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Planning
Council votes down attempt to revisit McMansion exemption
An amendment that some hoped would lead to more clarity in the McMansion Ordinance only seemed to lead to greater confusion at a City Council meeting on Oct. 6. The McMansion Ordinance was passed in order to prevent developers from…
Planning • By Cate Malek • Oct 11, 2016
Beneath the bond debate, planners begin exhaustive assessment of Austin's transportation future
As Austin voters wrangle with a mobility bond on the November ballot, city planners are gearing up to draft a new transportation policy road map to guide decisions for decades to come. Work on the Strategic Mobility Plan soft-launched earlier…
Planning • By Caleb Pritchard • Oct 11, 2016
New section of Guadalupe named activity corridor, despite neighborhood concerns
City Council designated a new section of Guadalupe Street as an activity corridor despite some neighborhood concerns, making its higher concentration of businesses, people and services official. The change came as part of a package of amendments to the Imagine…
Planning • By Cate Malek • Oct 10, 2016
Planning Commissioners raise concerns about proposed bus routes
Members of the Planning Commission raised concerns at a meeting last week in response to a presentation on the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s planned overhaul of bus routes. The ambitious 10-year plan, Connections 2025, aims to create a bus system…
Planning • By Jack Craver • Oct 6, 2016
Brentwood flag lot prompts density debate at Planning Commission
A short debate during a Tuesday meeting of the Planning Commission about a subdivision in the Brentwood neighborhood was a fitting example of the conflicting views on development at the center of city politics. Commissioner Karen McGraw voiced concern about…
Planning • By Jack Craver • Oct 4, 2016
Tovo pushes alternatives in lieu of fees-in-lieu
Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo is pushing ahead in her efforts to steer the city’s density bonus programs in a new direction. Near the end of last year, she initiated a staff review of the current programs, suspecting that there…
Planning • By Joseph Caterine • Sep 30, 2016
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Planning Commission votes to break Rainey Street covenant
It’s one of the most densely populated parts of the city, with nearby access to bike trails, downtown, public transit and Interstate 35, but development fights in the Rainey Street District have a familiar villain: traffic. Last week, the Planning…
Planning • By Elizabeth Pagano • Sep 27, 2016
Capitol view corridor dashes longshot hopes for county courthouse plan
The Texas Legislature has no interest in helping Travis County build a new civil courthouse across the street from its existing one if it means blocking protected views of the State Capitol, according to state Sen. Kirk Watson. “I don’t…
Planning • By Caleb Pritchard • Aug 31, 2016
East Austin's boom: What to do? And how to do it?
As a first, necessary step toward addressing East Austin’s growth, the Planning Commission continues to look for a way to get a handle on the conversation about that growth. Commissioner Nuria Zaragoza, who sparked the latest discussion on the subject…
Planning • By Elizabeth Pagano • Aug 30, 2016
Night Owl gets late-night permit
After a visit to the Planning Commission, Burnet Road’s Night Owl will indeed be open to night owls. Commissioners voted 9-2 last week to grant a Conditional Use Permit to the Night Owl bar at 8315 Burnet Road. The permit…
Planning • By Elizabeth Pagano • Aug 29, 2016
Guadalupe amendment moves to Council without endorsement
Sometimes it’s easier to say what something isn’t than to say what it is. For example, not many people know what an “activity corridor” is under the Imagine Austin plan. But, for the time being, a section of Guadalupe is…
Planning • By Elizabeth Pagano • Aug 26, 2016
County creates first PID, possibly setting up showdown with city of Austin
City Council is now on the clock to determine whether it wants to be the spoiler for Travis County’s first-ever public improvement district. The Commissioners Court voted on Tuesday to approve the creation of the WildHorse Ranch PID in far…
