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Zoning
Planners, residents call for Rainey master plan
The Planning Commission says it will likely deny several property owners’ joint request to vacate land on East Avenue, near Rainey Street, because the area needs a neighborhood plan. Ben Turner of Consort Inc., representing four landowners, asked the commission…
Austin • By Kara Nuzback • Mar 30, 2015
Council puts off vote on vacating right of way
City Council postponed action on vacating right of way on several streets in the Bouldin Creek neighborhood Thursday and sent questions about the development to Council Member Leslie Pool’s Open Space, Environment and Sustainability Committee. Pool had pulled the item…
Development • By Jo Clifton • Mar 27, 2015
Adler promises to change building permit process
Speaking to a receptive audience at the Real Estate Council of Austin on Wednesday, Mayor Steve Adler said he and his colleagues intend to make sure that they fix problems in the city’s development and permitting process sooner rather than…
Austin • By Jo Clifton • Mar 26, 2015
Swede Hill residents ward off condo proposal
The Swede Hill Neighborhood Association scored a victory at Tuesday’s Planning Commission meeting when commissioners denied a developer’s zoning change request to allow him to build condominiums in the historic neighborhood. It was the second night in a row that…
Housing • By Kara Nuzback • Mar 26, 2015
City fails to patch SXSW crash-pad issue
An East Austin home whose lease holders are housing musicians in exchange for promotion on social media has city officials flummoxed. Neighbors of the Waller Street property argue that it is an inappropriate use of the house, which is zoned residential.…
Austin • By Kara Nuzback • Mar 18, 2015
Possible strip club makes museum wary of deck
With a proposed Congress Avenue strip club drawing fire from groups across the city, it might not be the right time for other tenants of 422 Congress Ave. to ask for changes. Though the owners of Shiner’s Saloon explained that…
Preservation • By Elizabeth Pagano • Mar 17, 2015
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Council approves garage over McMansion rules
Despite some concerns that the case was one of many headed its way, City Council approved an appeal Thursday that will allow a Bouldin Creek house to retain a garage instead of forcing the homeowners to revert to the allowed…
City Council • By Elizabeth Pagano • Mar 16, 2015
Ott splits Planning & Development Review Dept.
Like the couple that marries and divorces but marries again only to divorce a few years later, the Planning and Development Review Department is once again being broken into a neighborhood planning department and a development review department. In a…
Austin • By Jo Clifton • Mar 13, 2015
Board summarily rejects Lake Austin variances
The Board of Adjustment pulled no punches Monday night, but it did knock out a pair of questionable variance requests. Board members swiftly denied two Lake Austin impervious cover requests and brushed off a last-minute withdrawal request that could have…
Land Development Code • By Elizabeth Pagano • Mar 12, 2015
Explainer: The Zucker Report marginalia
There was a lot of unveiling in the Zucker Report. We saw that a third-party analysis of the City of Austin’s Planning and Development Review Department did, indeed, show what appears as evidence of multiple divisions in shambles, as had…
Austin • By Michael Kanin • Mar 9, 2015
Developer seeks creative class on Cameron Road
A developer is one step closer to building a median-priced apartment complex aimed at young artists on Cameron Road in Northeast Austin. At the Zoning and Platting Commission meeting Tuesday, commissioners unanimously approved a zoning change for the property at…
Development • By Kara Nuzback • Mar 5, 2015
Council plays fast and loose on Garza Tract vote
Those familiar with the previous City Council’s strict adherence to procedural rules have been left dizzy by the new Council’s first few meetings. Last week, during the Garza Ranch discussion about the maximum allowable number of vehicle trips per day…
