[CALL TO ORDER ]
[00:00:04]
START, IF I CAN HAVE EVERYONE TAKE THEIR SEATS, I WILL NOW CALL TO ORDER THE REGULARLY SCHEDULED MOBILITY COMMITTEE MEETING.
UM, I AM JOINED ALSO BY THE VICE-CHAIR OF HOUSING AND PLANNING, RYAN AL ALTER, WHO IN JUST A FEW MINUTES WILL BE CALLING THAT MEETING TO ORDER.
IT IS 1:08 PM I AM PAIGE ELLIS.
I'M THE MAYOR, PRO TEM AND CHAIR OF THE MOBILITY COMMITTEE.
I AM JOINED ALSO BY VICE CHAIR ZOE CADRE.
UH, COUNCIL MEMBER NATASHA HARPER MADISON.
AND COUNCIL MEMBER OF VANESSA FUENTEZ FROM THE MOBILITY COMMITTEE.
WE ARE HERE IN CITY HALL CHAMBERS AND I WILL CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER.
RYAN, WOULD YOU LIKE TO CALL HOUSING AND PLANNING TO ORDER? ALL RIGHT.
UH, I AM COUNCIL MEMBER RYAN AL ALTER VICE CHAIR OF THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE.
WE ARE MEETING IN CITY HALL COUNCIL CHAMBERS ON MARCH THE SECOND, 2023 IN CONJUNCTION WITH THE MOBILITY COMMITTEE.
IT IS NOW ONE OH NINE AND I CALL THE MEETING TO ORDER.
UH, COUNCIL MEMBER CADRE IS PRESENT COUNCIL, UH, CHAIR HARPER MADISON IS PRESENT VIRTUALLY AND I BELIEVE WITH THAT WE HAVE A QUORUM.
WE ARE ALSO JOINED BY COUNCIL MEMBER ALLISON AL ALTER, AND I KNOW THAT COUNCIL MEMBER TITO VELA WAS HERE AND IS PROBABLY GOING TO BE JOINING US SHORTLY.
SO WE'LL GO AHEAD AND GET STARTED.
THIS IS A REALLY EXCITING AND SPECIAL MOMENT FOR THESE COMMITTEES TO BE MEETING JOINTLY.
UM, THE E T O D PROCESS WAS ACTUALLY STARTED.
I WAS HAPPY TO BE A CO-SPONSOR, BUT COUNCIL MEMBER HARPER MADISON AND HER TEAM WERE THE ONES WHO REALLY GOT THIS PROCESS STARTED.
WHAT IS SO INTERESTING ABOUT THIS TYPE OF PROGRAM IS THAT IT'S CAP METRO THAT IS THE GRANT RECIPIENT TO DO WORK AND TALK ABOUT WHAT ARE TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENTS.
AND AS WE MOVE FORWARD AS A COMMUNITY WITH BUILDING OUT PROJECT CONNECT AND LOOKING AT FUTURE TRANSPORTATION AND LAND USE PLANNING, HOW DO WE MITIGATE AND PREVENT DISPLACEMENT? HOW DO WE MAKE SURE WE HAVE LIVE WORK PLAY COMMUNITIES, AND HOW DO WE DO T O D PLANNING MOVING FORWARD WITH A KEEN EYE ON THE EQUITY COMPONENT OF IT? AND SO STAFF HAS BEEN WORKING FOR I THINK, YEARS AT THIS POINT TO REALLY WORK THROUGH WHAT DOES EQUITY T O D LOOK LIKE, HOW IS THAT GOING TO WORK FOR OUR COMMUNITY AND WHAT DO WE NEED TO BE MINDFUL OF AND FACTOR IN AS OUR CITY CONTINUES TO GROW AND AS WE CONTINUE TO FIGHT CLIMATE CHANGE THROUGH GOOD LAND USE AND TRANSPORTATION PLANNING.
SO WE'RE GONNA SPEND THE BULK OF THESE FIRST TWO HOURS ON JUST THE E T O D ITEMS OF EACH OF THE AGENDAS.
AND THEN SUBSEQUENTLY, WE WILL ADJOURN THE HOUSING AND PLANNING FOLKS SO THAT THEY CAN GO ABOUT THE REST OF THEIR COMMITMENTS FOR THE DAY.
AND WE WILL PICK UP THE REST OF THE ITEMS THAT ARE ON THE MOBILITY COMMITTEE AGENDA.
AND THAT SHOULD RUN US FROM ABOUT THREE TO FOUR O'CLOCK.
AND WE HOPE TO NOT HAVE PEOPLE HERE TOO LATE AS THE THE, THE WEATHER STARTS TO ROLL IN AND PEOPLE NEED TO START BEING MINDFUL OF MAKING SURE THEY ARE SAFE AT HOME AND NOT TRAVELING ON THE ROADS WHEN, WHEN THE WEATHER COMES IN.
[Public Communication: General ]
SOME PUBLIC SPEAKERS SIGNED UP TO SPEAK.I BELIEVE WE HAVE FIVE SPEAKERS WHO ARE ALL SIGNED UP ON E T O D.
CAN WE GO AHEAD AND CALL THOSE NAMES? NATALIE FRENSLEY.
THE E T O D POLICY PLAN REPORT IS ONLY HALF DONE IN THAT IT FOCUSES ADMIRABLY.
I MIGHT ADD ON ASPIRATIONAL COMMUNITY BENEFITS, BUT UNFORTUNATELY IT DOES NOT ADDRESS REAL COMMUNITY COSTS.
EAD JUMPED FROM A FOCUS ON RAIL LINES TO INCLUDE BUS STOPS AS ANCHORS FOR EAD DIS STATIONS WITH GATEWAY AND MIDWAY AREAS THAT WILL MAKE EXISTING SINGLE FAMILY HOUSING NON-CONFORMING OVERNIGHT.
TODD'S GOALS ARE ASPIRATIONAL, AND YET YOU ARE BEING ASKED TO ACCEPT THE PUBLIC POLICY PLAN, WHICH FAILS TO PLAN FOR AND AROUND HUMAN COSTS AND CONSTRAINTS.
THE RESEARCH UNDERPINNING EAD DOESN'T LAY OUT THE IMPACTS ON SINGLE FAMILY HOMEOWNERS NOR PROVIDE DOWNSTREAM ANALYSIS OF SECOND AND THIRD ORDER EFFECTS OF THESE IMPACTS ON, ON HOMEOWNERS.
REFERENCING THE $300 MILLION DISPLACEMENT FUNDS IS NO SUBSTITUTE FOR OMITTING TO CONDUCT DEEP EMPIRICAL REPLICABLE PROFESSIONAL STANDARD DOWNSTREAM ANALYSIS ON
[00:05:01]
THOSE WHO WILL BEAR THE COSTS, IGNORING THE IMPACTS ON SINGLE FAMILY HOMEOWNERS ACROSS AUSTIN, ACROSS AUSTIN, EAST, WEST, NORTH, SOUTH, HARMS AUSTINITES ACROSS ALL RACIAL ETHNIC CATEGORIES, INCOME LEVELS AND AGE GROUPS.HOMEOWNERS THROUGHOUT AUSTIN HAVE THESE AND OTHER QUESTIONS.
WILL E TODD KEEP MIDDLE CLASS HOMEOWNERS FROM BEING ABLE TO ACCESS EQUITY IN THEIR HOMES? HOW WILL THIS AFFECT HELOCK LOANS? CAN MIDDLE CLASS HOMEOWNERS MAKE REPAIRS ON THEIR HOMES? CAN THEY BUILD HOME ADDITIONS FOR MULTI-GENERATIONAL FAMILIES AND AGING IN PLACE? WILL E TODD HAMPER HOMEOWNERS OBTAINING INSURANCE POLICIES? HOW WILL AUGHT AFFECT TRAVIS COUNTY PROPERTY APPRAISALS? THERE WILL BE NO DO-OVERS FOR UNANTICIPATED CONSEQUENCES.
THESE ARE THE SAME PROBLEMS CODE NEXT HAD, WHICH AUSTINITES ROUNDLY OPPOSED AND STATE COURTS RULED AGAINST.
SURELY AUSTIN HAS PUB THE PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND PLANNING EXPERTISE AND THE WILL TO FIND A SOLUTION TO OUR AFFORDABILITY PROBLEMS WITHOUT CREATING DIVISIVE ZERO SUM OUTCOMES FOR HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF AUSTINITES.
PLEASE REJECT THE SUDDEN LAST MINUTE EQUATING OF BUS STOPS TO TRAIN STATIONS AND FOCUS YOUR PLANNING ON RAIL LINES.
VOTE AGAINST THE POTENTIALLY HARMING OF HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF AUSTINITES THROUGH PREMATURE PLANNING CONCLUSIONS THAT FAIL TO ADDRESS IMPACTS TO ALL OF AUSTIN'S HOMEOWNERS.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION.
THE BEST NEXT SPEAKER IS HANS MAGNUM.
GOOD AFTERNOON COMMITTEE MEMBERS AND COUNCIL MEMBERS.
UM, I SECOND WHAT, UH, WAS JUST UM, SAID BY NATALIE, AND THIS IS VERY SIMILAR TO VLADIMIR PUTIN TAKING OVER UKRAINE.
I MEAN, YOU ARE INTENDING TO TAKE PEOPLE'S PROPERTY WITHOUT COMPENSATION.
AND THIS IS GONNA LEAD TO A LOT OF LAWSUITS IN FEDERAL COURT, STATE COURTS.
YOU NEED TO REVISE THIS AND REJECT, UH, UH, VOTING FOR THIS, UH, NEXT WEEK.
UH, COUNCIL MEMBERS, THANK YOU FOR, UH, ALLOWING ME TO SPEAK TODAY.
UM, I JUST WANNA SAY, UH, BUILDING INTENSE DENSITY ALONG A LIMITED CAPACITY BUS ROUTE IS INAPPROPRIATE BUS ROUTES ALONG BURNETT ROAD IN PARTICULAR, LACK INDEPENDENT RIGHT OF WAY, MEANING THAT THEY ARE STUCK IN THE TRAFFIC THAT EVERYBODY ELSE IS STUCK IN AND ARE LIMITED IN THEIR CARING CAPACITY.
UNLIKE TRAINS CONSTANTLY INCREASING DENSITY ALONG BURNETT ROAD WILL SLOW TRAFFIC AND MAKE COMMUTING BY BUS ACTUALLY MORE DIFFICULT.
THE E T O D D PROCESS PLANNING PROCESS HAS BEEN FLAWED.
I AM AN IMPACTED HOMEOWNER IN THE TARGETED AREA, AND I AM JUST NOW HEARING ABOUT THIS ONLY THROUGH THE GRAPEVINE.
