[00:00:03]
[Determination of Quorum / Meeting Called to Order]
THAT, WE WILL, UM, WE HAVE A QUORUM PRESENT.I'LL NOW CALL THE MEETING OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION TO ORDER.
SO FIRST I'M GOING TO TAKE ROLL CALL, GO IN ALPHABETICAL ORDER AS YOU SEE IN THE AGENDA.
COMMISSIONER RERO RAMIREZ WILL COME LATER.
COMMISSIONER COX IS NOT HERE YET.
COMMISSIONER MOALA NOT PRESENT YET.
AND COMMISSIONER WOODS IS ABSENT THIS EVENING.
I'LL, UM, ACKNOWLEDGE THE EX OFFICIOS IF WE, UH, WHEN THEY ARRIVE LATER ON IN THE MEETING.
UM, SO THE USUAL NOTE, TONIGHT'S MEETING IS HYBRID, ALLOWING FOR A VIRTUAL QUORUM AS LONG AS THE COMMISSIONER SERVING AS CHAIR IS, IS PRESENT IN CHAMBERS.
SO WE DO HAVE COMMISSIONERS HERE IN CHAMBERS AND VIRTUAL.
ALSO, SPEAKERS WILL PRESENT BOTH FROM CHAMBERS OR VIRTUALLY, UM, VIRTUAL COMMISSIONERS.
PLEASE REMEMBER TO SIGN, SEND YOUR SIGN IN SHEET TO OUR STAFF LIAISON PER THE CLERK'S GUIDELINES AND REMEMBER TO HAVE YOUR RED, YELLOW, AND GREEN VIVID PLEAS, UM, FOR VOTING.
IF YOU ARE SIGNED UP TO SPEAK, YOU'LL RECEIVE AN EMAIL PRIOR TO THE COMMISSION TAKING UP YOUR ITEM AND SPEAKERS CAN DONATE TIME.
BOTH THE SPEAKER DONATING TIME AND THE SPEAKER RECIPIENT MUST BE PRESENT IN PERSON WHEN THE ITEM IS CONSIDERED.
ALRIGHT, SO, UM, AS A NOTE TO OUR VIRTUAL COMMISSIONERS, IF, UH, WE DON'T SEE YOU BECAUSE WE HAVE CODE ON THE SCREEN OR SOMETHING, JUST ACKNOWLEDGE ME, UM, COME OFF MUTE AND LET ME KNOW THAT YOU'D LIKE TO SPEAK.
[PUBLIC COMMUNICATION]
DO WE HAVE ANYONE SIGNED UP TO SPEAK IN PUBLIC COMMUNICATION CHAIR? COMMISSIONER LA RIVERA? WE HAVE, UM, MR. STEWART HURST PRESENT.THANK YOU CHAIR AND MEMBERS OF THE COMMISSION.
I WANT TO TALK TO TONIGHT ABOUT CODE AMENDMENTS IN 2024 AND AFFORDABILITY IMPACT STATEMENTS.
MY NAME IS STUART HARRY HIRSCH, AND I TELL PEOPLE I'M STEW FROM DISTRICT TWO.
UH, IF THOSE WHO OPPOSE ADOPTING MORE CODE AMENDMENTS TO INCREASE DENSITY THROUGH SUBDIVISION OF LARGE LOTS INTO SMALL LOTS, OR ALLOWING MORE HOMES ON LOTS WITH, WITH, UH, RESIDENTIAL ZONING, IF THOSE FOLKS PREVAIL.
ACHIEVEMENT OF THE SMART HOUSING BLUEPRINT GOALS OF INCREASING 135,000 HOMES OVERALL OVER 10 YEARS AND INCREASING 65,000 HOMES SERVING INDIVIDUALS AND OR HOUSEHOLDS AT 80% MEDIAN FAMILY INCOME OR BELOW WILL NOT BE ACHIEVED BASED ON TESTIMONY I'VE HEARD AT PLANNING COMMISSION AND OR CITY COUNCIL HEARINGS, AND I'VE BEEN WATCHING THEM ALL, UH, OVER THE LAST COUPLE WEEKS.
HERE ARE SOME POSSIBLE AMENDMENTS THAT YOU'RE NOT POSTED FOR TONIGHT, AND THERE ARE AMENDMENTS TO STAFF RECOMMENDATIONS THAT COULD HELP PROPERTY OWNERS AND RENTERS MEET SMART HOUSING REASONABLY PRICED STANDARDS.
NUMBER ONE, SMART HOUSING RENTAL HAS 40 YEARS OF AFFORDABILITY INSTEAD OF FIVE YEARS OF AFFORDABILITY.
NUMBER TWO, BUILDING COVERAGE AND IMPERVIOUS COVER IS 40% RATHER THAN 45% IMPERVIOUS COVER ON SOME PROPERTIES SINCE IT'S CHEAPER TO PROVIDE OPEN SPACE THAN DRIVEWAYS AND OR GARAGES AND OR CARPORTS.
BULLET NUMBER THREE, TINY HOMES ALLOWED BY THE ADOPTED INTERNATIONAL RESIDENTIAL CODE BE ALLOWED ON ANY LOT THAT IS AT LEAST 1000 SQUARE FEET BECAUSE TINY HOMES, BY DEFINITION ARE 400 SQUARE FEET OR LESS.
AND THIS WOULD MEAN THAT IMPERVIOUS COVER WOULD NOT BE EXCEED 40%.
NUMBER FOUR, THAT MAXIMUM MANUFACTURED HOMES ALLOWED BY THE ADOPTED INTERNATIONAL RESIDENTIAL CODE BE ALLOWED ON ANY LOT WHERE IMPERVIOUS COVER AND BUILDING AND BUILDING COVERAGE DO NOT EXCEED 40% AND APPLICABLE SETBACK REQUIREMENTS ARE MET.
I UNDERSTAND THESE CHANGES MIGHT REQUIRE ADDITIONAL NOTICE AND PUBLIC HEARINGS SINCE THE PREVIOUS POSTING LANGUAGE DOES NOT EXPLICITLY MENTION THESE PROPOSED CHANGES.
AND I URGE YOU TO WORK WITH THE COUNCIL TO MAKE THOSE PUBLIC HEARINGS HAPPEN SO THAT WE REALLY TRY TO ACHIEVE, UH, THE GOALS OF THE STRATEGIC HOUSING BLUEPRINT INSTEAD OF PRETENDING THAT THEY DON'T EXIST OR WE CAN ACHIEVE THEM IN THE CONTEXT OF OUR EXISTING LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE.
IN FULL DISCLOSURE, I'M ONE OF THE STAFFERS WHO WROTE THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE IN THE EIGHTIES AND HELPED WRITE THE
[00:05:01]
REVISED SIMPLIFIED LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE IN THE NINETIES.SO I'VE SEEN THIS EXERCISE A LOT OF TIMES AND I HOPE YOU WILL BE THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND YOUR APPOINTEES, UH, AND YOUR CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS WILL MOVE THIS FORWARD SO WE CAN REALLY MAKE HOUSING REASONABLY PRICED FOR MORE AND MORE AUSTINITES.
STOP PRESENTATION IS, THAT'S OUR, OUR ONLY, OKAY.
THAT WAS OUR ONLY, UM, PUBLIC COMMUNICATION.
SO, UM, BOTH HEARINGS TODAY ARE UP FOR DISCUSSION, THOSE BEING THE NUMBER ONE LDC AMENDMENT C 20 DASH 2023 DASH 0 4 3, DOWNTOWN PARKING MODIFICATIONS PHASE ONE AND TWO, THE LDC AMENDMENT C 20 DASH 2023 DASH 0 0 4 E TODD OVERLAY, PHASE ONE LRT DUE TO THE NUMBER, NUMBER OF SPEAKERS SIGNED UP ON NUMBER TWO.
AND THEN WE DON'T HAVE STAFF PRESENTER ON NUMBER ONE UNTIL AFTER FIVE.
WE WILL TAKE THAT ITEM UP BEING NUMBER TWO, UH, FIRST WITHOUT OBJECTION.
SO BEFORE WE START, DO ANY COMMISSIONERS NEED TO RECUSE OR ABSTAIN FROM ITEMS ON THE AGENDA? ALL RIGHT, SEEING NONE, UM, WE WILL BEGIN WITH ITEM NUMBER
[2. LDC Amendment: C20-2023-004 - ETOD Overlay (Phase 1 LRT)]
TWO, THE E TODD OVERLAY HEARING STAFF PRESENTATION AND FOLLOWED BY OUR PUBLIC SPEAKERS.ALL RIGHT, GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS.
I'M ANDREA BATES, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR FOR THE PLANNING DEPARTMENT.
I'M JOINED BY WARNER COOK, THE CASE MANAGER FOR THE EQUITABLE TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT OVERLAY CODE AMENDMENTS.
WE ARE GONNA START TONIGHT WITH AN OVERVIEW OF WHERE WE ARE IN THE CODE AMENDMENT PROCESS.
THE EQUITABLE TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT, OR ETOD OVERLAY IS ONE OF THE FOUR AMENDMENTS THAT WERE INCLUDED ON THE APRIL 11TH JOINT MEETING OF COUNCIL AND PLANNING COMMISSION.
AFTER THAT MEETING, STAFF HELD TWO OPEN HOUSES FOR THE COMMUNITY TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THESE AMENDMENTS.
THE FIRST WAS IN PERSON ON APRIL 17TH AT THE CENTRAL LIBRARY, AND THE SECOND WAS A VIRTUAL OPEN HOUSE ON APRIL 20TH.
THEN LAST WEEK, PLANNING COMMISSION HEARD THREE OF THE FOUR AMENDMENTS FROM THE APRIL 11TH PACKAGE, AND THERE WAS ALSO A PRESENTATION TO THE HOUSING AND PLANNING COMMITTEE AND THE MOBILITY COMMITTEES OF COUNCIL A BRIEFING ON THOSE ITEMS EARLIER IN THE AFTERNOON.
TONIGHT IS OF COURSE, APRIL 30TH.
WE'LL BE TAKING UP THE ETOD AMENDMENTS AND THERE WAS A COUNCIL WORK SESSION ON THE PACKAGE EARLIER TODAY AS WELL.
NEXT WEEK WE HAVE TWO ADDITIONAL OPEN HOUSE OPPORTUNITIES, BOTH IN PERSON THE FIRST ON MAY 6TH AND THE SECOND ON MAY 8TH.
AND THEN FINALLY, THERE WILL BE A SECOND CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION TO CONSIDER THESE AMENDMENTS ON MAY 14TH.
AND THEN FINALLY, POTENTIAL COUNCIL ACTION ON MAY 16TH.
WE'VE BEEN GETTING OUT THE WORD ABOUT THESE AMENDMENTS THROUGH MANY CHANNELS.
THERE HAVE BEEN MAILED NOTICE AND ETOD SPECIFIC NOTICE MAILED TO PROPERTIES IN THE RELEVANT GEOGRAPHY.
