TipSheet: Austin City Council, 9.21.23

It’s the second week in a row of City Council meetings, so it makes sense that this one might lack pizzazz. As usual, however, there are some standouts on the agenda, and we’ve compiled the things we’re keeping an eye on here. 

In November, voters approved a proposition intended to strengthen police oversight in the city. After that … not much has happened. This week, Council Member Zo Qadri has taken matters into his own hands with a resolution that is intended to rectify that.

Council is also set to approve incentives for NXP Semiconductors after taking a break from that type of thing for a while. The last hearing on the incentives was fairly peaceful, with a focus on child care that seemed to be resolved. But Central Texas Interfaith continues to have questions and is asking for a postponement until they are answered. 

As part of an overall effort to make changes to the Land Development Code more efficient, Council will consider convening a joint meeting with the Planning Commission to discuss occupancy limits and accessory dwelling units.

There are a lot of “planning” items on this week’s agenda that were covered during work session. First, it looks like the Palm District Plan, which has been languishing on the agenda for months, might actually be taken up. There’s also some movement on the HealthSouth development, with a resolution that focuses on affordable housing after that development fell apart recently. Council will also take up an item that focuses on “land management strategy and climate vulnerability analysis” that focuses on wildfire risk on city parkland, which was previously a gap. And plans for what the cap-and-stitch part of the Interstate 35 expansion will look like are starting to coalesce over a federal grant application that needs Council approval.

There are also a number of budget items that caught our attention. Austin Energy is looking to increase its budget by $20 million to cover costs associated with February’s “ice hurricane” Mara, though the utility hopes to get $15 million of that back through FEMA reimbursements. And there’s a whole lot of Convention Center money stuff going on. First is the approval of the marketing plan and budget, which is just over $28 million. In addition, Council will consider a series of loans to Austin Convention Enterprises Inc. – up to $38.75 million – to cover costs while it is closed during expansion.

In terms of zoning, we’re looking at some Brodie Oaks action and, potentially, a Montopolis downzoning and a rezoning on East 12th Street. 

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