Downtown activist Chris Riley is asking the Austin City Council to take a second look at the Third Street rail trestle, a wooden rail crossing over Shoal Creek in downtown Austin that could soon be demolished if the Council approves a change order on the Ullrich pipeline projec t today. Removal of the railway trestle […]
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City's SMART Housing initiative
Results of the city's SMART Housing initiative–an effort to encourage the inclusion of low and moderately priced housing units in residential construction–have exceeded all city estimates this year, a housing official reported told the Planning Commission last night. More than 1,700 SMART Housing units are currently in the works, well ahead of the 500 units […]
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AMLI Residential and Bonner Carrington faced another obstacle last night in their quest to put a seven-story residential/retail midrise on the revitalized Second Street corridor in downtown Austin. The Historic Landmark Commission voted 5-2, with Commission Chair Lauretta Dowd absent, to delay AMLI’s request to demolish the Tips Warehouse, which currently sits on the site in the 200 Block of West Second Street.
Along with the city's lease of the Poleyard property to Post Properties, the AMLI-Bonner Carrington project has been promoted as a significant catalyst for the return of residential living to Austin's core. AMLI-Bonner Carrington has proposed six stories of apartments with street-level retail space, all on top of a two-level underground garage. The project would […]
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City Council approves zoning
For Chestnut Neighborhood plan The City Council last week approved on first reading a Neighborhood Plan Combining District for the Chestnut Neighborhood of East Austin. The area is bounded on the north by Martin Luther King Boulevard, on the east by Miriam Avenue to the railroad tracks, on the south by East 12th Street, and […]
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City Council starts negotiations
The City Council voted Thursday to begin the public portion of negotiating with the owners of the 4,200-acre Steiner Ranch to settle a lawsuit in much the same way that the city settled disputes with Gary Bradley. City Attorney Andy Martin presented a five-page term sheet, which will be the basis of negotiations between THL […]
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City Council set for final arguments
City Council Members met once again Wednesday to sing from different hymnals on the subject of what bond propositions to put before the voters in November. If you read Tuesday’s edition of In Fact Daily, rest assured that you missed very little by not watching Channel 6 yesterday. Mayor Kirk Watson and Council Members Daryl […]
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Dallas Mayor says rejecting Light
Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk barely touched on Light Rail during his luncheon presentation before Real Estate Council of Austin on Tuesday. That is, right up until Light Rail opponent Gerald Daugherty stood up and asked if Kirk felt it wise for Austin voters to approve Light Rail, based on the fact that DART can only […]
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City Council approves only
Mayor Pro Tem Jackie Goodman gave Mayor Kirk Watson the fifth vote he needed Monday to put $150 million in road bonds on the November ballot. Goodman also provided the even more important fourth vote for Council Member Daryl Slusher’ s plan to offer voters the chance to allocate $13.4 million for land acquisition. The […]
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City Council under pressure to add
The pressure on Mayor Pro Tem Jackie Goodman to vote for a bond package that garnered only three votes at last week’s City Council meeting has been intense. Bill Bunch, executive director of the Save Our Springs Alliance (SOSA), sent an email to the SOSA mailing list urging all to contact Goodman by phone or […]
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At Thursday's City Council discussion on bond proposals for the Nov. 7 ballot, just about everyone talked about the need for balance. Voting in favor of the road bonds were Mayor Kirk Watson and Council Members Daryl Slusher, Will Wynn and Raul Alvarez. Council Members Beverly Griffith and Danny Thomas abstained. Mayor Pro Tem Jackie Goodman was absent, attending the Democratic
Griffith continued her plea from the previous week for roads, parks/open space and affordable housing bonds that support the three "Es"–economy, environment and equity. But Griffith, with support from Council Members Danny Thomas and Raul Alvarez, couldn't muster enough votes for the parks and housing bonds to break a three-to-three tie against the nays of […]
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Triangle development gets warm
City to pick up $6 million in parkland, infrastructure costs It was hard to imagine at Tuesday night's Planning Commission meeting that the Triangle development had ever been looked upon as anything other than a great idea. The hour-long presentation to the Planning Commission, in which the city was asked to contribute almost $6 million […]
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Gary Bradley has it all mapped out, at least in his own mind, for how he plans to make a profit at his Circle C development and neighboring subdivisions. (To see the map, click here: circlecmap.jpg) Bradley was fairly blunt Monday night when he addressed the Save Barton Creek Association and shared some of his ideas, which include limiting competition from Hays County developments and enticing residential buyers to his subdivisions with the addition of a major employer. Many of his ideas hinge on changing roadway plans, claiming to benefit both himself and the environment.
The main thrust of his presentation was a proposal to trade a crucial piece of Barton Creek property for the right to add a major employer on the commercial portion of the Circle C development near the terminus of MoPac South and State Highway 45. (See In Fact Daily, August 14, 2000). The agreement with […]