THERE'S ALSO BEEN NEWS COVERAGE OF THE AMENDMENT.
THERE HAVE BEEN SOCIAL MEDIA POSTS AND THE CITY HAS TAKEN OUT ADVERTISEMENTS IN LOCAL PUBLICATIONS.
IN ADDITION TO THAT, THERE IS A PROJECT WEBSITE WITH DETAILS ABOUT ALL THE CODE AMENDMENTS INCLUDING THE ETOD AMENDMENTS AND AN EMAIL AND PHONE NUMBER WHERE THE COMMUNITY CAN LEAVE COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS FOR STAFF.
IN ADDITION TO THE OPEN HOUSES MENTIONED PREVIOUSLY, THESE ARE SOME ETOD SPECIFIC ENGAGEMENT NUMBERS AS OF THE 25TH, SO NEARLY OR OVER JUST OVER 39,000 NOTICES WERE MAILED OUT ABOUT THESE AMENDMENTS.
THERE HAVE BEEN OVER FIVE THOUSAND FIVE THOUSAND TWO HUNDRED VISITS TO THE WEBSITE AND OVER 2000 VISITS TO THE ETOD OVERLAY SPECIFIC PAGE, UH, 78 PHONE CALLS AND EMAILS ABOUT THIS PARTICULAR SET OF CODE AMENDMENTS 35 COMMENTS ABOUT ETOD ON SPEAKUP AUSTIN.ORG.
THERE WERE 181 SPEAKERS TOTAL AT THE APRIL 11TH JOINT MEETING.
88 ATTENDEES AT THE IN-PERSON OPEN HOUSE, AND ABOUT 75 ATTENDEES AT THE VIRTUAL OPEN HOUSE.
THESE ARE THE TWO ADDITIONAL OPEN HOUSES I MENTIONED.
COMING UP NEXT WEEK ON MAY 6TH, FROM SIXTH TO 8:00 PM THERE WILL BE AN OPEN HOUSE AT ANDERSON HIGH SCHOOL AND ON MAY 8TH, ALSO FROM SIX TO 8:00 PM AN OPEN HOUSE AT THE GEORGE WASHINGTON CARVER MUSEUM AND CULTURAL CENTER.
THESE ARE OPPORTUNITIES TO TALK
[00:10:01]
ABOUT AND LEARN MORE ABOUT ALL OF THE AMENDMENTS, UH, BEING CONSIDERED THIS SPRING, ETOD, THE OTHER AMENDMENTS FROM THE APRIL 11TH JOINT MEETING, AS WELL AS A FEW THAT ARE MOVING ON THEIR OWN TIMELINES.HELLO, I'M WARNER COOK, THE CASE MANAGER FOR THIS AMENDMENT, AND WE WANTED TO OFFER SOME ADDITIONAL CLARIFYING INFORMATION AS WE'VE HEARD BACK FROM THE PUBLIC OR DIFFERENT, UM, QUESTIONS THAT HAVE COME IN.
SO THE FIRST ONE THAT WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT FOLKS UNDERSTOOD IS THAT THERE'S NO REQUIREMENT FOR A PROPERTY TO REDEVELOP JUST BECAUSE IT'S ZONED INTO THE COMBINING DISTRICT OF EO AND DBEO.
UM, IT WOULD ALLOW AN ADDITIONAL OPTION FOR THEM TO TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THIS BONUS PROGRAM, BUT THEY COULD DEVELOP UNDER THEIR BASE ZONE OR JUST NOT DEVELOP, UM, ANY NEW, UH, ON THE SITE TODAY.
IT WOULD ALSO ACTUALLY MAKE IT HARDER IN SOME CASES WHERE THERE'S EXISTING AFFORDABLE UNITS OR CERTAIN TYPES OF COMMERCIAL USES, UH, UNDER THE STAFF PROPOSAL TO REDEVELOP THOSE WITHOUT PROTECTIONS FOR THOSE EXISTING TENANTS.
ADDITIONALLY, WE'VE HEARD CONCERNS FROM BUSINESSES AND PROPERTY OWNERS, UH, ABOUT THE PROHIBITED USES ASPECT OF THE ETA OVERLAY, AND WE JUST WANNA, AGAIN, MAKE IT CLEAR THAT ANY EXISTING BUSINESS DOES NOT HAVE TO STOP OPERATING NEW BUSINESSES WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO LOCATE ON THOSE PARCELS IF IT'S A PROHIBITED USE, BUT EXISTING BUSINESSES ARE LEGAL NON-CONFORMING USES THAT WOULD CONTINUE TO OPERATE JUST AS THEY ARE TODAY.
UM, WE'VE ALSO HAD SOME QUESTIONS ABOUT HOW COMPATIBILITY RELATES TO DBE TODD, BECAUSE THERE'S ALSO A CITYWIDE COMPATIBILITY CODE CHANGE THAT YOU ALL HEARD LAST WEEK AT THE COMMISSION.
UM, AND SO PROJECTS PARTICIPATING IN THE DB E TODD BONUS PROGRAM HAVE A SLIGHTLY RELAXED COMPATIBILITY STANDARD AS COMPARED TO THE STAFF PROPOSAL FOR THE CITYWIDE COMPATIBILITY STANDARD.
AND WHAT THAT WOULD BE IS THAT THE COMPATIBILITY BUFFER OF 25 FEET WOULD STILL APPLY.
THAT'S UNDER THE CITYWIDE PROPOSAL, BUT HEIGHT LIMITATIONS ARE SLIGHTLY RELAXED AFTER THAT.
SO BETWEEN 25 FEET AND 50 FEET OF A TRIGGERING PROPERTY LINE, YOU WOULD BE ABLE TO REACH 90 FEET IN HEIGHT AND AFTER 50 FEET FROM A TRIGGERING PROPERTY, A PARTICIPATING PROJECT THAT MEETS ALL THE REQUIREMENTS WOULD BE ABLE TO REACH 120 FEET IN HEIGHT.
UM, THIS RELAXATION OF COMPATIBILITY HELPS REDUCE ITS IMPACT ON OUR HOUSING CAPACITY NEAR TRANSIT, AND IT ALIGNS THE APPROACH WITH THE APPROACH STAFF RECOMMENDED IN OUR ANALYSIS OF COMPATIBILITY STUDY THAT WAS RELEASED IN THE FALL OF LAST YEAR, WHICH RECOMMENDED KIND OF RELAXING COMPATIBILITY AS PART OF DENSITY BONUS PROGRAMS. UM, IT'S ALSO IMPORTANT TO KNOW THAT THERE'S, THIS IS THE FIRST PHASE OF WORK ON THE ETOD OVERLAY.
WE'VE HAD QUESTIONS ABOUT WHY DOESN'T THIS APPLY TO MORE PLACES LIKE THE METRO RAPID AND METRO RAIL LINES.
THAT'S SOMETHING THAT IS, HAS ALWAYS BEEN STAFF'S PLAN IS IN THE NEXT PHASE OF THIS WORK PLANNED FOR SPRING OF 2025, THAT WE WOULD BRING BACK THIS, UH, THIS TYPE OF COMBINING DISTRICT THAT WOULD APPLY TO MORE AREAS.
WE'VE ALSO HAD QUESTIONS ABOUT WHY DIDN'T STAFF INCREASE THE ENTITLEMENTS BEYOND 120 FEET.
AND THE REASONING IS BECAUSE THAT, THAT, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT WE'RE GONNA CONSIDER IN PHASE TWO WHEN WE ALSO AT THE SAME TIME CONSIDER ADDITIONAL COMMUNITY BENEFITS SUCH AS OPEN SPACE, UM, STREET SCAPE STANDARDS, YOU KNOW, AFFORDABLE COMMERCIAL SPACE TRANSIT, SUPPORTIVE FEATURES, ALL OF THAT, THAT WASN'T ABLE TO BE PART OF PHASE ONE BASED ON CAPACITY OF STAFF.
AND THEN FINALLY, IT'S WORTH NOTING THAT ONCE THESE PROVISIONS, UH, IF THEY ARE ADOPTED BY COUNCIL, IF THAT'S THE WILL OF COUNCIL TO ADOPT THESE TWO NEW COMBINING DISTRICTS, UM, THEY WOULD, THAT WOULD MEAN THAT ADDITIONAL PROPERTY OWNERS WITHIN THE HALF MILE, UM, OF THE LIGHT RAIL AREA AND PRIORITY EXTENSIONS WOULD BE ABLE TO REQUEST INDIVIDUAL REZONING.
SO IF THEY'RE NOT PART OF STAFF'S PROPOSED REZONING, UM, ON THE MAY 16TH AGENDA ITEM, INDIVIDUAL PROPERTY OWNERS COULD COME THROUGH AND ASK FOR PROPERTY SPECIFIC REZONING, UM, IF, AND THEN THAT WOULD COME TO PLANNING COMMISSION AND COUNSEL FOR CONSIDERATION.
AND THAT BRINGS US BACK TO AN OVERVIEW OF THE SCHEDULE FROM HERE FORWARD.
SO NEXT WEEK, AS I MENTIONED, THERE ARE THE TWO ADDITIONAL IN-PERSON OPEN HOUSES AT ANDERSON HIGH SCHOOL AND THE CARVER MUSEUM ON THE SIXTH AND THE EIGHTH.
THEN THERE'S THE COUNCIL WORK SESSION ON MAY 14TH, AND FINALLY, COUNCIL CONSIDERATION ON MAY 16TH.
WE ENCOURAGE THE COMMUNITY TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PROPOSAL BY VISITING THE WEBSITE@SPEAKUPAUSTIN.ORG SLASH LDC UPDATES.
THAT INCLUDES INFORMATION ABOUT ALL OF THE SPRING CODE AMENDMENTS, INCLUDING THE ETOD SPECIFIC CODE AMENDMENTS.
THE COMMUNITY CAN ALSO EMAIL STAFF AT LDC UPDATES@AUSTINTEXAS.GOV OR CALL THE PHONE NUMBER ON THE SCREEN WITH EITHER COMMENTS THAT WILL BE COMPILED, UH, FOR PLANNING COMMISSION AND COUNCIL CONSIDERATION OR WITH QUESTIONS.
[00:15:01]
IF THERE ARE QUESTIONS, STAFF WILL RETURN THE EMAIL OR PHONE CALL WITHIN A FEW BUSINESS DAYS.THAT CONCLUDES OUR OVERVIEW FOR TONIGHT.
NOW WE WILL TAKE OUR, UH, PUBLIC COMMENTS.
MADAM CHAIR, CAN WE ASK A COUPLE QUESTIONS FIRST OR ARE WE GOING STRAIGHT TO, WE'RE GOING TO HAVE THE PUBLIC COMMENTS AND THEN WE WILL DO OUR CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING AND THEN PERFECT THE Q AND A.
