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Development
Bouldin Creek residents discourage development plans for hotels peering over their homes
Hotels could be coming to the Bouldin Creek neighborhood after the Planning Commission approved an extension for a site plan at Mattie’s at Green Pastures restaurant. The proposed development would bring two hotels with about 100 rooms and renovations to…
Development • By Andrea Guzman • Jul 27, 2023
Board of Adjustment fee assistance program will launch Oct. 1
A long-awaited assistance program granting low-income homeowners waivers when seeking zoning variances will launch Oct. 1. The yearlong Board of Adjustment Applicant Assistant Program pilot will fund up to nine waivers – or $10,000 – for eligible applicants, according to…
Land Development Code • By Emma Freer • Jul 27, 2023
Council gives final OK to Borden Dairy tract rezoning
City Council last week gave final approval for rezoning of the former Borden Dairy site in the Govalle neighborhood, allowing for its reconfiguration from an industrial site to a major mixed-use development. The vote was 8-1, with Council Member Alison…
City Council • By Jo Clifton • Jul 25, 2023
Council approves taller buildings in part of Sixth Street entertainment district
City Council has approved an increase in building height for a portion of the East Sixth Street entertainment district that has been targeted for redevelopment by a Dallas-based real estate firm. The ordinance amendment approved Thursday after a public hearing…
Planning • By Chad Swiatecki • Jul 24, 2023
Council greenlights change to reduce land size needed to build a home in Austin
The size of land Austinites need to build a home on is about to get smaller – as part of an effort to encourage developers to build smaller and cheaper houses. City Council on Thursday approved a resolution that will start…
City Council • By Luz Moreno-Lozano, KUT • Jul 21, 2023
Council orders overhaul of SMART housing program
City Council voted this week to proceed with an overhaul of the SMART housing program. The SMART (Safe, Mixed-Income, Accessible, Reasonably Priced, Transit-Oriented) housing program grants certain fee waivers to housing developments that agree to include affordable housing. The list…
Housing • By Nina Hernandez • Jul 21, 2023
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County approves Travis Club development, despite community objections
The Travis County Commissioners Court on Tuesday passed a motion approving an initial phase of the Travis Club development, a 1,047-acre property – featuring golf course lots, a marina and more than 500 housing units – that is slated for…
Development • By Seth Smalley • Jul 20, 2023
Council considers code amendments to relax single-family zoning rules
City Council will consider an item at this week’s meeting that would begin the process of relaxing the city’s strict single-family zoning rules. Item 126, sponsored by Council Member Leslie Pool, directs the city manager to propose code amendments that…
Land Development Code • By Nina Hernandez • Jul 19, 2023
Staff releases expedited timeline for housing code amendments
An updated timeline for implementation of a bundle of city code amendments aimed at increasing housing supply is in the hands of City Council. In a memo dated July 13, Planning Department Director Lauren Middleton-Pratt revealed the updated Schedule of…
Land Development Code • By Nina Hernandez • Jul 18, 2023
Landmark Commission debates historic exemption for new safe fence ordinance
The Historic Landmark Commission faced an unusual case last week, when a construction proposal at a landmarked home at 1412 W. Sixth 1/2 St. collided with pending City Council action to ban unsafe fence designs. The resolution, which would mandate…
Preservation • By Kali Bramble • Jul 17, 2023
Planning Commission says no to more mini storage units near future light rail station
The Planning Commission on Tuesday denied a request to expand a mini storage facility near a future light rail station, holding out for the possibility of mixed-use, transit-oriented development over what they deemed a suburban, car-oriented use. The owner of…
Zoning • By Jonathan Lee • Jul 17, 2023
Council to vote on allowing taller buildings along Sixth Street
City Council is set to vote next week on allowing taller buildings along part of Sixth Street, in hopes of bringing more daytime uses to Austin’s most famous stretch of bars and clubs. The plan is to allow buildings up…
