SOS, city to face off in court over Statesman PUD

The Save Our Springs Alliance and the City of Austin will be in Travis County District Court on Thursday afternoon to joust about what the city may and may not do with the old Statesman site.  Almost a year has passed since the Austin Monitor reported that SOS had sued the city over the Planned Unit Development that was to be built on the site previously occupied by the Austin American-Statesman. Council approved the PUD in late 2022, thinking they would use money generated by a tax increment reinvestment zone. Although a judge found that use unlawful, the zoning plan went ahead, and SOS is concerned that the new buildings on the property could be 725 feet tall. Most troubling to SOS, however, is that the plan would include moving the Hike and Bike Trail, erode environmental protections along the Lady Bird Lake shoreline and allow for the removal of almost 100 trees. The parties expect to be in court at 2pm at the Travis County Courthouse, 10th floor in the court of Judge Jan Soifer.