A hearing at the Planning Commission on a proposal by city staff to change land use plans around two Capital Metro park-and-ride sites in North and South Austin was postponed during a March 25 meeting after neighborhood advocates raised alarm. The postponed plan revolves around the North Lamar and South Congress transit centers, which Capital […]
Miles Wall
Posted inPlanning
A once-banned type of building is back in favor – and the Planning Commission approves
The Planning Commission approved several proposed amendments to an amendment of the city’s Technical Building Code during a meeting March 25, all of which address a peculiar kind of development called a “single-stair,” or “point-access” building. Point-access buildings are so named because they’re only accessible by a single point of entrance and exit. Small, single-stairway […]
Posted inZoning
ZAP recommends first-time zonings of former ‘Hickmuntown’ on city’s northwest edge
The Zoning and Platting Commission voted 6-2-1 to recommend first-time zonings for two plots of undeveloped land at a northwestern edge of the city in a case that emphasized the commission’s commitment to a maximalist housing policy. The lots in question are located at 11300 and 11301 Zimmerman Lane off Farm to Market Road 620, […]
Posted inPlanning
Planning Commission reverses city rejection of university-area site plan in an unusual case
The Planning Commission voted unanimously last week to reverse a decision by city planning staff to reject a site plan for a 142-unit student-oriented development at 2610 Hume Place, on appeal from the applicant, marking a rare use of the commission’s sovereign authority. Usually, city commissions have the power only to make recommendations to City […]
Posted inPlanning
New strategic plan for downtown streets keeps momentum with stamp from Planning Commission
The Planning Commission recommended a new plan for the city’s downtown streets with several amendments during a meeting on March 11, joining the Urban Transportation and Design commissions and including some of their respective recommendations for the plan. The document in question, called the Austin Core Transportation Plan, was prepared by the city’s Department of […]
Posted inZoning
Planning Commission OKs Manor Road rezoning following delays, neighborhood ire
The Planning Commission voted unanimously to recommend the removal of a lot at 2967 Manor Road from the Martin Luther King Jr. Transit-Oriented Development, or TOD, district during a meeting on March 11. Austin Growth Ventures, the real estate developer that requested the removal, acquired the lot in 2022. Currently the site is occupied by […]
Posted inTransportation
Urban Transportation Commission criticizes I-35 frontage road plan
The Urban Transportation Commission on March 4 unanimously passed a resolution strenuously recommending against the Texas Department of Transportation’s plan to widen Interstate 35 frontage roads downtown. The resolution specifically addressed the Central Austin project, which covers an 8-mile section of the interstate highway between U.S. Highway 290 in the north and State Highway 71 in […]
Posted inWhispers
Urban Transportation Commission gives stamp of approval to Project Connect DEIS
The Urban Transportation Commission voted unanimously to recommend a Draft Environmental Impact Statement, or DEIS, prepared by the Austin Transit Partnership for the light-rail portion of Project Connect. The Austin Monitor has previously reported on the DEIS, which remains open for public comment until March 11, as well as the ongoing litigation over the light-rail […]
Posted inPlanning
Urban Transportation Commission recommends new strategic plan for downtown streets
The Urban Transportation Commission voted unanimously to recommend that City Council approve a new strategic plan from the Department of Transportation and Public Works for the streets of Austin’s small-yet-mighty downtown, along with a list of their own recommendations regarding the plan, during a meeting on March 4. The new plan, called the Austin Core […]
Posted inEnvironment
Planning Commission endorses, amends updated erosion protections
The Planning Commission voted unanimously on Feb. 25 to recommend, with amendments, an ordinance proposed by the Watershed Protection Department to add new erosion protections to a section of the Colorado River below Longhorn Dam. The Austin Monitor has previously reported on the ordinance, which would increase the reach of an existing erosion hazard zone, […]
Posted inWhispers
Public comment on Project Connect environmental statement ends March 11
An opportunity to provide feedback on a Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) examining the potential for negative impacts of Project Connect’s planned light rail expansion on the city’s citizens, critters and environment ends March 11. The DEIS was previously reported on by the Austin Monitor and reporting partner KUT. Jennifer Pyne, executive vice president for […]
Posted inTransit
Austin Transit Partnership presents pedestrian features, changes to stops in revised Project Connect plan
The Mobility Committee of City Council heard an update on plans for the Austin light-rail project that included a proposal for three new pedestrian features along the prospective system, as well as changes to stops, during a meeting on Feb. 20. The new pedestrian features would be a hike-and-bike greenway consisting of a tree-lined, trackside […]