Longtime Austin residents and historic preservation advocates have new data to back up their defense of neighborhood character thanks to a report that has made its way into local CodeNEXT discussions. Last week, Council Member Leslie Pool shared a link to the Atlas of ReUrbanism, published late last year, on the City Council Message Board […]
CodeNEXT
CodeNEXT is the name given to the land development code rewrite process undertaken in the early 2010s by the City of Austin.
Posted inLand Development Code
Commission fights for seat at CodeNEXT table
The Zoning and Platting Commission has been perceived by some as the proverbial “stick in the mud” since the CodeNEXT drafting process began earlier this year, but a resolution passed at City Council’s most recent meeting reiterates the commission’s inability to stop the scheduled third reading of the new code by Council next April. According […]
Posted inLand Development Code
CodeNEXT likely to ditch transect zones
One of the key concepts underpinning the proposed revamp of the city’s land development code will likely not be included in the next draft of the proposal, city staff informed City Council members Wednesday. The team responsible for drafting the new code is considering getting rid of transect zones, Jerry Rusthoven of the Planning and […]
Posted inLand Development Code
Flexibility, affordability top CodeNEXT concerns for creatives
Ambitions for flexible arts spaces, affordable living options and improved transit options are some of the common themes among artists and their supporters considering how they want CodeNEXT to reshape the city’s growth. Those viewpoints were among the dozens offered Wednesday at a forum for musicians and other creatives organized by the city’s Music and […]
Posted inLand Development Code
Austin architects say CodeNEXT limits opportunity for ‘missing middle’ housing
As Austin’s new land development code, known as CodeNEXT, is being written, city staff and the private sector are working to understand how it will shape future development. Last month, members of the Austin Chapter of the American Institute of Architects tried their hand at applying the new code to neighborhoods across the city. A […]
Posted inLand Development Code
CodeNEXT proposes new program to bolster affordable housing
CodeNEXT, the proposed overhaul of the city’s Land Development Code, dramatically expands an existing city program that offers developers incentives to build housing reserved for low- and middle-income buyers and renters. In a presentation to City Council members on Wednesday, the consultants hired to craft CodeNEXT explained that the “density bonus” program included in the […]
Posted inLand Development Code
Evolve Austin wants to make the case for density
A coalition of businesses and nonprofits hopes to mobilize people to support a new Land Development Code that will make Austin more compact and connected. On Monday, Evolve Austin announced its plans for a yearlong grassroots campaign fueled by volunteer canvassers knocking on doors or soliciting people in public places. The goal is to raise […]
Posted inAustin
CodeNEXT activists sign on with opposing petitions
Whoever “Austin Neighbor” is, they’re not happy about the city’s plans to increase housing density under CodeNEXT. In a quirk of 21st-century digital advocacy, the change.org online petition website features a pair of somewhat oppositional petitions related to efforts to rewrite the city’s Land Development Code. One, created by local affordable housing advocate Tommy Ates, […]
Posted inLand Development Code
What businesses are coming to your neighborhood under CodeNEXT?
Mayor Steve Adler continues to assure the public that City Council still has ample time to “calibrate” CodeNEXT. The reassurance is in response to myriad concerns about how the proposed overhaul of the city’s Land Development Code will impact neighborhoods. Early meetings on the subject have displayed just how hard it will be to come […]
Posted inMonitor News & Media
Introducing CodeNEXT HUB
For years, we’ve done our best to make CodeNEXT easier for Austinites to understand. And now we have a lot of help. Keeping track of what’s going on with the city’s Land Development Code rewrite is a daunting task, to be sure. But it’s also an important one. So, in an effort to make more […]
Posted inLand Development Code
Consultants dodge questions on ideology behind CodeNEXT
Making a rare appearance, an elephant was spotted waltzing through the Boards and Commissions Room at City Hall during the May 30 land use joint commission meeting. Supposedly, the large creature has always been in the room during CodeNEXT work sessions, but nobody wants to acknowledge it – profit. Everyone knows developers make a killing […]
Posted inReporters' Notebook
Reporter’s Notebook: This week in conflict management
Fighting for privacy in the nude… During a special City Council meeting Wednesday, John Miki, one of the consultants leading the proposed overhaul of the city’s Land Development Code, described some of the community divisions over development that he encountered not long ago during a tour of the Crestview neighborhood. After noticing a recently constructed […]