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Planning
Commission drills down on Grove at Shoal Creek park plans
After years of contentious planning, the Grove at Shoal Creek has broken ground and begun construction on the first two blocks of residences of this mixed-use development in central Northwest Austin. The plan for the accompanying parkland remains under discussion. At…
Planning • By Jessi Devenyns • Mar 4, 2019
Landmark commissioners say they feel double-crossed over West Austin property
Despite a local homeowner and the city spending months compromising, negotiating and working to comply with suggestions from Austin’s Historic Preservation Office, Historic Landmark commissioners were flabbergasted Monday night at the final plans for a multimillion-dollar home in Old West…
Planning • By Jessi Devenyns • Mar 1, 2019
Board of Adjustment seeks neighborly consent for variance
There are occasions when even though the Board of Adjustment deems a request reasonable, procedure dictates that it is unable to approve the request. Such a petition came before the BoA at its Feb. 11 meeting, when the homeowner of…
Planning • By Jessi Devenyns • Feb 21, 2019
Boat dock variance dredges up concerns at the Board of Adjustment
There are occasions when, regardless of how a homeowner may redesign, reorient or reimagine a site, there is simply no option to make a project code-compliant. That still doesn’t mean that the request for a variance will be supported. This…
Planning • By Jessi Devenyns • Feb 15, 2019
Scraped lots are not entitled to variances because of tree placement
Generally, when trees are the cause of a variance request, the Board of Adjustment is quite accommodating. After all, considering all the good trees do for the environment and the city’s stringent protections for them, it can be difficult for…
Planning • By Jessi Devenyns • Feb 14, 2019
Del Valle PID moves forward, but county is not done negotiating
The petition to create the Velocity Crossing Public Improvement District in Del Valle was unanimously approved by the Travis County Commissioners Court Tuesday morning after its third and final public hearing. As the county’s first commercial PID, the development has…
Planning • By Ryan Thornton • Feb 13, 2019
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Citing density concerns, West Austin lot receives recommendation for subdivision
After purchasing his home in May 2016 under the assumption that the city would permit him to subdivide his 3.2-acre lot into two 1.6-acre lots, Rick Engel, the owner of Ski Shores restaurant, found himself still pleading his case almost three…
Planning • By Jessi Devenyns • Feb 12, 2019
Council weighs mixed messages from staff on car dealership
City Council approved a request Thursday to provide water and wastewater service to a car dealership in northwest Travis County over the objections of the city’s Watershed Protection Department. The car lot, 620 Volvo Dealership, is going to be built…
Planning • By Jack Craver • Feb 11, 2019
2019 could be the year to end city parking minimums
The Pedestrian Advisory Council is asking City Council to confront a broad spectrum of issues this year with a simple change to the city’s dated land use code. In a unanimous vote Monday evening, PAC approved a recommendation to Council…
Planning • By Ryan Thornton • Feb 7, 2019
Zoning and Platting Commission discusses validity of previous vote
At the last meeting of the Zoning and Platting Commission on Jan. 29, even with a full dais the commission was unable to muster the supermajority vote needed to approve a request for a flag lot at 11603 Tedford St.…
Planning • By Jessi Devenyns • Feb 7, 2019
Planning Commission OKs change to 30-year-old development agreement
Homes produce a lot less sewage now than they did 30 years ago. That’s partly why the Planning Commission decided Tuesday to allow the construction of an office building in western Travis County over the objections of city staff. The…
Planning • By Jack Craver • Jan 24, 2019
Neighborhood planning poised to change
The Planning Commission was recently briefed on the future of small area planning by Planning and Zoning staff. Austin has focused its small area planning around the neighborhood planning strategy since a 1997 City Council resolution. But subsequent to a…