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- For the first time in 20 years, more people are leaving Travis County than moving in
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Stories by Jessi Devenyns
Texas’ oldest psychiatric facility faces demolition but is eligible to be a historic landmark
This past legislative session, lawmakers identified the Austin State Hospital as a top health care funding priority and set aside $165 million for its refurbishment. Texas Health and Human Services and the University of Texas at Austin’s Dell Medical School…
Preservation • By Jessi Devenyns • Oct 8, 2019
Pioneer Crossing PUD changes course, adding parkland
Having passed through and received an approval recommendation from the Zoning and Platting Commission on Sept. 17 for its 14th amendment, the Pioneer Crossing planned unit development arrived at the Environmental Commission on Oct. 2. A 376-acre portion of the…
Zoning • By Jessi Devenyns • Oct 7, 2019
Developer offers extra parkland to speed construction
Pioneer Crossing at 10930 Defender Trail is an old, undeveloped planned unit development that City Council approved in 1997. A history of foreclosures and bankruptcy has left the 1,410-acre parcel fragmented between various owners. Nevertheless, the site is still beholden…
Development • By Jessi Devenyns • Oct 4, 2019
State law leaves the Historic Landmark Commission in gridlock
Getting a property zoned historic when the owner opposes it requires a supermajority vote at City Council. Yet even getting such a case before Council is an endeavor that requires the support of the Historical Landmark and Planning commissions. Prior…
Preservation • By Jessi Devenyns • Oct 2, 2019
Historic Herrera homestead heads to Council with Planning Commission approval
It’s rare that a structure is zoned historic against an owner’s wishes. According to Preservation Austin, it has happened only three times since 1974; however, that number may be about to grow to four. Following in the footsteps of the…
Preservation • By Jessi Devenyns • Oct 1, 2019
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Historic Landmark Commission contemplates bending rules for influential Mexican American activist
Sometimes a house is more than a home. In the case of Edward Rendon Sr., his home served as a community center that some say is as meaningful to the neighborhood today as it was 40 years ago. Rendon was…
Preservation • By Jessi Devenyns • Sep 27, 2019
Masonic Lodge construction plans may never satisfy Historic Landmark Commission
For three months in a row, the Historic Landmark Commission has made it clear that the design for a modern addition to the Royal Arch Masonic Lodge on the corner of Seventh and Lavaca streets will not easily get its…
Preservation • By Jessi Devenyns • Sep 26, 2019
Community concerns with teeth: Council postpones vote on animal-related code changes
Austin is the largest no-kill city in the country and residents would like to keep it that way. Yet some have expressed concern that maintaining the animal shelter’s no-kill status could come at the expense of community safety. Although much…
City Council • By Jessi Devenyns • Sep 25, 2019
Should hotel taxes and festival fees contribute to public safety coffers?
Austin’s festivals are most certainly a tourist attraction. But does that mean the public safety costs associated with those events should be financed through money earmarked for arts and tourism? With Council’s vote to raise the Hotel Occupancy Tax by…
Public Safety • By Jessi Devenyns • Sep 12, 2019
Environmental Commission recommends Council include Atlas 14 update in code rewrite
Atlas 14 is a historical rainfall study that alters the city’s flood plains drastically, showing that Austin is projected to receive a 30 percent increase in rainfall. Nevertheless, the study is not something that can change development on its own.…