25-R-079 TXDOT-Funding Agreement Great Northern TrailRESOLUTION 25-R-079
A RESOLUTION BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
SCHERTZ, TEXAS AUTHORIZING THE CITY MANAGER TO SUBMIT
AN APPLICATION TO TXDOT FOR TRANSPORTATION
ALTERNATIVES FUNDING, AND ENTER INTO AN ADVANCED
FUNDING AGREEMENT WITH TXDOT IF THE PROJECT IS
SELECTED, FOR THE GREAT NORTHERN TRAIL TO SCHWAB
ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE PROJECT AND OTHER MATTERS IN
CONNECTION THEREWITH
WHEREAS, in January 2025, the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT)
announced a statewide Call for Projects for the Transportation Alternatives Set -Aside (TA)
Program to fund bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure that improves mobility, enhances safety,
and supports active transportation options; and
WHEREAS, the City of Schertz seeks to submit a competitive application for the
construction of the Great Northern Trail to Schwab Road Infrastructure Project, which will
expand the City's trail network and enhance regional connectivity through a shared -use path and
multimodal safety improvements; and
WHEREAS, this project will construct approximately three miles of 10-foot-wide
concrete shared -use path, including one segment extending north from FM 1103 along the
LCRA utility corridor to Cypress Point, and another beginning at the eastern terminus of
Schwab Road (east of IH-35), continuing to the Schertz Dry Comal Nature Park near FM 482;
and
WHEREAS, the proposed improvements will include amenities to enhance user safety
and comfort, including pedestrian hybrid beacons (PHBs), bank cuts to allow pedestrian and
bicycle access beneath the IH-35 overpass, and a new culvert and overhang structure to
facilitate safe passage under the Union Pacific railroad crossing; and
WHEREAS, this project aligns with the City's goals to improve non -vehicular mobility,
particularly for northern Schertz residents, and to provide greater access to the City's North and
West side and into Comal County; and
WHEREAS, the City has partnered with the Great Springs Project, a nonprofit
organization experienced in trail development and regional planning, to support the preparation
of this application and facilitate long-term collaboration across jurisdictions and agencies; and
WHEREAS, the Great Northern Trail serves as a key segment in the envisioned 100-mile
Great Springs Project trail network, connecting four of Texas' iconic springs —Barton Springs,
San Marcos Springs, Comal Springs, and San Antonio Springs —through a publicly accessible
green corridor; and
WHEREAS, the City's local match is 20% or $1,547,018.90 and will be funded with a
combination of projected Parkland Dedication fees and bonds, and the reimbursable federal
funding is 80% or $7,735,094.48; and
WHEREAS, City Council has determined that it is in the best interest of the City to
submit an application for Transportation Alternatives Funding for future trail development;
WHEREAS, City Council authorizes the City Manager to enter into an Advanced
Funding Agreement (AFA) with TXDOT if the project is selected.
BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF SCHERTZ, TEXAS
THAT:
Section 1. The City Council hereby authorizes city staff to submit an application to
TXDOT for Transportation Alternatives funding for the Great Northern Trail to Schwab Road
Infrastructure Project in the amount of $7,735,094.48 and enter into an Advance Funding
Agreement (AFA) with TXDOT if the project is selected.
Section 2. The recitals contained in the preamble hereof are hereby found to be true,
and such recitals are hereby made a part of this Resolution for all purposes and are adopted as a
part of the judgment and findings of the City Council.
Section 3. All resolutions, or parts thereof, which are in conflict or inconsistent with
any provision of this Resolution are hereby repealed to the extent of such conflict, and the
provisions of this Resolution shall be and remain controlling as to the matters resolved herein.
Section 4. This Resolution shall be construed and enforced in accordance with the
laws of the State of Texas and the United States of America.
Section 5. If any provision of this Resolution or the application thereof to any person
or circumstance shall be held to be invalid, the remainder of this Resolution and the application
of such provision to other persons and circumstances shall nevertheless be valid, and the City
Council hereby declares that this Resolution would have been enacted without such invalid
provision.
Section 6. It is officially found, determined, and declared that the meeting at which
this Resolution is adopted was open to the public and public notice of the time, place, and subject
matter of the public business to be considered at such meeting, including this Resolution, was
given, all as required by Chapter 551, Texas Government Code, as amended.
Section 7. This Resolution shall be in force and effect from and after its final
passage, and it is so resolved.
PASSED AND ADOPTED, this %day o . 025.
CI OF SCHERTZ, TEXAS
Ral L ierr Mayor
ATTEST:
Shi' a tamondson, City Secretary