TO BE HONEST WITH YOU, UH, THE MAJORITY OF IMPACTED HOMEOWNERS STILL HAVE ABSOLUTELY NO IDEA WHAT PLANS YOU HAVE FOR THEM AND THEIR HOMES.
UM, YOU DISCUSS AMONG YOURSELVES VERY TECHNICAL TOPICS THAT INCLUDE JARGON AND ASSUMPTIONS ABOUT WHAT RESULTS YOUR DECISIONS WE'LL HAVE.
I JUST WANNA REMIND YOU THAT YOU ARE MESSING WITH REAL PEOPLE'S LIVES IN A VERY DIRECT AND PERSONAL WAY.
THESE TYPES OF RADICAL CHANGES ARE NOT SOMETHING THAT SHOULD BE TAKEN LIGHTLY.
WITHOUT MUCH CONSIDERATION OF THE REALISTIC PROS AND CONS OF THE PROPOSAL, I HOPE THAT YOU WILL ACCEPT THE NEED TO LISTEN TO THE COMMUNITIES THAT YOUR PLANS WILL RADICALLY ALTER.
THIS E T O D PROCESS NEEDS TO SLOW DOWN AND INVOLVE IMPACTED NEIGHBORHOODS SO THAT THE BEST DECISIONS CAN BE MADE.
THIS HAS NOT BEEN AN INCLUSIVE PROCESS, INCLUDING BUS ROUTES IN THE E T O D DENSITY IS OVERREACH AND WILL HAVE NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES.
TRAFFIC WILL INCREASE, BUT WITH HISTORY AS A GUIDE, AFFORDABLE HOUSING WILL NOT MATERIALIZE.
FOR EXAMPLE, A ONE BEDROOM APARTMENT IN THE MANY, ONE OF MANY NEWLY BUILT LARGE, HUGE APARTMENT COMPLEXES ON BURNETT ROAD LEASES FOR $1,700 PER MONTH.
ADDING MORE OF THESE NEW, LARGE, EXPENSIVE APARTMENTS WILL NOT HELP
[00:10:01]
LOW INCOME CITIZENS, WHICH APPEARS TO BE THE GOAL HERE.I'M ASKING YOU TO REMOVE BUS ROUTES FROM THIS E T O D PLAN AND REMOVE THE E T O D APPROVAL FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA NEXT WEEK, PLEASE.
IT IS MUCH TOO EARLY TO APPROVE THIS FLAWED PLAN, WHICH HAS COME OUT OF A VERY FLAWED PROCESS IN MY OPINION.
CURRENT PLAN HAS BEEN RUSHED AND NOT VETTED.
THERE ARE MANY, MANY UNANSWERED QUESTIONS THAT WE ALL HAVE ABOUT THE IMPACTS ON US PERSONALLY AND IMPACTED COMMUNITIES HAVE BEEN KEPT IN THE DARK.
UM, PLEASE, I'M ASKING YOU JUST TO TAKE MORE TIME TO GET THIS RIGHT.
AND CHERYLS, BEFORE WE CONTINUE, I JUST WANT TO NOTE FOR THE RECORD THAT COUNCIL MEMBER CHITA VELA HAS JOINED US FROM THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE.
SHALL I PROCEED? GOOD AFTERNOON.
UM, AND, UM, HEARING YOU TALK ABOUT HOW MANY YEARS THAT STAFF HAS BEEN WORKING ON THIS, I CHUCKLED A LITTLE BIT BECAUSE ONE OF OUR NEIGHBORS YESTERDAY SAID, WHAT IS E TODD AND CAN I GET A VACCINE FOR IT? SO THERE REALLY IS A LOT OF QUESTIONS STILL ABOUT WHAT IS GOING ON WITH EAD.
UM, FIRST I WANNA SAY I AGREE AS PROBABLY MOST REASONABLE PEOPLE DO ABOUT A NEED FOR EQUITABLE AND AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
IT IS NOBLE, WORTHWHILE AND NECESSARY, BUT, UM, LIKE OUR PREVIOUS SPEAKERS, I BELIEVE THAT THE RUSH TO USHER AND SOME OF THESE CHANGES HAS MEANT LESS EFFECTIVE OUTCOMES AND A TROUBLING DISREGARD FOR RESIDENTS IN ESTABLISHED NEIGHBORHOODS.
UM, AND I WILL SAY IT HAS BEEN TROUBLING TO HEAR THAT SOME OF US HAVE BEEN CHARACTERIZED AS HAVING TOO MUCH INFLUENCE OVER LAND POLICY BECAUSE WE LIVE IN ESTABLISHED NEIGHBORHOODS.
UM, FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ESPOUSE, UH, THE NEED FOR BROAD INVOLVEMENT AND TRANSPARENCY, UM, THAT THAT IS MOST, UM, CONCERNING TO ME THAT THERE SEEMS TO BE AN HAVE BEEN AT TIMES AN ACTIVE, UH, EFFORT TO EXCLUDE CITIZEN PARTICIPATION AS TO EFFECTIVENESS, WHAT I'VE OBSERVED IS THAT LARGE SCALE DEVELOPMENT IN WHICH LOWEST INCOME EARNERS ARE UNABLE TO QUALIFY TO PURCHASE UNITS AND OTHERS ARE LIKELY TO FIND, AS OUR PREVIOUS SPEAKERS SAID, UH, ONLY ONE BEDROOM UNITS AVAILABLE TO RENT, MAKING THEM UNTENABLE FOR FAMILIES.
UM, BEYOND THAT, DEVELOPERS ARE COMMONLY GIVEN THE OPTION TO PAY A FEE IN LIEU OF ACTUALLY INCLUDING AFFORDABLE UNITS ON SITE, MEANING THAT THE ORIGINAL JUSTIFICATION FOR ALLOWING THESE BIG STRUCTURES TO BE BUILT ADJACENT TO ESTABLISH HOMES, WHICH AFFORDABLE HOUSING ON TRANSIT LINES TURNS OUT TO BE DECEPTIVE.
UM, THIS IS NOT AN ORGANIC APPROACH TO PROVIDING NEEDED HOMES.
INSTEAD, IT SEEMS TO BE A PATH TOWARD DISMANTLING NEIGHBORHOODS THAT HAVE NURTURED AUSTIN'S GROWTH FOR DECADES.
SO IN AN IRONIC TWIST, IT MAY RE WELL RESULT IN ENFORCED DISPLACEMENT OF HOMES OF PEOPLE WHO FLEE LIVING IN THE SHADOW OF 90 FOOT BUILDINGS LOOMING OVER THEIR BACKYARDS.
UM, QUITE MANY QUESTIONS SHOULD BE MORE THOROUGHLY RESEARCHED AND ADDRESSED BEFORE PUTTING FORWARD A PLAN THAT ESSENTIALLY SEEMS TO REBRAND AND EXPAND CODE.
NEXT, UM, MOST REASONABLE AND CARING PEOPLE WANT AFFORDABLE HOUSING TO BE PROVIDED IN AUSTIN, BUT A WELL-RESEARCHED ANALYSIS OF THE IMPACT OF THE POPULATION INCREASES YOU WOULD USHER INTO AREAS THAT RELY ON AGING UTILITY INFRASTRUCTURE, AND YES, EVEN TRAFFIC CONGESTION BECAUSE NOT EVERYONE IS GOING TO RIDE THE BUS FOR THE SAKE OF A FUTURE THAT EVERYONE CAN SUPPORT.
WE WOULD ASK THAT YOU PLEASE PAUSE THIS PLAN UNTIL THERE HAS BEEN ADEQUATE CONSIDERATION GIVEN.
NEXT SPEAKER IS JANICE RANKIN.
[00:15:03]
GOOD AFTERNOON CHAIRWOMAN AND COMMITTEE MEMBERS AND CONGRATULATIONS TO THE NEW COUNCIL MEMBERS.YOU SURELY HAVE JUMPED INTO THE DEEP END OF THE POOL.
I AM JANICE RANKEN, A RESIDENT OF DISTRICT SEVEN SINCE 1992.
MY BACKGROUND INCLUDES 10 YEARS OF SERVING AS LEGISLATIVE SUPPORT STAFF FOR A HIGHLY RESPECTED LEGISLATOR ON THE HOUSE TRANSPORTATION COMMITTEE.
I APPRECIATE YOU ALLOWING ME TO SPEAK.
IT IS A CHALLENGE SINCE WE MAY BE ABOUT TO SEE STAFF PRESENTATIONS THAT WERE NOT MADE AVAILABLE TO THE PUBLIC AS BACKUP FOR THE AGENDA NOTICE THAT WERE POSTED, UH, FOR TODAY.
IN SHORT, I WANT TO SAY THAT THE SCOPE OF THE EAD POLICY PLAN IS OVERLY BROAD AND IT REPRESENTS A MAJOR POLICY DIRECTION AND PARADIGM SHIFT FOR AUSTIN.
IT DOES NOT NEED TO BE PUT ON A CONSENT AGENDA AND A DECISION AT THIS POINT WOULD BE PREMATURE.
AS RECENTLY AS FEBRUARY, NEW METRO RAPID ROOTS HAVE BEEN DELAYED UNTIL 2035.
PARDON ME, THE RECOMMENDATIONS TO DENSIFY NEIGHBORHOODS ARE BASED ON AN INCOMPLETE IN COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PROCESS.
REMEMBER THIS, PEOPLE ARE YOUR STAKEHOLDERS.
ONLY 994 RESPONDENTS WERE TRACKED IN A THREE PHASE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT PROCESS THAT STARTED AFTER THE JUNE, UH, 2021, UH, ORDINANCE.
AND THAT PROCESS WAS STILL UNDERWAY AS OF YESTERDAY.
THERE WERE VIRTUAL PRESENTATIONS BEING GIVEN AT 6:30 PM THE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT WAS DONE DURING THE PEAK OF THE PANDEMIC AND MAINLY VIRTUALLY, WHICH EXCLUDED RESIDENTS WHO LACKED DIGITAL LITERACY AND OR DIGITAL ACCESS.
IT APPEARS THERE WERE NO TOWN HALL MEETINGS SO THAT COUNCIL MEMBERS COULD HEAR CANDIDLY FROM THE PUBLIC IN THEIR OWN DISTRICTS IF ADOPTED AT ALL, THE EAD POLICY PLANS SHOULD BE ASSOCIATED WITH RAIL ROUTES AND NOT RELY ON CHANGEABLE BUS ROUTES.
THESE COMMITTEES AND THE COUNCIL SHOULD CONSTANTLY MONITOR THE USE AND PURPOSE OF SPECIFIC EXPENDITURES IN DOLLARS AND CENTS, NOT JUST SUMMARIES OF THE EAD PILOT PROGRAM PLANNING FUNDS ALREADY RECEIVED.
