Sometimes, despite their home’s historical ties, a family still believes it is time to sell it to a developer. One such example is a small 19th-century Victorian folk-style home at 1705 East Sixth St. It is one of the few buildings in the area still inhabited by a family, while the majority of the surrounding properties […]
Jessi Devenyns
Posted inPlanning
Landowner offers environmental concessions, gets commission approval for restricted covenant updates
Down in Southwest Austin, behind the Oak Hill HEB, is an undeveloped 18-acre parcel of land that is subject to a 1987 restrictive covenant. Currently, the undeveloped land at 6901 Old Bee Caves Road is zoned for commercial use, but because the landowner wants to change the zoning to mixed-use and increase building height from 35 […]
Posted inPlanning
Camelback PUD unanimously passes first reading at Council
In an uncharacteristically quick manner, City Council unanimously passed the first reading of the Camelback Planned Unit Development at Thursday’s meeting. The PUD, which has been the subject of great neighborly debate for the last several months, is a 145-acre property located just to the north of the Austin 360 bridge and comprises two tracts […]
Posted inWhispers
With a PUD, sometimes the second, third, or fourth try is the charm
Although the Environmental Commission previously recommended the planned unit development at 4907 RM 2222 – which was subsequently approved by Council on Dec. 14, 2017– the applicant neglected to ask for one last variance that would have allowed them to complete the project without a hitch. According to Dwayne Shoppa of Stantec, the applicant representing […]
Posted inEnergy
Austin Energy: Storage is the next hurdle to Austin’s renewable energy plan
The big conundrum facing energy utilities today is how to balance supply and demand for every second of every day. Although there are debates around the subject, the answer, albeit simple, seems to lie with storage. In the Austin Energy Resource, Generation and Climate Protection Plan there is a section that outlines the utility’s commitment […]
Posted inWhispers
This summer, energy was not only in high demand, but pricey
This past summer was Texas’ fifth-hottest on record with Austin experiencing 52 days of temperatures at or above 100 degrees. As was to be expected, people responded by cranking their air conditioners up, and causing the ERCOT grid to hit an all-time systemwide peak on July 19, followed by an all-time weekend peak on July […]
Posted inWhispers
Local solar project in the works
At the Oct. 15 meeting of the Electric Utility Commission, commissioners unanimously voted to recommend a power purchase agreement that would bring online a solar generation facility with a capacity of 144 megawatts. Although the exact location of the solar farm has not been disclosed per confidentiality restrictions during the negotiation process, it is within […]
Posted inPlanning
No-show at the Board of Adjustment almost gets denied variance
For the second month in a row, the case of 4913 Avenue G came before the Board of Adjustment, and for the second time, it was postponed due to logistics. Although last month the case was postponed due to issues with the notice, at the Oct. 8 meeting of the board the applicant on this […]
Posted inWater
Water and Wastewater Commission holds off on billing recommendation
Over a year after the water billing saga surfaced in the news, Austin Water and Austin Energy are still working to adjust internal processes in order to proactively prevent a similar situation from reoccurring. In their effort to do so, several months after the misreads were identified, Austin Water and Austin Energy formed a working […]
Posted inWhispers
100-year Water Forward plan to go to Council
After years of discussions, the Water Forward Task Force has completed its final draft of Austin’s Integrated Water Plan. Now on its fifth draft, the plan has received the blessing of multiple bodies, the latest of which was the Water and Wastewater Commission, which recommended it unanimously at their October 10 meeting. The plan will […]
Posted inDevelopment
Board of Adjustment denies variance for storage center sign
These days, a roadway sign is no longer the sole indicator of a business’ location, but merely confirmation that Google Maps did indeed lead to the desired location. “In the day of Google Maps … once you’ve been there, you know where it is,” said Board Member Melissa Hawthorne at the Oct. 8 meeting of […]
Posted inCity Hall
BoA fee adjustments cause high tempers
On Oct. 1 of this year, the Development Services Department enacted a new set of fees for those looking to come before the Board of Adjustment to have the board hear their applications for a code variance. Although increases are to be expected as Austin grows, this year’s fees associated with appearing before the board […]