ALRIGHT, CHAIR, WE'LL HEAR, WE WILL HEAR FROM THE TELECONFERENCE SPEAKERS FIRST, UM, FIRST SPEAKER IS DWAYNE REED.
DWAYNE, YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES TO SPEAK.
HELLO? CAN YOU HEAR ME? YES, WE CAN HEAR YOU.
OKAY, WELL, I, THOSE HOME TOO.
UM, ONE THING DIDN'T GET US INTO THIS MESS, SO NO ONE SOLUTION COULD GET US OUT.
UM, I HATE ENABLE THE LABELS HAVE BEEN ASSIGNED TO PEOPLE.
I'M NOT, I I'M NO NIMBY OR NIMBY.
UM, AND I THINK THIS IS BEING ROUGH AND DATA'S BEING IGNORED.
LOOK AT NEW YORK, BOSTON, LONDON, SINGAPORE, ALL DENT PLACES, CITIES, AND STILL THE MOST EXPENSIVE PLACES TO LIVE.
THE ONLY WAY TO LOWER COST IS THROUGH GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION.
UM, THIS GOES AGAINST PR, UH, PRIVATE SECTOR'S, MOTIVATION OF PROFIT.
UM, NO, NONE, NO PRIVATE SECTOR.
NO PERSON IN THE PRIVATE SECTOR IS GONNA BUILD HOUSING FOR A LAW.
UM, I THINK WE SHOULD, YOU KNOW, USE CARROTS AS WELL AS DICK'S, CARROTS BEING LOWERING AND ELIMINATING FEES FOR THOSE WITH LOWER, UH, BUILDING LOWER INCOME AND PARTNERSHIP PARTNER SHARING, UH, PARTNERING WITH PEOPLE WHO BUILD DIGNIFIED LOW INCOME HOUSING.
UH, WE COULD STICK TO THE LEGISLATION THAT'S ALREADY BEEN PROPOSED LIKE THE AIRBNB, UH, BANS AND, UH, AND LICENSING ACCORDING TO AIR B AND A, THERE'S 10, THERE'S ALMOST 11,000 AIRBNBS IN AUSTIN.
54% OF THEM VACANT, WHICH WOULD LEAVE ALMOST 5,900, UH, HOUSES WITHOUT PEOPLE IN THEM.
AND THEY'RE ONLY 4,968 FOR SALE.
SO AROUND 50% OF WHAT WOULD'VE BEEN WHAT ARE, UH, AIRBNBS WOULD DOUBLE THE AMOUNT OF HOUSING FOR SALE ALREADY, THEREFORE, DECREASING THE PRICING OF EXISTING HOUSING, WHICH IS THE CHEAPEST TYPE OF HOUSING TO HAVE.
WHEN YOU BUILD SOMETHING NEW, YOU'RE GONNA HAVE TO RECOUP YOUR COSTS AND THEN CHARGE THE NEXT PERSON SOMETHING ELSE.
THERE'VE ONLY BEEN TWO ACCORDING TO KX A N UH, UH, THERE'VE ONLY BEEN 22,000 LICENSES, BUT LIKE I SAID, THERE ARE 11,000 AIRBNBS OUT THERE.
NOW WE'LL BE SWITCHING TO IN-PERSON SPEAKERS.
UM, THE FIRST SPEAKER UP IS BETSY GREENBERG.
AND BETSY HAS RECEIVED, UM, A TOTAL OF SIX MINUTES DONATED TIME FROM SUSAN DENKO AND LEE ZEGAR.
SO YOU'LL HAVE FOUR MINUTES TO SPEAK.
IS HE REGISTERED OR HE'S REGISTERED? OKAY, BETSY, YOU'LL HAVE SIX MINUTES.
SO MY NAME IS BETSY GREENBERG.
I LIVE IN THE HERITAGE NEIGHBORHOOD AND I TOOK THE BUS TO GET HERE TODAY.
MY NEIGHBORHOOD HAS A MIX OF RESIDENTIAL OFFICE AND COMMERCIAL USES ALONG WITH A MIX OF HOUSING TYPES, WHICH MEANS A LOT OF EOD DB E TODD ZONING HAS BEEN PROPOSED.
THE FT A LAND USE RATING IS BASED ON STATION DENSITIES, AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND EMPLOYMENT WITHIN A HALF MILE OF THE STATIONS.
THE PROPOSED ZONING CHANGES GO WELL BEYOND THE GRANT ANALYSIS AREA.
THE JUSTIFICATION FOR RUSHING TO PASS THE EO AND ASSOCIATED DENSITY BONUS ZONING HAS BEEN THAT WE NEED TO MAKE THE FTA GRANT APPLICATION FOR PROJECT CONNECT MORE COMPETITIVE.
BUT WILL THIS WORK? AND IS THIS THE RIGHT TIME? SPOILER ALERT, THE ANSWER IS NO.
MY COMMENTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ARE BASED ON INFORMATION FOUND IN THE MOST RECENT COPY OF THE FTA CAPITAL INVESTMENT GRANTS
[00:20:01]
POLICY GUIDANCE DOCUMENT.I'M SORRY FOR THE SMALL PRINT ON THIS TABLE, BUT IF YOU'VE LOOKED AT THE GRANT CRITERIA, YOU KNOW THAT SCORING DEPENDS ON STATIONARY PLANS.
AS A MEMBER OF CAP METRO'S CUSTOMER SATISFACTION ADVISORY COMMITTEE, I'VE HEARD BRIEFINGS ABOUT E TODD PLANNING FOR SEVERAL YEARS.
AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP RECEIVED FTA GRANTS TO PLAN THE NORTH LAMAR AND SOUTH CONGRESS TRANSIT CENTERS, AND MORE RECENTLY THE CRESTVIEW STATION AREA.
BUT THESE STATIONS WERE IN THE ORIGINAL PROJECT CONNECT PROPOSAL, BUT UNFORTUNATELY ARE NOT WITHIN THE CURRENT LIGHT RAIL ALIGNMENT.
THERE IS NO PLAN TO PLAN FOR ANY OF THE STATIONS WHERE E TODD AND DBE TODD ZONING IS PROPOSED BY ALLOWING AN EXTRA 60 FEET OF HEIGHT AND NEARLY ELIMINATING COMPATIBILITY.
DBE TODD ZONING MORE THAN DOUBLES CURRENT ENTITLEMENTS.
THIS INCENTIVIZES REDEVELOPMENT AND SPITE OF THE DISPLACEMENT THAT WILL AFFECT BOTH RESIDENTS AND BUSINESSES.
ONCE THE ENTITLEMENTS FOR A HUNDRED TO 120 FOOT TALL BUILDINGS ARE GRANTED, AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP WILL LOSE THE NEEDED FLEXIBILITY TO AVOID GENTRIFICATION AND TO PLAN FOR THE RIGHT MIX OF USES AND HOUSING TYPES AT INDIVIDUAL STATIONS.
THIS WILL HURT THE APPLICATION FOR FTA FUNDING.
THE AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP COULD STILL DO STATIONARY PLANNING ON THE CURRENT ALIGNMENT TO IMPROVE THE SCORE, BUT BEFORE THE FINAL FULL FUNDED GRANT AGREEMENT IS REQUESTED.
BUT THE PLANNING NEEDS TO BE DONE BEFORE DBE TODD ZONING IS GRANTED.
DBE TODD ZONING ENCOURAGES THE BUILDINGS OF TALL BUILDINGS, SORRY TO REPLACE OLDER EXISTING MULTIFAMILY PROPERTIES WITH NATURALLY OCCURRING AFFORDABLE HOUSING AND EVEN SECTION EIGHT HOUSING.
THE PROPOSAL EVEN ALLOWS THE REQUIREMENT FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING TO BE SATISFIED WITH FEE IN LIEU INSTEAD OF WITH ONSITE AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
I SEE CONCERN ABOUT THIS FROM SOME OF YOUR PROPOSED AMENDMENTS, BUT PLEASE DO NOT COUNT ON AN OVERSIGHT COMMITTEE OR SORRY, BIANNUAL REPORTS OR EVEN 110% REQUIREMENT TO IMPROVE THIS.
QUITE SIMPLY, FEE AND LOSE SHOULD BE PROHIBITED.
LET THE CITY FIGURE OUT HOW TO DEAL WITH THE HOA FEES FOR H FOR AFFORDABLE UNITS AND DON'T, AND REALIZE THE CONDO UNITS ARE OFTEN RENTED ANYWAY.
TRANSIT USE IS INCOME DEPENDENT WHEN TRANSIT DEPENDENT RIDERS ARE REPLACED WITH RESIDENTS WHO CAN AFFORD TO LIVE IN NEW TOD BUILDINGS.
RIDERSHIP HAS BEEN SEEN TO DECREASE IN AUSTIN TODS AS WELL AS IN OTHER CITIES.
AUSTIN TRANSIT PARTNERSHIP IS STILL IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL REVIEW PROCESS, WHICH CANNOT BE COMPLETED UNTIL SEVERAL DESIGN ISSUES LIKE WHETHER OR NOT TO ELEVATE ON SOUTH CONGRESS ARE RESOLVED.
SETTING UP NEW ENTITLEMENTS THROUGH DBE TAUGHT AT THIS STAGE IS NOT NEEDED TO MEET MEDIUM REQUIREMENTS FOR GETTING FDA APPROVAL FOR THE NEXT STAGE, WHICH IS ENGINEERING AND WHICH CANNOT START FOR OVER A YEAR.
SHOULD LEGAL CHALLENGES IMPACT THE PLAN, THE ZONING ENTITLEMENTS WILL BE CREATED AND THE LIGHT RAIL MAY NOT BE BUILT.
APPROVAL OF 50% FUNDING FROM THE FDA REQUIRES THE FINAL APPLICATION TO RANK MEDIUM HIGH OVER NINE CRITERIA THAT STAGE WILL NEED TO SHOW, AMONG OTHER THINGS, PLANS AND TOOLS IN PLACE TO ENCOURAGE ENVIRONMENTALLY SOUND DEVELOPMENT WITH AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
WE ALSO NEED A PREMIER PEDESTRIAN ENVIRONMENT SO THAT PEOPLE CAN WALK TO THE STATIONS IN OUR CLIMATE.
THIS MEANS MORE THAN JUST SIDEWALKS, IT MEANS SHADE AS WELL.
ALL THAT IS NEEDED, BUT IN TWO OR THREE YEARS, NOT TODAY, TO IMPROVE THE SCORING OF THE FDA GRANT, AUSTIN SHOULD APPROVE DBE TAUGHT ONLY AS A ZONING DISTRICT FOR NOW AND WAIT TO APPLY THAT ZONING UNTIL AFTER STATION AREAS HAVE BEEN PLANNED.
ADDITIONALLY, THE EO OVERLAY SHOULD BE LIMITED TO THE FTA EVALUATION AREA IE WITHIN A HALF MILE OF THE STATIONS ON THE CURRENT ALIGNMENT USE.
