San Marcos The Hays County Commissioners Court this week voted 5-0 to adopt the Jacobs Well Natural Area Management Plan presented by landscape architecture and planning firm RVi of Austin.
The plan, a year in development, is meant to help guide the county in creating a visitor-friendly site while preserving the well and Cypress Creek on the 81-acre property near Wimberley.
The county acquired the site with funds from the 2007 voter-approved park bonds. Elements of the plan will be implemented as additional funding becomes available.
Jacobs Well, a perpetual artesian spring, is considered one of the longest underwater caves in Texas and is the main source for Cypress Creek, which forms the Blue Hole swimming area downstream and flows into the Blanco River.
Our goals for the site, in addition to protecting and preserving the well itself, are to have a premier educational facility and passive recreational area, Precinct 3 Commissioner Will Conley said. We want children and adults alike to learn about the sensitivity of the Jacobs Well area and the need to preserve our natural lands and water, and for visitors to the site to enjoy the trails, the natural landscape and Jacobs Well itself.
The plan RVi presented to the court includes an education center built into the side of a hill so that it appears to be part of the landscape, removal of unnecessary impervious cover and a fencing structure that changes throughout the area in consideration of different needs. Some existing trails will be improved and new trail areas redesigned to better accommodate foot traffic.
A five-way intersection will become a four-way one and parking for cars and buses will be improved. Visit
www.co.hays.tx.us/jacobswell for more information about the natural area and the master plan.
