Newsletter Signup
The Austin Monitor thanks its sponsors. Become one.
Most Popular Stories
- How Trump’s federal funding freeze is beginning to affect Austin
- APD won’t enforce SB 14 as Paxton and Trump further attack gender-affirming health care
- After shutting off mental health care for Austin musicians, SIMS Foundation restarts services
- Council approves call for better coordination, planning among downtown projects
- Austin ISD announces hiring freeze as budget deficit grows to $110 million
-
-
Discover News By District
-
Popular Whispers
- Council Member Mike Siegel will speak out against cuts to federal services
- City manager hosts community meetings on next year’s budget
- DAA offers a look at future of Sixth Street entertainment district
- RRCD names Klepadlo as executive director
- Zero Waste Advisory Commission adds own ‘no’ rec on merge with RMC
Stories by Jonathan Lee
Setback controversy delays East Austin townhomes
A developer planning to build seven townhomes in the Chestnut neighborhood ran into opposition April 12, as neighbors and members of the Planning Commission opposed a request to build closer to single-family homes than allowed by city code. Developer Urban…
Development • By Jonathan Lee • Apr 19, 2022
Planning Commission prods developer to talk with tenants facing displacement
Tenants don’t often speak at public meetings on zoning cases that affect them. But when they do, people seem to listen. At least that was the case Tuesday when the Planning Commission heard from Andrew McKenna, a North Austin resident…
Zoning • By Jonathan Lee • Apr 15, 2022
Statesman PUD wins initial approval
One of the most anticipated redevelopment projects in Austin’s history has moved one step closer to approval. City Council Thursday unanimously approved Planned Unit Development (PUD) zoning on the first of three readings for the former Austin-American Statesman site, whose…
Planning • By Jonathan Lee • Apr 11, 2022
ZAP divided on rezoning for neighborhood bar on Menchaca
The Zoning and Platting Commission disagreed Tuesday on a request to zone a South Austin property to allow liquor sales and commercial use amid concern from neighbors over noise and traffic. The rezoning concerns a 5-acre tract at 11530 Menchaca…
Zoning • By Jonathan Lee • Apr 8, 2022
Staffers provide update on new equity-focused historic preservation plan
As Austin faces rapid change, the city is drafting a new equity-based preservation plan – replacing the existing plan from 1981 – in hopes of better preserving Austin’s cultural heritage. “Much has changed in Austin over the past 40 years…
Preservation • By Jonathan Lee • Apr 5, 2022
Historic zoning for Chrysler Air Temp house draws mixed opinions
An Allandale house that helped pioneer the use of air conditioning in middle-class homes is up for historic zoning against the owner’s wishes. The Zoning and Platting Commission was split Tuesday on whether to recommend historic zoning, as members wrestled…
Preservation • By Jonathan Lee • Apr 1, 2022
Subscribe to our newsletter
An inflexible code puts small landlord’s business at risk
Prospective salon tenants have been knocking on the door of Stephen Straus’ charming house-turned-office at 3402 Kerbey Lane for months, only to be turned away because of the city’s rigid land development rules. Though a salon would be an ideal…
Zoning • By Jonathan Lee • Mar 28, 2022
Proposed VMU changes stir compatibility controversy
The Planning Commission has recommended changes to the Vertical Mixed-Use density bonus program to let developers build taller in exchange for more affordable housing – but only after animated discussion about compatibility standards. The proposed change, if passed into ordinance…
Land Development Code • By Jonathan Lee • Mar 25, 2022
Planning Commission weighs in on mobility plan updates
As the city works to update the Austin Strategic Mobility Plan, a 20-year transportation plan adopted in 2019, the Planning Commission was the latest body to comment on the proposed changes March 8. City staffers propose two sets of changes…
Planning • By Jonathan Lee • Mar 22, 2022
ZAP unable to mediate inter-church zoning dispute
The Zoning and Platting Commission couldn’t agree on a rezoning for an apartment project with up to 300 units, in part because of a disagreement between two churches about a restrictive covenant. After multiple failed motions on March 1, the commission…
Zoning • By Jonathan Lee • Mar 18, 2022
Using neighborhood demographics might create deeply affordable housing. It might also be illegal.
As Austin’s housing affordability crisis deepens, public officials and advocates are looking for ways to create more income-restricted homes – especially those that are affordable to people at the lowest end of the income spectrum. One idea, floated by the…
Housing • By Jonathan Lee • Mar 15, 2022
Over 200 affordable homes planned on city-owned property in East Austin
An affordable housing project called the Libertad is set to bring over 200 affordable homes to city-owned property in East Austin. The project at 900 Gardner Road will be built on a vacant, 8.5-acre slice of a larger property that…
