* This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting. [00:00:03] GOOD EVENING, EVERYONE. [CALL TO ORDER] UH, WELCOME TO CITY HALL. I'M BEN HEIM AND I WILL CALL THIS MEETING OF THE HISTORIC LANDMARKS COMMISSION TO ORDER. TODAY IS WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 24TH, AND I SEE IT'S 6:01 PM WE'LL START WITH A CALL OF THE ROLL. ALL RIGHT, UH, CHAIR SETH. PRESENT, VICE CHAIR EVANS PRESENT, UH, COMMISSIONER ACTON PRESENT. COMMISSIONER ALVAREZ PRESENT. COMMISSIONER GROGAN PRESENT. COMMISSIONER COOK PRESENT. COMMISSIONER LAROCHE PRESENT. COMMISSIONER MCW PRESENT. COMMISSIONER PLEASANT WRIGHT PRESENT. COMMISSIONER RICE DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE HERE AT THIS MOMENT. UH, COMMISSIONER TANIGUCHI PRESENT. UM, WE'RE, WE'RE GOOD TO GO. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. UH, AT THIS POINT WE WILL ADDRESS PUBLIC COMMUNICATION. DO WE HAVE ANY SPEAKERS? WE DO NOT HAVE ANY SPEAKERS SIGNED UP FOR PUBLIC COMMUNICATION. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. UM, WHY DON'T WE [Consent Agenda] THEN DO A REVIEW OF TONIGHT'S AGENDA. THANK YOU, CHAIR. THIS EVENING. WE'LL BEGIN WITH ITEM ONE, THE JANUARY 7, 20, 26 MINUTES, WHICH ARE OFFERED FOR CONSENT TO APPROVAL. WE HAVE A BRIEFING TONIGHT. ITEM TWO, A BRIEFING ON THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM. UPDATE BY STAFF MEMBER ALAN PONEY. WE HAVE TWO HISTORIC ZONING APPLICATIONS TONIGHT. ITEM THREE C 14 H 20 25 0 1 22 AT 2207 EAST 22ND STREET. THIS IS THE ELLIOT HOUSE. THIS WILL BE A DISCUSSION ITEM. ITEM FOUR, PR 20 25 1 3 8 0 6 5 IS AN OWNER OPPOSED HISTORIC ZONING, UH, REQUEST INITIATED BY THE HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION. UH, THAT IS 9 0 7 EAST 13TH STREET. THIS WILL BE A DISCUSSION ITEM AS IT IS OWNER OPPOSED UNDER CERTIFICATES OF APPROPRIATENESS. WE HAVE ITEM FIVE, HR 20 25 1 15 8 1 69 C 14 H 19 86 0 0 0 3. THIS IS AT 37 10 CEDAR STREET. THIS ITEM IS OFFERED FOR CONSENT. ITEM SIX, A DEMOLITION REQUEST FOR 24 0 6 EAST MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. BOULEVARD HAS BEEN WITHDRAWN BY THE APPLICANT. SO NO FURTHER COMMISSION ACTION IS NEEDED. ON THIS ITEM FOR OUR NATIONAL REGISTER DISTRICT APPLICATIONS TONIGHT, WE HAVE ITEM SEVEN, PR 20 25 1 0 3 903 FOR 1513 MURRAY LANE. THIS ITEM IS OFFERED FOR CONSENT. ITEM EIGHT, HR 20 25 1 4 5 7 2 9 AT 2100 BARTON SPRINGS ROAD WILL BE A DISCUSSION ITEM. ITEM NINE, HR 20 26 4 7 3 AT 7 0 2 WINDFLOW DRIVE IS OFFERED FOR CONSENT. AND ITEM 10, HR 20 26 516 PR 20 26 0 0 5 6 6 IS OFFERED FOR, WE HAVE ONE DEMOLITION APPLICATION THIS EVENING. UH, ITEM 11, PR 2 26 0 0 4. 0 1 0 AT 1603 CANTERBURY STREET OFFERED FOR CONSENT. AND WE HAVE TWO ADDITIONAL DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS TONIGHT. UH, 12. WE HAVE A RECOMMENDATION REQUEST FOR, UH, RALLY AUSTIN, WHICH IS OFFERED FOR CONSENT. AND ITEM 15, A RECOMMENDATION FOR COMMISSION INITIATION OF HISTORIC ZONING FOR EIGHT 10 WEST 10TH STREET. THIS IS A ZONING ORDINANCE CLEANUP, UH, FOR A PROPERTY THAT'S BEEN PART OF THE LANDMARK PROGRAM SINCE 1987. SO THIS IS ALSO OFFERED FOR CONSENT THIS EVENING. THAT CONCLUDES THE CONSENT AGENDA. UH, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. UH, AT THIS POINT I WILL, UH, REVIEW THE, UH, CONSENT AGENDA WITH THE UNDERSTANDING THAT WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO HAVE SPEAKERS ON ANY OF THESE ITEMS. UH, AGAIN, IF YOU HAVE SIGNED UP FOR AN ITEM THAT IS CURRENTLY LISTED ON CONSENT, RECOGNIZE THAT YOU ARE ABLE TO COME SPEAK TO US IF YOU ABSOLUTELY NEED TO. BUT IF THE CONSENT AGENDA ITEM PASSES, THE STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION AND THAT ITEM WILL BE APPROVED AUTOMATICALLY. SO YOU ARE NOT REQUIRED TO SPEAK, UM, BUT WE, YOU CERTAINLY HAVE THE RIGHT TO, IF THAT IS, UH, YOUR INTENT AT ANY TIME. COMMISSIONERS, IF THERE IS ANY ITEM THAT YOU WOULD WISH TO PULL FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA, UH, PLEASE LET ME KNOW AT THAT TIME. THE FIRST ITEM THAT WE HAVE ON OUR CONSENT AGENDA IS THE APPROVAL OF MINUTES. ARE THERE ANY CHANGES OR ADDITIONS TO OUR MINUTES FROM THE JANUARY 7TH MEETING? OKAY. HEARING NONE, WE WILL THEN ALLOW THOSE TO REMAIN ON THE CONSENT AGENDA. AND I ALSO NOTE FOR THE RECORD THAT COMMISSIONER RICE HAS JOINED US. WELCOME. [00:05:02] THE NEXT, UH, CONSENT ITEM IS ITEM NUMBER FIVE. UH, THE, UM, PROPERTY AT 37 10 CEDAR STREET. UH, IS THERE A SPEAKER FOR THIS ITEM? YES. WE HAVE TWO SPEAKERS ON THIS ITEM. ONE IN FAVOR. ONE IN OPPOSITION. OUR IN FAVOR SPEAKER IS ABBY PENNER. OKAY. AND YOU WANT ME TO WAIVE YOUR, UH, INTEREST IN SPEAKING? THANK YOU. OUR IN OPPOSITION SPEAKER IS RICK IVERSSON. MR. IVERSSON, WOULD YOU CARE TO SPEAK YOU? YES. OKAY. NAME DECLINING, CORRECT? DECLINING. OKAY. AGAIN, THIS IS THE CONSENT AGENDA, BUT, UH, WE HAVE TWO SPEAKERS NOW WHO'VE, UH, SIGNED UP AND ARE DECLINING TO SPEAK. IS THERE ANY OTHER SPEAKER? UH, YES. IT LOOKS LIKE WE DO HAVE OTHER SPEAKERS ON THIS ITEM IF THEY WOULD CARE TO COME UP. YES. IF ANYONE WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK ON THIS ITEM AGAIN, IT IS CURRENTLY ON THE CONSENT AGENDA. UH, WE WILL CERTAINLY LISTEN TO YOUR COMMENTS, PLEASE. I AM PAMELA BELL, PRESIDENT OF THE NORTH UNIVERSITY NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION. I'M SPEAKING TONIGHT AN OBJECTION TO THE CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS FOR 37 10 CEDAR STREET. WHILE THE NEIGHBORHOOD DOES NOT OPPOSE THIS AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROJECT, THE APPLICANT'S SUBMIT SUBMITTAL TO HLC IS WOEFULLY INADEQUATE TO ALLOW HLC REVIEW. I'D LIKE TO REFER YOU TO THE 28TH SLIDE DECK PUT TOGETHER BY A RESIDENT OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD, NICK WALLACE, WHO IS NOT ABLE TO BE HERE TONIGHT. AS NOTED IN THE DECK, THERE'S VARIOUS SIGNIFICANT ISSUES WITH THE SUBMITTAL. FIRST, THE SUBMITTAL PRESENTS THE HLC WITH INACCURATE AND INCOMPLETE ELEVATIONS OF THE EXISTING BUILDINGS ON SITE, INCLUDING MAJOR OMISSIONS SUCH AS PROMINENT AND HISTORICALLY LOCATED STREET FACING DOORS, AS WELL AS OTHER HISTORIC COLUMNS ON CEDAR STREET, ACCURATE ELEVATIONS. AND THE HISTORIC PHOTOGRAPHS OF THE SITE THAT ABOUND IN THE PUBLIC RECORD AT THE AUSTIN HISTORY CENTER SHOULD ALL BE PRESENTED TO HLC TO ALLOW IT TO MAKE A FULSOME REVIEW OF THE CURRENT BUILDINGS AND THE PROPOSED CHANGES. LIKEWISE, IT'S NOT CLEAR FROM ELEVATIONS HOW THE DEVELOPER INTENDS TO TREAT THE SIGNAGE ON THE SITE. SECOND, IT'S NOT CLEAR WHAT WINDOWS HAVE FAILED AND WILL BE REPLACED OR WHAT THE MATERIALS OR PATTERNS OF THE NEW WINDOWS WILL BE. HLC SHOULD NOT GIVE CARTE BL TO RE REPLACE WINDOWS AS NEEDED, BUT SHOULD PROVIDE SPECIFIC APPROVAL. THIRD, THE PROPOSED ADDITION TO THE HOME LANE SIDE OF THE REAR BUILDING WILL APPEAR TO OBSCURE A HISTORIC COLONATE THAT IS A PROMINENT HISTORIC FEATURE VISIBLE FROM 38TH STREET. FOURTH, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, THE APPLICANT HAS OMITTED PLANS FOR THE ENTIRE SOUTHERN HALF OF THE BLOCK WHERE NEW CONSTRUCTION IS INTENDED TO BE BUILT IMMEDIATELY ADJACENT TO THE HISTORIC BUILDINGS. THE MAP SUBMITTED TO HLC LABELED THIS, THE NON HISTORIC PART OF THE PROPERTY, BUT THE ZONING LEGALITIES ARE LESS CLEAR. IN APRIL, 2025, NEIGHBORS WERE NOTIFIED THAT THE APPLICANT HAD REQUESTED TO REZONE THE ENTIRE LOT FROM SF THREE HISTORIC TO MF FOUR HISTORIC, WHICH REFLECTED WHAT IS IN OUR NCCD ADOPTED BY THE CITY IN 2004. RE RECEIVED NO NOTICE THAT A PORTION OF THE LOT WAS INTENDED TO BE STRIPPED OF THE HISTORIC ZONING. AND THE RELEVANT QUESTIONS ARE BEING LOOKED INTO MS. BELL, THAT'S THE TIME. UM, I HAVE A QUICK QUESTION OF STAFF. HOW MANY PEOPLE HAVE SIGNED UP AND ARE THESE ALL IN OPPOSITION? THAT WAS THE LAST SPEAKER THAT WISHES TO SPEAK. I'M THE, YOU ARE THE LAST SPEAKER. OKAY. ON THIS BOARD IS IF THERE'S ADDITIONAL SPEAKERS, UM, AND IF THERE'S ADDITIONAL INFORMATION THAT WE COULD PULL THE CASE, UH, [00:10:01] COMMISSIONERS, UH, WE CAN CONTINUE TO KEEP THIS ON THE CONSENT AGENDA OR WE CAN GO AHEAD AND HEAR THE ENTIRE CASE. I'D SUGGEST WE PULL UP FOR DISCUSSION. OKAY. SO, UH, WE APPRECIATE YOUR COMMENTS, UH, IN THE DISCUSSION, UH, SECTION. YOU'LL STILL BE ALLOWED TIME TO SPEAK MS. BELL. SO WE'LL GO AHEAD AND HAVE THAT PULLED ON OUR AGENDA FOR DISCUSSION. OKAY. UM, ITEM NUMBER SEVEN IS THE NEXT CONSENT ITEM AT 1513 MURRAY LANE. AND, UH, DO WE HAVE A SPEAKER? ANY SPEAKERS SIGNED UP FOR THAT? YES. WE HAVE ONE SPEAKER IN FAVOR. LINDA SULLIVAN. OKAY, MS. SULLIVAN, DO YOU FEEL LIKE YOU NEED TO SPEAK NOW? YES. SHE IS WAIVED RIGHT