Statesman site owners ready to implement waterfront vision

With three years having gone by since City Council adopted the South Central Waterfront Plan as an amendment to the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan, the owners and developers of the 18.9-acre Austin American-Statesman site are ready to get shovels in the ground on their piece of the 118-acre plan. Located at the southeast corner of the intersection of South Congress Avenue and Town Lake, the site already has an existing planned unit development mixed-use proposal. Talking to the Parks and Recreation Board on May 28, Richard Suttle, the attorney representing the site’s owners and developers, said his clients plan to file a PUD amendment in the coming weeks to allow them to begin work on the property as soon as possible. Suttle said the community can expect the existing industrial site to be transformed into a vibrant park that will cover more than a third of the entire property with trails along the river. Suttle said when the amendment is filed, he welcomes people to contact him and participate in the ensuing public engagement process over the next several months. The South Central Waterfront Plan involves a total of 32 privately owned properties along Lady Bird Lake’s southern shore.