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Stories by Jessi Devenyns

Despite neighborhood objections Planning Commission approves increasing density for East Austin project

On the corner of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Tillery Street, single-family homes meet higher-density residential developments. Although this tenuous balance between property usage has been negotiated for decades, there remains a line between the two districts. Finding that…

Family dispute over historic zoning comes to Planning Commission for mediation

Five years ago, the property at 1119 East 11th St. was zoned historic in an effort to preserve both the legacy of the Thomas family and their involvement in the East Austin music scene, and an emblematic example of 20th-century…

Board of Adjustment searches for the line between 'fraternizing' and 'frat'

After purchasing former Texas Governor Ann Richards’ home on 2311 Shoal Creek Boulevard in 2017, the Texas Beta Students Aid Fund, which is the nonprofit arm of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity, retained single-family zoning on the property. Yet neighbors…

Project Catalyst and Country Club Creek Trail: An 'inopportune' overlap

At the same meeting of the Environmental Commission where citizens aired their concerns about the Northern Walnut Creek Trail, commissioners had questions about the Country Club Creek Trail off of Riverside Drive. Commissioners wanted to know how plans for the…

New medical office moves forward with no recommendation from Environmental Commission

Trees are such an essential resource in Central Texas that even the thought of razing them to the ground can rattle the branches of the Environmental Commission. The city of Austin does not have the authority to mandate the preservation…

Public expresses concern about Urban Trails causing erosion

In 2014, the city of Austin approved an Urban Trails Master Plan that laid out the path forward to construct 300 miles of non-motorized trails throughout the city. Five years later, construction is well underway, but community members have raised…

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Dougherty redevelopment plans to go before Council in May with parks board approval

After voters decided last November to approve $25 million in bond funding to replace the Dougherty Arts Center, the Parks and Recreation Department immediately got to work designing a new facility specifically intended to accommodate the arts. With hundreds of voices…

Public safety departments cite $3.5M in unmet needs

At Monday’s Public Safety Commission meeting, commissioners unanimously voted to send a memo to City Council recommending an additional $3.5 million in funding for the 2020 fiscal year. The money would fund initiatives including a $10,000 raise for future police…

Effort to historically zone Texas Supreme Court justice's house narrowly fails at HLC

A debate over the definition of the word “significant” was the topic du jour at the March 25 meeting of the Historic Landmark Commission. The word’s interpretation came into question because, when it comes to determining whether a home is…

Seven protesters arrested, public expresses opposition at community meeting for Project Catalyst

Anticipating a situation similar to last month’s Planning Commission meeting, Assistant Planning and Zoning Director Jerry Rusthoven opened the March 27 community meeting to discuss Project Catalyst with a word of caution. “It’s important to us that this meeting be conducted…

HLC accepts demolition of West Lynn home for 'Tudor mansion'

After last month’s revelation of the design plans for 1602 West Lynn St. left members of the Historic Landmark Commission reeling, the four weeks between then and now allowed the commissioners to begrudgingly accept the previously presented plans and comments from…

Ramshackle 117-year-old house slated for historic zoning against owner's wishes

Despite what city staff called the “heartbreaking” condition of a historically contributing structure and an owner’s opposition to historic zoning, the Historic Landmark Commission determined Monday that a 117-year-old home was worth saving. In an effort to preserve one of…

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