TO SPEAK. OKEY DOKE. UH, AND THE NEXT CONSENT ITEM IS ITEM NUMBER 9 7 0 2 WINDFLOW DRIVE. YES. WE HAVE TWO SPEAKERS ON THIS ITEM. ONE IN FAVOR. ONE IN OPPOSITION. OUR IN FAVOR SPEAKER IS JOHN HENRY SWINGER. MR. SWER, DO YOU WISH TO SPEAK? UH, YES. OKAY. AND A REMINDER, THIS IS ON THE CONSENT AGENDA, UH, BUT CERTAINLY YOU ARE ABLE TO TELL US WHAT YOUR COMMENTS ARE. WE DO HAVE ONE WHO WILL BE OPPOSED. WE'LL ALSO SPEAK AFTER YOU NEED TO COME HERE AND STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD. AND YOU HAVE THREE MINUTES TO PROVIDE COMMENTS. DEAR HLC COMMISSIONERS, THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO SPEAK TODAY. UH, MY NAME IS JOHN HENRY SPINER. UH, MY WIFE AND I ARE EXCITED TO START A FAMILY IN CLARKSVILLE, WHERE BOTH SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS OPERATE IN THE DOWNTOWN AREA. WE'RE DEEPLY INVESTED IN THIS COMMUNITY AND LOOK FORWARD TO BUILDING A LIFE IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD. WE'VE ENGAGED EXTENSIVELY WITH THE STAKEHOLDERS IN THE, IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD, INCLUDING MULTIPLE CONVERSATIONS, PHONE CALLS, AND TWO OHANA MEETINGS. WE'VE SHARED THE PLANS, THE SITE PLANNING, GONE ABOVE AND BEYOND TO CREATE EVEN ADDITIONAL REQUESTS SUCH AS SPLIT SECTIONS, ACCOMMODATING ALL REQUESTS FROM AWANA. UH, WE'VE PRESENTED TO ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW COMMITTEE TO ENSURE OUR DESIGN ALIGN WITH THE NEIGHBORHOOD STANDARDS AND HAVE RECEIVED MULTIPLE LETTERS AND SUPPORT FROM EXCITED NEIGHBORS. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. AND WE'RE EAGER TO BUILD A HOME THAT MEET OUR FAMILY'S NEEDS WHILE CONTRIBUTING POSITIVELY TO THE AREA. THANK YOU. THANKS. OKAY. DO WE HAVE ANOTHER SPEAKER? YES. OUR SECOND SPEAKER WHO IS IN OPPOSITION IS STEVE AMOS. GOOD EVENING. THANK YOU. I'M STEVE AM I'M THE CHAIR OF THE OLD WEST SALTON NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION. SPEAKING ON BEHALF OF THE ZONING COMMITTEE, UH, REGARDING 7 0 2 1 FLOAT DRIVE. WE VERY MUCH APPRECIATE THE APPLICANT'S PARTICIPATION WITH THE COMMUNITY IN AWANA. HOWEVER, GIVEN THE LIMITED SCHEMATIC NATURE OF WHAT'S BEEN PRESENTED, WE RESPECTIVELY REQUEST THE HISTORICAL LANDMARK COMMISSION POSTPONE THE FEBRUARY 4TH HEARING AND DIRECTLY APPLICANT TO RETURN TO THE ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW COMMITTEE WITH COMPLETE SUBMITTAL BEFORE FURTHER CONSIDERATION. I THINK YOU HAVE THE DOCUMENT THAT WE SENT, SO I WON'T GO THROUGH ALL OF IT, BUT THE KEY IS THAT WE CAN'T DETERMINE WHETHER TO SUPPORT THIS OR OPPOSE IT BECAUSE THE PROJECT WOULD DEMOLISH THE CONTRIBUTING STRUCTURE WITHIN THE WESTLINE NATIONAL REGISTERED HISTORIC DISTRICT. AND THE MATERIALS PROVIDED DO NOT PROVIDE A MEANINGFUL EVALUATION. THEY BASICALLY SUGGEST A TALL BOX-LIKE STUCCO, UH, BUILDING, UH, THAT'S REALLY OUT, OUT OF KEEPING WHERE THE HISTORICAL, UH, CITYSCAPE. UM, I ALSO WANNA POINT OUT THAT WHERE OTHER PROPERTIES MAY BE TALLER, THEY REALLY DO FIT WITHIN THE DISTRICT'S MID-CENTURY, UH, STYLE AND CONTRIBUTING STRUCTURES. 'CAUSE AL ALONE'S NOT THE ISSUE. IT'S, IT, IT'S, IT'S WHAT'S FITTING IN CHARACTER OF THE NATIONAL HISTORIC DISTRICT. AND WITHOUT TO, WITHOUT SEEING A BETTER, UH, PRESENTATION OF WHAT'S GONNA BE BUILT, WE CAN'T MAKE AN ADEQUATE EVALUATION. WE ACKNOWLEDGE THE APPLICANT'S WILLINGNESS TO WORK TOWARDS A COMPATIBLE SOLUTION. WE BELIEVE RETURNING TO OUR A RC WITH A FULLY DEVELOPED PROPOSAL THAT CLEARLY DEMONSTRATES APPROPRIATE MASSING MATERIALS ARTICULATION, WILL REALLY THEN BE ABLE TO PROVIDE FURTHER, UH, AND THEN COME FURTHER TO THE ESSENTIAL HLC REVIEW. FINALLY, THE DEMOLITION OF A CONTRIBUTING STRUCTURE DIRECTLY THREATENS THE INTEGRITY OF THE HISTORIC DISTRICT. AND AS YOU KNOW, EACH LOSS ERODES THE HISTORIC FABRIC THAT DEFINES OLD WEST AUSTIN AND SUPPORTS ITS NATIONAL DESIGNATION AND RECOGNITION IS ONE OF THE TOP 50 NEIGHBORHOODS IN THE WORLD, BY THE WAY, BY THE, UH, BY A [00:15:01] MAGAZINE AND HEAD OF LONDON. BUT, SO FOR THESE REASONS, WE RESPECTIVELY REQUEST THE HLC TO POSTPONE THE HEARING FOR COMPLETE AND CONTEXTUAL REVIEW BY THE RSC. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND CONSIDERATION, SIR AMOS. THANK YOU. COMMISSIONERS. I'LL REMIND YOU, WE'VE HAD THIS ON OUR AGENDA AND, UH, HAVE HAD DISCUSSION, UH, ABOUT ITS DESIGN AND IT HAS ALSO BEEN IN FRONT OF THE ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW COMMITTEE AND HAS ALSO, UH, HAD DISCUSSION ON THIS DESIGN. UH, LET ME ASK QUICKLY FROM STAFF, UH, WHAT IS THE TIMING? UH, I BELIEVE THIS IS THE LAST MEETING. UH, EXCUSE ME. THIS, UH, APPLICATION WILL ACTUALLY TIME OUT ON APRIL 20TH, 2026. SO WE DO HAVE A COUPLE MORE HLC SESSIONS FOR THIS APPLICATION FOR NEW CONSTRUCTION. THE APPLICATION FOR DEMOLITION HAS ALREADY BEEN APPROVED, UM, AND WILL BE RELEASED PENDING NEW CONSTRUCTION, UM, APPROVAL. OKAY. AND THE RECOMMENDATION AGAIN, UH, BECAUSE IT IS A, IN THE REGI NATIONAL REGISTER DISTRICT, ITS COMMENT ON THE PLANS. THAT'S CORRECT, YES. OKAY. ALRIGHT. UH, AGAIN, IT'S CURRENTLY ON THE CONSENT AGENDA. UM, UNLESS ANY OF THE COMMISSIONERS HAS NEED TO CONTINUE TO COMMENTING ON THE PLANS, WE CAN PROCEED WITH THE NEXT ITEM. ITEM NUMBER 10 31 0 2 GLENVIEW AVENUE. DO WE HAVE ANY SPEAKERS ON THAT ITEM? WE HAVE ONE SPEAKER SIGNED UP IN FAVOR. PATRICK NEIL. OKAY, MR. NEIL. HE WA ALRIGHT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. OKAY, OUR NEXT ITEM. ITEM. NEXT ITEM NUMBER 11 16 0 3 CANTERBURY STREET. YES. WE HAVE ONE IN FAVOR. SPEAKER, UH, HARSH DOSHI, WHO IS ALSO THE APPLICANT. OKAY. AND THEY ARE A VIRTUAL SPEAKER. OKAY. IF THEY WOULD LIKE TO GIVE US THEIR COMMENT. IT DOESN'T LOOK LIKE THEY ARE. OKAY. IS THAT THE ONLY SPEAKER? WE HAVE NO OTHER SPEAKERS ON THAT ITEM. OKAY. THEN ITEM NUMBER 12. UM, THIS IS A RECOMMENDATION TO COUNSEL, UH, REGARDING THE RALLY. AUSTIN, UH, YOU HAVE THAT IN YOUR BACKUP. UH, THIS IS AN ENDORSEMENT OF THEIR RECOMMENDATION FOR THE 2026 BOND PROPOSAL. UH, AND VICE CHAIR EVANS AND MYSELF PUT THIS ON THE AGENDA. UH, WE NEED TO, WE CAN DISCUSS IT, BUT OTHERWISE IT IS ON THE CONSENT. DO WE HAVE ANY SPEAKERS ON THIS ITEM? WE DO NOT. ALRIGHT. AND THEN ITEM NUMBER 15. UH, AGAIN, AS STAFF MENTIONED, THERE WAS AN ADMINISTRATIVE ITEM WHERE, UH, THIS IS AN ITEM THAT'S BEEN PART OF OUR, UH, GROUP OF HISTORIC HOUSES FOR A PERIOD OF TIME. UH, BUT IDENTIFYING ALL OF THE, UH, BACKUP, WE REALIZED THAT WE NEED THE FORMAL, UH, DESIGNATION TO BE, UH, FINALIZED. UH, IT PROBABLY WAS, BUT JUST TO BE ON THE SAFE SIDE. THAT'S WHY WE HAVE IT ON OUR AGENDA NOW. SO IT'S AN ADMINISTRATIVE CORRECTION. UH, I DON'T BELIEVE THERE'S ANYBODY WHO NEEDS TO SPEAK ON THIS, BUT HAS ANYBODY SIGNED UP? WE HAVE NO OTHER SPEAKERS. NO. OKAY. SO THEN THAT'LL STAY ON THE CONSENT AGENDA. ALRIGHT, JUST FOR REMINDING COMMISSIONERS, UH, WE CURRENTLY HAVE THE MINUTES. ITEM NUMBER ONE, WE HAVE ITEM NUMBER SEVEN ON THE CONSENT AGENDA. ITEM NUMBER NINE, ITEM 10, ITEM 11, 12, AND 15 ALL OFFERED FOR CONSENT. UH, I WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION COMMISSIONER RICE, UM, MOTION TO APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA. AND A SECOND. SECOND. I SECOND. OKAY. I THINK WE GOT COMMISSIONER LAROCHE GOT THERE FIRST. ALRIGHT, IT'S BEEN MOVED AND SECONDED. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE INDICATE BY RAISING YOUR HAND. OKAY. THANK YOU. IT IS PASSED, UH, UNANIMOUSLY. ANYBODY WHO HAS HAD AN ITEM ON THE CONSENT AGENDA, IT IS NOW PASSED. YOU'RE WELCOME TO GO HOME. UH, YOU PLEASE FOLLOW STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION BECAUSE THAT'S ALL PART OF THE, UH, APPROVAL. UH, BUT YOU'RE ALSO WELCOME TO STAY WITH US IF YOU'RE SO INCLINED. AND WE WILL GO ON TO THE NEXT CASE. UH, OUR NEXT AGENDA [2. Staff briefing regarding the Downtown Density Bonus Program Update by Alan Pani, Planner Principal, Austin Planning. (Sponsored by Chair Heimsath and Vice-Chair Evans) ] ITEM IS THE BRIEFING. WE HAVE, UH, ITEM NUMBER TWO, UH, STAFF BRIEFING ON THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM. OKAY. UH, I BELIEVE WE'RE HERE, UH, WITH CITY STAFF, WHICH YOU, ARE YOU ALL READY? YES. I'M JUST WAITING FOR THE PRESENTATION. THERE YOU GO. GOOD EVENING, COMMISSIONERS. MY NAME IS OH, ALAN PONTY. I'M WITH AUSTIN PLANNING. UM, I'M SURE THE PRESENTATION WILL [00:20:01] COME UP IN A SECOND. THERE WE GO. UH, I WILL BE WALKING THROUGH THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS PHASE ONE UPDATE. UH, IT IS A BRIEFING ON HOW THE NEW PROGRAM WILL BE WORKING. SO WE WILL BE COMING BACK LATER WITH THE