OF THE $300 MILLION OF ANTI DISPLACEMENT MONEY THAT THE PUBLIC APPROVED SHOULD ALSO BE LIMITED TO THE FDA EVALUATION AREAS.
AND AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, DO NOT ALLOW THE
[00:25:01]
USE OF FEE AND LIE.UM, I'M GONNA START CALLING SPEAKERS UP THREE AT A TIME.
THE NEXT THREE SPEAKERS ARE JOHN TOVI, JASON HASKINS, AND KAREN MCGRAW.
I'M OPPOSED TO THE E TODD PROPOSAL, UH, BASED ON THE HEIGHT OF THE BUILDINGS THAT ARE BEING PROPOSED.
UM, IS THIS NOT WORKING? OKAY.
UH, THIS TYPE OF, UH, BUILDING WOULD BE FINE, 30 TO 35 FEET.
UH, BUT THAT'S NOT WHAT'S BEING PROPOSED.
WE'VE BEEN NOTIFIED THAT WE'RE LOOKING AT 120 FEET.
UH, THAT WOULD BE A BUILDING OF 10 STORIES HIGH.
UH, IF YOU'RE NOT FAMILIAR, UH, ABOUT EACH STORY, EACH STORY IS ABOUT 10 FOOT TALL.
THE CURRENT ZONING IN HYDE PARK ALLOWS FOR APPROXIMATELY 60 FEET ALONG GUADALUPE, AND THEN APPROXIMATELY 30 FEET ON EACH OF THE AVENUES THAT GO TO THE EAST.
SO IT LOOKS SOMETHING LIKE THIS RELATIVE TO THE SIZE OF THE 12 STORY BUILDING THAT YOU SEE.
THE TYPICAL CURRENTLY BU TYPICAL CURRENT BUILDINGS, OF COURSE, ARE SMALLER THAN THAT.
SOMETHING LIKE WHAT YOU WOULD SEE HERE, WHAT EAD WOULD PROPOSE IS ALMOST 10 TIMES HIGHER THAN MY HOUSE OR THE TYPICAL HOUSES IN THE AREA.
TRY TO IMAGINE LIVING IN THAT TYPE OF A SHADOW OF A HOUSE.
TRY TO IMAGINE HAVING INVESTED YOUR LIFE SAVINGS IN A SMALL RANCH HOUSE, WORKING FOUR YEARS TO, UH, RENOVATE THAT, AND THEN FINDING OUT THAT THE PROPERTY RIGHT NEXT TO YOU AND THE PROPERTY AROUND, UH, A LITTLE BIT BEHIND YOU IS GOING TO NOW BE THAT TALL.
UM, I, IT'S JUST MY OPINION, I THINK THAT'S UNREASONABLE.
I TOOK THE WEEKEND TO ASK OTHER PEOPLE IN MY NEIGHBORHOOD ALONG AVENUE C AND AVENUE D WHAT THEY THOUGHT.
I TALKED TO 50 HOMEOWNERS, 82% SAID THEY WERE AGAINST E TODD.
ONLY FOUR SAID THEY WOULD SIGN IT, UH, OR SAID THEY WERE FOR THE E TODD 14% NEEDED.
UH, WHY? BECAUSE 120 IS TOO TALL.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS, JOHN.
60 SEEMS REASONABLE FOR LA GUADALUPE, UH, BUT IS STILL TOO TALL FOR, THAT WAS THE TIME.
I'M AN AFFORDABLE HOUSING ARCHITECT AND ADVOCATE.
UM, I WAS A LOT OF REALLY GREAT STUFF IN THE TODD STUDY THAT CAME OUT IN SEPTEMBER, 2023.
UM, WE KNOW THAT THE EXISTING TODD HAS HAD SOME SUCCESS, HAS HAD SOME FAILURES.
UM, SO WHEN WE WERE SEEING THAT, OH, WE'RE GONNA HAVE E TODD NOW, IT'S VERY EXCITING TO SEE THAT WE'RE GONNA TAKE TODD, THE EXISTING TODD AND MAKE IT MORE EQUITABLE, MAKE IT BETTER FOR AFFORDABILITY.
WHAT IS THIS DRAFT? WHAT IS, THIS IS WORSE THAN THE EXISTING TODD.
WE HAVE THE FEE IN LIEBE CONTINUED.
WE HAVE NOT RAISED THE NUMBER OF, UH, LIMITS THE NUMBER OF REQUIRED UNITS.
THERE'S A LOT OF WORK THAT NEEDS TO BE DONE ON THIS.
UM, WE'VE GOT, UM, I'VE SHARED SOME AMENDMENTS WITH, WITH SOME FOLKS, AND WE'VE HAD A LOT OF DISCUSSIONS ABOUT WHAT CAN BE DONE TO MAKE THIS MORE, UH, RELATIVE TO THE PLANS, WHICH WERE VERY SITE SPECIFIC, HAD A LOT OF VERY SPECIFIC ACTIONS THAT COULD BE IN PLACE.
AND WHAT WE HAVE INSTEAD IS ONE BLANKET ACROSS THE ENTIRE CITY WITH NO CONCERN FOR THE INDIVIDUAL PLANNING ASPECTS OF EACH STATION, WHICH WAS I THINK THE HEART OF THE E TODD STUDIES.
UM, WE HAVE FOLKS WHO KNOW HOW TO BUILD AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
I KNOW THE DEVELOPERS KEEP COMPLAINING THAT IT'S HARD TO DO 10%.
WELL, WE'VE GOT A LOT OF FOLKS WHO THEY CAN PARTNER WITH, AND IT WOULD BE BETTER TO HAVE THE 25, 30, 40% CRITICAL MASS TO OPERATE THOSE UNITS IN A WAY THAT MAKES SENSE.
THERE ARE OTHER FUNDING SOURCES AVAILABLE.
WE WORK VERY HARD TO GET THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING THAT WE HAVE.
WE NEED THESE TOOLS AND WE NEED THIS HELP.
WE DO NOT NEED TO BE ABANDONED TO BUILD ONE AFFORDABLE UNIT AND GET 120 FEET COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT.
I SEE NO SAFETY MECHANISM TO PREVENT
[00:30:01]
THAT IN THIS DOCUMENT.UH, YOU DID NOT PROVIDE THE FEE MECHANISM OR THE, UM, THE STANDARDS IN THE SUBMITTAL, SO YOU CANNOT SAY THAT THIS WAS NOTICED.
CAN KAREN MCGRAW, ARE YOU PRESENT? NEXT THREE SPEAKERS ARE BARBARA MACARTHUR, CINDY REED, BETHANY CARSON
CAN YOU START MY TIME WHEN THEY GET MY PRESENTATION? BARBARA, WE, WE DON'T HAVE YOUR PRESENTATION.
WE'RE WORKING ON GETTING IT UP.
I WANTED TO START WITH YOUR DATA, BUT I DO WANT TO SAY THIS YIMBY MOVEMENT, IT IS A PATERNALISTIC, RACIST VIEW THAT CO-OPS, THE BLACK, BROWN AND POOR PERSONS STRUGGLE, THIS FAKE, UH, WE WANT MORE HOUSING, LEGALIZED HOUSING.
BUT LET ME START OFF WITH YOUR DATA PLAZA AND THE MLK STATION ARE TODDS LOCATED IN CENSUS TRACKS THAT HAVE HISTORICALLY REPRESENTED A MAJORITY POPULATION OF BLACK, INDIGENOUS, AND PEOPLE OF COLOR WHERE NEW DEVELOPMENT HAS OCCURRED.
IN THESE TODDS, THERE'S BEEN A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN WHITE HIGH INCOME POPULATIONS AND AN ACTIVE DECREASE OF BIPOC PRESENCE OVER THE LAST 10 YEARS.
MOST OF THE POPULATION GROWTH IN ALL CENSUS TRACKS ENCOMPASS IN THESE TODDS CAN BE ATTRIBUTED TO THE GROWTH OF THE WHITE POPULATION.
THIS DEMOGRAPHIC SHIFT ILLUSTRATES THE DISPLACEMENT OF BIPOC RESIDENTS AND ULTIMATE, ULTIMATE INDICATOR OF CONTINUED RACIAL DISPARITY.
THE MIFI HAS ALMOST DOUBLED, AND IN SOME CASES TRIPLED.
AND HOUSEHOLDS WITHOUT CHILDREN NOW OUTWEIGH HOUSEHOLDS WITH CHILDREN THROUGHOUT THESE CENSUS TRACKS.
DEMOGRAPHIC SHIFTS IN MINORITY BIPOC, CENSUS TRACKS ARE NOT UNIQUE TO TIDES, BUT INSTEAD CORRELATES TO THE DISPLACEMENT PATTERN ALONG THE EASTERN CRESCENT.
YOU GUYS KNOW WHAT'S GOING TO HAPPEN AND YOU ARE WILLINGLY ALLOWING THIS, THIS IS A, THE THEORETICAL FREEWAY DESTROYING NEIGHBORHOODS.
WHAT YOU'RE VOTING FOR IS A MODERN DAY REDLINING.
AND YOU'RE NOT EVEN LOOKING AT ALL THESE PEOPLE COMING UP TO SPEAK.
BUT THE IRONY THAT HOME IS VERY ANTI HOME.
HOW CAN YOU RUSH THROUGH AND TRY TO GET, FEDERAL FUNDS ARE FUNDS THAT TAXPAYERS PAY FOR, FOR A DISPLACEMENT PLAN.
YOU WANNA BLATANTLY EMPOWER THE MIDDLE CLASS INCOME FOLKS TO COLONIZE AND DISPLACE TEACHERS, FIREFIGHTERS, LABORERS.
I'M IN D FOUR, A VERY POOR AREA.
EVERYBODY HAS A CAR BECAUSE THE PEOPLE THAT ARE, UH, CLEANING YOUR HOUSE AND PAINTING YOUR HOUSE, THEY NEED THEIR CAR.
WE, IT'S NOT PRACTICAL TO HAVE ANY EXTREME.
YOU'RE SU YOU ARE SWAPPING ONE USE FOR ANOTHER BECAUSE YOU'RE STILL PUTTING IN, UH, RESTRICTIONS.
SO THERE'S NOTHING EQUITABLE ABOUT THIS.
THIS, THERE'S NO AFFORDABILITY.
AND LET IT BE SAID FOR, FOR THE RECORD.
YOU KNOW, TWO YOU'RE DOING AND WE'RE TELLING YOU NOW WHAT YOU ARE DOING.
DON'T DO A STUDY IN 10 YEARS AND WASTE MONEY ON CONSULTING.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME, CINDY.
WE'RE MOVING ON TO THE NEXT SPEAKERS.
THANK YOU FOR LOOKING UP AT ME, BUT YOU GUYS ARE RACIST.
UM, DO WE HAVE BARBARA'S, BARBARA, WE HAVE YOUR PRESENTATION IF YOU'D LIKE TO COME UP, PLEASE.
