City Council gave first reading approval last week for a request to rezone a property at 1400 E. Fourth St., within the Plaza Saltillo transit-oriented development plan for the area. The applicant requested to increase the allowed height of a proposed office building on the site from 40 to 85 feet. City staff and the […]
Plaza Saltillo
Capital Metro’s 11-acre tract in East Austin is slated to be developed by Endeavor Real Estate Group after a 20-year process.
Posted inPlanning
Planning Commission struggles with latest Plaza Saltillo rezoning
The Planning Commission, unable to accept a height increase for an office project in the Plaza Saltillo area amidst concerns about the building’s design, sent the case to Council without a recommendation Tuesday. The office project will replace Fair Market, an event space, and take up the southern half of the block bordered by Waller, […]
Posted inPlanning
Council looks to adjust TOD density bonus programs
An extra helping of housing for low-income families could be coming to near East Austin soon thanks to action taken by City Council on Thursday. The body unanimously supported an item sponsored by Council Member Pio Renteria and aimed at allowing Austin Habitat for Humanity to build substantially more units on two adjacent properties than […]
Posted inDevelopment
Updated: Plaza Saltillo development finally breaks ground
A giant empty field east of downtown Austin has at long last commenced its transformation into hundreds of apartments and thousands of square feet of office, retail and restaurant space. On Tuesday, Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority President and CEO Linda Watson presided over the official groundbreaking on the agency’s 10-acre Plaza Saltillo tract. Scores of […]
Posted inCity Council
Plaza Saltillo survives near derailment
The Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Plaza Saltillo development survived a harrowing journey at City Council on Thursday night, but just barely. Council eventually voted early Friday morning to approve the zoning request sought by the developer, Endeavor Real Estate Group, after a protracted discussion that featured two impassioned and opposing monologues from Council members Ora […]
Posted inReporters' Notebook
Reporter’s Notebook: More on Agenda 21
Alternative facts? In our media? It’s more likely than you think… Over the weekend, Zoning and Platting Commissioner Jim Duncan seized the rhetorical zeitgeist in a letter to City Council members, wherein he warned them that the commission had not, as initially reported by the Austin Business Journal, “reject(ed) Milestone Community Builders’ request to rezone a portion of […]
Posted inCity Council
Plaza Saltillo advances amid accusations of broken promises
After years in the making, the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Plaza Saltillo is only one vote away from its ultimate fate. City Council on Thursday night gave second-reading approval to the zoning change that will clear the way for the project, albeit slightly shorter than the developer, Endeavor Real Estate Group, originally proposed. The vote […]
Posted inDevelopment
Plaza Saltillo moves forward, shorter for now
City Council gave provisional approval to the long-gestating Plaza Saltillo project on Thursday evening, but in a form dramatically different from what the developer proposed. As he signaled he would during a work session on Tuesday, Council Member Pio Renteria offered a first-reading motion that would reduce the height of a proposed office tower on […]
Posted inDevelopment
Labor group calls foul on Plaza Saltillo document
As Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Plaza Saltillo development project snakes its way through City Hall, one prominent labor rights group is raising concerns about the transit agency’s partner in the deal. The Workers Defense Project shared with the Austin Monitor a document created by Endeavor Real Estate Group that touts worker protections that fall short […]
Posted inHousing
Council approves fee-in-lieu for more housing
Greg Anderson, director of operations for Austin Habitat for Humanity, pronounced his organization “happy, happy, happy” on Friday. The declaration came after City Council approved a deal that would allow Cielo Property Group to build a new mixed-use project with a slightly higher density than would be allowed without Council approval and to give Austin […]
Posted inDevelopment
Plaza Saltillo agreement falls short of labor advocates’ approval
The Capital Metro Transportation Authority’s board of directors on Monday approved the terms of its partnership with private developers to bring a massive urban infill project to the eastern gate of downtown Austin. At its monthly meeting, the board voted 7-0 on the master agreement between Capital Metro and Endeavor Real Estate Group to redevelop […]
Posted inDevelopment
Travis Dems target Capital Metro with labor resolution
The Travis County Democratic Party has thrown its weight behind the effort to provide rigorous protections for construction workers hired to build a massive infill project on land owned by the Capital Metro Transportation Authority. At the party’s annual convention on Saturday, delegates approved a resolution calling on all elected officials to insist that all […]