ACTUAL PROPOSAL FOR THE PROGRAM. BUT WE WANTED TO COME HERE TODAY AND WALK THROUGH, UH, SOME OF THE STEPS OF HOW THE NEW PROGRAM WOULD WORK. SO, AS I MENTIONED, THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS UPDATE HAS BEEN PHASED OUT INTO TWO PHASES TODAY. I'LL BE TALKING A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT. PHASE ONE. UM, GIVE SOME CONTEXT FOR WHAT THAT IS AS WELL AS THE TIMELINE. SO THE CURRENT DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM, UH, ALLOWS DEVELOPMENTS TO GO ABOVE THEIR BASE. ENTITLEMENTS. SITES CURRENTLY HAVE HEIGHT AND FAR LIMITS THAT ARE SET BY THEIR BASE ZONING. SO AS AN EXAMPLE, IN DOWNTOWN WE HAVE CBD ZONING, WHICH ALLOWS FOR 350 FEET OF HEIGHT AND EIGHT TO ONE FAR. SITES THAT PARTICIPATE IN THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS MUST MEET CERTAIN GATEKEEPER REQUIREMENTS AND PROVIDE COMMUNITY BENEFITS IN EXCHANGE FOR ADDITIONAL ENTITLEMENTS. IE ADDITIONAL HEIGHT. AND FAR THE PROGRAM WORKS WITH A HEIGHT AND FAR MAP. SO THERE'S A, CURRENTLY AN EXISTING MAP THAT INDICATES THAT ADDITIONAL HEIGHT AND FAR THAT CAN BE ACHIEVED WITHIN EACH SUBDISTRICT OF THE AREA. UH, DEPENDING ON WHERE THE PROPERTY IS LOCATED, IF A SPECIFIC SITE WANTED TO EXCEED WHAT IS SHOWN ON THE HE AND FAR MAP, THE SITES CAN REQUEST COUNCIL APPROVAL TO EXCEED THAT ALLOWED HEIGHT. AND FAR. SO THE PHASE ONE, UH, AREA THAT WE WILL BE UPDATING, UH, EX CONSISTS OF THE KIND OF CORE SUBDISTRICT RAINY AREA AND THE LOWER WALLER, UH, AREA WHERE THE CONVENTION CENTER IS. UM, THIS WAS THE AREA CHOSEN FROM COUNCIL. UM, IN LAST FALL. THEY ASKED US TO COME BACK WITH THESE THREE SUBDISTRICTS BY THE END OF MAY, UM, OR EARLY JUNE WITH AN UPDATE AND A REMAINDER OF THE GEOGRAPHY BY THE END OF THE YEAR. SO, UM, I WILL GO INTO THE TIMELINE IN A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAIL FOR THIS PHASE. UM, BUT THAT IS THE, THE AREA WE ARE LOOKING AT FOR THE FIRST PART OF THIS. UH, THAT AREA IS COMPRISED MOSTLY OF CBD ZONING, WHICH IS OUR CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT ZONING. UM, THERE ARE A COUPLE OTHER POCKETS OF ZONING, UH, MOSTLY DOWNTOWN MIXED USE BEING THE, THE OTHER PREVALENT ZONING IN THE AREA, UH, WITH A FEW OTHER COMMERCIAL BASED ZONES, PUBLIC AND UN ZONE PARCELS AS WELL. OUR PROPOSED AMENDMENT APPROACH WILL BE, AS I MENTIONED TO FOR PHASE ONE, CREATE NEW ZONING COMBINING DISTRICTS THAT INCLUDE UPDATED PROGRAM REQUIREMENTS AND REGULATIONS. FOR THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS, WE WILL BE REZONING THE PHASE ONE GEOGRAPHY AND TO THESE NEW COMBINING DISTRICTS THROUGH AN AREA WIDE REZONING. FOR PHASE TWO, WE WILL CONTINUE TO REFINE THESE REGULATIONS, CREATE ADDITIONAL COMBINING DISTRICTS AS NEEDED, AND REZONE THE REMAINDER OF THE GEOGRAPHY INTO THESE NEW COMBINING DISTRICTS AS WELL. MOVING FORWARD PROPERTY OWNERS WOULD BE ABLE TO REQUEST REZONING INTO HIGHER INTENSITY COMBINING DISTRICTS. AND I'LL GO INTO A LITTLE BIT MORE DETAIL ON WHAT THAT ALL MEANS. SO AS I MENTIONED, FOR PHASE ONE, WE WILL BE, UH, CREATING NEW COMBINING DISTRICTS. UM, THESE WILL HAVE SOME ZONING STRING THAT MAY BE DDB OR SOME OTHER SIMILAR LETTERS. UH, AS AN EXAMPLE, EVERY PROPERTY WITHIN AN A NEW COMBINING DISTRICT WILL ACHIEVE THE SAME HEIGHT IN EXCHANGE FOR THE SAME AFFORDABLE HOUSING. SO, JUST AS AN EXAMPLE, AND AGAIN, THIS IS NOT THE PROPOSAL, THERE COULD BE A COMBINING DISTRICT ONE THAT WOULD PROVIDE A HUNDRED FEET OF ADDITIONAL HEIGHT IN EXCHANGE OF A SET, UH, 5% AFFORDABLE UNITS OR THE FEET AND LOW EQUIVALENT. WHILE THERE COULD BE A COMBINING DISTRICT TWO THAT PROVIDED 400 FEET OF HEIGHT IN EXCHANGE FOR SAY, 7% OF A POOR UNITS OR FEET AND LIMB. SO ESSENTIALLY EACH COMBINING DISTRICT WOULD HAVE ITS OWN REGULATIONS FOR HEIGHT AND WHAT IS REQUIRED IN EXCHANGE. THE HEIGHT WOULD BE ADDITIVE TO THE PROPERTY'S BASE ZONING HEIGHT LIMIT. SO AS AN EXAMPLE, AGAIN, UH, THE CBD BASED ZONING, WHICH HAD 350 FEET OF HEIGHT TO BEGIN WITH, IF YOU HAD COMBINING DISTRICT ONE, THAT WOULD GIVE YOU A HUNDRED ADDITIONAL FEET AND YOU WOULD GO UP TO 450. UH, IF YOU WERE IN COMBINING DISTRICT TWO AND YOU WERE A CBD SITE, STARTING AGAIN AT THREE 50, YOU GET THE ADDITIONAL 400. SO YOU WOULD GO UP TO 750. AND AGAIN, I'LL PROVIDE SOME, SOME MORE INFO ON THAT. WE WILL BE DEFINING, OH, SORRY, UH, THE NEW CORE SUBDISTRICT AND THE LAND DEVELOPMENT CODE. SO PROPERTIES WITHIN, WITHIN THE SUBDISTRICT WOULD BE ELIGIBLE TO REZONE TO THE COMBINING DISTRICTS. THERE WILL CONTINUE TO BE GATEKEEPER GATEKEEPER REQUIREMENTS OR COMMUNITY BENEFITS THAT COULD BE CUSTOMIZED FOR EACH SUBDISTRICT. UM, AS AN EXAMPLE, THAT RED RIVER CULTURAL SUBDISTRICT THAT WILL BE PART OF PHASE TWO COULD HAVE COMMUNITY BENEFITS OR GATEKEEPER REQUIREMENTS THAT MORE ARE MORE FOCUSED [00:25:01] IN LIVE MUSIC AND CULTURAL SPACES. UH, THAT MIGHT DIFFER FROM A DIFFERENT TYPE OF SUBDISTRICT WITHIN DOWNTOWN. UM, AS I MENTIONED, WE'LL BE REZONING PROPERTIES WITHIN THE COURSE OF DISTRICT TO A NEW COMBINING DISTRICT. THESE PROPERTIES WOULD THEN RECEIVE THAT ADDITIONAL, UH, FIXED AMOUNT OF HEIGHT ABOVE THEIR BASE HEIGHT IN EXCHANGE FOR PARTICIPATION IN THE PROGRAM. AND IF PROPERTIES WANTED ADDITIONAL HEIGHT, THEY WOULD REQUEST REZONING INTO A HIGHER INTENSITY COMBINING DISTRICT. UH, SO TO VISUALIZE THAT A LITTLE BIT, AGAIN, THE BUYRIGHT ENTITLEMENTS TODAY FOR A CBD ZONE SITE IS 350 FEET OF HEIGHT. AS I MENTIONED, THERE WOULD BE AN ADDITIONAL HEIGHT THAT THEY WOULD RECEIVE AFTER THEY HAVE BEEN REZONED, UM, INTO THE COMBINING DISTRICT FROM THE DDB UPDATE. AND THEN THERE WOULD BE A POTENTIAL FUTURE MAX ENTITLEMENT TO BE REQUESTED VIA REZONING INTO A SECOND COMBINING DISTRICT, FOR EXAMPLE. UM, JUST AS SOME REFERENCE FOR THOSE HEIGHTS TODAY. UH, SO CBD AS I'VE BEEN MENTIONING, IS 350. THAT LOOKS SOMETHING LIKE WINDSOR ON THE LAKE, WHICH IS AROUND 330 FEET. THE AVERAGE DEVELOPMENT TODAY IN DOWNTOWN FOR A CBD SITE IS AROUND 450 FEET. UH, AGAIN, 300 COLORADO IS AN EXAMPLE OF THAT, WHICH IS AROUND 446. OUR CURRENT FINISHED TALLEST BUILDING IS SIX LING GUADALUPE AT 875 AND SOON TO BE FINISHED FUTURE TALLEST BUILDING. UH, DOWNTOWN IS THE WATER LINE A LITTLE BIT OVER A THOUSAND FEET. SO FOR SOME CONTEXT ON THOSE HEIGHTS, AGAIN, JUST A LITTLE BIT MORE INFORMATION AGAIN, UH, ON, ON THOSE HEIGHTS. THIS IS SHOWING SOME INFORMATION, UH, FROM AUSTIN FOR HIGH RISES AND PEER CITIES. YOU WILL NOTICE THAT MOST OF THE HIGH RISES IN, IN AUSTIN AND OTHER PEER CITIES, UH, ARE BELOW 500 FEET WITH A FEW OF THEM GOING UP TO THAT 650 700 RANGE. AND VERY, VERY FEW HITTING, UH, HEIGHTS, YOU KNOW, CLOSER TO A THOUSAND FEET. SO MOST OF THE DEVELOPMENT IN THESE HIGH RISES IS BELOW THAT 700 FEET AND VERY FEW ARE GOING ABOVE THAT. AS I'VE MENTIONED, WE ARE GONNA BE CONTINUE TO UPDATE THE PROGRAM THAT INCLUDES GATEKEEPER REQUIREMENTS. SO THE CURRENT GATEKEEPER REQUIREMENTS FOR PARTICIPATING DEVELOPMENTS, UM, ARE COMPLIANCE WITH URBAN DESIGN GUIDELINES, PROVIDING GREAT STREET STANDARDS AND STREETS AND THE STREETSCAPE IMPROVEMENTS, AS WELL AS MEETING A MINIMUM TWO STAR RATING UNDER THE AUSTIN ENERGY GREEN BUILDING PROGRAM. ON TOP OF THOSE GATEKEEPER REQUIREMENTS, UH, SITES HAVE TO PROVIDE COMMUNITY BENEFITS. THERE IS A CURRENT MENU, UH, THAT IS QUITE EXTENSIVE OF WHAT THOSE BENEFITS MAY BE. UH, THAT INCLUDES ONSITE AFFORDABLE HOUSING, OBVIOUSLY, UH, AFFORDABLE FEE AND LIEU HISTORIC PRESERVATION DAYCARE SERVICES, CULTURAL USES AMONGST OTHERS. MOST SITES TO DATE HAVE ELECTED TO USE, UH, THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING FEE IN LIEU AS THE COMMUNITY BENEFIT TO PROVIDE. UM, THEY DO HAVE TO DO 50% AS AFFORDABLE HOUSING FEE IN LIEU, UH, BUT THEY CAN CHOOSE THE OTHER 50% IN THE CURRENT PROGRAM. AS WE WORK THROUGH THE PROGRAM, WE'RE LOOKING TO UPDATE THIS LIST, UH, TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE, UH, USES OR COMMUNITY BENEFITS THAT CAN BE USED. UM, JUST OBVIOUSLY FOR SOME CONTEXT FOR THIS COMMISSION, THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION COMMUNITY BENEFIT, EXCUSE ME, HAS ONLY BEEN USED ONCE, UM, IN, IN THE LITTLE BIT OVER 10, 20 YEARS, SORRY, THAT THE PROGRAM HAS EXISTED. UM, IT HAS TECHNICALLY BEEN USED TWICE. ONE, THEY DIDN'T CHOOSE TO USE IT AS PART OF THEIR BENEFITS. THEY JUST PRESERVED, UH, A HISTORIC BUILDING AS WELL. UM, SO ONLY ONCE HAVE THEY CHOSEN TO UTILIZE IT AS PART OF KIND OF THEIR OPTIONS OF, OF MENU, OF COMMUNITY BENEFITS. UM, SO SOME OF THE FEEDBACK WE ARE SEEKING, UM, TONIGHT, BUT REALLY MORE, UM, FROM THE COMMISSION AND OTHER STAKEHOLDERS IN GENERAL IN WRITING WITH TIME. ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON FEEDBACK BASICALLY FOR THE GATEKEEPER REQUIREMENTS OF HOW THEY FUNCTION TODAY? IF YOU, YOU KNOW, HAVE WORKED WITH THEM, WHAT ARE THE REQUIREMENTS THAT SHOULD BE ADDED, REMOVED, OR CHANGED? AND SIMILARLY FOR COMMUNITY BENEFITS, WHAT IS THE FEEDBACK WE HAVE FROM STAKEHOLDERS ON THESE COMMUNITY BENEFITS AS THEY EXIST TODAY? HOW CAN WE MAKE THEM FUNCTION BETTER? WHAT OTHER COMMUNITY BENEFITS SHOULD BE INCLUDED? UM, AND, AND IF WE CAN AMEND CHANGE, MAKE THEM BE BETTER OPTIONS FOR THE COMMUNITY, HOW CAN WE DO SO? AS I MENTIONED, THE TIMELINE FOR PHASE ONE IS, UH, BRINGING THE PROJECT BACK TO COUNCIL BY LATE MAY. SO WE ARE CURRENTLY WORKING STILL ON OUR DRAFT PROPOSAL. WE'RE, UH, DOING ENGAGEMENT WITH DIFFERENT STAKEHOLDERS, INCLUDING, UH, THIS COMMISSION TONIGHT. WE ARE HOPING TO FINALIZE OUR PROPOSAL, UH, AFTER SOME INTERCONTINENTAL DISCUSSIONS THROUGHOUT THIS MONTH AND INTO EARLY MARCH. AND THEN WE WILL BE BRINGING BACK, UH, THE PROPOSAL TO STAKEHOLDERS IN DRAFT VERSION, UH, TO DISCUSS IT. AND [00:30:01] THEN FINALLY TAKE IT TO PLANNING COMMISSION AND COUNCIL CONSIDERATION FOR ADOPTION. AND THAT IS ALL I HAVE FOR TODAY. WE THANK YOU VERY MUCH. UH, COMMISSIONERS, THIS IS A BRIEFING. UH, WE CERTAINLY ARE ABLE TO HAVE QUESTIONS, UH, OF OUR SPEAKER AND, UH, ANY ITEM THAT WE WOULD WISH TO IMPART TO HIM IN RESPONSE TO THE BRIEFING WOULD BE APPROPRIATE. BUT THIS IS NOT POSTED FOR ANY DISCUSSION OR ACTION. SO, UH, ANY QUESTIONS OF OUR SPEAKER? I HAD A FEW, I HAD A FEW QUESTIONS. UM, WILL THERE BE A MAP THAT SHOWS THE, UM, CAPITAL VIEW CORRIDORS AND HOW THEY INTERACT WITH THE HEIGHT LIMITATIONS? UM, WE, WE DEFINITELY CAN ADD A, A CAPITAL VIEW CORRIDOR MAP. UM, DOING IT IN 3D IS QUITE COMPLICATED, BUT WE DEFINITELY CAN PROVIDE A MAP SHOWING, YOU KNOW, HOW PROPERTIES INTERACT AND WHAT PROPERTIES ARE, YOU KNOW, IMPACTED BY THE CAPITAL V CORRIDORS. OKAY. YEAH, I THINK THAT'S IMPORTANT. 'CAUSE ONE OF THE INADVERTENT RESULTS OF THAT IS LEAVING SOME BREATHING SPACE DOWNTOWN. AND I THINK IT'S GOOD TO SEE WHAT THE IMPACT OF THAT WOULD BE. OVERALL, UH, WAS THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN HISTORIC RESOURCES SURVEY CONSULTED IN ANY OF THESE AREAS? UM, WE HAVE NOT CONSULTED WITH THEM. WE HAVE BEEN MEETING WITH THE HISTORIC DEPARTMENT, UM, AND, YOU KNOW, WITHIN THE CITY, UM, AND ARE AT THE COMMISSION TONIGHT, BUT YEAH. OKAY. AND, UM, I SEE THAT SIXTH STREET HAS THE HEIGHT LIMITATIONS IN PLACE, OBVIOUSLY EXCEPT FOR THE AREA THAT WAS, UM, NEGOTIATED WITH, UH, THE ENTITY THERE, BUT RED RIVER IS NOT. AND UH, I WAS WONDERING IS THE INTENT OF THE PLANNERS THAT THERE CAN BE THE CULTURAL RESOURCE, YOU KNOW, INTENSE DEVELOPMENT, IT PUTS HISTORIC RESOURCES AT RISK? I THINK WE KNOW THAT, AND THAT'S A TRADE OFF THAT WE'RE ON ONE SIDE AND YOU'RE ON THE OTHER. AND I'M SURE YOU KNOW OUR OPINION, WE'D LIKE TO SAVE AS MUCH AS WE CAN, BUT IS THE INTENT THAT THE EXCHANGE FOR HOUSING CULTURAL RESOURCES IS A WAY OF KIND OF MITIGATING THE IMPACT ON AT LEAST THE MUSIC IS LEGACY THERE? THE GOAL FOR RED RIVER WOULD DEFINITELY BE TO HAVE, UH, MORE GATEKEEPER REQUIREMENTS AND, UM, COMMUNITY BENEFITS RELATED TO LIVE MUSIC AND CULTURAL SPACES. SO YES, WHETHER IT'S PRESERVING, UM, OR REPLACING AND PROVIDING AND, AND, YOU KNOW, PROVIDING KIND OF TENANT PROTECTIONS FOR, FOR THOSE TYPES OF BUSINESSES WOULD DEFINITELY BE ONE OF THE FOCUSES FOR THAT. SO DISTRICT AND SO THE VISION MIGHT BE A LIVE MUSIC VENUE ON THE FIRST FLOOR OF A HIGHRISE? UH, POTENTIALLY. OKAY. AND, UM, IS TRANSFER DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS BEING CONSIDERED POSSIBLY AS A POTENTIAL FOR PRESERVATION? THERE N NOT AS PART OF THIS UPDATE. UM, THERE IS A TRANSFER OF DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS STUDY BEING DONE BY THE CITY, UM, BUT IT IS INDEPENDENT OF THE UPDATE OF THIS PROGRAM. OKAY. THE TRANSFER OF DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS, THIS IS KIM MCKNIGHT, DIVISION MANAGER FOR STROKE PRESERVATION. THE TRANSFER OF DEVELOPMENT RIGHTS STUDY IS SOMETHING THAT OUR DIVISION IS LEADING AND WE WILL BE BRIEFING YOU AS SOON AS WE HAVE INFORMATION TO SHARE. ALRIGHT. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. UM, YEAH, IT'S, UH, I KNOW DOWNTOWN'S WHERE WE NEED DENSITY AND THAT'S WHERE OUR MOST VALUABLE HISTORIC BUILDINGS ARE, AND IT'S A CONFLICT THAT WE SEE EVERY DAY. UM, GOOD TO SEE SIXTH STREET IS CARVED OUT. UM, BUT WE'D, WE'D ENCOURAGE AS MUCH CREATIVITY AND POSSIBILITY FOR OPENING UP OPPORTUNITIES FOR PRESERVATION ALONG WITH DENSITY, UH, WHERE IT'S POSSIBLE. THANKS. THANK YOU. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? YES. UM, I'M JUST LOOKING AT THE MAP RIGHT HERE AND I'M SEEING THE PROPOSED BOUNDARIES VERSUS THE CURRENT SUBDISTRICT BOUNDARIES. UM, AND ARE THE, WHAT'S WHAT'S LISTED IN, IN THE, I GUESS YOU COULD SAY THE, LIKE THE CLEAR AREA THAT'S NOT THE COLORED IN ORANGE ON THE MAP, UM, THAT I'M LOOKING AT. UM, IS THAT NO CHANGE OR IS THAT, UM, I'M JUST TRYING TO UNDERSTAND HOW THAT'S CHANGING AS A CAPITAL AREA. SO FOR THIS MAIN CORE AREA, WE ARE CARVING OUT THE NORTHEAST CORNER WHERE RED RIVER IS TO DO AS PART OF PHASE TWO. UM, CURRENTLY RED RIVER IS ACTUALLY SPLIT BETWEEN TWO SUBDISTRICTS AND WE WOULD LIKE TO CHANGE THAT AND HAVE THAT BE ONE COHESIVE SUBDISTRICT. SO WE DIDN'T WANT TO CREATE A SITUATION WHERE ONE HALF OF RED RIVER WOULD HAVE REGULATIONS, UH, YOU KNOW, IN JUNE AND ONE WOULD NOT HAVE IT UNTIL THE END OF THE YEAR. BUT THAT IS THE ONLY CHANGE FOR THOSE, UH, MAIN SUBDISTRICTS. I I SEE. SO WHEN YOU SAY THE NORTHEAST CORNER, YOU MEAN LIKE THE EAST SIDE OF RED RIVER AND THEN THE AREA NORTH OF, UH, LOOKS LIKE 12TH STREET? YES. IT, IT WOULD BE. SO THE, THE WEST SIDE OF RED RIVER IS ACTUALLY KINDLY WAS IN THE COURSE OF DISTRICT MM-HMM . AND THE EAST SIDE WAS OUTSIDE OF IT. AND SO WE ARE CARVING OUT THE PORTION THAT WAS IN THE CORE TO BE ALL DONE IN PHASE TWO WITH THE WEST SIDE, BUT IT'S THE NORTHEAST OF THE CORE . GOTCHA. YEAH. UM, AND, AND I JUST, JUST JUST OUT OF CURIOSITY, DID STAFF, UM, HAS STAFF LOOKED INTO, UM, THE FEASIBILITY OF EXTENDING THE CORE AREA FURTHER [00:35:01] NORTH BY THE CAPITAL WHERE THERE'S, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF, I KNOW THE STATE HAS BEEN, YEAH. SO DEVELOPING A LOT UP THERE? YEAH, SO WE ARE, WE'RE NOT LIMITING, YOU KNOW, WE MAY EXPAND THE BOUNDARIES OF THE COURSE SUBDISTRICT WHEN WE GET INTO PHASE TWO. HOWEVER, WE WERE LIMITED TO THE FIRST UPDATE WITH WHAT COUNCIL DIRECTED US TO DO. SURE. WE ARE, WE ARE ABLE TO CARVE OUT AN AREA AND PUT IT INTO PHASE TWO, BUT IT IS ALL HARDER TO BRING IN A NEW AREA. YEAH. YEAH. SO AS WE UPDATE PHASE TWO, IT COULD BE THAT THIS CORE SUBDISTRICT EXPANDS IN IN DIFFERENT DIRECTIONS, UM, AS IT APPROPRIATE. YEAH. JUST, JUST ASKING OUTTA CURIOSITY WITH MM-HMM . KNOWING SORT OF THE GEOGRAPHY OF WHERE THE HISTORIC BUILDINGS ARE DOWNTOWN. SO, UM, I THINK THAT'S, I THINK THAT'S MY ONLY QUESTIONS, SO THANK YOU. MM-HMM . YES, COMMISSIONER, I, UM, I'D JUST LIKE TO REITERATE THE IMPACT THAT THIS HAS ON SOME OF THE HISTORIC BUILDINGS. IT'S NOT THE THEORETICAL. I MEAN, IN MY LINE OF WORK, I'VE ALREADY HAD INQUIRIES ABOUT, UM, THINGS IN WEST CAMPUS, FOR INSTANCE, UM, THAT ARE ON GUADALUPE THAT ARE HISTORIC OF PEOPLE LOOKING AT ALL OF A SUDDEN OF, FOR WAYS TO MAYBE TRY TO MOVE THEIR OPERATIONS FOR THAT. SO THINGS LIKE TRANSFERRING THE HEIGHT ALLOWANCES, STRENGTHENING PERHAPS SOME OF THEIR HISTORIC PROTECTIONS ON, ON THINGS THAT ARE EXISTING ARE THINGS WE REALLY NEED TO LOOK AT TO SAVE SOME OF THESE THINGS. 