WE CAN MOVE TO THE NEXT SLIDE PRETTY QUICKLY, BUT THAT'S JUST, UM, TO SHOW YOU THAT EVEN IF YOU DRAW A CIRCLE, ONLY 64 PER 4% OF WHAT'S IN THE CIRCLE IS THE DISTANCE TO THE STATION.
I WANTED TO TELL YOU THAT YOU HAVE A PROBLEM WITH YOUR MAPPING.
YOU'RE UPZONING OVER A THOUSAND PROPERTIES AND YOUR MAP IS INACCURATE.
UM, THE, THE FEDERAL TRANSPORTATION ADMINISTRATION LOOKS AT STATION AREAS.
I MAP THIS AND IT WAS INTERESTING TO ME THAT A HALF A MILE FROM THE STATIONS WAS WELL WITHIN THE RED LINE YOU'RE USING TO UP ZONE PROPERTIES.
IN FACT, THE LINE YOU'RE USING IS CLOSER TO 1.2 MILES THAN ONE MILE.
SO YOU'VE GOT A BIG ERROR, ERROR IN YOUR MAPPING.
THERE'S MANY PROPERTIES THAT ARE WELL OUTSIDE OF ANY STATION AREA THAT YOU'RE UPZONING.
IN FACT, LESS THAN 20% OF THE LAND YOU'RE UPZONING IS WITHIN A QUARTER MILE OF A STATION.
[00:35:01]
IF YOU WANNA SUPPORT TRANSIT, PUT THE UPZONING CLOSE TO THE STATIONS.THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF SECTION EIGHT AND LOW INCOME AFFORDABLE HOUSING WHERE I LIVE.
MANDY, MANDY DEO EVEN STOOD IN FRONT OF 1406 NORTH LOOP AND SAID HOW WONDERFUL IT WAS.
ALL OF THESE ARE SLATED FOR AUTOMATIC UP ZONE, WHICH WILL CAUSE THEM TO BE, TO BE DEMOLISHED.
I HAVE PRIS THAT SHOW THAT STAFF HAS TOLD DEVELOPERS HOW TO GET AROUND ANY RULES ABOUT DEMOLISHING EXISTING AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
AND THEN I WANNA JUST REITERATE WHAT CINDY SAID BECAUSE I WAS GONNA SAY IT TOO.
YOU'RE CREATING TODDS FOR RICH WHITE PEOPLE.
BUT THE SECOND THING IS TRANSIT RIDERSHIP TO WORK IN THE CENSUS TRACKS OF TODD'S HAS SEEN SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION SINCE 2010 BY BETWEEN 41 AND 73%.
NEXT THREE SPEAKERS ARE BRAD MASSENGILL, KYLE MCCOLLUM, AND AMY FOREZ.
UM, I KIND OF DIDN'T GET FINISHED WITH WHAT I WAS SAYING LAST TIME I WAS HERE.
UM, BUT I, I SUPPORT EVERYTHING I'VE BEEN HEARING SO FAR.
UH, THIS DISPLACEMENT IS, IS KEY, UH, TO WHAT Y'ALL SHOULD BE THINKING ABOUT HERE.
UM, BUT, UH, BUT WALKING HAND IN HAND WITH THAT, THERE'S SHOULD BE A ENVIRONMENTAL OVERLAY WITH ALL THIS AS WELL.
UM, IGNORING OUR, OUR, UH, NATURAL HERITAGE AND JUST PUTTING A BUNCH OF LINES EVERYWHERE IS NOT GONNA WORK.
UM, ONE THE HIDDEN COSTS OF THE DEPLETED WATER TABLE IS A STRESS ON TREES.
THE POWER OUTAGE WE HAD IN SOUTH AUSTIN THIS WEEKEND WAS EXACERBATED BY DOWN TREES TAKING OUT TRANSMISSION LINES.
IF YOU LOOK CAREFULLY AT THESE TREES, YOU CAN SEE THE DAMAGE THAT THE LAST FEW SUMMERS HAS HAD ON INDIVIDUAL TREES.
THEY AREN'T BENEFITING FROM NORMAL RAINFALL AS IT STANDS.
WHAT HAPPENS WHEN EVEN LESS PERMEABLE AREAS AVAILABLE? THE CURRENT LAND CHANGES TO THE LAND USE CODE WILL MEAN LESS WATER TO TREES.
LESS WATER EQUALS MORE STRESS TO THE URBAN FOREST.
STRESS TREES ARE MORE LIKELY TO SNAP IN HEAVY DOWN DRAFTS.
SOME OF THE IMPACTED TREES WILL FALL ON POWER LINES USHERING IN THE FAMILIAR SCENARIO WE'VE WITNESSED IN CALIFORNIA, HAWAII, AND NORTH TEXAS.
IF WE DON'T TAKE IMMEDIATE MEASURES TO SLOW RAINWATER DOWN WHEN IT, WHEN IT'S HERE, INSTEAD OF LETTING IT, LETTING ALL THAT FAST MOVING STORM WATER COS INTO LADY BIRD LAKE WHERE IT'S CREATING OTHER ISSUES, UH, WE'RE SETTING OURSELVES UP FOR ECO CATASTROPHE.
GREEN INFRASTRUCTURE IS CRUCIAL IN THIS PROCESS.
Y'ALL NEED TO BE THINKING ABOUT THIS STUFF AND IT WA IT'S HAND IN HAND WITH ALL THESE LIVABLE AREAS.
A LOT OF THIS INFILL THAT Y'ALL ARE THINKING IS JUST INFILL.
THERE'S A REASON IT HASN'T BEEN INFILLED.
THERE'S STUFF THERE, THERE'S CREEKS STREAMS, AND PEOPLE THINK ABOUT IT.
UM, I AM, UH, A RESIDENT ALONG BAYLOR.
I LIVE AT, UH, NINTH AND BAYLOR.
SO, UM, THE CONTEXT WITHIN WHICH I'M GONNA TALK IS A LITTLE BIT MORE RESTRICTED TO LIKE WHAT'S HAPPENING BETWEEN SAY, SIXTH STREET AND ROUGHLY 12.
UM, I'M ENCOURAGING THE PLANNING COMMITTEE TO, I'M GONNA PICK UP A LOT OF WHAT WAS BEING SAID HERE, IS THAT THERE IS A FORENSIC NEED FOR A, AN ACCURACY STUDY ABOUT WHAT'S HAPPENING HERE.
SO WHAT I'M ASKING FOR IS A LITTLE BIT MORE RESPECT.
THIS IS, UM, THE IDEA THAT A POTENTIAL REZONING EFFORT ALONG THE NORTH SIDE OF, OR THE, UH, THE WEST SIDE OF LAMAR COULD RESULT IN A KIND OF PROVERBIAL GLASS TOWER OVERLOOKING AUSTIN'S ONLY HISTORIC DISTRICT IS A KIND OF LAUGHABLE ASSUMPTION.
UM, BUT ALSO, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THAT, UH, THE CAPITAL VIEW CORRIDOR IS ALSO PART OF THAT, THE RESTRICTION OF THE DEVELOPMENT RIGHT THERE TOO, AS WELL AS THE, AS THE FEMA FLOODPLAIN.
SO, UM, BUT ESPECIALLY WITH THE TRANSIT STUFF, THESE LOTS ALONG THAT PART OF, OF LAMAR ARE THE MOST DISTANT FROM THE PROJECT CONNECT CORRIDOR.
AND SO WE NEED A MORE ACCURATE, AND IF WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THE DEPLOYMENT OF EQUITABLE SERVICES AND THE EXTENSION OF OPPORTUNITY TO THE AUSTIN AREA,
[00:40:01]
YOU HAVE TO HAVE A MORE ACCURATE AND RESPECTFUL UNDERSTANDING ABOUT WHAT IS THESE, WHAT THESE STATIONS ARE SERVING, HOW DO WE GET PEOPLE THAT NEED TO COME IN HERE TO THE CITY OF AUSTIN FOR THEIR OPPORTUNITIES SO THEY CAN GO AND BE A PART OF THE AUSTIN COMMUNITY AT LARGE.UM, THANK YOU FOR TAKING THE TIME.
HELLO, I AM AMY VOORHEES AND I'M A RESIDENT ON WEST SEVENTH STREET IN CLARKSVILLE.
WE LOVE THE DENSITY OF CLARKSVILLE.
IT'S A UNIQUE MIX OF HISTORIC HOMES, MULTIFAMILY HOUSING, THE LIVELY MIX OF RESTAURANTS AND RETAIL AND MORE ALL OF THAT AT A HUMAN SCALE.
I WOULD RESPECTFULLY ASK THE PLANNING COMMISSION TO CHANGE THE MAP FOR THE ETOD OVERLAY TO OMIT THE PROPERTIES BETWEEN WEST SIXTH AND WEST SOUTH STREET, WEST 12TH STREET ON THE WEST SIDE OF NORTH LAMAR.
AND I HAVE FIVE REASONS I'LL RUN THROUGH THEM QUICKLY.
THESE LOTS ARE DIRECTLY ADJACENT TO HOMES AND THEY'LL CREATE, AS YOU'VE SEEN IN OTHER PEOPLE'S PRESENTATIONS, A WALL OF HIGH RISES RIGHT NEXT TO FAMILY HOUSES AND YARDS.
THE CAPITOL VIEW CORRIDOR ALREADY CUTS THROUGH THIS AREA AND IT'S ALREADY LIMITING, LIMITING THE HEIGHT ALONG SEVERAL LOTS ANYWAY.
NUMBER THREE, THE AREA BETWEEN NINTH AND 12TH IS A FLOODPLAIN.
SO IF WE'RE RAISING THE HEIGHT OF THESE PROPOSED BUILDING OR ACCEPTABLE BUILDINGS TO 12 STORIES, WE'RE ONLY GOING TO WORSEN THE FLOODING PROBLEM WE HAVE DOWN THERE.
NUMBER FOUR, THESE LOTS ARE THE FARTHEST FROM THE, THE, UH, PROJECT CONNECT CORRIDOR.
AND FINALLY, DENSITY CAN BE ACHIEVED IN THIS AREA WITHOUT INCREASING, OH, WITH INCREASED HEIGHTS, BUT STILL PERMITTING.
UM, BETTER OPTIONS FOR COM COMPATIBILITY WITH OUR NEIGHBORS.
WE WE'RE NOT OPPOSED TO INCREASED DENSITY OR DEVELOPMENT.
I THINK MY NEIGHBORS AND I ARE VERY HAPPY WITH THE PROPOSED DEVELOPMENT THAT'S GOING ON ON WEST SIXTH, BUT THIS IS OUT OF CHARACTER WITH A NEIGHBORHOOD.
UM, WE HAVE A TELECONFERENCE SPEAKER WHO'S JOINED US.
HELLO, THIS IS MEGAN MEISENBACH.
