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 […]
City of Austin Board of Adjustment
The city’s Board of Adjustment is a quasi-judicial body that decides on variances, special exceptions and can issue interpretations of code.
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 […]
Posted inDevelopment
Board of Adjustment postpones Travis Heights ADU case, again
Citing neighborly discord, the Board of Adjustment postponed for the third time a variance request to treat an already-standing 1930s bungalow as an accessory dwelling unit. In a creative solution to add more density and square footage to a lot, architect Norma Yancey designed a plan to flip-flop the traditional scenario of the main residence […]
Posted inDevelopment
Board of Adjustment fails to grant ‘ugly’ variance
On occasion, members of a neighborhood find a redevelopment project to be such an eyesore that they use it as their case as to why it shouldn’t be built in the first place. “We don’t need any more ugly. We’ve got a lot of it,” Mary Ingle, past president of the Austin Neighborhoods Council who was speaking […]
Posted inPlanning
BoA considers a quirky corner case
Sometimes, a permit can be granted or revoked based on a four-degree angle. “Even though I’m at an intersection, the city does not consider this a corner lot,” Joshua Lien, the owner of 14000 Echo Lane, explained to the Board of Adjustment at its Aug. 13 meeting. He was there to request a variance that […]
Posted inPlanning
For grandfathered signs, the proof is in the permitting
Occasionally, despite one’s best intentions to provide the right board or commission with the proper permitting to ensure a smooth continuation of a project, a request is presented incorrectly. “I’m not sure that this item is properly before the board,” Assistant City Attorney Brent Lloyd said to the Board of Adjustment at its Aug. 13 meeting, […]
Posted inCity Hall
Should Board of Adjustment have outside counsel?
Two members of the city’s Board of Adjustment argued strenuously in favor of providing outside legal counsel for the board when it is interpreting city code, but the assistant city attorney who has been advising the board for several years took the opposite stance at Tuesday’s City Council Audit and Finance Committee meeting. Board Chair […]
Posted inPlanning
Cellphone tower ruffles Board of Adjustment
Sometimes, if you don’t know what to do, you have to ask. Vincent Huebinger, representing Crown Castle International and Dean Davidov in a request to relocate a single-antenna cellphone tower to another location at 610 1/2 Kenniston Drive on the southeast corner of Airport Road and North Lamar Boulevard, came to the Aug. 13 meeting […]
Posted inPlanning
Board of Adjustment says yes to South Lamar student housing
On July 9, the Board of Adjustment approved the construction of a small university dormitory in the South Lamar neighborhood, despite the concerns of some neighbors that the proposed facility could create parking shortages on a narrow neighborhood street. The dorm would be located at 4004 Valley View Road and situated directly behind the Texas […]
Posted inLand Development Code
For CodeNEXT, signs of changes to come
CodeNEXT, Austin’s attempt to reform and simplify its Land Development Code, has been a lightning rod for controversy. Activists see the code, which controls everything from how high buildings can be built, how far back their foundations must be from the street and how much parking is legally required, as the solution to myriad big-city […]
Posted inPlanning
Views along scenic RM 2222 to remain unspoiled
At the July 9 Board of Adjustment meeting, the board rejected a variance request to adorn a scenic roadway with a monument. Park Centre, an office park located at 8601 RM 2222, sought to construct an additional “monument sign” for a second driveway to the property. Because that stretch of RM 2222 is a scenic roadway, […]