Court orders Council to put CodeNEXT petition on the ballot

A district judge has ordered City Council to put a petition on the November ballot that, if passed, would require Land Development Code rewrites, such as CodeNEXT, to be approved by voters.

The judge ruled that Council has a duty to put the measure on the ballot in November.

To be clear, voters will not be weighing in on CodeNEXT in November. They will be voting on whether to require a vote on such development code rewrites.

The city had argued that it was illegal to put zoning measures on the ballot.

“The city council, by state law, has to have a mandatory hearing before doing zoning. Because you can’t have a hearing before the entire electorate, that’s the rationale,” said Jane Webre, attorney for the city.

Lawyer Fred Lewis argued against the city.

“To keep people from voting, there has to be a clear and compelling reason. It isn’t just that the city has a good argument, they have to have the only argument that’s reasonable,” Lewis said.

Without an inextricable link between zoning and land development, Lewis argued state law shouldn’t prohibit the public from voting on a future iteration of the Land Development Code.

In an emailed statement, the city acknowledged the order.

“While we respect the Judge’s decision, it leaves unresolved questions about whether zoning is an appropriate subject for election,” the statement said.

Austin’s current Land Development Code features 400 pages of zoning in a 1,254-page document, and zoning has been the largest chapter in every CodeNEXT draft.

In March, activists filed a petition with the city asking that residents get a chance to vote on all land development code rewrites, including, eventually, CodeNEXT. Once that petition was certified, Council members had two options: either accept the changes in the petition or put it to a public vote.

In an unusual move, Council members voted to do neither, citing outside counsel who told them Texas courts have ruled zoning matters should not go on a ballot. Council was split for that vote, with Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo and Council members Alison Alter, Ora Houston and Leslie Pool voting against.

CodeNEXT has further defined the cracks between neighborhood preservationists and those who support denser housing.

Download (PDF, 99KB)

This story was produced as part of the Austin Monitor’s reporting partnership with KUT. Photo by Martin do Nascimento/KUT.

The Austin Monitor’s work is made possible by donations from the community. Though our reporting covers donors from time to time, we are careful to keep business and editorial efforts separate while maintaining transparency. A complete list of donors is available here, and our code of ethics is explained here.