HELLO, THIS IS MEGAN MEISENBACH AND I WANTED TO SAY THANK YOU FOR HEARING ME.
I THINK THAT, UH, THE IMPERVIOUS COVER AT A HUNDRED PERCENT, EXCEPT FOR DRIVEWAYS AND PARKING, IT'S NOT A GOOD IDEA.
UM, THE MINIMUM LOT WIDTH OF 15 FEET, THIS IS GONNA BE A BIG SURPRISE TO A LOT OF AUSTINITES WHO WILL REACT NEGATIVELY.
NO STREET FRONTAGE FOR LOTS THAT HAVE TO, UH, NEGOTIATE AN EASEMENT THROUGH OTHER PROPERTY.
I THINK THAT'S GOING TO BE VERY AWKWARD.
SIDE SETBACKS, REDUCED TO ZERO.
AGAIN, NOT A GOOD IDEA FOR, UH, COMFORTABLE LIVING.
UM, AND BASICALLY THERE'S SO MUCH DENSITY THAT'S BEING GIVEN AWAY WITH THESE PROPOSALS WITHOUT A REQUIREMENT FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
AND I FEEL THAT THIS IS UNFAIR.
UM, AND GOING ON, UH, UM, THE 10 FOOT SETBACK, EXCEPT YOU CAN HAVE A PORCH ENCROACHED, FIVE FEET OF THE FRONT SETBACK IS NOT GOOD.
AND I DON'T KNOW WHY, UM, SOMEONE IN THE PLANNING COMMISSION HAS, UM, A UNHAPPY FEELING ABOUT GRASS.
GRASS SLOWS DOWN THE WATER THAT RUNS OFF.
ANYWAY, THANK YOU FOR HEARING ME.
DON'T GIVE AWAY DENSITY, UM, WITHOUT REQUIRING AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
WE'LL NOW HEAR FROM MR. PETER BRITTON.
YOU'LL HAVE FOUR MINUTES DONATED TIME FROM MR. ZACH FADI.
MR. FADI, ARE YOU PRESENT? I THANK YOU.
WE'LL ALSO HEAR FROM KAREN KREPPS AND FELIX PART TWO.
I AM A RESIDENT OF DISTRICT EIGHT, AND I'M SPEAKING TODAY ON BEHALF OF AURA AUSTIN.
DESPERATELY NEEDS ALL KINDS OF HOUSING MISSING MIDDLE MARKET RATE, DEEPLY AFFORDABLE
[00:45:01]
AND MORE.GOING BIGGER ON THIS POLICY CAN MEAN WE GET MORE OF ALL OF THEM ORA URGES, COUNCIL, CITY STAFF, AND THE PLANNING COMMISSION TO ENSURE THAT THE AFFORDABILITY REQUIREMENTS AND INCENTIVES CHOSEN MAXIMIZE PROGRESS IN BOTH MARKET RATE AND AFFORDABLE UNITS.
AND TO SHOW THE WORK FOR THE CHOSEN LEVELS OF INCENTIVES AND REQUIRED AFFORDABILITY.
THIS WILL ALLOW THE COMMUNITY TO UNDERSTAND BETTER THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN INCENTIVES FOR DEVELOPERS AND THE BENEFITS RECEIVED BY THE PUBLIC, AND IT WILL STRENGTHEN THE CASE FOR PASSING THIS POLICY.
THE SUCCESS OF UNO SHOWS THE POWER OF STEPPING AFFORDABILITY REQUIREMENTS AND ONSITE VERSUS FEE IN LIEU REQUIREMENTS FOR THE ETOD DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM.
WE RECOMMEND THAT YOU LOOK INTO REQUIRING SOME AMOUNT OF OWNERSHIP AND OR RENTAL UNITS BE PRODUCED ONSITE WITH ANOTHER TIER OR TWO OF AFFORDABILITY TO BE SATISFIED VIA FEE IN LIEU, DEPENDING THIS ADJUSTMENT MAY BE MORE ONEROUS FOR DEVELOPERS TO COMPLY WITH, AND WE SUGGEST INCREASING THE ENTITLEMENTS TO AN EQUILIBRIUM THAT MAXIMIZES PRODUCTION OF MARKET RATE AND AFFORDABLE UNITS.
OF COURSE, DEEPLY AFFORDABLE HOUSING IS ONE OF THE CITY'S BIGGEST HURDLES AND VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES ARE FACING THE HARSHEST BRUNT OF UNAFFORDABILITY.
THE CITY SHOULD LOOK INTO REQUIRING MORE DEEPLY AFFORDABLE HOUSING AS ONE OF THE STEPS ON THIS AFFORDABILITY REQUIREMENT LADDER, POSSIBLY WITH A SHORTER TIME REQUIREMENT FOR THOSE DEEPLY AFFORDABLE UNITS TO MAXIMIZE THEIR PRODUCTION AND REDUCE THE IMMINENT PRESSURE THAT OUR VULNERABLE COMMUNITIES ARE FACING.
THESE REFORMS, WHICH WILL LIKELY REQUIRE LARGER INCENTIVES THAN PROPOSED, WILL NOT BE POSSIBLE IF WE ARTIFICIALLY CAP THE PRODUCTION OF MARKET RATE AND AFFORDABLE UNITS THROUGH A HEIGHT LIMIT.
TO ENSURE THE LONG-TERM SUCCESS OF THE PROGRAM, AURA URGES THE CITY TO ELIMINATE THE 120 FOOT HEIGHT LIMIT.
LASTLY, DENSITY BONUSES THAT REQUIRE THAT RELY ON HEIGHT INCENTIVES INHERENTLY BENEFIT LARGER DEVELOPMENTS OVER SMALL DEVELOPMENTS.
AURA RECOMMENDS EXPLORING AN ADJUSTMENT TO THIS POLICY THAT ADDS THE ABILITY TO OPT IN TO A FAR BASED INCENTIVE PACKAGE, REDUCING THE INHERENT DISINCENTIVE OF HEIGHT BONUSES ON SMALLER DEVELOPMENTS.
IN CLOSING, THIS CRITICAL POLICY MUST BE CONSIDERED CAREFULLY.
WE CANNOT SPARE 10 MORE YEARS OF ACUTELY UNAFFORDABLE HOUSING DUE TO MISCALIBRATED PROGRAMS AND RESTRICTIVE ZONING.
AUSTIN HAS BEEN DOWN THIS PATH OVER THE PAST 40 YEARS AND ITS CONSEQUENCES ALARMINGLY LOW PRODUCTION OF MARKET RATE AND AFFORDABLE UNITS IS P SEE.
WILL NOT HEAR FROM KAREN, UH, CROPS OR FELIX TU FOLLOWED BY SHAIR ERY.
I'VE LIVED IN AUSTIN, TEXAS AS A HOMEOWNER AND A BUSINESS OWNER FOR 30 YEARS.
I WAS OUT OF TOWN WHEN YOU APPROVED THE FIRST PHASE OF THIS HOME THING, AND I JUST THINK IT'S TOTALLY INSANE TO HAVE AS MUCH DENSITY AS YOU'RE NOW PROPOSING FOR THIS CITY.
UM, A 10 STORY BUILDING IN A NEIGHBORHOOD THAT HAS ONE TO THREE STORY HOUSES IS GOING TO BE EXTREMELY LOPSIDED.
IT'S GOING TO BRING IN SO MANY MORE CARS THAT WILL NOT HAVE PLACES TO PARK AND THERE IS NO WATER FOR IT.
I SAW IN THE NEWSPAPER THIS WEEK THAT THE WA THAT THE, THE WATER SUPPLY IS AT 31%.
HOW ARE THESE PEOPLE GOING TO DRINK AND SHOWER? THERE'S JUST TOO MUCH DENSITY, SEEMS THAT THIS WHOLE PROCESS IS COUCHED IN THE IDEA THAT IT'S GOING TO BRING AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
BUT I ONLY HEAR FROM PEOPLE WHO ARE BEING DISPLACED AND CANNOT AFFORD THE RATES THAT HOUSES COST THESE DAYS THAT THEY'RE BEING SQUEEZED OUT.
SO I DON'T SEE HOW THIS IS GOING TO AID MORE PEOPLE TO HAVE AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
AND I DO GET THAT THERE'S A REAL RUSH TO APPROVE IT.
LET'S HAVE ENVIRONMENTAL ASSESSMENTS OF EVERYTHING AND HAVE, AND, AND PUT A PRIORITY ON HAVING MORE GREEN SPACE, AS THE OTHER GENTLEMAN SAID ON HAVING GRASS ON MAKING THIS BE A A GREEN CITY.
I'M USED TO VERY TALL BUILDINGS.
BUT MANHATTAN HAS A, AN UNDER, UNDER A LAYER OF BEDROCK UNDER ITS BUILDINGS.
THIS IS NOT THE PLACE TO BUILD THE DENSITY THAT YOU'RE PROPOSING.
WE'LL HAVE FROM FELIX DUPER TWO SHAKAR URI JANIS RANKIN.
IF YOU'LL MAKE YOUR WAY TO THE PODIUM, PLEASE.
HELLO? UH, MY NAME IS SHAKAR URI.
UH, I'M IN SUPPORT OF THE PROPOSED, UH, EO UH, DENSITY BONUS
[00:50:01]
PROGRAM, BUT I THINK IT CAN BE MADE A LOT BETTER HOPEFULLY WITH THE FEW OF THE AMENDMENTS THAT YOU'RE CONSIDERING.UM, FIRST OF ALL, UH, BEFORE COMING IN HERE, I TOOK A LOOK AT SOME OF THE, UH, KIND OF BEST RESULTS THAT HAVE BEEN SEEN IN OTHER CITIES WITH SIMILAR PROGRAMS, UH, NAMELY IN LIKE ARLINGTON, VIRGINIA AND IN VANCOUVER AS WELL IN HELPING BOTH TRANSIT RIDERSHIP AND PUTTING A LOT OF PEOPLE BEING ABLE TO LIVE CLOSE TO THEM.
UH, AND NEITHER OF THEM CAPS A HEIGHT AS LOW AS 120 FEET, LIKE RIGHT ON THE DOORSTEPS OF THE TRANSIT STATION.
UH, SO I THINK IF WE WANT TRANSIT ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT AND NOT JUST TRANSIT ADJACENT DEVELOPMENT, WE NEED, UH, WE NEED BOTH TO ALLOW POSSIBLY HIGHER HEIGHTS, MAYBE CLOSER TO THE STATIONS WITHIN A QUARTER MILE OR SOMETHING AS WELL AS, WHICH WILL HOPEFULLY HELP PRODUCE MORE UNITS.
AND WITH THAT AFFORDABILITY REQUIREMENT, HOPEFULLY MORE AFFORDABLE UNITS RIGHT NEXT TO IT, AS WELL AS KIND OF INCENTIVIZE THE DEVELOPMENTS TO ACTUALLY BE ORIENTED AROUND THE TRANSIT STATION AS IN LIKE, HAVE THEIR ENTRANCES, YOU KNOW, BE FACING THAT WAY AND, UH, AND NOT JUST KIND OF HAVE LIKE A, A PARKING GARAGE OR SOMETHING, YOU KNOW, FACING TOWARDS THE STATION.
