Concerns about family displacement and housing affordability prevented the Planning Commission from recommending approval of a proposed apartment complex in the Montopolis neighborhood Tuesday. In two different votes, the commission failed to garner the seven votes necessary to endorse the recommendation by city staff for the proposed 23-acre mixed-use development on Bastrop Highway and Ponca […]
City of Austin Planning Commission
This commission addresses issues of land use as assigned to it by Austin’s City Code. These include the abilities “[t]o make and amend a master plan, recommend approval or disapproval of proposed zoning changes and control land subdivision within neighborhood planning areas and submit, annually, a list of recommended capital improvements.” It has sovereign authority, or the right to make final decisions on certain cases.
Posted inDevelopment, Planning
Planning Commission recommends major PUD east of Austin
The Planning Commission recommended last week that City Council members approve a planned unit development for a massive mixed-use project in an unincorporated area of Travis County, about 10 miles east of the airport – where, if approved, the effort could span both sides of Pearce Lane. The panel unanimously gave the nod to the recommendation […]
Posted inDevelopment, Planning
South Lamar zoning error may have fix on the way
A costly mistake by the city may soon be fixed for one South Lamar business owner, but if the most recent Planning Commission meeting is any indication, the rezoning might not go down without a fight. Planning and Zoning Department senior planner Andy Moore explained that in 2014, WhichCraft Beer Store applied for a site […]
Posted inPlanning
Contact-team changes sail toward Council
This past fall, City Council asked for some uniformity and oversight for the city’s neighborhood-planning contact teams. And now, after hearing from stakeholders, those proposed changes are refined and on the way to becoming a reality. The Planning and Zoning Department is now recommending that the city clarify the role of the contact-team bylaws template […]
Posted inZoning
Planning Commission OKs condo development
Despite concerns raised by neighbors, including a telephone psychic who worried that the noise from nearby construction could harm her business, the Planning Commission unanimously recommended approval last week of a zoning change to facilitate the construction of six single-family residences at 2106 Allwood Drive and 2013 Bluebonnet Lane. Next-door neighbor Dede Spontak sold the […]
Posted inLand Development Code
PUD changes advance despite commission stalemate
Changes to the city’s Planned Unit Development policy are moving forward as quickly as promised, but they will be doing so without a recommendation from the Planning Commission. If approved by City Council, the proposed amendment to the city’s Planned Unit Development Ordinance would require a supermajority approval at Council when a land-use commission denies […]
Posted inDevelopment
Planning Commission punts controversial Thornton Road project to Council
Neighborhood activists appeared to score a partial victory Tuesday when the Planning Commission voted to forward a controversial proposal for a major development on Thornton Road to City Council without a recommendation. Although a majority of commissioners present voted to deny staff’s recommendation to approve the project, the panel fell one vote short of the […]
Posted inThe Code
Planning Commission OKs porch change
There were a lot of long discussions at the most recent meeting of the Planning Commission, but the discussion about changing the city’s Land Development Code in order to allow a more liberal approach to porches wasn’t one of them. The code amendment will allow street-facing porches to encroach 5 feet into the side-yard setback […]
Posted inThe Code
Small-lot code fix divides commissioners
Plans to tighten the city’s code to prevent an unintended use of the city’s small-lot amnesty provision are moving to City Council without a recommendation from the Planning Commission. Small-lot amnesty allows the development of lots as small as 2,500 square feet for neighborhoods that have opted in to the standards in their neighborhood plans. […]
Posted inLand Development Code
Planning Commission weighs in on STR regs
With a cry of “stop it now,” there was a moment during the Planning Commission’s Tuesday night meeting when it looked like commissioners would push to immediately eliminate Type 2 short-term rentals in residential areas. Eventually, that suggestion gave way to a more measured one, but commissioners still managed to get their point across: Short-term […]
Posted inAustin
Where have all the children gone? Commission studies Austin’s shrinking family share
Success has come at a cost for families with children in Austin. At its most recent meeting, the Planning Commission took a look at how decreased affordability is impacting families in Austin and started a conversation about how it might address the issue. Commissioners asked city demographer Ryan Robinson to give them the lay of the […]
Posted inPlanning
Planning Commission OKs removal of one, maybe two, downtown heritage trees
At its recent meeting, the Planning Commission approved a variance that could save or destroy a downtown heritage live oak. The would-be developer of 504 East Eighth St. was seeking a variance to remove two heritage trees that have a diameter of more than 30 inches. Such removal is allowed under city code, albeit through […]