SPECIFICALLY, THERE HAVE BEEN ABOUT 4 MILLION OR A LITTLE MORE RECEIVED, UH, THROUGH THE PAST WEEK.
AND THE QUESTION IS, FOR WHAT PURPOSES? WHAT HAS THE FUNDING BEEN USED FOR? HAVE WE BEEN PAYING CONSULTANTS? HAVE WE BEEN BUYING AD SPACE? HAVE WE BEEN DOING MEDIA BUYS? WHAT HAS THIS MONEY BEEN USED FOR? THERE SHOULD NOT BE ANY RUSH TO ADOPT AN EAD POLICY PLAN WHEN THE PLANS FOR PROJECT CONNECT HAVE NOT BEEN SOLIDIFIED ENOUGH TO SUBMIT A FEDERAL GRANT APPLICATION FOR CAPITAL FUNDS.
SINCE THE PEOPLE OF AUSTIN WERE ALLOWED TO VOTE ON THE PROJECT CONNECT PROPOSAL, WHY NOT LET THE PEOPLE VOTE ON THE EAD PROPOSAL? THIS IS A WIDE RANGING LAND USE PROPOSAL SIMILAR TO CODE.
NEXT, LET'S NOT SPEND MONEY ON PUSHING A POLICY FOR AN UNJUSTIFIED OUTCOME, WHICH WILL BE RECLASSIFYING BUS, RAPID TRANSIT ROUTE TO HIGH CAPACITY ROUTE.
IN THE INTEREST OF TRANSPARENCY AND IMPROVED PLANNING PROCESSES, PLEASE POSTPONE CONSIDERATION OF THE EAD POLICY PLAN AND REEVALUATE THE CONCEPT AND ITS IMPACT ON ALL THE PEOPLE OF AUSTIN, ESPECIALLY HOMEOWNERS AND SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS.
I REMAIN AVAILABLE FOR QUESTIONS IF YOU HAVE ANY.
AND THANK YOU TO OUR SPEAKERS WHO CAME TODAY.
UM, I WANTED TO TURN IT OVER TO COUNCIL MEMBER HARPER MADISON, I KNOW THIS WAS YOUR ORIGINAL RESOLUTION.
WOULD YOU LIKE TO SAY ANYTHING AT THIS POINT? THANK YOU CHAIR.
EXCUSE ME, I APPRECIATE THAT VERY MUCH.
I WOULD LIKE TO SAY SOMETHING.
I'M I FIRST OF ALL JUST THANK YOU, ESPECIALLY YOU AND STAFF FOR, FOR HELPING US SET UP THIS MEETING TO CONDUCT THE MEETING.
THANK YOU COLLEAGUES FOR BEING PRESENT.
UH, THANK YOU COUNCIL MEMBER ALTAR FOR ALREADY BEING THE LEADING CANDIDATE FOR BEST VICE CHAIR OF THE YEAR.
IT'S TWO DAYS IN A ROW, THIS SPECIAL CALL JOINT MEETING OF THE HOUSING AND MOBILITY COMMITTEES.
IT'S A A NEW AND UNIQUE OPPORTUNITY FOR OUR COUNCIL.
WE OFTEN LOOK AT OUR POLICIES FROM A SINGULAR VANTAGE POINT, JUST ONE PERSPECTIVE, WHICH ULTIMATELY, FRANKLY, HAMPERS OUR DESIRED OUTCOMES.
THAT IS WHY MAYOR PRO TIM ELLIS AND I, UM, WE HAD THIS PARTICULAR ISSUE AS IT'S COMING UP, THE EQUITABLE DEVELOPMENT OF OUR HISTORIC INVESTMENTS IN TRANSIT.
WE COULD SPEND TODAY REVIEWING IT BOTH FROM A MOBILITY PERSPECTIVE AND A HOUSING OUTCOME.
UM, BUT I THINK WE OWE IT TO THE OTHER COUNCIL COLLEAGUES AND TO OUR COMMUNITY, UM, THAT WE'D LEAVE IT HERE TODAY WITH A SH THAT WE LEAVE FRANKLY HERE TODAY WITH A SHARPER AND MORE
[00:20:01]
FINE-TUNED SET OF RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE ETAB POLICY PLAN.UM, THAT WAS WHAT WE PROMISED WHEN WE SAID WE WOULD, UM, POSTPONE THE ITEM AND BRING IT BACK.
AND THAT IS WHAT I'M HOPEFUL THAT WE CAN DO AT NEXT WEEK'S COUNCIL MEETING.
WE ARE JOINED BY THE CITY AND CAP METRO STAFF AND SEVERAL COMMUNITY EXPERTS THAT WE'VE INVITED TO PROVIDE RECOMMENDATIONS.
I REALLY STRONGLY ENCOURAGE OUR STAFF AND THESE EXPERTS TO BE AS POINTED AND AS DIRECTED AS POSSIBLE WHEN IT COMES TO THE WAYS THAT THE ETOP POLICY WILL EITHER SUCCEED OR FAIL IN OPENING UP MORE PARTS OF TOWN TO MORE PEOPLE AND TO ENSURING THAT AUSTIN IS MORE DIVERSE AND MORE ACCESSIBLE TO FUTURE GENERATIONS.
AND, UM, I CAN'T QUITE SEE CHAMBERS, BUT I'M ASSUMING THAT YOU HEARD THE PRESENTATIONS, THE, UM, UH, THE FROM OUR CITIZENS OR FROM OUR RESIDENTS.
AND I WANT YOU TO TAKE THE OPPORTUNITY WHERE YOU'RE ABLE TO ADDRESS THEIR TESTIMONY, SOME OF THE FEARS THAT THEY EXPRESSED, UM, AND SPEAK CANDIDLY TO WHERE WE ACTUALLY ARE IN THE PROCESS.
UM, BECAUSE I THINK I HEARD SOME THINGS THAT I DON'T KNOW THAT ARE ENTIRELY FACTUAL, IN WHICH CASE I'D LIKE VERY MUCH FOR AS WE MOVE FORWARD THROUGH A CONVERSATION AROUND EQUITY AND AROUND TRANSIT AND AROUND RECONCILIATION OF SYSTEMS INFRASTRUCTURE THAT IS HISTORICALLY RACIST, HISTORICALLY ROOTED IN JIM CROW ERA, RED LINE RACISM.
WE ARE ADDRESSING THAT AS A CITY BECAUSE WE AS A COMMUNITY HAVE ACKNOWLEDGED IT IS CRITICAL.
IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT WE SPEAK TO ONE ANOTHER CANDIDLY ABOUT THE RECONCILIATION PROCESS.
SO THIS EIDE PROCESS, THIS EQUITABLE TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT IS INTENDED TO ADDRESS THE WRONGS OF THE PAST, THE SLOW TO RESPOND IN THE MIDDLE WHERE WE ARE RETROFITTING A MAJOR METROPOLITAN CITY WITH OUR TRANSIT INFRASTRUCTURE TO TODAY WHERE WE ALL HAVE SIMILAR INVESTMENTS IN WHAT OUR CITY LOOKS LIKE MOVING FORWARD.
IT'S 2023 AND LIKE MY BABY ASKED ME, WHAT DOES AUSTIN 2080 LOOK LIKE? WE ALL HAVE TO BE THINKING ABOUT THAT.
SOME OF US WILL BE HERE, SOME OF US WON'T, BUT WE NEED TO THINK ABOUT IT FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF THE PEOPLE WHO 100% WILL BE HERE.
THE PEOPLE WHO AREN'T EVEN BORN YET.
THAT'S WHO WE'RE BUILDING OUR TRANSIT INFRASTRUCTURE FOR.
SO AS A REMINDER, COLLEAGUES, I WANTED TO SAY THAT WE ARE NOT POSTED TO VOTE ON RECOMMENDATIONS TODAY, BUT I ASSURE YOU THAT I WILL BE TAKING FEEDBACK AND INSIGHTS FROM TODAY'S MEETING AND SHARING WHAT I BELIEVE TO BE CRITICAL CHANGES TO THE POLICY PLAN ON OUR MESSAGE BOARD BETWEEN NOW AND THE NEXT COUNCIL MEETING.
I ALSO ENCOURAGE, ENCOURAGE RATHER ALL OF US TO DO THE SAME FOR STAFF'S SAKE.
AND UH, CERTAINLY, YOU KNOW, WE CAN MOVE THE CRITICAL INITIATIVE THAT WE'RE WORKING ON TO THE NEXT STEP IN MY OPINION.
PRETEND FOR GUIDING US THROUGH THIS BRIEFING THROUGH THE DISCUSSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS TODAY.
THANK YOU AND THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK ON THIS THROUGHOUT THE YEARS.
I WILL LAY OUT THE GENERAL FRAMEWORK OF HOW THE NEXT PHASES OF THE CONVERSATION TODAY WILL GO.
UH, WE'RE GONNA HAVE AN OVERVIEW OF THE E T O D WORK AND RELATIONSHIP WITH THE PROJECT CONNECT FOLKS AND THAT WILL BE SPOKEN TO BY ROSIE TRULA, THE DIRECTOR OF OUR HOUSING AND PLANNING DEPARTMENT, AND CHARMILLA MUJI CAT METRO E V P PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT.
WE WILL THEN MOVE INTO E T O D POLICY, THE DETAILS, IMPLICATIONS AND IMPLEMENTATION.
AND THAT'S GOING TO BE GIVEN BY THE E T O D TEAM THROUGH HOUSING AND PLANNING DEPARTMENT, THEN E T O D POLICY PLAN ENGAGEMENT PROCESS TO DATE.
AND THAT WILL BE GIVEN BY ANNA LAND FROM CAP METRO.
AND WE WILL WILL LASTLY HAVE A COMMUNITY PARTNER ROUND TABLE.
AND EVERYONE'S GOING TO GET ABOUT FIVE TO SEVEN MINUTES TO DETAIL, UM, ANYTHING THAT THEY WANT TO SAY ABOUT THAT.
AND OUR INVITED SPEAKERS ARE AVE AZAR THROUGH PROJECT CONNECT COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE AND HOUSING WORKS.
BILL MCKINLEY WITH TRANSIT FORWARD.
PAULETTE GIBBONS WITH U L I, JAKE WEGMAN FROM UT AUSTIN AND JIAO PAUL CONNOLLY FROM ATX MOBILITY COALITION.
AND THEN WE'VE RESERVED SOME TIME FOR DISCUSSION AND Q AND A.
SO IN ORDER FOR US TO GET THROUGH THE NUMBER OF PRESENTATIONS THAT WE HAVE AHEAD OF US, I'LL RECOMMEND THAT WE SAVE OUR QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS FOR THE END, UNLESS THERE IS SOMETHING PRETTY QUICK AND, UM, OF CLARIFYING NATURE THAT MIGHT NEED TO BE ASKED IN THE MOMENT.
