Hi, Rosedale neighbors!

We were drawn to this beautiful neighborhood because it's a walkable, quiet pocket of Austin where our children can safely play, run to each other’s houses, and grow up surrounded by neighbors who know and look out for one another.

A six-story, 435-unit apartment complex proposed for the Rosedale School property just doesn't fit.

A group of neighbors has established this GoFundMe account to help pay the cost of fighting against that development. We call ourselves Play Fair With Rosedale. I'm Daniel Ray, one of your neighbors, and I'm the custodian for this account.

We need your support. The first, immediate need is to hire a lawyer. Austin Independent School District, which owns the property, has petitioned the city for a zoning change to permit the highest possible density development on the property. Among other impacts, this would pour hundreds of cars a day onto three neighborhood streets that cannot support this traffic.

But before the first shovel is turned, AISD must get a judge to overturn deed restrictions that forbid this use.

Funds donated here will let us hire an advocate to say the deed restrictions are still in effect. Should that effort fail, a larger, longer campaign may be necessary to advocate for limiting development to something the neighbors can support.

It is our intention to refund any excess funds at the end of the campaign, on a pro-rata basis, to donors who identify themselves during the donation process.

UPDATE Nov. 5, 2025:

This is amazing! In less than 48 hours, we reached our initial goal of $25,000. What's next?

We have a clear plan for how we'll deliver funds to benefit the Rosedale neighborhood.

It begins with hiring and paying an attorney to defend in court the deed restrictions held by homeowners nearest the school.

I am one of those homeowners -- my wife and I live less than 200 feet from the school. Maisey the wonder dog and I walk there daily.

The clear language of the restrictions gives us veto power over high-density development at the school property, but we will need to go to court and convince a judge that the restrictions mean what they say. That battle alone could consume the entire fund (though we hope not). The outcome of the court battle will determine next steps, and what we spend any remaining money on.

If we lose, the battle will move to the political arena, which will have its own challenges and costs, which we will share with you as the landscape takes shape.

Keep an eye on www.PlayFairWithRosedale.org, a new website that will launch this week. Me and your other neighbors who created this GoFundMe account will post updates and information there to help the neighborhood keep abreast of the Rosedale School development project, and to speak to power about it with a single, forceful voice.