Play Fair With Rosedale

Dear Editor,

I see today the headline that Austin ISD has approved a plan to close 10 schools, and I really feel for those communities, for an extra reason beyond the potential loss of their cherished community hubs.

Things in the Rosedale neighborhood and its former school are a bit different but may provide notice to keep a watchful eye on those other school sites.

As part of a plan to address its budget shortfall, AISD is in a contract to sell the former Rosedale school property to the developer OHT, which proposes building a 435-unit there. First, AISD has filed a petition for a declaratory judgment to nullify a restriction in the property deeds of roughly 125 Rosedale homeowners that live closest to the school, collectively known as “Subdivision H.”

AISD has also applied to rezone the site for highest density possible. In a well-attended community meeting earlier this fall, OHT estimated the site would be accessed by approximately 800 vehicles via 2-3 regular Rosedale streets, as this former school is not located directly on Burnet Road as AISD suggests.

In a recent email update to the Rosedale community, AISD tried for a sympathetic tone but seemed to frame the Rosedale community as opposed to any development, which is not the case at all. Rosedale opposes a high-density development that is obscenely inappropriate for the site and would clog neighborhood streets (many without sidewalks, so our pedestrians, bikers, etc. are mainly on the roads) with an unthinkable amount of traffic. Hence our call to “Play Fair With Rosedale.”

Updates from the Rosedale community (and a possible cautionary tale for other neighborhoods?) are available at playfairwithrosedale.org.

Victoria Rios

Hope for the Holidays

Dear Editor,

I am writing to ask the people that can donate a little money to a charity organization, Salvation Army, United Way, or even a food pantry. We have a lot of people such as the elderly, adults with mental disabilities, and single mothers struggling to feed their children and pay rent. I am asking you with love and all these organizations that help with this kind of things are running out of funds quick. They NEED US! GOD BLESS YOU ALL!!

Velma Walker

Luv Doc: Seemingly Human

Dear Editor,

Keen answer, Doc [“The Luv Doc: Simple Logistics,” Columns, Nov. 20].
You seem to be one of the Human Beings.
With insight, no less.

Thx
JK

Doggone It

Dear Editor,

The Free Will Astrology is garbage. It’s turned into Stuart Smalley self-affirmations, even worse than normal lukewarm horoscopes. My reading this week was just three quotes. That’s a type of laziness that Free Will Astrology’s writers should have warned themselves about.

Ryan Stone

This article appears in November 28 • 2025.

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