AND THEN WE WILL FINISH OUR DISCUSSION UP, HOPEFULLY BY, UH, 3:00 PM SO THAT WE CAN MOVE ON TO THE REST OF THE AGENDA ITEMS ON THE MOBILITY COMMITTEE SCHEDULE.
I WILL ALSO POINT YOUR ATTENTION TO THE DOCUMENTS FOR THIS AND THE BACKUPS AND PRESENTATION IS GONNA BE LOCATED ON THE MOBILITY COMMITTEE PAGE.
AND I DON'T BELIEVE IT'S ON THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE PAGE, SO LOOK ON THE MOBILITY ONE FOR THAT.
UM, AND THEN I POSTED THREE LINKS THAT WERE SENT TO US FROM ULI THAT WILL BE REFERENCED TODAY AND I POSTED THOSE PERSONALLY ONTO OUR MESSAGE BOARD THREAD.
[00:25:01]
IF YOU WANT TO LOOK AT THOSE PDFS, UM, THOSE WILL ALSO BE AVAILABLE TO YOU.[2. Equitable transit-oriented development (eTOD) planning and policies, including the draft eTOD Policy Plan and anti-displacement funding. This item will be taken up jointly with the Housing and Planning Committee. ]
WILL OPEN IT UP TO THE OVERVIEW OF E T O D WORK AND THE RELATIONSHIP TO PROJECT CONNECT.I'M THE DIRECTOR OF THE HOUSING AND PLANNING DEPARTMENT FOR THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
UM, THANK YOU AGAIN FOR HOSTING THIS MEETING, THIS JOINT MEETING, AND SETTING ASIDE THE TIME TO BETTER UNDERSTAND WHY AN E T O D POLICY PLAN IS IMPORTANT FOR OUR COMMUNITY.
THIS IS A CRITICAL TIME PROJECT CONNECT IS A ONCE IN A GENERATION INVESTMENT IN OUR COMMUNITY AND WE HAVE THE CHANCE TO DEVELOP IN WAYS THAT NOT ONLY IMPROVE OUR CLIMATE, OUR MOBILITY, AND OUR QUALITY OF LIFE.
WE ALSO HAVE THE CHANCE THROUGH PROJECT CONNECT TO ADDRESS HISTORIC INEQUITIES IN OUR COMMUNITY WITH BOTH BETTER TRANSPORTATION ACCESS, BUT ALSO WITH MORE HOUSING, ESPECIALLY AFFORDABLE HOUSING, AND INCREASED ACCESS TO ECONOMIC OPPORTUNITIES TO ENABLE ALL MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY TO THRIVE.
THE GOAL OF OUR BRIEFING TODAY IS TO PROVIDE YOU WITH AN OVERVIEW OF THE EQUITABLE TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT POLICY PLAN, WHAT IT WILL HELP TO ACCOMPLISH, AND WHY IT IS IMPORTANT TO HAVE COUNCIL ACT NOW TO IMPLEMENT THE E T O D QUICKLY AHEAD OF DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION OF THE PROJECT CONNECT SYSTEM IN ORDER TO GUIDE PUBLIC AND PRIVATE DEVELOPMENT.
TYPICALLY, LAND USE IS IN PLACE BEFORE OR IN TANDEM WITH DECISIONS ABOUT INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENT.
IN THIS SENSE, WE ARE ALREADY BEHIND AS A COMMUNITY AND PREPARING FOR THE SUCCESS OF PROJECT CONNECT.
SO ACCEPTING THE POLICY PLAN AND MOVING FORWARD INTO MORE DETAILED PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION EXPEDITIOUSLY IS IMPORTANT.
THESE CORRIDORS AND STATION AREAS ARE ALREADY SEEING REDEVELOPMENT INTEREST TODAY.
SO GETTING AHEAD OF THAT WITH UPDATED COUNCIL POL OR WITH UPDATED CITY POLICY AND PROCEDURES IS KEY TO SHAPING EQUITABLE OUTCOMES IN COHESIVELY SUPPORTING TRANSIT INVESTMENTS AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
ONCE E T O D IS ACCEPTED COUNCIL POLICY DIRECTION, STAFF WILL BE ABLE TO USE THAT GUIDANCE IN LAND USE AND ZONING DECISIONS, PREVENTING A CASE WHERE LAG TIME COULD MEAN DECISIONS THAT ARE NOT SUPPORTIVE OF E T O D AND ARE MADE IN THE NEXT, UH, UH, SORRY, EXCUSE ME, ARE MADE IN THE NEXT SEVERAL MONTHS THAT WORK TO, UH, CROSS PURPOSES FOR OUR E T O D GOALS.
WE'RE VERY EXCITED TO BE HERE AND TO PARTICIPATE IN THE CONVERSATION.
I WANNA TURN IT OVER NOW TO CHARMILLA WITH CAT METRO.
UM, THANK YOU, UM, CITY COUNCIL AND THE MOBILITY COMMITTEE FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY.
UM, I'M SHILLA SHILLA MUJI, UM, UH, EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, UH, PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT AT CAP METRO.
AND UH, I WOULD START BY SAYING THIS IS A UNIQUE, UM, TRANSFORMATIONAL, ALMOST A GENERATIONAL OPPORTUNITY THAT WE HAVE IN FRONT OF US.
MANY OTHER COMMUNITIES, UM, HAVE GONE THROUGH THE SAME PATH OF BRINGING LIGHT TRAIL, UM, INTO THEIR CITIES.
AND AUSTIN IS AT A PRECIPICE OF THAT.
WE HAVE THIS TIME TO PLAN FOR TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT IN A WAY THAT IS CONTEXT SENSITIVE, SCALABLE, AND ATTAINABLE FOR AUSTIN.
WHY DO WE NEED TO DO THIS? AND I, UM, TRANSIT AGENCY IS NOT TYPICALLY, UM, THE ENTITY THAT GUIDES THIS PROCESS.
WE DO NOT HAVE LAND USE AUTHORITY CITY OF AUSTIN DOES.
WE ARE HERE TO PROVIDE A HELPING HAND AND WE WERE VERY FORTUNATE TO BE ABLE TO RECEIVE FOUR SUCCESSIVE, THREE SUCCESSIVE FOUR ALTOGETHER F T A T O D PLANNING GRANTS TO SUPPORT THIS EFFORT.
CAP METRO IS COMMITTED TO IN HAND, IN HAND WITH AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP IN CITY OF AUSTIN TO MAKE SURE THAT THE FUTURE LIGHT TRAIL THAT COMES TO AUSTIN REALLY HELPS BENEFIT THE CITIZENS OF AUSTIN AND ABLE TO CORRECT SOME OF THE HISTORICAL TRANSPORTATION DEVELOPMENT MISTAKES THAT HAVE, UH, THAT WE ARE HERE TO TRANSFORM WITH THESE GENERATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES.
THE $3.15 MILLION THAT FTA GAVE TO CITY OF AUSTIN CAP METRO THROUGH CAP METRO TO AUSTIN, IT IS BEING USED POSSIBLY ONE OF THE MOST EFFICIENT, PRUDENT AND COLLABORATIVE MANNER THAT COULD SUPPORT AND BE ALMOST PRESENTED AS A TEMPLATE FOR HOW MULTI-AGENCY COLLABORATION SHOULD, SHOULD TAKE PLACE.
I PERSONALLY HAVE TAKEN, PARTICIPATED IN FTA LESSONS, LEARNED TO TALK ABOUT IT, AND I WILL PASS IT ON TO ANNA LAND TO TALK ABOUT ALL OF THE ENGAGEMENT THAT LED TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS E EAD PLAN.
IT WAS A CO-CREATED DRIVEN PROJECT BOTH BY CITY OF AUSTIN AND CAP METRO.
AND THANK YOU FOR THE OPPORTUNITY TO BE HERE TODAY.
[00:30:01]
YOU FOR THAT OVERVIEW.AND I THINK WE HAVE ANNA ANN COMING UP LATER IN THE AGENDA.
I THINK WE'RE GONNA SHIFT TO THE, UH, TO WARNER COOK IN, UH, PLANNER, PRINCIPAL IN THE HOUSING AND PLANNING DEPARTMENT.
HELLO, GOOD AFTERNOON, COUNCIL MEMBERS, COMMITTEE MEMBERS MAYOR PRO TEM.
MY NAME IS WARNER COOK, AS ROSIE SAID, AND I'M REALLY HAPPY TO HAVE THIS CHANCE TO GET E UH, AN EVEN DEEPER DIVE AND PROVIDE SOME ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS THAT WE HEARD TODAY AND THAT WE'VE BEEN HEARING FROM COUNCIL OFFICES AND COMMUNITY MEMBERS RELATED TO EQUITABLE T O D.
UH, I'M GONNA WALK US THROUGH WHAT THE ACTUAL DRAFT RESOLUTION WOULD DO IF COUNCIL WERE TO APPROVE IT ON MARCH 9TH.
CUZ THAT HAS BEEN A BIG TOPIC OF QUESTION.
THE PURPOSE OF THE POLICY PLAN AS OUTLINED IN THE ORIGINAL RESOLUTION FROM COUNCIL, IS TO CREATE A BIG PICTURE FRAMEWORK AND GUIDELINES FOR HOW TO START THINKING ABOUT PLANNING IN THE FUTURE FOR OUR TRANSIT INVESTMENTS TO BE SUCCESSFUL AND FOR OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS OF ALL BACKGROUNDS TO THRIVE.
WE KNOW THAT TRANSIT BRINGS A LOT OF NEW OPPORTUNITIES TO AUSTIN, BUT IT ALSO CAN CREATE ADDITIONAL DISPLACEMENT PRESSURE AND END UP HARMING FOLKS.
SO IN ORDER TO NOT REPEAT THIS PATTERN OF HARM AND INSTEAD WORK TO START REPAIRING IT, THE EAD POLICY PLAN OFFERS A HIGH LEVEL GUIDANCE ON WAYS WE COULD IMPROVE THESE EQUITABLE OUTCOMES THAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR, FOR CURRENT AND FUTURE RESIDENTS OF AUSTIN IN ORDER TO PROVIDE EQUITABLE OUTCOMES.
SIX E T O D GOALS WERE DEVELOPED THROUGH OUR ANALYSIS AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT EFFORTS, WHICH ANNA WILL TALK ABOUT AFTERWARDS.
THESE SIX GOALS WILL BE THE GUIDING STARS SO THAT WE HOLD OURSELVES AND OUR PARTNERS AND OUR COMMUNITY ACCOUNTABLE TO STRIVING TOWARDS.
UH, AS WE CONTINUE DEVELOPING AROUND PROJECT CONNECT, THESE ARE GONNA BE THE LENSES THROUGH WHICH WE CONSIDER HOW TO IMPLEMENT E T O D AND CHECK TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE, ANYTIME WE'RE MAKING A DECISION ABOUT INVESTMENTS, PROGRAMS OR REGULATIONS, IT'S FURTHERING THESE SIX GOALS.