UH, AND HAVE LIKE EASIER WALKING PATHS TO GET TO THESE LOTS BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THESE LOTS ARE KIND OF SEPARATED BY A, BY A STREET OR A NEIGHBORHOOD FROM, UH, THE STATION.
SO IF WE WANT PEOPLE TO ACTUALLY USE THE TRANSIT, I THINK WE NEED TO INCENTIVIZE THAT.
SO PLEASE, UH, I SAW SOME AMENDMENTS THAT ARE BEING CONSIDERED, SO PLEASE CAREFULLY CONSIDER THOSE.
WE'LL HEAR FROM MS. JANICE RANKIN.
I DIDN'T HEAR THE ORDER OF NAMES, SO I'M ASSUMING IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT ORDER WE GO IN.
UM, GOOD AFTERNOON, CHAIR HEMPEL AND ESTEEM COMMISSIONERS.
I'M MONICA GOSMAN, POLICY DIRECTOR OF GAVA GO AUSTIN BAMO AUSTIN.
UM, I'M GONNA KIND OF PICK UP WHERE ONE OF MY COLLEAGUES LEFT OFF REGARDING THE E TODD POLICY PLAN, COMMUTING AND CAR OWNERSHIP SHIFTS, TODDS ARE INTENDED TO INCREASE TRANSIT SYSTEM RIDERSHIP AND DECREASE THE NEED TO OWN A PERSONAL VEHICLE.
HOWEVER, TRANSIT RIDERSHIP TO WORK IN THESE CENSUS TRACKS OF STUDY HAVE SEEN SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION SINCE 2010 BY 40, EXCUSE ME, BY BETWEEN 41% AND 73%.
TODD'S ALSO AIMED TO INCLUDE A MIX OF BUSINESSES AND SERVICES THAT MEET DAILY NEEDS SO THAT HOUSEHOLDS CAN REDUCE THEIR RELIANCE ON A PERSONAL VEHICLE TO ACCESS OPPORTUNITIES.
CORRELATING WITH A REDUCTION IN OVERALL TRANSIT RIDERSHIP TO WORK IS THE INCREASING PRESENCE OF HOUSEHOLD MAKING OVER $200,000 AND THE PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE WORKING FROM HOME.
THE AVERAGE PERCENTAGE OF HOUSEHOLDS WITHOUT CARS HAS ALSO DECREASED ACROSS ALL TODD CENSUS TRACKS BY 60%.
AND I'M GONNA SHIFT REGARDING MULTIFAMILY.
WE ASK THAT YOU REMOVE MULTIFAMILY REGARDING UPZONING AND GIVE YOU SOME ADDRESSES.
IT'S 1406 NORTH LOOP 1201 HOUSTON STREET, 71 0 1 GUADALUPE WEST 51ST, 5,600 ROOSEVELT 9 0 3 EDIA, AND I'M SURE THERE ARE PLENTY MORE.
THESE ARE WORKING CLASS FOLKS, LOW INCOME, THEY'RE STRUGGLING, AND THEY HAVE A PLACE THAT THEY CAN AFFORD.
IF YOU GO THROUGH WITH THIS, YOU WILL BE BASICALLY LEADING THEIR, YOUR DECISION WILL LEAD TO THEIR DISPLACEMENT.
TAKE THE TIME TO FIND OUT WHO THEY ARE, HOW MUCH AT RISK.
AGAIN, THERE NEEDS TO BE ANTI DISPLACEMENT PROTECTIONS BUILT INTO THIS AS THERE WAS ON THE HEARING LAST WEEK ABOUT THE EXPLORATION OF AN EQUITY OVERLAY.
UPDATE THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE? YES, I DON'T THINK MANY PEOPLE WILL DISPUTE THAT, BUT THERE NEEDS TO BE AN ANTI DISPLACEMENT PROTECTION.
THERE NEEDS TO BE DISPLACEMENT FROM GENTRIFICATION SO THAT WE CAN ALL CONTINUE TO LIVE HERE AND THRIVE.
ONE NOW HEAR FROM MR. TY HAKI, FOLLOWED BY CHRISTOPHER PHAGE.
UH, PAIGE, FOLLOWED BY OMAR VASQUEZ'S.
AZAR, IF YOU CAN MAKE YOUR WAY TO THE PODIUM.
HI, I'M TY HOKI, UH, FROM DISTRICT FIVE SPEAKING IN SUPPORT OF THE E TODD.
UM, BASICALLY I, I BELIEVE THAT THIS WILL ALLOW FOR, UM, BASICALLY THE MASSIVE INCREASE IN HOUSING THAT WE NEED IN OUR CITY.
UM, I THINK IT'S, THERE'S AN IDEA THAT LIKE DENSE DENSITY EQUALS UNAFFORDABILITY, BUT THAT IGNORES THAT MANY OF THE DENSEST CITIES IN AMERICA ARE ALSO EXTREMELY NIMBY.
UH, THEY'VE FOUGHT HOUSING AT EVERY TURN.
AND THE RESULT WE IN AUSTIN HAVE HAD THE LARGEST DECREASE IN RENT.
[00:55:01]
NOT, NOT THROUGH SOME LIKE, YOU KNOW, SHORT TERM RENTAL REGULATION LIKE NEW YORK OR, UM, SOME VACANCY TAX LIKE SAN FRANCISCO.INSTEAD, OUR JUST SIMPLY ALLOWING FOR MORE BUILDING MOVE THAT ALONG.
UM, I ALSO BELIEVE THAT IT'LL LEAD TO MORE WALKABLE, MORE TRANSIT ORIENTED SPACES, MAKE IT EASIER FOR PEOPLE TO GET AROUND WITHOUT NEEDING A CAR.
UM, I DO ALSO WANT TO ADDRESS THE ELEPHANT IN THE ROOM THAT IS A LITTLE MORE NEGATIVE, WHICH IS THE IDEA THAT IS THE LAWSUIT THAT'S HAPPENING AGAINST PROJECT CONNECT.
IN THE WORST CASE SCENARIO, IF THE LIGHT RAIL DOESN'T COME TO PASS, THEN WE IF AND, BUT WE DO END UP DOING EOD.
WELL, WE NOW HAVE A LOT MORE HOUSING UNITS.
THAT'S NOT THE END OF THE WORLD THAT WAY.
THAT'S NOT THE WORST, YOU KNOW, UH, AND THAT ALSO MAKES IT POSSIBLE FOR MORE INVESTMENT IN OUR BUSES AND OTHER FORMS OF TRANSIT.
UM, OR THROUGH LIKE ALTERNATIVE MODES OF TRANSIT SUCH AS BIKING.
UM, YEAH, IT CREATES A LOT MORE POSSIBILITIES.
I THINK ALSO WHEN I COMPARE CITIES THAT HAVE PLACES THAT HAVE INCREASED HOUSING, FOR EXAMPLE, UNIVERSITY NEIGHBORHOOD OVERLAY.
UM, I, I WAS READING ONE REPORT THAT SAID THAT LIKE THE AVERAGE RENTED INCREASE IN THAT AREA WAS MUCH LOWER THAN I THINK IT WAS, LIKE 15 TO 20 SOMETHING PERCENT THAN THE AVERAGE INCREASE OVER IN THE REST OF AUSTIN FROM 2020 TO 2022.
UM, WE HAVE A PRIME EXAMPLE RIGHT THERE THAT THIS WORKS.
UM, AND I BELIEVE THAT WE SHOULD CONTINUE TO FOLLOW IT.
WE'LL HAVE HER HERE FROM CHRISTOPHER PAGE, FOLLOWED BY OMAR VASQUEZ, OFFICER FOLLOWED BY SHANE JOHNSON.
HEY THERE, PLANNING COMMISSION.
THANK YOU FOR HOLDING THE SPACE.
UH, APPRECIATE Y'ALL FOR DOING THIS.
UM, YEAH, BEFORE, UH, YOU KNOW, I RECENTLY LEARNED THESE THINGS CAN GET REALLY UGLY.
SO BEFORE I GO AHEAD, UH, I LOVE YOU GUYS.
SO ALL I WANT, AND I FEEL LIKE A LOT OF THIS ROOM ACTUALLY WANTS, IS JUST GOOD FOR THE COMMUNITY.
UH, BUT IT SEEMS LIKE WE ALL HAVE DIFFERENT APPROACHES, WHICH HOPEFULLY WE CAN WORK THROUGH THIS.
UM, I'VE LIVED IN AUSTIN MOST OF MY LIFE AND I'M HERE TO ANNOUNCE THAT I AM AGAINST THIS AMENDMENT.
UH, I'VE ONLY HAD A QUICK CHANCE TO REVIEW IT, BUT JUST FROM A QUICK GLANCE, I CAN TELL THAT THIS ISN'T ENOUGH.
WE AREN'T, WE COULD DO BETTER.
AND I'LL ADMIT I AM SUBJECT TO CHANGE.
I COULD BE WRONG, BUT HOPEFULLY WE CAN ALL JUST TALK ABOUT THIS AND WE CAN MAKE SOMETHING BETTER FOR EVERYBODY THAT EVERYONE AGREES WITH.
'CAUSE I FEEL LIKE MOST OF THIS ROOM'S ACTUALLY AGAINST IT.
EVEN SOME PEOPLE HAVE SAID THEY'RE FOR IT, BUT WITH A LOT OF THINGS THEY CHANGE ABOUT IT.
THANK YOU FOR HOLDING THIS SPACE.
CHRIS PAGE, UH, PRESIDENT OF THE HOMEWOOD HEIGHTS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION IN EAST AUSTIN.
UM, I AM, UH, GREATLY CONCERNED ABOUT WHAT THESE POLICIES ARE GONNA DO.
I GUESS TODAY I AM SUPPOSED TO BE TALKING ABOUT E TODD.
SO, UM, LET'S BE SERIOUS ABOUT WHAT THE EFFECTS ARE GONNA BE.
WE, WE'VE LOOKED AT A DEEPLY AND COMPREHENSIVELY STUDY, BASICALLY A 10 YEAR STUDY ON WHAT TODDS DID.
UH, WHERE DEVELOPMENT IS HAS OCCURRED IN THESE TODDS, THERE'S BEEN A SIGNIFICANT INCREASE IN WHITE HIGH INCOME POPULATIONS AND THAT, AND ACTIVE DECREASE IN BIPOC PRESENCE OVER THE LAST 10 YEARS.
IT ALSO SAYS, HOWEVER, TRANSIT RIDERSHIP TO WORK IN THESE CENSUS TRACKS OF STUDY HAS SEEN SIGNIFICANT REDUCTION SINCE 2010 BY BETWEEN 41 AND 73%.
