youtu.be/GF7udIbyrTs or just click below.