SO SPECIFICALLY ON MARCH 9TH, WE ARE ASKING COUNSEL IN THE DRAFT RESOLUTION AS IT'S BEEN POSTED FOR FOUR THINGS.
FIRST IS TO ACCEPT THE E T O D POLICY PLAN, INITIATE STATIONARY PLANNING IN THE NORTHEAST AUSTIN DISTRICT PLAN, UM, INITIATE AMENDMENTS TO THE IMAGINE AUSTIN COMPREHENSIVE PLAN AND INITIATE AMENDMENTS TO THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE.
AND I'M GONNA WALK THROUGH EACH OF THESE FOUR THINGS IN A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAIL NOW.
SO ACCEPTING THE POLICY PLAN, WHAT DOES ACCEPTING THE POLICY PLAN DO? WE'VE HAD A LOT OF QUESTIONS ABOUT THAT, SO I WANNA DISPEL SOME CONFUSION I KNOW IS OUT THERE.
IT REPRESENTS OUR BEST THINKING ON HOW WE CAN REACH THOSE SIX E T O D GOALS IN THE FUTURE THAT WE WANT NEAR OUR TRANSIT STATIONS.
UM, ONE WAY I LIKE TO TALK ABOUT IT IS THINKING ABOUT IT AS THE, THE FRAMEWORK.
WE HAVE THE TOOLS IN THE TOOLBOX, IN THE POLICY TOOLKIT THERE.
NOT EVERY TOOL, AS WE KNOW FOR EVERY PROJECT IS GONNA BE RIGHT, JUST LIKE WITH EVERY TOOL IN THE POLICY TOOLBOX.
THERE'LL BE SOME STATIONS WHERE TOOLS APPLY, SOME TOOLS MIGHT APPLY DIFFERENTLY ACROSS DIFFERENT STATIONS.
AND SO IT'S REALLY IMPORTANT TO THINK ABOUT IT AS A MENU OF OPTIONS THAT COUNCIL IS DIRECTING STAFF TO GO EXPLORE MORE WORK WITH OUR COMMUNITY MEMBERS MORE TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THOSE TOOLS COULD BE AND, AND COME BACK FOR FUTURE IMPLEMENTATION.
SO WHAT THE PLAN DOES NOT DO IS AUTOMATICALLY APPLY THOSE TOOLS ON MARCH 9TH.
IT IT JUST, THAT'S NOT HOW IT'S POSTED.
THE OTHER THINGS THAT IT DOESN'T DO IS CHANGE CITY BUDGET OR FUNDING ON MARCH 9TH.
UH, YOU KNOW, THE, THE BUDGET IS THE BUDGET AND WITHOUT AMENDMENTS TO IT, THERE'S, THERE'S NOT GONNA BE ANY NEW FUNDING OR ANY REPRIORITIZING OF FUNDING TOWARDS THIS EFFORT.
AND THE LAST THING THAT, THIS IS SOMETHING I'VE HEARD A LOT, THE ACCEPTING THE POLICY PLAN DOES NOT CHANGE ANYONE IN AUSTIN'S ZONING OR REGULATIONS ON ANY PARCELS ON MARCH 9TH.
WHAT THE DRAFT RESOLUTION ASKS COUNCIL TO DO IS INITIATE THAT PROCESS TO LOOK AT IT AND INITIATING THAT PROCESS, WHICH WE THINK COULD TAKE A YEAR, A YEAR AND A HALF, UH, TO, TO REALLY WORK THROUGH SOME OF THOSE AMENDMENTS WITH OUR COMMUNITY AND ANALYZE WHAT THE IMPACTS WOULD BE AS SOME OF THE SPEAKERS THIS MORNING SAID.
UM, THAT'S, THAT'S HOW YOU GET FROM AN IDEA TO REALITY.
BUT THE REALITY DOESN'T COME UNTIL THERE'S NOTICE PETITIONS, PUBLIC HEARINGS, A PLANNING COMMISSION, AND COUNCIL AND, AND ULTIMATELY ADOPTION.
SO NOTHING ON THE NINTH IS ANY OF THOSE THINGS I JUST MENTIONED.
SO, SO THEN IF ON THE NINTH WE'RE NOT CHANGING ANYTHING, WHAT, WHY ARE WE TAKING ACTION ON THE NINTH? RIGHT? SO WE STILL NEED TO WORK TOWARDS IMPLEMENTING THE PLAN, ACCEPTING THE PLAN SAYS THIS IS THE DIRECTION WE WANNA GO, AND IMPLEMENTING THE PLANS
[00:35:01]
MEANS THIS IS HOW WE'RE ACTUALLY GONNA TAKE THOSE STEPS FORWARD.WHAT STAFF IS ENVISIONING IS A TWO STEP PARALLEL APPROACH.
SO WE'VE GOT SYSTEM-WIDE TOOLS AND, AND ITEMS THAT WE'LL DO FOR IMPLEMENTATION AND THEN ALSO GEOGRAPHICALLY SPECIFIC ITEMS. UM, THIS PARALLEL APPROACH HELPS US EFFICIENTLY AND QUICKLY START WORK TOWARDS THE EQUITABLE OUTCOMES AND MEETING OUR SIX GOALS BROADLY IN AUSTIN WITH A SYSTEM-WIDE APPROACH, BUT AT THE SAME TIME MAKING SURE THAT IMPLEMENTATION PROPOSALS ARE TAILORED AND GEOGRAPHICALLY SPECIFIC THROUGH THAT APPROACH.
AND I'VE ALSO GOTTEN SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT WHETHER A SYSTEM-WIDE APPROACH WOULD JUST BE, UM, APPLIED EVERYWHERE OR IF IT HAS TO HAPPEN FIRST AND THE GEOGRAPHIC STATION PLANNING HAPPENS SECOND OR VICE VERSA.
SO I WANNA CLARIFY THOUGH, WE'RE TALKING ABOUT BOTH OF THESE THINGS, THE, THE GEOGRAPHIC STATION PLANNING AND THE SYSTEM-WIDE APPROACHES MOVING FORWARD IN THE NEXT FEW YEARS ON, ON PARALLEL TRACKS.
UM, WE, WE DON'T WANNA SEE IT AS AN EITHER OR.
WE REALLY FEEL LIKE IT'S A BOTH AND THAT'S, THAT'S THE KIND OF URGENCY OUR COMMUNITY HAS EXPRESSED TO US.
AND JUST BECAUSE SOMETHING IS PART OF A SYSTEM-WIDE APPROACH, IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT IT'S GONNA BE BLANKET OR IT'S GONNA APPLY THE SAME WAY IN EVERY SINGLE STATIONARY.
THAT'S, THAT'S NOT WHAT WE MEAN WHEN WE SAY SYSTEM WIDE.
THE NEXT PART OF THE DRAFT RESOLUTION ON MARCH 9TH IS INITIATING STATION AREA PLANNING IN THE 11TH STATION AREAS WITHIN THE NORTHEAST AUSTIN DISTRICT PLANNING BOUNDARY.
THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF THAT GEOGRAPHICALLY SPECIFIC APPROACH I WAS JUST TALKING ABOUT.
WE'VE ALREADY KICKED OFF SOME VISION PLANS WITH THE NORTH LAMAR AND SOUTH CONGRESS TRANSIT CENTERS, AND I THINK SOME OF THE, SOME OF THE SPEAKERS TODAY MENTIONED THAT WE HAD A WORKSHOP LAST NIGHT.
WE DID, WE HAD WORKSHOPS FOR THOSE GEOGRAPHIC AREAS ON THE 28TH AND THE FIRST, UH, WHERE WE GOT REALLY GREAT MORE IN-DEPTH LOCAL KNOWLEDGE ABOUT WHAT PEOPLE LIKE TO CELEBRATE, WHAT, WHAT BRINGS THEM CULTURE, UH, WHAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO SEE IMPROVED IN THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS.
SO IF YOU'RE IN ONE OF THOSE NEIGHBORHOODS, PLEASE GO TO PROJECT CONNECT.COM/PROJECT/ETOD.
THERE'S MORE ENGAGEMENT IN THOSE TWO STATIONARIES GOING ON NOW.
AND A SURVEY OPENED THROUGH MARCH 21ST.
BUT LOOKING AT THIS MAP, YOU CAN SEE THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT DIFFERENT PARTS OF TOWN.
WE'RE ALSO TALKING ABOUT DIFFERENT KINDS OF TRANSIT SERVICE.
UM, AND THAT WAS ANOTHER THING THAT CAME UP WAS WHETHER IT SHOULD BE RAIL OR ALSO INCLUDE THE METRO RAPID SERVICES.
AND AS COUNCIL DIRECTED STAFF IN ITS OR INITIAL RESOLUTION IN JUNE, 2021, WE ARE, WE ARE TO LOOK AT THIS FULL SYSTEM, THIS INITIAL INVESTMENT OF PROJECT CONNECT.
UM, IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT IT'S GONNA LOOK THE SAME IN EVERY TYPE OF TRANSIT SERVICE, BUT WE, WE WANNA SEE EQUITABLE OUTCOMES, WHETHER IT'S A RAIL STOP OR A BUS STOP.
BY WORKING THROUGH ALL THESE DIFFERENT TYPES EARLY WE'LL GET A CHANCE TO KIND OF GET THAT UNDER OUR BELT TO, TO SEE WHAT WORKS IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF AUSTIN OR FOR DIFFERENT TRANSIT TYPES.
SO IT'S, IT'S NOT A PREDETERMINED OUTCOME ON IN, IN ANY OF THESE AREAS.
THE THIRD THING THAT COUNCIL IS ASKED TO DO ON MARCH 9TH WITH THE DRAFT RESOLUTION IS INITIATE AMENDMENTS TO THE COMPREHENSIVE PLAN.
IMAGINE AUSTIN, OUR CURRENT GROWTH CONCEPT MAP, WHICH IS ON THE SCREEN IN FRONT OF YOU, DOES NOT ACCOUNT FOR THE PROJECT AND CONNECT SYSTEM.
WE'VE LEARNED MORE ABOUT THE TRANSIT INVESTMENTS IN THE LAST FEW YEARS AND THEY'RE NOT REFLECTED IN OUR GROWTH CONCEPT.
SO IF COUNCIL DECIDES ON MARCH 9TH TO VOTE TO BEGIN AMENDMENT PROCESS FOR IMAGINE AUSTIN, IT WOULD ALLOW STAFF TO START LOOKING AT HOW TO INCORPORATE E T O D INTO THE COMP PLAN, INCLUDING WITH COMMUNITY INPUT ON HOW TO DO THAT.
