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 […]
Planning
Posted inPlanning
Resource, funding needs will delay South Shore cultural district until 2027
The South Shore Cultural District remains in limbo as the city prioritizes funding and resources for other cultural districts, pushing any substantial progress on South Shore until at least Fiscal Year 2027. A recent city memo from Anthony Segura, interim director of the Economic Development Department, explained that despite City Council’s directive to support economic […]
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 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 inPlanning
New convention center design revealed at Council
Trisha Tatro, director of the Austin Convention Center, promised during Tuesday’s City Council work session a “world-class design” and the “first net-zero carbon convention center in the world.” Katy Zamesnik, assistant director of the convention center, told Council that Austin is the 11th-largest city in the United States but has the 61th-largest convention center. After […]
Posted inPlanning
Student housing union advocates for renters ahead of city’s UNO update
The University Tenants Union student group at the University of Texas has launched a new housing toolkit aimed at helping student renters better navigate the housing market in West Campus and surrounding areas. The organization, which advocates for tenant rights and policy reforms affecting student housing, developed the resource to centralize legal and practical guidance […]
Posted inPlanning
Downtown Commission wants all-new plan to address needs of city core
The Downtown Commission has recommended the city pursue a complete rewrite of the Downtown Austin Plan rather than making updates and smaller changes to a document that commissioners say doesn’t reflect the needs of the city’s core. The combination of increasing population, mobility challenges, overlapping redevelopment projects and other significant changes to the area are […]
Posted inPlanning
Equity overlay study draws criticism from Community Development Commission
The ongoing study of a potential equity overlay in East Austin is drawing concerns from residents and commissioners over its slow pace and lack of direct community engagement. At a recent meeting of the Community Development Commission, representatives from Atlanta-based APD Urban Planning and Management outlined their progress on the study but faced pointed questions […]
Posted inPlanning
Neighbors seek reversal of site plan approval for Bull Creek office building
It’s a case that never ends. The Champion sisters filed suit against the city in 1994 and again in 2004 over what they could and could not do with their property. At least one slice of that property is still the subject of argument. City Council is set on Thursday to hear an appeal from […]
Posted inPlanning
Planning Commission OKs re-rezoning in Montopolis
The Planning Commission voted to recommend a rezoning petition for a long-empty parcel of land in the Montopolis neighborhood during its Jan. 14 meeting. The vote was contrary to the recommendation of Planning Department staff, who cited concerns about road access and a lack of progress on development at the site since a previous rezoning […]
Posted inPlanning
City and county to invest in historically underserved Northeast Austin area
At its Tuesday meeting, the Travis County Commissioners Court heard an update on what Commissioner Jeff Travillion called a “Marshall Plan” for the rapidly developing Northeast Austin area, referring to the 1948 plan for the U.S. to help in Western Europe’s economic recovery after World War II. The Northeast Austin District Plan began in 2023 […]
Posted inDevelopment
Neighbors join forces to halt plans for new office space in Pecan Springs-Springdale
A proposal to upzone a residential cul-de-sac is ruffling feathers in the Pecan Springs-Springdale neighborhood, with a crowd of neighbors joining the Planning Commission meeting last week to voice their disapproval. The request originally sought to rezone 6102, 6106 and 6108 Cherrylawn Circle from single-family to mixed-use, laying the groundwork for the site of a […]