SO WE'RE TALKING ABOUT TODDS FOR TRANSIT SUPPORTIVE DENSITY.
WE'RE ALSO TALKING ABOUT DEVELOPMENTS THAT DRIVE DOWN TRANSIT RIDERSHIP.
UH, IT GOES ON TO SAY IT CORRELATES WITH A REDUCTION IN OVERALL TRANSIT RIDERSHIP TO WORK, UH, INCREASED PRESENCE OF HOUSEHOLDS MAKING OVER $200,000, UH, PERCENTAGE.
UH, THE PERCENTAGE OF PEOPLE THAT OWN CARS GOES UP BY ABOUT 60% ON THE SAME SIZE ROADS, AND THAT'S SUPPOSED TO BE OUR TRANSIT SUPPORTIVE DENSITY.
YOU NEED AFFORDABLE HOUSING IF YOU REALLY WANT TRANSIT SUPPORTIVE DENSITY.
WE KNOW THAT THE AFFORDABILITY RATES THAT WE CURRENTLY HAVE BUILT INTO OUR DENSITY BONUS PROGRAMS ARE WOEFULLY INADEQUATE TO THE POINT WHERE WE'VE SEEN RADICAL INCREASES IN HOMELESSNESS, RADICAL INCREASES IN HARDSHIP WHEN IT COMES TO ACTUALLY HAVING SECURE AND STABLE HOUSING.
AND WHEN WE'RE TALKING ABOUT E TODDS IN GENERAL, HAVING IT MAPPED THE WAY IT IS, YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT SOMETHING WHERE I'M SUPPOSED TO STEP OUTTA MY FRONT DOOR SPROUT WINGS AND FLY TO A MAGICAL TRACK THAT DOESN'T NEED A STATION FOR ME TO GET ON IT AND GO SOMEWHERE ELSE.
LIKE, WHO ARE WE KIDDING? DO WE THINK THE FT A IS JUST A BUNCH OF DUMMIES? YEAH.
[01:00:01]
FROM MR. SHANE JOHNSON, FOLLOWED BY LAUREN ROSS, FOLLOWED BY ELIANA MADANO, FOLLOWED BY JOE RIDDELL.SHANE JOHNSON, HE AND PRONOUNS DISTRICT SEVEN RESIDENT.
UH, I'LL REPEAT HOW I INTRODUCED MYSELF LAST TIME.
I WAS CO-CHAIR OF THE GROUNDBREAKING AUSTIN CLIMATE EQUITY PLAN.
UH, AND I URGE YOU ALL TO POSTPONE THE VOTE ON THE E TODD OR VOTE NO.
UH, WE, WE, UH, AND I'M WITH COMMUNITY PRIDE ET X, WE SUGGEST AN AMENDMENT TO COMPATIBILITY.
I WE WOULD NEED A SIMILAR SORT OF AMENDMENT OF OVERLAY TO PREVENT DISPLACEMENT SO THAT THIS, UM, YOU KNOW, WELL-INTENTIONED PLAN ACTUALLY, UH, HELPS PEOPLE INSTEAD OF DISPLACING, UH, LOWER AND MODERATE INCOME PEOPLE AND FAMILIES OF COLOR, ET CETERA.
UH, IT'S JUST NOT TRUE THAT WE BLANKETLY NEED MORE HOUSING.
UH, WE NEED MORE AFFORDABLE HOUSING.
AND WHEN WE LOOK AT THE REALITY OF THE SITUATION THAT A LOT OF THIS MARKET RATE HOUSING COMES AT THE EXPENSE, WHETHER IT'S A DEMOLITION OF CURRENTLY AFFORDABLE HOUSING OR YOU'RE GIVING AWAY, UM, ENTITLEMENTS WITHOUT REQUIRING AFFORDABILITY, THAT'S OUR PROBLEM WITH IT.
RIGHT? YOU KNOW, WE ALL WANT MORE HOUSING THAT PEOPLE CAN TRULY LIVE IN.
IT'S JUST THAT THESE POLICIES ARE, ARE DESIGNED IN A HARMFUL WAY.
UM, MASSIVE UP ZONINGS THAT DO NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT DISPLACEMENT RISK.
AND OTHER SOCIAL ISSUES WILL ACCELERATE GENTRIFICATION DISPLACEMENT IN THESE HIGH RISK AREAS.
AND WE HAVE THE DATA, WE HAVE THE MAPS, THEY'RE FROM THE UPROOTED REPORT, AND THEY'RE UPDATED EVERY YEAR.
YOU CAN LOOK AND YOU CAN, YOU KNOW, TAKE THOSE INTO ACCOUNT IF YOU TRULY WANTED TO.
EQUITY BLIND OR MIRA MORE ACCURATELY.
RACE BLIND COLORBLIND APPROACHES ARE WELL KNOWN TO EXACERBATE STRUCTURAL RACISM.
AND THESE POLICIES CATER TO AFFLUENT PEOPLE AND CORPORATIONS FOR THE ARGUMENT THAT, YOU KNOW, SMALLER LOTS OR JUST MORE NEW MARKET RATE IS GOOD FOR EVERYONE, WHICH JUST IS FACTUALLY UNTRUE.
UH, AND SO I ALSO WANT TO, UH, UH, YOU KNOW, TRICKLE DOWN ECONOMICS DOESN'T WORK.
IN OTHER WORDS, IF YOU HELP LOW, VERY LOW INCOME PEOPLE FIRST, THAT'S, YOU NEED TO HELP AND I'LL HELP EVERYONE.
WE'LL HEAR FROM MS. LAUREN ROSS, FOLLOWED BY ELLIOT MADANO, FOLLOWED BY JOE RIDDELL, FOLLOWED BY MICHAEL WHALEN.
GOOD AFTERNOON, COMMISSIONERS.
GOOD AFTERNOON, COMMISSIONERS.
I BELIEVE THE FEE IN LIEU IS BAD IN PRINCIPLE AND BAD IN PRACTICE.
BY PAYING THE FEE IN LIEU, A CONDO DEVELOPER CAN AVOID SETTING ASIDE ANY CONDO UNITS FOR LIMITED INCOME PURCHASERS WHILE STILL GETTING TO BUILD HIGHER AND DENSER IN PARTICULAR, GETS TO BUILD A HUNDRED FEET HIGH INSTEAD OF 60 FEET HIGH WHILE HE CREATES AN ECONOMICALLY SEGREGATED BUILDING.
I CALL THIS SITUATION NIMBY, NOT IN MY BUILDING.
ECONOMIC SEGREGATION ENTAILS RACIAL SEGREGATION.
THE SMELL TEST, THE FEE IS FORMULATED, IS ALSO BAD.
IT CREATES AN INCENTIVE TO BUILD ECONOMICALLY SEGREGATED HOUSING.
THE ORDINANCE DOESN'T SET THE ACTUAL FEE.
THE CHART ON THE NEXT SLIDE, IF WE'RE GONNA HAVE THAT SHOWS IT'S BASED ON THE STAFF'S RECOMMENDED FORMULA FOR COMPUTING THE FEE.
IT'S BASED ON THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE, THE CITYWIDE MEDIAN PRICE OF A CONDO AND THE SALE PRICE BASED ON AFFORDABILITY.
FOR ONE BEDROOM UNIT, IT'S 86,000.
AND FOR THREE BEDROOM IT'S 238.
NOW, THE FEE IS A WASH FOR THE DEVELOPER IF THE CONDOS BEING BUILT ARE PRICED AT THE CITYWIDE MEDIAN.
BUT AS THE NEXT SLIDE SHOWS, THE DEVELOPER OF MORE EXPENSIVE CONDOS CAN MAKE MORE MONEY BY PAYING THE FEE INSTEAD, INSTEAD OF SELLING A FEW UNITS TO LOW INCOME PEOPLE.
OKAY, IF, IF I COULD HAVE THE NEXT SLIDE IT.
SO THE ON THE LEFT, UH, THIS, THIS EXAMPLE HAS, UH, THIS DEVELOPER SELLS 15 OF THE CONDO UNITS AND HE GETS IN A SLOW INCOME.
IF HE SELLS 'EM ALL AT MARKET PRICE, HE GETS 86 MILLION.
SO HE GETS MIXED 6 MILLION MORE BY SELLING, UH, BY PAYING THE FEE AND JUST SELLING TO RICH PEOPLE.
THE FEE IN LIEU IS A GREAT WAY FOR A DEVELOPER TO GET TO BUILD SIX STORIES HIGHER AND DENSER AND KEEP LESS WEALTHY FOLKS OUT AND MAKE MORE MONEY.
SO PLEASE REMOVE THIS SHAMEFUL LOOPHOLE THAT PROMOTES SEGREGATED HOUSING.
[01:05:02]
OKAY, WE'RE COMING DOWN TO THE LAST FEE SPEAKERS.UM, SO IF WE COULD HAVE MS. ELLIOT MEDRANO, MR. MICHAEL WHALEN, MR. ALEX CLARK AND CARLOS PINON, MAKE YOUR WAY TO THE PODIUM PLACE.
UH, MICHAEL WHALE ON BEHALF OF EON ENTERPRISES, LLC, DOING BUSINESSES SHELL OIL PRODUCTS, US ASKING YOU ALLOW, ASKING YOU TO ALLOW ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING USES IN THE E OVERLAY ON FORMER SERVICE STATION SITES, CONSISTENT WITH THE APPROACH THE CITY IS TAKING MORE GENERALLY IN THE DRAFT EV ORDINANCE.
AS YOU KNOW, THE CITY HAS A GOAL OF ELECTRIFYING 40% OF THE TOTAL VEHICLE MILES TRAVELED IN AUSTIN BY 2030, 40% BY 2030, WHICH WILL REQUIRE AN ESTIMATED 37,000 CHARGING PORTS.
THE CHALLENGE WAS TRYING TO FIND A WAY TO SUPPORT THIS GOAL, WHILE ALSO ENCOURAGING HOUSING AND MIS AND MIXED USE GROWTH ALONG OUR CORRIDORS.
AND I THINK THE DRAFT EV POLICY ORDINANCE STRUCK THE RIGHT BALANCE ON THAT QUESTION.
THIS IS THE ORDINANCE FROM THE EV UH, ORDINANCE.
THE DRAFT ORDINANCE TOOK THE SAME APPROACH RECOMMENDED BY THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, WHICH WAS TO ALLOW ELECTRIC VEHICLE CHARGING USES BY RIGHT FOR FORMER SERVICE STATION SITES.
SINCE THESE PROPERTIES OFTEN HAVE ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES THAT MAY MAKE OTHER TYPES OF DEVELOPMENT MORE CHALLENGING, WE THINK THAT WE THINK THAT THIS APPROACH MAKES SENSE AND WOULD ASK THAT YOU PLEASE CONSIDER TAKING THE SAME APPROACH HERE IN THE EAD, UH, THAT YOU TOOK IN THE EV ORDINANCE.