WE WOULD TAKE THAT INPUT AND CRAFT ANY PROPOSED AMENDMENTS TO IMAGINE AUSTIN AND THEN GO THROUGH THE FORMAL ENGAGEMENT OR THE FORMAL AMENDMENT PROCESS, WHICH IS LAID OUT IN OUR CITY CHARTER.
ONCE THAT IS EVENTUALLY INCORPORATED, IF COUNCIL WOULD, YOU KNOW, ULTIMATELY ADOPT THOSE PROPOSED AMENDMENTS, STAFF WOULD BE ABLE TO START USING E T O D TYPOLOGY AS ONE PIECE OF INFORMATION WHEN WE THINK ABOUT, UH, REQUESTS FOR PLAN AMENDMENTS AND ZONING CASES IN THE FUTURE WITHIN STATION AREAS.
AND THEN THE LAST THING, AND, AND PROBABLY THE THING I'VE GOTTEN THE MOST QUESTIONS ABOUT SO FAR IS WHAT IS THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE AMENDMENTS THAT COUNCIL WOULD BE ASKED TO INITIATE ON MARCH 9TH? AND I ALREADY DISCUSSED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE DIFFERENT FLAVORS OF THOSE AT THE FEBRUARY 21ST WORK SESSION, BUT I'M GONNA DIVE INTO EVEN MORE DETAIL RIGHT NOW.
SO TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THE PROPOSED AMENDMENTS ARE, YOU KIND OF ALSO NEED TO KNOW WHAT THE CURRENT AMENDMENTS ARE, OR THE CURRENT CODE SAYS ABOUT T O D IN AUSTIN.
AND I'M DEFINITELY GONNA LAUNCH INTO WHAT THE E T O D OVERLAY IS AS WELL.
SO TODAY THE CITY'S LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE SPELLS OUT THE PROCESS FOR TRADITIONAL T O D PLANNING AND REGULATIONS.
THE TRADITIONAL T O D APPROACH PREVIOUSLY USED TO DATE CATEGORIZED EACH DEFINED T O D INTO ONE OF A FEW DIFFERENT CLASSIFICATIONS AND SPELLED OUT SPECIFICALLY HOW DENSE AND INTENSE IT SHOULD BE, SHOULD IT
[00:40:01]
BE A REGIONAL CENTER AND A TOWN CENTER, ET CETERA.WITH E T O D, WE'RE TAKING A MORE PEOPLE CENTERED APPROACH RATHER THAN THE BUILT FORM BEING THE MAJOR FOCUS.
AND SO THE REGULATIONS WE KNOW ARE ONLY ONE WAY TO GET US TOWARDS OUR E T O D GOALS.
WE WANNA LOOK AT THESE CURRENT T O D REGULATIONS AS WELL BECAUSE WE ALSO ONLY HAVE NINE RED LINE OR PARK AND RIDE SITES AS DESIGNATED TODS IN AUSTIN.
AND WE KNOW FROM COUNCIL'S DIRECTION THAT YOU'RE INTERESTED IN US LOOKING ACROSS THE CAP METRO PROJECT CONNECT SYSTEM TO CONSIDER OTHER SERVICES AS WELL.
SO TO MAKE OUR CODE MORE REFLECTIVE OF THIS E T O D APPROACH WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON, UH, STAFF IS PROPOSING A FEW DIFFERENT UPDATES TO THE CURRENT T O D REGULATIONS.
THIS WOULD INCLUDE UPDATING THE LIST OF STATIONS TO THE 98 STATION AREAS THAT ARE IN THE E T O D POLICY PLAN PER COUNCIL GUIDANCE.
WE'D ALSO CONSIDER WHETHER THE EXISTING INITIAL OR INTERIM REGULATIONS STILL MAKE SENSE FOR AUSTIN AND WHETHER THEY REALLY HELP US REACH THOSE SIX E T O D GOALS AND MAYBE THEY NEED TO BE TWEAKED MORE TO GET TO OUR EQUITABLE OUTCOMES WE'RE LOOKING FOR.
SO WE ENVISION COMMUNITY INPUT AS PART OF THAT PROCESS AS WELL.
UH, WE ALSO WANNA LOOK AT THE TWO-STEP PLANNING PROCESS AND I'LL TALK ABOUT WHAT THE TWO-STEP TRADITIONAL PROCESS USED TO LOOK LIKE IN A LITTLE BIT, UM, TO MAKE SURE IT REFLECTS HOW WE'RE ACTUALLY GONNA DO THAT GEOGRAPHIC STATIONARY PLANNING GOING FORWARD.
THE LAST TYPE OF LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE AMENDMENT STAFF IS RECOMMENDING FOR INITIATING ON MARCH 9TH IS TO CREATE THE E T O D OVERLAY.
ONE OF THE TOOLS IN THE POLICY TOOLKIT.
THE OVERLAY IS NOT DEFINED YET AND WE THINK IT COULD TAKE, AS I SAID, AT LEAST A YEAR OR YEAR AND A HALF OR MORE TO REALLY DO THE ANALYSIS AND THE DEEP COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT NECESSARY TO CRAFT AND APPLY THIS TOOL.
UM, WHEN WE ARE, WHEN WE WOULD GO AND CRAFT THIS OVERLAY, WE WOULD ALSO BE LOOKING AT THE GUIDING FACTORS BEING EQUITY, THOSE SIX GOALS THAT I TALKED ABOUT, AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT TO MAKE SURE THAT IT'S GOING TO MEET WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR AS A COMMUNITY.
AND WHEN I TALK ABOUT CRAFTING, THERE'S A FEW FOUR BULLETS THERE ABOUT LIKE, WHAT DO I MEAN TO ACTUALLY CREATE AN E T O D OVERLAY? YOU HAVE TO THINK ABOUT WHAT BENEFITS WE'RE GOING TO BE ASKING FOR IN EXCHANGE FOR WHAT ADDITIONAL ENTITLEMENTS, AND THAT'S GONNA BE A COMMUNITY CONVERSATION.
WE'RE GONNA THINK ABOUT WHERE AND HOW TO MAP IT.
AND THAT'S ALSO PART OF THE CONVERSATION.
AND THEN WE HAVE TO THINK ABOUT HOW DOES IT INTERACT WITH ALL THE EXISTING STUFF THAT'S IN AUSTIN TODAY IN PLANS AND REGULATIONS.
AND THAT'S ALSO PART OF THE CONVERSATION.
SO IT'S, THAT'S WHY I SAY IT'S GONNA TAKE A LOT OF WORK AND IT'S GONNA TAKE SOME TIME.
THIS IS NOT GONNA BE CREATED OVERNIGHT.
SO WE'VE ALSO GOTTEN A LOT OF QUESTIONS THAT TALK ABOUT LIKE THE, THE VOLUNTARY WORD THAT'S IN THE PLAN.
AND I RECOGNIZE THAT THAT PROBABLY CAUSED SOME CONFUSION.
THE WAY THAT WE WORDED THAT IN THE PLAN DOCUMENT.
UM, PEOPLE HAVE BEEN ASKING WHETHER IT MEANS IT'S OPT-IN OR OPT OUT, YOU KNOW, COULD A WHOLE NEIGHBORHOOD SAY WE DON'T WANT TO DO E T O D OR, UM, SOMETHING LIKE THAT.
THIS IS NOT GOING TO BE A PROCESS WHERE ENTIRE PARTS OF THE CITY CAN JUST OPT OUT OF BEING PART OF THE EQUITABLE OUTCOMES THAT AUSTIN KNIGHTS WANT.
THAT WOULD NOT BE AN EQUITABLE APPROACH.
UM, THAT LOCALIZED FEEDBACK ON WHERE IT MAKES SENSE IN A NEIGHBORHOOD IS REALLY, REALLY VALUABLE.
BUT WE KNOW IF WE ONLY LISTEN TO TO TO THAT KIND OF FEEDBACK, WE'RE NOT GOING TO HAVE THE CHANCE TO REALLY REACH OUR EQUITY GOALS, RIGHT? IF WE JUST LEAVE PARTS OF THE CITY FROM, FROM DOING THEIR PART.
I'VE ALSO HEARD CONCERNS THAT THE OVERLAY WOULD REQUIRE REDEVELOPMENT THAT LIKE AS SOON AS ON MARCH 9TH IT'S PASSED, THEN THERE'S THIS OVERLAY AND IT MAKES YOU REDEVELOPMENT YOUR PROPERTY.
ANY PROPERTY OWNER AT ANY TIME CAN CHOOSE WHAT THEY WOULD LIKE TO DO WITH THEIR PROPERTY, INCLUDING NOT ANYTHING
IF YOU CHOOSE TO REDEVELOP, YOU CAN USE YOUR BASE ZONING.
YOU DON'T HAVE TO USE ANY OF THE ADDITIONAL BONUS PROGRAMS THAT MAY OR MAY NOT APPLY TO YOUR PROPERTY.
SO EVEN IF YOU HAVE A V IN YOUR ZONING STRING TODAY, YOU DON'T HAVE TO USE V RIGHT? YOU CAN USE YOUR BASE ZONING.
AND THEN THE IDEA THAT IT WOULD AUTOMATICALLY BE APPLIED AGAIN, THE ANSWER IS NO ON COUNCIL VOTING FOR E T O D RESOLUTION ON MARCH 9TH WOULD INITIATE THE PROCESS TO START LOOKING AT THIS TOOL, BUT IT DOES NOT AUTOMATICALLY START IT BEING APPLIED TODAY.
SO IF YOU WANT STAFF TO LOOK INTO THIS FURTHER, THEN THEN PLEASE VOTE FOR THAT ON THE NINTH.
BUT WHEN THE PROPOSAL COMES BACK AT THE END OF THE PROCESS AND OUR ANALYSIS AND ENGAGEMENT COUNCIL WILL BE ABLE TO VOTE ON IT, AMEND IT, EVEN FLAT OUT, REJECT IT AS HAS ALWAYS BEEN, YOU KNOW, YOUR WILL AS A DIAS.
OKAY, SO THAT WAS A LOT ON THE SYSTEM-WIDE APPROACHES.
NOW I'M GONNA DIG IN A LITTLE BIT MORE TO THE GEOGRAPHIC APPROACH.
LIKE WHAT DOES A T O D E T O D PLANNING PROCESS LOOK LIKE? WE JUST KICKED OFF THE TWO IN NORTH AND SOUTH LAMAR.
WE'RE ASKING FOR SOME MORE TO BE STARTED IN NORTHEAST AUSTIN.
AND, AND WHAT IS THAT LIKE? SO OUR CURRENT T O D REGULATIONS
[00:45:01]
IN THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE HAVE A REALLY PRESCRIPTIVE WAY OF HOW WE DOTD PLANNING FOR TRADITIONAL TODS.AND SO THE FIRST THING IS THERE'S INITIAL REGULATIONS.
