City to postpone UNO vote to consult with UT

A vote on a long-debated plan to allow taller buildings and expanded development in the University Neighborhood Overlay district has been postponed until the fall, pushing back the move to add student housing capacity near the University of Texas.

The postponement request was outlined in a pair of May 30 memos from Planning Director Lauren Middleton-Pratt. It will move the Council’s consideration of the proposed zoning and land use changes from Thursday’s City Council meeting to September 25.

The delay is intended to let city staff “formally meet with the leadership of the University of Texas at Austin (UT) to understand the university’s challenges, concerns, and context that frames their issues.”

The changes under consideration would amend the city’s zoning map and Central Austin land use plan to allow greater density and building heights in West Campus, including towers up to 600 feet along Guadalupe Street and 420 feet in adjacent areas. The reforms are part of a broader effort to update the UNO district, which was originally adopted in 2004 to encourage student housing development within walking distance of campus.

Planning staff have proposed applying a new zoning designation known as DBUNO to over 250 acres in the district, creating affordability requirements, tenant protections, and updated design standards, including a ban on windowless bedrooms.

A UT spokesperson said the university will not comment on the delay.

Planning Commission member Greg Anderson said the delay could mean some proposed high-rise student housing projects won’t be completed in time for the fall 2027 semester. Anderson said he and other housing advocates have tried for months to discuss the proposed changes to university leaders without receiving any response.

“This delay definitely kills the delivery of some housing units,” he said. “And in this market, you’re just not seeing new construction at all in a lot of sectors. The fact that we were about to get some student housing breaking ground is a really big deal. With that being delayed, there’s a real cost to that.”

Anderson and others have pointed to concerns about affordability and livability for students, including high-pressure lease renewal tactics and lack of access to natural light in many existing units, as key motivations for the reform effort.

Anderson said the Planning Commission unanimously supported lifting height restrictions in the area and initiating broader reforms in response to development patterns that had stagnated in recent years. He noted that no new high-rise towers have broken ground since the city banned windowless bedrooms in new construction and expressed frustration with the timing of UT’s request for a delay.

“If there’s a two-year process to do something, we’d hope to hear from them sooner than a week before the final vote,” he said.

At the May 13 Planning Commission meeting where the items were approved, commenters ranged from offering broad support to expressing the need for the expected tall buildings in the area to have some compatibility considerations for the surrounding homes and other existing uses.

“Just beyond UNO’s current boundaries rent spike, the few units available are often taken by full groups splitting leases, which blocks out students who can’t afford to rent an entire house,” UT student Mario Perez said. “Students are being priced out of not just housing, but of opportunity of the full college experience and of the chance to build a future here.”

Photo made available through a Creative Commons license.

Posted In: Planning, District 9