AS SOON AS A T O D IS MAPPED ONTO A PARCEL, THERE'S INITIAL REGULATIONS THAT APPLY.
THEY GOVERN THINGS LIKE BUILDING SETBACKS AND KIND OF PARKING RESTRICTIONS.
THEY DON'T DO MUCH, BUT THEY DO JUST LIKE A LITTLE BIT TO MAKE SURE THAT THE PEDESTRIAN ENVIRONMENT IS A LITTLE BIT MORE FRIENDLY IN A T O D.
UM, THE SECOND OR THE, SO THAT'S KIND OF THE IMMEDIATE STEP.
STEP ONE IS TO GO WITH COMMUNITY TO CRAFT A STATION AREA PLAN.
UM, THIS IS GOING TO SET UP THE VISION, BUT IT'S NOT A REGULATING DOCUMENT.
IT GETS AMENDED INTO EXISTING NEIGHBORHOOD PLANS.
UM, BUT IT'S, IT'S NOT GOING TO CHANGE ANYBODY'S ZONING.
AND THEN THE SECOND STEP OF THE TRADITIONAL PROCESS IS THE REGULATING PLAN.
AND THIS BASICALLY CREATES A NEW ZONING FRAMEWORK.
YOU KNOW, YOU GET DASH T O D TWO YEAR ZONING STRING AND YOU HAVE TO GO TO THE REGULATING PLAN TO SEE WHAT, UH, YOU KNOW, YOU CAN ACTUALLY DO WITH YOUR PROPERTY.
SO IN CONTRAST TO THAT CURRENT PROCESS, THE E T O D PROCESS THAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR, UM, IS, IS NOT QUITE THE SAME.
WE STILL THINK THAT THERE COULD BE USE IN INTERIM REGULATIONS THAT APPLY SYSTEM-WIDE, HENCE WHY STAFF IS ASKING FOR THE CHANCE TO GO LOOK AT THOSE AND SEE WHAT WORKS.
UM, AND WE ALSO THINK SOMETHING LIKE THIS OVERLAY BONUS PROGRAM THAT WOULD APPLY SYSTEM-WIDE COULD BE REALLY USEFUL TO SUPPORT OUR GOALS.
AGAIN, IT MIGHT BE IN ALL STATION AREAS, BUT IT MIGHT NOT BE ON ALL PARCELS.
WHAT STAFF REALLY KNOWS IS THAT THIS VISION PLAN THAT, UH, THAT WE'VE DONE IN THE PAST IS A REALLY VALUABLE TOOL TO UNDERSTAND WHAT GEOGRAPHIC AREAS ARE INTERESTED IN FOR THE FUTURE OF THEIR COMMUNITY.
UM, AND GETTING THE IMPLEMENTATION OF THAT PLAN HAS ALWAYS BEEN, YOU KNOW, A LITTLE BIT OF A CHALLENGE.
SO THERE'S LOTS OF WAYS TO IMPLEMENT PLANS.
ONE OF THEM IS REGULATIONS, BUT THERE'S OTHER THINGS LIKE INVESTMENTS AND SETTING UP COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS AND PROGRAMS OF THESE NATURES NEW, UM, SUPPORTS FOR SMALL BUSINESSES.
SO WE RECOGNIZE THAT BECAUSE E T O D IS TRYING TO TAKE A REALLY HOLISTIC LOOK AT HOW TO IMPLEMENT THE VISION FOR A STATION AREA, IT'S NOT GONNA BE THE CASE IN EVERY TI IN EVERY STATION THAT REG NEW REGULATIONS ARE, ARE NEEDED IN THAT, IN THAT AREA.
CAN I, CAN I ASK A QUESTION REAL QUICKLY? YEAH, GO AHEAD.
UM, ON YOUR INTERIM REGULATIONS THAT APPLY SYSTEM WIDE, AND I'M SORRY IF YOU SAID THIS AND I JUST MISSED IT, LAND USE REGULATIONS OR NOT? SO LET ME GO BACK TO THIS SLIDE REALLY QUICK.
SO THIS IS WHAT'S IN OUR CURRENT T D REGULATIONS.
WE DON'T EXACTLY HAVE AN IDEA YET WHAT NEEDS TO BE UPDATED IN THAT OR NOT, BUT IT RE IT DOES PROHIBIT CERTAIN USES.
SO SOMETHING LIKE, UM, A REALLY LARGE SURFACE PARKING LOT WOULD BE PROHIBITED, RIGHT? AND IT ALSO TALKS ABOUT SETBACKS AND MAKING SURE BUILDING ENTRANCES, YOU KNOW, ARE CLOSE TO THE SIDEWALK AND, AND EASILY ACCESSIBLE.
SO DOES THAT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION A LITTLE BIT? WE WOULD WANNA LOOK AT THOSE USES AND MAKE SURE THAT THEY'RE STILL THE RIGHT USES IF WE UPDATED THOSE.
MY, AND THEN YOU MAY GET THIS SOMEWHERE ELSE, SO I'M SORRY IF I'M JUMPING THE GUN HERE, BUT ONE OF THE THINGS IN THE NEAR TERM THAT I WANNA MAKE SURE IS SOMEWHERE IN THIS PROCESS IS COORDINATION WITH ATP AND WITH OTHERS TO MAKE SURE THAT WE ARE TAKING THE ACTION WE NEED TO TAKE AS A COUNCIL WHEN IT COMES TO LAND USE DECISIONS IN ORDER TO NOT SCORE SO POORLY ON FEDERAL METRICS THAT DETERMINE THE FUNDING WE'RE GONNA GET.
SO IF WE'RE, YOU KNOW, I SEE IT BOTH.
ONE, IF WE'RE GONNA MAKE THESE INVESTMENTS, WE NEED TO HAVE THE, THE DECISION OR THE, THE TYPE OF HOUSING AND, AND LAND USE AROUND THEM THAT ACTUALLY MAKE IT A GOOD INVESTMENT.
WE DON'T WANNA WASTE THAT MONEY, BUT TWO, WE ALSO WANT TO BE PRUDENT WITH THE TAXPAYERS DOLLARS AND WANT TO GET AS MANY FEDERAL DOLLARS AS WE CAN.
AND RIGHT NOW IN MY DISCUSSIONS WITH ATP AND OTHERS, WE ARE SCORING HORRIBLY WHEN IT COMES TO THESE LINES.
AND SO I WANNA MAKE SURE WE DON'T WAIT UNTIL WE'RE BUILDING THE STATION TO MAKE THOSE CHANGES, BUT THAT WE ARE SOMEWHERE IN THIS PROCESS RECOGNIZING CHANGES WE MIGHT NEED TO MAKE TODAY SO THAT WE QUALIFY FOR DOLLARS TO GET THE LINES BILL MATH.
I I JUST WANNA REITERATE THAT POINT, THAT, THAT LET'S NOT PUT THE CARD BEFORE THE HORSE.
YOU KNOW, THE NUMBER ONE GOAL OF THE TRANSIT ENT DEVELOPMENT IS TO GET RIDERS ON THE LINE TO BUILD HOUSING AROUND
[00:50:01]
THE STATIONS.AND, YOU KNOW, I I, I JUST MM-HMM.
AND, AND SO THAT IS THE NUMBER ONE PRIORITY.
IF WE DON'T DO WELL ON THAT, WE DON'T GET FEDERAL DOLLARS.
IF WE DON'T GET FEDERAL DOLLARS, YOU KNOW, THE, THE LINE IS NOT GONNA BE WHAT WE WANT IT TO BE.
IF THE LINE'S NOT WHAT WE WANT IT TO BE, WE DON'T HAVE THAT BENEVOLENT CYCLE THAT CREATES THE RESOURCES THAT ALLOWS US TO SUPPORT THE PEOPLE THAT, YOU KNOW, ARE THREATENED OR DISPLACED.
SO I I I, I REALLY APPRECIATE, UH, COUNCIL MEMBER RYAN AL'S POINT, AND, AND I JUST WANNA REITERATE THAT I, I AGREE WITH THOSE AND WE JUST ADD THE CAVEAT THAT ALLOWING PEOPLE TO BE IN OUR COMMUNITY AND NOT HAVE TO BE CAR DEPENDENT IS A BIG HIGH LEVEL GOAL FROM THIS.
AND SO IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT DRIVING RIDERSHIP, BUT IT IS ABOUT BETTER AIR QUALITY, LESS CONGESTION, YOU KNOW, MORE SPACE FOR TREES AND PEOPLE AND LESS, YOU KNOW, LESS OF THE CONCRETE.
SO I, I WOULD JUST ADD THAT EXTRA LAYER TOO
AND WE HAVE BEEN COLLABORATING REALLY CLOSELY.
WE HAVE PEOPLE HERE FROM CAP METRO AND ATP TODAY THAT CAN EVEN BETTER SPEAK TO THE ACTUAL TIMELINE FOR GRANT, UH, SCORING I KNOW IS ON EVERYBODY'S MIND.
SO GREAT QUESTION FOR WHEN WE GET TO THE Q AND A, BUT I DO WANT YOU TO UNDERSTAND THAT THERE'S BOTH, UM, THERE'S A CRITERIA THAT TALKS ABOUT KIND OF WHAT'S ON THE GROUND TODAY, WHAT ARE THE POPULATION, WHAT ARE THE JOBS, YOU KNOW, THAT THAT FTA LOOKS AT? AND THEN THERE'S ALSO A CRITERIA THAT TALKS ABOUT WHAT POLICIES IN PLACE, WHAT COULD BE THERE IN THE FUTURE.
AND SO E T O D WOULD DEFINITELY FIT IN THAT SECOND CATEGORY OF LIKE THE, IF IT'S ACCEPTED, WHAT WHAT COULD BE THERE IN THE FUTURE.
UM, BUT THE SOONER THAT ONE IMPLEMENTS E T O D AND STARTS ACTUALLY MOVING THROUGH SOME OF THOSE NEXT STEPS AND ACTION ITEMS, THE MORE LIKELY IT HAS A CHANCE TO LIKE IMPACT THAT FIRST CRITERIA ABOUT WHAT'S ON THE GROUND TODAY.
SO THAT, AND WE CAN TALK MORE ABOUT THAT IN THE Q AND A, UH, CAUSE I KNOW THAT THAT'S REALLY OF A LOT OF INTEREST.
SO I KNOW THAT WE GOT, UH, THAT WE GOT A LITTLE BIT BEHIND, BUT I'M GLAD FOR THE QUESTION.
UM, I ALSO WANTED, I THINK I COVERED YES, THIS, I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT RELATIONSHIP TO OTHER WORK.
YOU KNOW, THERE'S BEEN OTHER WORK THAT COUNCIL HAS BEEN WORKING TO DO TO TRY TO ENSURE THAT PROJECT CONNECT IS SUCCESSFUL, UM, RECENT CODE AMENDMENTS, BUT ALSO EXISTING PLANS AND REGULATIONS THAT ARE ALONG THE LINES.
AND SO WE'VE GOTTEN SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW THAT WOULD RELATE TO ETO O D STATION AREA PLANNING, OR WHAT ABOUT DISTRICT LEVEL PLANNING? UH, ARE WE ONLY DOING PLANNING IN THE STATION AREAS? AND SO I WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT FOLKS KNEW THAT IN ADDITION TO ETO O D STATIONARIES, WE'RE ALSO PLANNING TO DO THESE OTHER SMALL AREA AND DISTRICT LEVEL, AND WHEN IT MAKES SENSE, INCORPORATE E T O D, LIKE FOR NORTHEAST AUSTIN WHERE THERE ARE STOPS, BUT IT DOESN'T MEAN THAT IT'S GOING TO BE APPLIED TO AREAS THAT DON'T HAVE THESE TRANSIT INVESTMENTS COMING TO IT.
AND THEN WE'RE, WE ARE GOING TO NEED TO CONSIDER HOW THESE DIFFERENT RECENT AMENDMENTS OR EXISTING PLANS AND THINGS ARE GONNA FACTOR INTO SOME OF THE POLICY TOOLS AS WE START TO DEVELOP THOSE.
SO THAT IS ALSO VERY MUCH ON STAFF'S MIND.
AND THEN BACK TO MAYBE A LITTLE BIT OF YOUR, YOUR POINT, UM, COUNCIL MEMBERS, WHAT IS THE TIMELINE? WHAT ARE, AND WHAT THINGS ARE WE ALREADY DOING THAT SUPPORT E T O D? SO BASED ON OUR STAFF CAPACITY, UNDERSTANDING THE PROCESSES THAT WE HAVE TO GO THROUGH, LIKE PROCUREMENT AND THE CODE AMENDMENTS AND CHARTER REQUIREMENTS, AS WELL AS HOW LONG IT TAKES TO ACTUALLY DO ENGAGEMENT IN STATION AREAS AND START TO DEVELOP A VISION.
THIS IS KIND OF OUR BEST THINKING ON A POTENTIAL TIMELINE FOR SOME OF THOSE IMPLEMENTATION STEPS I TALKED ABOUT TODAY.
THE, THE TOP TWO WOULD BE SOME OF THOSE SYSTEM-WIDE APPROACHES, THE BOTTOM TWO BEING SOME OF THOSE GEOGRAPHIC SPECIFIC APPROACHES.
UM, AND THIS HAS BEEN COORDINATED WITH OUR PARTNERS AT AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP AND PROJECT CONNECT OFFICE HERE AT THE CITY AS WELL AS CAP METRO TO UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, WHAT THE TIMELINES ARE FOR LIGHT RAIL DESIGN AND GRANT FUNDING SUBMITTAL.
UM, THEN MY LAST SLIDE HERE FOR THOSE THAT ARE WONDERING LIKE, WHAT ARE WE ALREADY DOING? ARE WE DOING ANYTHING TODAY? THE ANSWER IS DEFINITELY YES.
UM, THE HOUSING AND PLANNING DEPARTMENT HAS, UH, WHILE WE'VE BEEN WORKING ON THIS OVERALL FRAMEWORK, WE'VE STILL ALREADY STARTED DOING SOME IMPLEMENTATION THINGS THAT SUPPORT PROJECT CONNECT AND SUPPORT THESE E T O D GOALS, UH, ESPECIALLY THROUGH GENERAL OBLIGATION BONDS OR THE 300 MILLION WITH, UH, ANTI-DISPLACEMENT FUNDING THAT'S BEEN APPROVED.
UM, SO THERE'S JUST A HANDFUL OF THINGS.
I KNOW THAT DIRECTOR TRULOVE GAVE YOU ALL A REALLY GOOD COMPREHENSIVE OVERVIEW AT THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE ON TUESDAY AND TOUCHED ON A FEW OF THESE THINGS THAT HOUSING AND PLANNING DEPARTMENT DOES.
UM, SO WE, WE'D ALSO BE HAPPY TO ANSWER SOME QUESTIONS, UH, LATER ON ABOUT THOSE.
CAN I ASK A, AND I DON'T KNOW IF YOU'RE THE RIGHT PERSON TO ASK THIS QUESTION, IT'S, IT'S FROM THE DRAFT DOCUMENT OR SOMETHING THAT JUMPED OUT TO ME.
[00:55:01]
I WANNA MAKE SURE I'M READING IT CORRECTLY FIRST AND FOREMOST, BUT THEN IF THERE'S LESSONS LEARNED OR, OR WHY WE SEE THIS, THERE'S, IT'S ON PAGE 10, IT'S TALKING ABOUT COMMUTING AND CAR OWNERSHIP SHIFTS.AND THE STATEMENT IS THAT IN CENSUS TRACKS WHERE WE HAVE TODS, THAT TRANSIT RIDERSHIP TO WORK IN THESE CENSUS TRACKS OF STUDY HAVE SEEN SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION INSTEAD OF AN INCREASE.
AND I WANTED TO UNDERSTAND IF THAT'S, IF WE HAVE LOOKED AT THAT AND SAID, YOU KNOW, TRIED TO UNDERSTAND WHY, WHY IS THAT HAPPENING? AND, AND CLEARLY SOMETHING WE'RE DOING IS NOT QUITE WORKING.
SO HAVE WE FIGURED OUT MAYBE TO GO IN A DIFFERENT DIRECTION A LITTLE BIT ON SOME OF THIS, OR I'M JUST TRYING TO, THERE'S PROBABLY, YEAH, THERE'S PROBABLY A LOT OF FACTORS WHY THAT, UH, IS THE CASE, BUT YOU'RE CORRECT THAT I CENSUS TRACKS THAT CONTAIN OUR THREE ADOPTED TODS.
WE HAVE SEEN A DECREASE IN FOLKS TAKING TRANSIT TO WORK BETWEEN 2010 AND 2020, UH, CENSUS DATA NUMBERS.
AND SO SOME OF THE THINGS THAT COULD BE AT PLAY THERE ARE THAT IT'S STILL REALLY EASY TO DRIVE AND PARK A CAR.
UM, ANOTHER THING THAT COULD BE IN PLAY IS THAT THERE ARE FEWER PEOPLE WITH FAMILIES, FEWER LOW INCOME PEOPLE THAT ARE RENTING, UH, OR, YOU KNOW, OWNING UNITS IN THESE TODS.
WE, THOSE ARE OTHER FACTS THAT ARE IN THE LITTLE BRIEF ANALYSIS THAT WE DID THERE.
SO THESE SHIFTING DEMOGRAPHICS AND KIND OF COMMUTING PATTERNS ARE NOT WHAT WE'D HOPE TO SEE OUT OF OUR TODS, WHICH IS ANOTHER REASON THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT A NEW APPROACH FOR ETO ODS BECAUSE THAT'S, THAT'S NOT GOING TO ACTUALLY HELP US, UH, REACH OUR CLIMATE GOALS AND OUR CONGESTION MITIGATION GOALS AND THINGS.
I, UH, I'LL ALLOW A COUPLE MORE QUESTIONS, BUT WE STILL HAVE TWO WHOLE SECTIONS OF PRESENTATIONS TO GET THROUGH BEFORE Q AND A.
I WILL, OH, I GUESS I COULD WAIT.
UH, UH, YEAH, I COULD, I COULD WAIT UNTIL Q AND A THEN I'VE, I HAVE QUITE A FEW QUESTIONS, SO THAT'D BE GOOD.
I KNOW THERE'S JUST A LOT OF INFORM INFORMATION.
AND WE MAY END UP NOT HAVING TIME FOR Q AND A IF WE ASK ALL OUR QUESTIONS ON THE FIRST PRESENTATION.
AND THAT TURNS US OVER TO ANNA LAND PRINCIPAL PLANNER AT CAP METRO, AND WE'RE GONNA HEAR ABOUT THE ENGAGEMENT PROCESS TO DATE.
GOOD AFTERNOON, COUNCIL MEMBERS CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR.
I AM A T O D MANAGER AT CAP METRO.
I'M VERY HAPPY HERE TODAY TO TALK THROUGH OUR ENGAGEMENT PROCESS.
EQUITABLE APPROACH TO DOD WOULD NOT BE SO WITHOUT INTENTIONAL, MEANINGFUL, AND INCLUSIVE COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT.
SO A CORNERSTONE, UH, MAYBE NEXT SLIDE PLEASE.
UM, A CORNERSTONE OF OUR ENGAGEMENT PROCESS IS FACILITATE FACILITATING THAT COMMUNITY INPUT THROUGH THE PLANNING PROCESS TO DEFINE EQUITY, AND ALSO TO HELP US ESTABLISH WHAT EQUITABLE OUTCOMES ARE NEEDED ACROSS THE STATION AREAS.
THIS PROJECT DIFFERS IN ITS APPROACH BECAUSE IT HAS ADDED ADDITIONAL WEIGHT TO VOICES, NOT INCLUDED IN PAST MULTI-GENERATIONAL PLANNING EFFORTS.
SO IN ESSENCE, TURNING UP THE VOLUME ON KEY COMMUNITY VOICES AND ALSO COMPENSATING THEM FOR THEIR TIME AND KNOWLEDGE.
WE HAVE A VARIETY OF ENGAGEMENT TOUCHPOINTS.
UM, SOME OF THE MORE TRADITIONAL OUTREACH SUCH AS THE PUBLIC MEETINGS, STAKEHOLDER PRESENTATIONS, TABLINGS AND SURVEYS WORK REALLY WELL IN THE PAST, BUT WE ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THESE ARE NOT REACHING DEEP ENOUGH INTO OUR COMMUNITIES, OUR WRITERS, OUR RESIDENTS.
SO WE FOCUS OUR ENGAGEMENT TOWARDS MORE TARGETED PEER-TO-PEER APPROACH.
AND WE DO THAT THROUGH REGULAR C A C BRIEFINGS.
WE HAVE FOCUS GROUPS WITH GRASS TOP GRASSROOTS RESIDENTS, ONE-ON-ONE INTERVIEWS, AS WELL AS COMMUNITY CONNECTORS.
THE COMMUNITY CONNECTORS AND C S C WORKING GROUP, I THINK DESERVES A SHOUT OUT.
THE C S C OR THE COMMUNITY ADVISORY COMMITTEE IS FORMED TO, UH, ADVISE PROJECT CONNECT ON ISSUES OF EQUITY AND DISPLACEMENT.
THEY FORMED AN ETO O D WORKING GROUP WITH US THAT WE MEET AT LEAST MONTHLY, IF NOT MORE REGULARLY, DEPENDING