'CAUSE YOU KNOW, WHEN DOLLARS GET INVOLVED, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF THESE THINGS CAN GO AWAY. SO, UH, I'M GLAD YOU'RE CONSCIOUS OF THAT AS YOU MOVE FORWARD WITH THIS. I, I HAVE, UH, A FEW THINGS I'D LIKE TO HAVE CLARIFIED. UM, FIRST, THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR COMING AND ADDING THE INFORMATION TO THIS, UH, IMPORTANT DISCUSSION. HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN AT THIS PARTICULAR STUDY? ARE WE SEEING A PRELIMINARY REPORT? THIS IS SORT OF A FIRST EARLY STAGE OF GATHERING THE INFORMATION AS YOU PROCEED. IS THAT CORRECT? YES. UM, AGAIN, THIS WAS INITIATED BY COUNSEL IN OCTOBER OF LAST YEAR. SO WE REALLY ONLY HAD ABOUT THREE MONTHS. OKAY. GOOD TO, TO WORK ON THIS SO FAR. UM, LIKE I SAID, WE ARE HOPING TO HAVE A FIRST DRAFT OF OUR PROPOSAL, UH, COMPLETED IN THE NEXT MONTH OR SO, UH, WHICH WOULD HOPEFULLY PUT US BACK AT COMMISSIONS LIKE THIS IN MARCH. UH, TO PRESENT THAT, THAT DRAFT BEFORE WE TAKE IT FOR ACTUAL CONSIDERATION. WELL, I'M NOT GOING TO ENCOURAGE YOU TO RUSH. I I, I DO THINK IT'S EVIDENT TO ME AS I'M SEEING THIS, THAT YOU'RE ONLY JUST NOW BECOMING AWARE OR HAVE A CHANCE TO REALLY CONSIDER SOME OF THE MAJOR HISTORIC IMPLICATIONS OF THIS AREA AND WHAT THESE CHANGES ARE GONNA DO. AS COMMISSIONER ACTON SAID, THIS WILL HAVE A DRAMATIC IMPACT, PRIMARILY BECAUSE OF THE SCALE. UH, MOST OF THE HISTORIC BUILDINGS WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ARE VERY MODEST IN SCALE. ONE, TWO, MAYBE AT MOST, UH, A FEW MULTI-STORY, BUT, UH, NOW WE'RE TALKING ABOUT THEIR NEIGHBORS AND THE LIGHT THAT THE LAND THAT THEY'RE SITTING ON SUPPORTING, UH, HUNDREDS OF FEET OF DEVELOPMENT. SO YOU CAN SEE RIGHT AWAY JUST HOW IMPORTANT THIS COMPONENT IS AND HOW SENSITIVE WE HAVE TO BE, UH, OR WE'RE GONNA WIND UP BEING OVERWHELMED. AND I THINK NONE OF US WANT THAT. AND THAT WE CERTAINLY WANNA ENCOURAGE AND MAKE SURE THIS IS A SUCCESSFUL PROGRAM FOR ALL CONS, CONSTITUENTS OF DOWNTOWN. SO I'M GONNA MAKE A COUPLE OF REQUESTS, CALL THEM SUGGESTIONS. MM-HMM . FOLLOWING UP ON, UH, COMMISSIONER COOK, I, I THINK IT IS IMPORTANT THAT SINCE YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT SETTING UP DISTRICTS AND EACH DISTRICT WILL HAVE CERTAIN COMPONENTS, LET ME, LET ME REQUEST OR SUGGEST THAT THE CAPITAL VIEW CORRIDOR COULD BE A VERY IMPORTANT LINE AND DESIGNATION OF A VERY SPECIFIC DISTRICT SO THAT WHAT'S IN THE CORRIDOR IS NOT TREATED THE SAME AS WHAT'S OUTSIDE OF THE CORRIDOR. AND THAT WAY WE CAN BE CONSISTENT WITH ALL OF OUR CODES AND NOT HAVE SOME DISCONNECT OR WORSE YET MISUNDERSTANDING. SO IF THE INTENT IS TO MAKE IT VERY CLEAR YOU'RE IN THIS AREA, YOU HAVE AN OVERLAY, AND THE OVERLAY HANDLES ALL OF THESE ITEMS, I THINK THAT'S GONNA BE IMPORTANT DISTINCTION. SO NOT JUST SHOWING WHERE THEY ARE, BUT I THINK AS YOU ORGANIZE YOUR DISTRICTS, I THINK YOU SHOULD TAKE THAT INTO ACCOUNT. I ALSO THINK IT'S IMPORTANT THAT YOU CONSIDER ADDITIONAL CARVE-OUTS. UH, WHAT YOU HAVE ALREADY MADE AS AN ASSESSMENT ON, UH, EAST SIXTH STREET MAY VERY WELL BE APPROPRIATE FOR SOME SECTIONS OF CONGRESS MAY EXTEND INTO, UH, WEST SIXTH STREET AS WELL, AND OTHER HISTORIC AREAS WHERE THERE ARE A NUMBER OF, UM, EITHER EXISTING OR, UH, ALREADY INDICATED HISTORIC PROPERTIES AND RESOURCES, AGAIN, WITH THE POTENTIAL OF HAVING THEIR OWN TYPES OF DISTRICTS WHERE CERTAIN TYPES OF PRIORITIES ARE AVAILABLE, BUT OTHERS WILL NOT BE BECAUSE THEY'RE NOT APPROPRIATE FOR A HISTORIC BUILDING. AND I THINK THE LAST THING I'D LIKE TO REQUEST IS THAT WHEN YOU DO SHOW EXAMPLES OF THE HEIGHT, UH, YOU'LL NOTICE, I, OF COURSE, I'M AN ARCHITECT, I COULDN'T HELP BUT SEE [00:40:01] THE EXAMPLES THAT YOU HAVE IN THE 3D LITTLE DIAGRAM OF THIS IS HOW HIGH, AND THIS IS HOW TALL IT COULD BE, THE FOOTPRINT THAT YOU HAVE IS NOT TO SCALE. WOULD YOU PLEASE GIVE US FOOTPRINTS THAT WOULD SHOW A CITY BLOCK TO SCALE WHAT'S ALLOWED, WHAT, WHAT EXISTS NOW? WHAT'S ALLOWED UNDER THE CURRENT BONUS PROGRAM, AND WHAT THIS NEW BONUS PROGRAM WOULD ALLOW. IF WE CAN SEE THAT TO SCALE, I THINK THAT A LOT OF PEOPLE ARE GOING TO HAVE A LOT OF THOUGHTS, WHICH WILL HELP YOU AND MAKE YOUR ENDEAVOR MORE SUCCESSFUL. UH, BECAUSE THEY'LL HAVE TO TAKE INTO ACCOUNT THIS QUESTION OF SCALE. HOW DO YOU DEAL WITH IT? HOW DO WE GET CREATIVE SO THAT WE DON'T HAVE SOLID WALLS SITTING UP AGAINST SMALLER, UH, OVERSCALED PROPERTIES? I THINK ALL OF THOSE TOOLS WILL HELP US IN OUR JOB, BUT I THINK IT'LL HELP YOU IN YOUR JOB IN COMMUNICATING AND GETTING THE KIND OF INPUT THAT YOU NEED TO BE SUCCESSFUL WITH THIS PROGRAM. SO I'LL, I'LL ADD THAT AS THE COMMISSION'S FEEDBACK. YES. COMMISSIONER COOK, I JUST WANTED TO ADD ONTO THAT, BOUNCING BACK AND FORTH WITH THE, UM, CAPITAL VIEW CORRIDORS MAP. I, I THINK IT WOULD BENEFIT YOU TO DO A MAP WITH THE STUDY OF THOSE CON CONSIDER 'EM IN THE DISTRICTS, BUT TO ALSO SHOW THE LANDMARKS, BECAUSE I THINK MOST PEOPLE THINK THINGS ARE PROTECTED AND THEY AREN'T. AND HERE WE ARE AWARE THAT SIXTH STREET IS PROTECTED BY, UH, A HEIGHT RESTRICTION. MM-HMM . UH, AND REST OF IT, THE REST OF THE PROPERTIES ARE PROPERTY BY PROPERTY. AND THERE BASICALLY IT'S A DENSITY OF LANDMARKS. UH, YOU KNOW, NOT SO MUCH TORT ON SIXTH STREET BECAUSE IT DOESN'T HAVE THAT HEIGHT LIMIT, BUT SPECIFICALLY ON CONGRESS AVENUE. AND I THINK FOR YOUR AUDIENCE, IT WOULD BE, IT WOULD BE FAIR TO SHOW THEM ON THIS MAP WHERE ARE THE LANDMARKS ARE BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, WE'VE LOOKED AT SEVEN STORY ADDITIONS TO TWO STORY BUILDINGS. WE'VE APPROVED SEVEN STORY ADDITIONS TO TWO STORY BUILDINGS, BUT PROPER SETBACKS, UH, IT'S USUALLY A CHALLENGE. BUT WE ALSO HAVE HAD PEOPLE WANTING TO REMOVE A BUILDING, REBUILD IT WITHIN A LARGER TOWER, UH, WHEN IT'S A LANDMARK. UH, I JUST WOULDN'T WANT PEOPLE TO GET THE IDEA THAT IF YOU HAVE A BLOCK HERE THAT HAS FOUR LANDMARKS ON IT, THAT THAT BLOCK IS OPEN TO BE A HIGH RISE. I MEAN, IT'S, IT'S A REALITY THAT THEY'RE GONNA HAVE TO DEAL WITH TO DEAL WITH THOSE LANDMARKS. SO, AND IT'S GOING TO HAVE AN IMPACT ON WHAT HEIGHT CAN BE BUILT. SO I THINK AT THE VERY LEAST, JUST A, A NOD TO THE HISTORIC RESOURCE WOULD BE TO INCLUDE A MAP SHOWING THE LANDMARKS, SHOWING THE CAPITAL VIEW CORRIDORS, AND THAT WOULD BENEFIT EVERYONE TO INFORM EVERYONE OF THE REALITIES. UM, CHAIR, IT LOOKS LIKE VICE CHAIR EVANS HAS SOMETHING TO SAY AS WELL. YES. YES. I'D LIKE TO KNOW, UH, WHAT ORGANIZATIONS OR ASSOCIATIONS HAVE BEEN SOUGHT OUT FOR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT, IF POSSIBLE? UH, YES. SO FAR WE HAVE MET WITH, AND I'LL, I'LL DO THIS I LITTLE BIT OFF OF MEMORY, UH, DAA DANA, UM, RIKA, RED RIVER CULTURAL SUBDISTRICT, UM, MULTIPLE COMMISSIONS. SO DOWNTOWN DESIGN, HISTORIC LANDMARK, UM, I MAY BE BLANKING ON OTHERS, BUT THOSE ARE THE ONES THAT COME TO MIND RIGHT NOW. UM, AND AGAIN, WE'RE, WE'RE FOCUSING CURRENTLY ON PHASE ONE, SO WE KNOW THERE ARE OTHER STAKEHOLDERS DEFINITELY THAT WILL BE MORE INVOLVED IN PHASE TWO AS WE GET TO THOSE AREAS AS WELL. OKAY. THANK YOU. MM-HMM . OKAY. UH, COMMISSIONER RICE. YEAH, I, I'D JUST LIKE, UM, SOME CLARITY ON WHAT EXTENT I, I KNOW THAT THERE'S, UM, SOME STATE LAW CHANGES THAT HAVE HAPPENED RECENTLY UNDER SB EIGHT 40 THAT ARE, UM, KIND OF FORCING THE CITY'S HAND A BIT ON THIS RECALIBRATION OF THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS. COULD YOU SPEAK A LITTLE BIT TO, UM, WHAT'S, HOW, HOW THAT'S AFFECTING THIS PROCESS? UH, YEAH. SO, UH, SB EIGHT 40, GENERALLY SPEAKING, UH, ALLOWED COMMERCIAL ZONE PROPERTIES TO HAVE RESIDENTIAL, UM, OR MIXED USE DEVELOPMENT BY RIGHT. AND IT, UH, REQUIRED CITIES TO NO LONGER ENFORCE FAR LIMITS IF THEY ARE A RESIDENTIAL OR MIXED USE PROJECT. UH, SO LAST FALL, THE CITY, UH, AMENDED THE CBD ZONING, WHICH IS WHAT MOST OF DOWNTOWN IS ZONED, OR AT LEAST ESPECIALLY THE CORE AREA THAT WE'RE SPEAKING ABOUT TONIGHT, UH, TO ADD A HEIGHT LIMIT. SO PREVIOUSLY THAT, UH, BASE ZONING WAS ONLY REGULATED BY FAR. NOW THERE IS A HEIGHT LIMIT OF 350. UM, THAT WAS PART OF THE IMPETUS FOR WHY COUNSEL ASKED US TO BRING BACK THIS UPDATE FOR THIS AREA SO QUICKLY. THANK YOU. I JUST WANTED TO GET THAT IN THE RECORD. RIGHTY. THANKS. WELL, MR. PANI, WE THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR YOUR PRESENTATION AND WE DEFINITELY WANT TO BE CLOSE PARTNERS WITH YOU AS YOU OBVIOUSLY HAVE PICKED UP. THIS IS GONNA BE A VERY IMPORTANT TOPIC AND WE'D LIKE IT TO BE A, A, A VERY BIG SUCCESS. SO THANK YOU AGAIN FOR ALL YOUR EFFORTS AND WE LOOK FORWARD TO, [00:45:01] UH, CONTINUED DISCUSSION. THANK YOU. PERFECT. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, UH, COMMISSIONERS, WE HAVE, UH, OUR FIRST, UH, ZONING CASE. UH, THIS IS ITEM NUMBER THREE AT, UH, 2207 EAST 22ND STREET. THANK YOU CHAIR. ITEM [3. C14H-2025-0122 – 2207 E. 22nd St. Elliott House ] THREE, CASE NUMBER C 14 H 20 25 0 1 22. UM, IS AN APPLICATION FOR HISTORIC ZONING FOR THE DOCTOR OH AND MRS. THELMA ELLIOT HOUSE. THIS IS AN, UH, OWNER INITIATED CASE AT 2207 EAST 22ND STREET. THE STAFF RECOMMENDATION IS TO GRANT THE PROPOSED ZONING CHANGE FROM FAMILY RESIDENCE NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN TO FAMILY RESIDENCE, HISTORIC LANDMARK NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN, COMBINING DISTRICT ZONING ON THE BASIS OF COMMUNITY VALUE ARCHITECTURE AND HISTORICAL ASSOCIATIONS. THE 2016 EAST AUSTIN HISTORIC RESOURCE SURVEY ALSO RECOMMENDS THE BUILDING IS ELIGIBLE FOR INCLUSION AS A CONTRIBUTING BUILDING IN BOTH LOCAL AND NATIONAL REGISTER HISTORIC DISTRICTS. THE DR. OH AND MRS. THELMAN MITCHELL ELLIOT HOUSE BUILT IN 19 80 19 54 CLEARLY EMBODIES THE DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS OF A RECOGNIZED ARCHITECTURAL STYLE BUILT BY CARPENTER AND CONTRACTOR ARTHUR PARKS. IT IS AN INTACT EXAMPLE OF THE BRANCH STYLE, ONE OF THE MOST POPULAR AND ENDURING ARCHITECTURAL STYLES FOR RESIDENTIAL BUILDINGS IN AMERICAN HISTORY. IT ALSO PROVIDES A WINDOW INTO THE DEVELOPMENT OF EAST AUSTIN DURING THE 1950S AS AN EXEMPLAR OF UP AND COMING STYLISTIC TRENDS IN A HISTORICALLY SEGREGATED PART OF EAST AUSTIN. THE HOMES CONTEMPORARY DESIGN DEMONSTRATES THAT IN SPITE OF THE SYSTEMIC INEQUALITIES AND LAND USE AND SERVICES RAMPANT IN SEGREGATION ERA, AUSTIN, NEW NEIGHBORHOODS MARKETED TO BLACK PROFESSIONALS, STILL FOUND FORWARD LOOKING BUYERS AT MID-CENTURY. THE HOUSE IS ALSO ASSOCIATED WITH DR. AND MRS. ELLIOT, UH, EAST AUSTIN EDUCATORS AND CIVIC LEADERS AT THE FOREMOST OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS ERA, POLITICAL AND EDUCATIONAL MOVEMENTS, AS WELL AS GREAT SOCIETY PROGRAMS. FOR NEARLY 40 YEARS, THEIR CONTRIBUTIONS TO BOTH THE COMMUNITIES OF SEGREGATED EAST AUSTIN AND TO THE STATE AND NATIONWIDE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT HELPED TO UPLIFT NOT ONLY EAST AUSTIN RESIDENTS, BUT TO BOLSTER AFRICAN AMERICAN ADVANCEMENT IN THE CREATION OF ACCESSIBLE EDUCATION FOR ALL RACES AND ECONOMIC BACKGROUNDS ACROSS THE COUNTRY. BOTH OH AND THELMAN MITCHELL ELLIOT WERE TIRELESS ADVOCATES FOR CIVIL RIGHTS EDUCATION AND HUMAN DIGNITY, EACH FORGING THEIR OWN PATH, BUT UNITED BY A SHARED COMMITMENT TO JUSTICE AND COMMUNITY EMPOWERMENT. REMARKS HIS STORY IN TERRY MEYERS. OH, ELLIOT WORKED WITHIN INSTITUTIONS BREAKING BARRIERS IN HIGHER EDUCATION AND WIELDING POLITICAL INFLUENCE TO OPEN DOORS FOR OTHERS. THELMA ELLIOT ROOTED IN THE SOCIAL WORK TRADITION, CHAMPIONED COMMUNITY DRIVEN SOLUTIONS, EMPOWERING EAST AUSTIN FAMILIES THROUGH PROGRAMS LIKE ENABLE THAT LISTENED TO AND UPLIFTED THEIR VOICES. TOGETHER, THEY WORKED IN A SYSTEM THAT HAD LONG EXCLUDED THEIR COMMUNITY, DOING THE DIFFICULT, OFTEN INVISIBLE WORK THAT BROUGHT REAL CHANGE AND RESTORED AGENCY TO THOSE LONG DENIED IT. DR. ORA HERMAN ELLIOT, BORN IN HOPE ARKANSAS IN 1909, MOVED TO AUSTIN IN 1935 AND QUICKLY BECAME ONE OF THE CITY AND STATE'S MOST INFLUENTIAL EDUCATORS, COLLEGE ADMINISTRATORS AND LEADERS IN POLITICAL ENGAGEMENT AND EQUITY. THROUGH THE, THOUGH THE INNER WORK, THROUGH THE INNER WORKINGS OF STATE AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT, ELLIOT WORKED BEHIND THE SCENES TO PROMOTE CIVIL RIGHTS AND TO ENSURE MORE EQUITABLE HOUSING AND HEALTHCARE. IN AUSTIN, SAN ANTONIO, NATIVE THELMA MITCHELL ELLIOT, BORN IN 1912, WAS ONE OF THE FIRST BLACK STUDENTS TO DESEGREGATE THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS AT AUSTIN DURING THE 1950S. NOT ONLY WAS MRS. ELLIOT, ONE OF THE EARLIEST STUDENTS TO GRADUATE FROM UT SCHOOL OF SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK, BUT SHE WAS ALSO THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO EARN HER DEGREE THERE. MRS. ELLIOT LATER BECAME THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO WORK AS A JUVENILE PROBATION OFFICER IN TRAVIS COUNTY, AND TO LEAD LYNDON JOHNSON'S PROJECT ENABLE, WHICH STANDS FOR EDUCATION AND NEIGHBORHOOD ACTION FOR BETTER LIVING ENVIRONMENTS. THE BUILDING RETAINS INTEGRITY WITH MODIFICATIONS TAKING PLACE DURING THE PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANCE. UH, SO STAFF IS PROUD TO RECOMMEND THIS HOUSE FOR HISTORIC ZONING PER THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST. THAT CONCLUDES THE STAFF PRESENTATION. UH, WE HAVE THE APPLICANT AND SPEAKERS, UH, HERE IN CASE Y'ALL HAVE QUESTIONS. THANK YOU VERY MUCH, UH, COMMISSIONERS. ANY QUESTIONS OF STAFF? HEARING NONE. UH, WELL, WE HAVE OUR FIRST SPEAKER AND YOU'LL PLEASE INTRODUCE YOURSELF, UH, FOR THE RECORD, OF COURSE. GOOD EVENING, COMMISSIONERS. MY NAME IS AURA HOUSTON, AND I'M THE PROUD DAUGHTER OF OH AND THELMA ELLIOT. AND LET ME MISS, UH, HUGHES. UH, LET, LET ME THANK YOU FOR YOUR, UH, UH, DISCUSSION TONIGHT, AND WELCOME YOU, UH, FORMER COUNCIL MEMBER. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. I'M GONNA BE SHORT BECAUSE SHE READ A WHOLE BUNCH OF STUFF THAT YOU ALL HAVE ALREADY HEARD, BUT, UM, I HAD THE P PRIVILEGE OF GROWING UP IN, IN AN AUSTIN THAT WAS SEGREGATED AS A RESULT OF THE 1928 MASTER PLAN. THAT PLAN FORCED NEGROES WHO HAD LIVED THROUGHOUT THE CITY TO RELOCATE EAST OF EAST AVENUE, WHICH IS NOW I 35. AS A CHILD, I LIVED WITH MY PARENTS AT EIGHT 15 EAST 11TH STREET, ACROSS FROM SAMUEL HOUSTON COLLEGE. UH, [00:50:01] BLACK EAST AUSTIN WAS A PRETTY COMPLETE COMMUNITY. WE LIVED AT EIGHT 15 EAST 11TH STREET UNTIL MY PARENTS PURCHASED THEIR HOME. MY CURRENT HOUSE AT 2207 EAST 22ND STREET, UNDER THE RULES OF SEGREGATION, MAINOR ROAD DIVIDED WHERE WHITE AUSTINITES, UH, COULD BUY PROPERTY AT FROM WHERE NEGRO FOLKS COULD BUY PROPERTY SOUTH OF MAINOR ROAD. UM, TODAY MOST OF MY BLOCK IS PHYSICALLY THE SAME EXCEPT FOR DOCK AND MRS. HOLLOWAY'S PROPERTY, WHICH INCLUDES $4 MILLION HOUSES. I WAS FORTUNATE TO BE ABLE TO GET A HISTORIC PLAQUE FOR THE HOLLOWAY'S PROPERTY, PLACE IT CLOSE TO THE SIDEWALK, SO NEW NEIGHBORS HAD SOME IDEA ABOUT WHO LIVED ON THE LAND BEFORE THOSE FOUR HOUSES WERE BUILT. MY PARENTS WERE PILLARS OF THE NEGRO COMMUNITY. MY FATHER, AS YOU HEARD, WAS THE FIRST NEGRO APPOINTED BY THE GOVERNOR OF TEXAS TO THE COORDINATING BOARD OF COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITY. MY MOTHER, THELMA MITCHELL ELLIOT, WAS THE FIRST NEGRO FEMALE TO GRADUATE FROM THE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS. I'M THE ONLY PERSON OF COLOR WHO OWNS THEIR HOME AT THIS POINT ON 22ND STREET. NOW, WHY DO WE SHARE THIS HISTORY? BECAUSE IT'S IMPORTANT TO MARK FOR THE PROSPERITY POSTERITY, THE CONTRIBUTIONS OF PEOPLE WHO LOOK LIKE MY FATHER, MY MOTHER, AND ME BEFORE THE AFRICAN-AMERICAN CULTURAL HERITAGE DISTRICT IS COMPLETELY ERASED TODAY. OUR NEIGHBORHOOD REMAINS UNDER PRESSURE FROM BOTH RESIDENTIAL AND COMMERCIAL. COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT CHANGE MAY BE INEVITABLE. NEW NEIGHBORS SHOULD HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO KNOW THE HISTORY OF THE COMMUNITY. THEY NOW SHARE. YES, BLACK LAND HAS A DIS UH, DISTURBING HISTORY, BUT IT'S ALSO A PROUD HISTORY, THE HISTORY OF PEOPLE WHO BETTERED THEMSELVES AND THEIR NEIGHBORS THROUGH HARD WORK AND A DEEP SENSE OF FAIRNESS. AND I THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND YOUR CONSIDERATION. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONERS. ANY QUESTIONS OF THE SPEAKER? THANK YOU, MS. HOUSTON. NEXT SPEAKER. UH, I'M JUST AS PROUD TO, UH, UH, RECOGNIZE, UH, TERRY MEYERS, WHO IS, UH, MY PREDECESSOR HERE AS CHAIR, FORMER CHAIR OF THE LANDMARKS COMMISSION. WELCOME TERRY. THANK YOU. EXCUSE ME. CHAIRMAN HEIM, SETH COMMISSIONERS. THANK YOU FOR CONSIDERING OUR APPLICATION FOR LANDMARK DESIGNATION FOR THE OH AND THELMA MITCHELL ELLIOT HOUSE. UM, WE BELIEVE THE, THE HOUSE MEETS LANDMARK CRITERIA FOR ARCHITECTURE AND HISTORICAL ASSOCIATIONS, AND WE'LL TAKE COMMUNITY VALUE AS WELL. UM, WE, WE MIGHT GO FOR LANDSCAPE WITH THAT ENORMOUS PRICKLY PAIR CACTUS IN THE FRONT YARD, BUT, UH, I THINK THIS IS PROBABLY, UH, ENOUGH FOR NOW. UM, IN THE AREA OF ARCHITECTURE, THE ELLIOT HOUSE REPRESENTS A RISING GENERATION OF MIDDLE AND PROFESSIONAL, UM, AFRICAN AMERICANS IN AUSTIN DURING THE EARLY POST-WAR ERA. THEY ASPIRE TO THE SAME THINGS AS MIDDLE AND PROFESSIONAL WHITE FAMILIES TO OWN THEIR OWN HOMES, RAISE THEIR CHILDREN IN A SAFE, SUBURBAN NEIGHBORHOOD. THE HOUSE WAS DESIGNED IN THE HUGELY POPULAR RANCH STYLE. UM, IT WAS NOTED, UH, IN THE PAPER THERE WAS A BIG OPEN HOUSE WHEN THE HOUSE WAS COMPLETED, AND THEY, UM, NOTED THE DETAILS OF OF THE HOUSE. THIS WAS TO KIND OF PROMOTE THE WORK OF AFRICAN AMERICAN C CARPENTER AND BUILDER ARTHUR PARKS. AND THEY, UH, DISCUSSED THE, THE, THE ADVERTISEMENT, UH, SAID IT HAD THREE BEDROOMS, TWO FULLY TILED BATHROOMS, HARDWOOD FLOORS, AND A DEN. MY FAMILY WOULD'VE LOVED TO HAVE THAT HOUSE. UH, IT WAS AMONG THE FIRST SUCH MODERN RANCH STYLE HOUSES BUILT FOR AFRICAN AMERICANS IN THE SO-CALLED COLORED DISTRICT OF EAST AUSTIN, SOUTH OF MENA ROAD. UM, MORE SIGNIFICANTLY, THE HOUSE HAS STRONG HISTORICAL ASSOCIATIONS WITH OH, AND THELMA MITCHELL ELLIOT, WHO DEVOTED THEIR LIVES TO RACIAL EQUALITY, SOCIAL JUSTICE, AND PUBLIC SERVICE. YOU'VE ALREADY HEARD THAT. UM, OH, WAS A PROFESSOR, PROFESSOR AND BUSINESS MANAGER FIRST FOR SAMUEL HOUSTON COLLEGE. THEN HE ADVOCATED FOR THE MERGER OF HOUSTON AND TILLSON COLLEGE, ASKING THE QUESTION, WHY HAVE TWO STRUGGLING BLACK COLLEGES WITHIN A MILE OF ONE ANOTHER WHEN WE COULD, UH, COMBINE FORCES. UM, GOVERNOR CONNERY APPOINTED HIM TO THE COORDINATING BOARD OF TEXAS COLLEGES AND UNIVERSITIES WHERE HE STRONGLY ADVOCATED FOR THE ESTABLISHMENT OF AUSTIN COMMUNITY COLLEGE, WHICH DID NOT EXIST THEN IN RECOGNITION OF HIS VITAL ROLE, UH, [00:55:01] IN, IN ITS CREATION, A CC DEDICATED ITS FIRST GRADUATION CEREMONY TO DR. ELLIOT. THELMA ELLIOT WAS ONE OF THE PRECURSORS, AS THEY WERE CALLED, AND SHE WAS HONORED IN THE MAGAZINE, PUT OUT THE UTOPIAN PUT OUT BY THE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK FOR HER. YOU MAY WRAP UP MS. MYERS. THAT'S ABOUT ALL I THINK TODAY. WE WOULD CALL OH, AND, AND THELMA ELLIOT, A POWER COUPLE, UH, IN, IN EAST AUSTIN. THEY, UH, VALUED EDUCATION AND PUBLIC SERVICE AND INSTILLED THOSE VALUES IN THEIR DAUGHTERS. UH, PHIL AND NANCY AND AURA AND HOUSTON. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. UH, COMMISSIONERS. ANY QUESTIONS? OUR SPEAKER? THANK YOU VERY MUCH. DO WE HAVE MORE SPEAKERS? YES. WE HAVE TWO MORE SPEAKERS. UM, GINA HOUSTON. GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS. I AM GINA HOUSTON, AND I WAS RAISED AND NURTURED AT THE HOME ON 2207 EAST 22ND STREET. I AM HONORED TO BE THE DESCENDANT OF TWO BLACK AMERICANS WHO BELIEVED IN PERSEVERANCE AND SERVICE. THE EDIFICE ITSELF WILL BE A HUNDRED YEARS OLD IN LESS THAN 25 YEARS, AND IT IS A NOT SO FREQUENT EXAMPLE OF BLACK OWNERSHIP BEING PASSED DOWN GENERATIONALLY. OH, AND THELMA ELLIOT TAUGHT ME THAT IF YOU CARE ABOUT A COMMUNITY, YOU PUT TIME AND EFFORT INTO SERVING THAT COMMUNITY. SERVICE IS LOVE MADE VISIBLE GRANDDADDY AND GRANDMAMA PASSED THEIR SENSE OF CIVIC DUTY AND SERVICE ON TO THEIR DAUGHTER ORA HOUSTON. MY MOM'S SERVICE TO AUSTIN INCLUDES HISTORICALLY SERVING AS THE FIRST COUNCIL MEMBER FOR DISTRICT ONE IN THE TEN ONE SYSTEM. SHE USED THE HOME . SHE USED THE HOME AT 2207 AS A PLACE TO RE RELAX, RESET, STRATEGIZE, AND COLLABORATE. I'M SO PROUD OF THE LEGACY THAT I INHERIT. YOU SERVE THE COMMUNITY EVEN WHEN THE CITY DOESN'T SERVE YOU. I WANT THE COMMISSION TO BE AWARE THAT LESS THAN TWO WEEKS AGO, THE PLANNING COMMISSION TOOK THE FIRST STEP ON THE LONG MARCH TO TURN BLACK LAND INTO EAST CAMPUS AND TURN THE REST OF THE AFRICAN AMERICAN CULTURAL HERITAGE DISTRICT INTO EAST DOWNTOWN, BOTH OF WHICH WILL MEAN THE DEATH OF BLACK CULTURE, HISTORY AND LEGACY IN AUSTIN. GETTING HISTORIC ZONING TO 2207 WILL BE A BULL WALK, BULL WALK, BULL WALK AGAINST COMMERCIAL ENCROACHMENT INTO BLACK LAND, AND IT WILL SHINE A LIGHT ON THE LIVES OF THREE INCREDIBLE SERVANTS TO THE AUSTIN COMMUNITY. THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION, AND THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR SERVICE, MS. HOUSTON. THANK YOU. THE NEXT SPEAKER, OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS MARIA PREET. HI, UM, I'M MARIA PREBI. I'M A HISTORY TEACHER HERE IN AUSTIN, AS WELL AS THE AUTHOR OF THE HISTORICAL NARRATIVE FOR 2207 EAST 22ND. UH, WORKING ON THIS PROJECT, I GAINED A HUGE ADMIRATION AND RESPECT FOR BOTH THE BREADTH AND THE DEPTH OF CONTRIBUTIONS MADE BY BOTH OH AND THELMA ELLIOT TOWARDS CIVIL RIGHTS, TOWARDS EDUCATION, AND TOWARDS SOCIAL PROGRESS IN AUSTIN, UM, AND BEYOND. SO I'M HERE TO OFFER MY SUPPORT FOR THIS APPLICATION, AS WELL AS READ A LETTER OF SUPPORT FROM THE TRAVIS COUNTY HISTORICAL COMMISSION, UM, CHAIR BOB WARD. UH, THE TRAVIS COUNTY HISTORICAL COMMISSION IS HONORED TO SUPPORT THE OH AND THELMA MITCHELL ELLIOT HOUSE IN BECOMING AN AUSTIN HISTORIC LANDMARK. NOT ONLY DOES THIS PROPERTY MEET GUIDELINES FOR ARCHITECTURAL IMPORTANCE, BUT THE ELLIOT FAMILY AND LATER HOUSTON FAMILY WERE SIGNIFICANT IN AUSTIN AND TRAVIS COUNTY HISTORY COMBINED, BOTH THE ARCHITECTURES OR THE ARCHITECTURE AND INDIVIDUALS PRESENT, UM, PRESENT A NARRATIVE OF AFRICAN AMERICAN STRIVING TO NOT ONLY PARTICIPATE IN THE AMERICAN DRAMA, BUT TO EDUCATE AND ELEVATE THEIR COMMUNITY. UH, THELMA MITCHELL ELLIOT WAS THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN TO GRADUATE WITH A MASTER'S DEGREE FROM THE UT SCHOOL OF SOCIAL WORK. OH, ELLIOT WAS A PROFESSOR AND BUSINESS MANAGER AT SAM SAMUEL HOUSTON. AND AFTER HOUSTON TILLSON COLLEGE, WHICH HE HELPED MERGE, THEY WERE BOTH IMPORTANT MEMBERS OF THE AFRICAN AMERICAN COMMUNITY IN BOTH POLITICAL AND EDUCATIONAL REALMS. THELMA WAS THE HEAD OF A, OF A WAR ON POVERTY PROGRAM, AND THEN THE FIRST BLACK WOMAN PROBATION OFFICER FOR THE TRAVIS COUNTY JUVENILE COURT OH FOUGHT TO ESTABLISH AUSTIN COMMUNITY COLLEGE. TOGETHER. THEY WERE FORMIDABLE PRESENCE IN THE AUSTIN TRAVIS COUNTY, AND THEIR HOUSE AND HISTORY DESERVED TO BE RECOGNIZED BY THE CITY ORA HOUSTON. THEIR DAUGHTER AND CURRENT RESIDENT CONTINUES THIS TRADITION OF COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT AND ADVOCACY AND ONLY ADDS TO THE DISTINCTION AND IMPORTANCE OF THIS PROPERTY BEING AWARDED AS AN AUSTIN HISTORIC LANDMARK. [01:00:01] THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION. THANK YOU. DO WE HAVE OTHER SPEAKERS? WE DO NOT HAVE ANY OTHER SPEAKERS ON THIS ITEM. OKAY. COMMISSIONERS, UH, I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING. SO MOVED. OKAY. AND SECOND. SECOND. OKAY. COMMISSIONER, UH, LAROCHE. SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER ACTON. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE INDICATE BY RAISING YOUR HAND. ALRIGHT. UM, I'M GOING TO CALL ON VICE CHAIR EVANS, UH, WHO MAY WISH TO MAKE A MOTION ON THIS. THANK YOU. UH, I MOVE THAT WE REOPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING AND GRANT HISTORIC DESIGNATION TO THIS PROPERTY AT 2207, EAST 22ND ON THE, UH, FOR THE ELEMENTS OF, UM, ARCHITECTURE ASSOCIATION AND ARCHITECTURE AND ASSOCIATION. AND I'M SORRY, I'M BLANKING ON THE THIRD ONE. I'VE GOT SOME COMPUTER ISSUES. YEAH. SO ASSOCIATION, I BELIEVE ARE THE TWO RECOMMENDATIONS FROM STAFF COMMUNITY VALUE. YES. BUT YOU COULD ALSO SAY COMMUNITY VALUE, IF YOU'D LIKE TO INCLUDE THAT. DEFINITELY. COMMUNITY VALUE, AND WE'VE SEEN THAT VALUE, UH, DISPLAYED TONIGHT. OKAY. UH, AND I JUST TO FROM STAFF TO ON, ON, UH, RECOMMENDATION FOR HISTORIC ZONING. WE DON'T NEED TO REOPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING, DO WE? THAT'S CORRECT. CHAIR, BECAUSE THIS IS AN APPLICANT INITIATED CASE. UH, WE DON'T NEED TO REOPEN. IT WILL MOVE ON TO PLANNING COMMISSION IF THE, UH, COMMISSION VOTES IN FAVOR TONIGHT TO DO SO. OKAY. SO JUST TO CLARIFY, UH, VICE CHAIR EVANS, THAT THAT PART OF YOUR MOTION'S NOT, NOT NECESSARY. OKAY. THANK YOU FOR CLEARING THAT UP. OKAY. SO WE HAVE A MOTION AND UH, UH, I WILL ENTERTAIN A SECOND. UH, I KIND OF THINK THAT COMMISSIONER PLEASANT WRIGHT WOULD LIKE TO MAKE THAT SECOND. I SECOND . OKAY, GREAT. UH, COMMISSIONERS, WE HAVE A MOTION AND A SECOND COMMISSION. UH, UH, VICE CHAIR EVANS, WOULD YOU LIKE TO SPEAK TO YOUR MOTION? YES. UM, I'M VERY FAMILIAR WITH THIS PROPERTY AND I'M VERY FAMILIAR WITH THE HISTORY OF THE AREA. AND I CERTAINLY, UH, APPRECIATE THE SENSE OF URGENCY THAT WAS SHARED ABOUT PRESERVING THIS PROPERTY AND OTHERS LIKE IT. AND I THINK IN TERMS OF ASSOCIATION, UH, BOTH THE ELLIOTS AND, AND THEIR, UH, DAUGHTER AND GRANDDAUGHTER HAVE, UH, PROVEN THEIR LOYALTY TO THE AUSTIN COMMUNITY, UH, EVEN WHEN THAT LOYALTY HAS BEEN KIND OF A ONE-WAY RELATIONSHIP. SO, UH, I CERTAINLY WOULD ENCOURAGE US TO, TO DO THE RIGHT THING BY THIS PROPERTY. IT'S BEEN VERY WELL CARED FOR AND IT CERTAINLY IS A JEWEL IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD THAT IT'S IN. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. UH, COMMISSIONER PLEASANT WRIGHT, WOULD YOU LIKE TO SPEAK TO YOUR SECOND? UM, DITTO . GREAT COMMISSIONERS. ANYONE ELSE WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK? I'D LIKE TO MAKE A COMMENT. I'M DEFINITELY GONNA SUPPORT THE MOTION. UH, I JUST WANNA MAKE SURE EVERYONE KNOWS ABOUT THE HISTORIC PROPERTIES VIEWER ONLINE THAT I ALWAYS OPEN UP WHENEVER WE HEAR A LANDMARK CASE BECAUSE IT HAS A LITTLE YELLOW STAR FOR EVERY LANDMARK IN THE CITY, AND IT KIND OF MAKES A NICE HEAT MAP. AND WE HAVE A VERY YELLOW WEST AUSTIN AND A VERY, NOT YELLOW EAST AUSTIN. AND IF YOU OVERLAY THE SIX SQUARE BLACK CULTURAL DISTRICT SPECIFICALLY ON THE MAP, IT IS LARGELY DEVOID OF YELLOW STARS. AND CONSIDERING THAT IS THE ONLY PLACE THAT BLACK AUSTINITES WERE ALLOWED TO LIVE FOR THE MAJORITY IN LARGE PART OF THE 20TH CENTURY, UH, IT'S, IT'S ESSENTIAL THAT WE START RECOGNIZING MORE IN THAT HISTORY TO TELL THE FULL HISTORY OF AUSTIN. SO IT'LL BE GREAT TO ADD ONE MORE STAR THERE. OKAY. ANY OTHER COMMENTS? COMMISSIONERS? I, I JUST WANTED TO NOTE, I MEAN, I THINK I'M REALLY PROUD TO SUPPORT THIS DESIGNATION. UM, AND I, I'VE LEARNED SO MUCH JUST FROM THIS APPLICANT'S PRESENTATION. UM, I, I WOULD JUST LOVE TO MAKE A NOTE OF THE ORIGINAL STOVE IN THE KITCHEN IN THE APPLICATION IS INCREDIBLE. SO, I MEAN, AND OBVIOUSLY THAT'S OUTSIDE OF OUR JURISDICTION, BUT THAT'S REALLY COOL , SO THAT'S WHY I PUT THE PICTURE . UM, ANYWAYS, THAT'S ALL I HAVE TO SAY. I'M PROUD TO SUPPORT THIS. YEAH. YEAH. NOW THEY, THEY CAN GET A NEW STOVE AND WE WON'T HAVE TO REVIEW IT, SO, SO THAT'S ALL RIGHT. IT'S ALRIGHT. JUST DON'T LOSE IT. PUT IT IN THE GARAGE SOMEWHERE. UH, COMMISSIONERS, ANY OTHER COMMENTS? ALL RIGHT. HEARING NONE, I'LL, UH, CALL THE QUESTION. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION TO RECOMMEND HISTORIC ZONING FOR THE ELLIOT HOUSE, PLEASE INDICATE BY RAISING YOUR HAND AND I SEE ALL HANDS RAISED. UH, WE'RE THRILLED TO, UH, HAVE A UNANIMOUS VOTE. THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH. THANK YOU. OKAY. AND, UH, JUST FOR THE RECORD, AS MANY OF YOU ALL KNOW, THIS IS A RECOMMENDATION THAT GOES ON TO THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND THEN ULTIMATELY THE FINAL DECISION FOR [01:05:01] THE ZONING CHANGE IS TAKING PLACE AT THE COUNCIL. SO THERE ARE STEPS ALONG THE WAY, UH, BUT YOU CERTAINLY HAVE OUR, UH, OUR, OUR VERY ENCOURAGING SENDOFF. THANK YOU. THANK YOU SO MUCH. ALRIGHT, THAT [4. PR-2025-138065 – 907 E. 13th St. ] BRINGS US TO ITEM NUMBER FOUR, UH, 9 0 7 EAST 13TH STREET. THANK YOU CHAIR. ITEM NUMBER FOUR, CASE NUMBER PR 20 25 1 3 8 0 6 5. UM, IS A, AN OWNER OPPOSED, UH, HISTORIC LANDMARK INITIATED HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION INITIATED, UH, HISTORIC ZONING ITEM TONIGHT. UH, THIS ITEM CAME BEFORE US FIRST ON DECEMBER 3RD, 2025, AS A DEMOLITION REQUEST BY THE CURRENT OWNER. UH, IT CAME BACK ON JANUARY 7TH, AND THEN LAST MONTH, FEBRUARY 4TH, IT WAS INITIATED BY THE COMMISSION. UH, THIS IS THE NITSKY GOINS HOUSE. UH, THOUGH THAT NAME MAY CHANGE AS RESEARCH FROM NEIGHBORS HAS ALSO UNCOVERED, UM, SOME POTENTIAL ADDITIONAL AREAS OF SIGNIFICANCE, UH, THAT DIDN'T MAKE IT IN TIME FOR INCLUSION OF THIS STAFF REPORT. SO, UM, IF YOU WANT TO CHECK YOUR BACKUP ITEM FOUR B, THAT'S WHERE THOSE ADDITIONAL ITEMS WILL BE. IT SAYS AT 9 0 7 EAST 13TH STREET. AND THE STAFF RECOMMENDATION IS THAT SHOULD THE COMMISSION FIND THE COMMISSION, SHOULD THE COMMISSION FIND THAT THE BUILDING'S HISTORICAL ASSOCIATIONS AND INTEGRITY SUFFICIENTLY MEET THE CRITERIA FOR LANDMARK DESIGNATION? RECOMMEND HISTORIC ZONING FOR THE FRONT PART OF THE LOT CONTAINING THE ORIGINAL PORTIONS OF THE HOUSE ONLY, AND THAT INCLUDES ONLY THE FRONT TWO ROOMS AND THE SIDE LEAN. TWO STRUCTURE THAT RETAIN ORIGINAL SIDING FENESTRATION IN ORDER TO ALLOW FOR THE REMOVAL OF NON-ORIGINAL ADDITIONS AND FOR NEW CONSTRUCTION BEHIND THE EXISTING BUILDING, UM, AS IN THE FIGURE IN YOUR BACKUP. OTHERWISE, STAFF RECOMMENDS ENCOURAGING REHABILITATION AND ADAPTIVE REUSE RELOCATION OR DECONSTRUCTION AND SALVAGE OVER DEMOLITION, BUT ULTIMATELY APPROVE THE DEMOLITION PERMIT APPLICATION UPON COMPLETION OF A CITY OF AUSTIN. DOCUMENTATION PACKAGE, UH, THE 2016 EAST AUSTIN SURVEY LISTS THIS PROPERTY AS ELIGIBLE FOR LOCAL LANDMARK LISTING, INDIVIDUAL LISTING OF THE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES CONTRIBUTING TO A POTENTIAL LOCAL HISTORIC DISTRICT AND CONTRIBUTING TO A POTENTIAL NATIONAL REGISTER DISTRICT. AND THE STAFF RECOMMENDATION IS BASED ON OUR CRITERIA FOR ARCHITECTURE AND HISTORICAL ASSOCIATIONS. THIS PROPERTY EMBODIES THE DISTINGUISHING CHARACTERISTICS OF THE NATIONAL FOLK STYLE, AND IT IS LIKELY ONE OF THE OLDEST REMAINING STRUCTURES IN THE SWEDISH HILL AREA. ACCORDING TO DISTRICT RECOMMENDATIONS BY THE EAST AUSTIN HISTORIC RESOURCE SURVEY, NEIGHBORHOOD HISTORY ALSO NOTED RESEMBLANCE TO 19TH CENTURY SWEDISH CONSTRUCTION METHODS, WHICH MAY INFER CONNECTION TO THE ORIGINAL SWEDISH HILL NEIGHBORHOOD A BLOCK AWAY. UH, ONE SUCH EXAMPLE IS THE HOUSE AT 1001 EAST 13TH STREET, AS WELL AS THE LARGER 1886 CUMBERLAND STYLE HOUSE AT 1000 EAST 14TH STREET. UH, AND THAT LAST ONE IS A CONTRIBUTING BUILDING TO THE NATIONAL REGISTER DISTRICT. THIS BUILDING IS ASSOCIATED WITH THE NISHKE FAMILY, WHO ARE GERMAN IMMIGRANTS WHO OWNED AND OPERATED ONE OF AUSTIN'S FIRST CABINET MAKING BUSINESSES. IT'S ALSO ASSOCIATED WITH THE GOINS FAMILY WHO ARE LONG-TERM RESIDENTS, UH, WHO EXEMPLIFY THE DEMOGRAPHIC TRANSITION OF THE AREA DURING THE ERA OF SEGREGATION. THE 2016 SURVEY NOTES THAT THE BUILDING IS IMPORTANT FOR ITS ASSOCIATION WITH NEIGHBORHOOD DEVELOPMENT PATTERNS IS AS OCCUPANTS SHOW THESE CHARACTERISTIC DEMOGRAPHIC CHANGES AS THE NEIGHBORHOOD TRANSITIONED FROM A MAJORITY IMMIGRANT EUROPEAN POPULATION TO A MAJORITY AFRICAN AMERICAN POPULATION DURING THE EARLY, EARLY 20TH CENTURY. AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, ADDITIONAL ASSOCIATIONS WITH A THIRD FAMILY MAY BE PRESENT PER, UH, PUBLIC, PUBLIC COMMUNICATION. ITEM FOUR B IN YOUR BACKUP. WE ALSO HAVE APPLICANT, OR WE ALSO HAVE, UH, COMMUNITY MEMBERS THAT ARE HERE TO SPEAK TO THAT AS WELL. ALL THE BUILDINGS OCCUPANTS APPEAR TO BE WORKING CLASS PEOPLE WHO INNOVATED TO SUPPORT THEIR FAMILIES AND TO BUILD COMMUNITIES IN THE FACE OF INEQUALITY AND SEGREGATION. UH, THIS BUILDING WAS PLACED ON A SLAB FOUNDATION DURING THE PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANCE IN 1959. AND ITS NEARLY FULLWOOD PORT FULL WIDTH PORCH THAT APPEARS IN THE 1935 SANBORN MAP WAS REDUCED TO THE CURRENT SIZE BETWEEN 1965 AND 1977. WITHIN THE PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANCE, THE PORCH WAS REHABILITATED AND THE INCOMPATIBLE 1959 ASBESTOS SIDING WAS REMOVED IN EITHER 19 77, 19 83 OR 1995 PER PERMIT HISTORY. UH, THE PROVENANCE OF THE EXISTING TURNED POSTS, UH, WHICH REPLACED THE BOX COLUMNS SHOWN IN THE TEXAS HISTORICAL COMMISSION PHOTO IN YOUR BACKUP, WHICH DATES FROM 1970 TO 1984, UH, IS NOT CLEAR. REMOVAL OF THE ASBESTOS SIDING HAS RESTORED SOME OF THE BUILDING'S INTEGRITY, WHICH REMAINS HIGH DESPITE THE PORCH ADDITION. UM, AND INTEGRITY IS ONE OF THE ITEMS THAT, UH, Y'ALL WILL NEED TO LOOK AT TONIGHT WHEN DETERMINING WHETHER OR NOT TO RECOMMEND THIS FOR HISTORIC ZONING. AND TO, UH, MOVING ON TO PLANNING COMMISSION AND CITY COUNCIL. THAT CONCLUDES THE STAFF PRESENTATION. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU STAFF. UH, COMMISSIONERS, DO WE HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS FROM STAFF'S? PRESENTATION. ALRIGHT. HEARING NONE, UH, DO WE HAVE SPEAKERS SIGNED UP FOR THIS ITEM? YES. WE HAVE FOUR SPEAKERS SIGNED UP IN FAVOR OF THE HISTORIC ZONING. OUR FIRST SPEAKER IS SCOTT MENZIES. UH, BEFORE WE DO, HAVE WE, UH, ANY INFORMATION OR DOES THERE A SPEAKER REPRESENTING THE OWNER? [01:10:01] THEY HAVE NOT SIGNED UP TO SPEAK, BUT IF THEY ARE HERE, PERHAPS THEY WOULD WISH TO COME UP. IS THE OWNER HERE OR IS THE OWNER'S REPRESENTATIVE PRESENT? I DON'T BELIEVE THEY WERE AT THE LAST MEETING EITHER. UH, HAVE THEY, THEY ARE OBVIOUSLY AWARE THEY HAVE AN ATTORNEY WHO SENT US A LETTER. UH, BUT HAVE THEY DECIDED NOT TO BE PRESENT? WE DON'T HAVE ANYONE SIGNED UP CHAIR, BUT WE DID GET THAT LETTER OPPOSING HISTORIC ZONING AS WELL AS AN ENGINEER REPORT, UH, THAT I THINK WAS UPLOADED RIGHT BEFORE THE BACKUP CLOSED TODAY. OKAY. WELL JUST, JUST FOR THE RECORD, IS THERE NOBODY HERE REPRESENTING THE OWNER OF THIS PROPERTY? ALRIGHT, THEN WE'LL HAVE TO GO OBVIOUSLY TO THOSE IN FAVOR OF THE ZONING FOR, UH, HISTORIC ZONING. UH, THE FIRST SPEAKER PLEASE. OUR FIRST SPEAKER F IN FAVOR OF HISTORIC ZONING IS SCOTT MENZIES. HI, NICE TO SEE YOU GUYS AGAIN. UH, MY NAME'S SCOTT MENZIES. I'M THE PRESIDENT OF THE ROBERTSON HILL NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION, THE NEIGHBORHOOD JUST ADJACENT ON THE OTHER SIDE OF 12TH STREET TO SWEET HILL. UH, ON BEHALF OF THE ROBERTSON HILL HILL NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION, I'M WRITING TO FORMALLY EXPRESS OUR OPPOSITION TO THE PROPOSED DEMOLITION OF THE HISTORIC STRUCTURE LOCATED AT 9 0 7 EAST 13TH STREET IN AUSTIN, TEXAS. AT A DULY NOTED MEETING OF THE ROBERTSON HILL NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION, THE MEMBERSHIP HELD A VOTE REGARDING THE PROPOSED DEMOLITION, THE VOTE, IT WAS UNANIMOUS IN OPPOSITION. THE DECISION REFLECTS THE STRONG AND SHARED BELIEF OF OUR NEIGHBORHOOD THAT THE STRUCTURE HOLDS SIGNIFICANT, SIGNIFICANT HISTORICAL AND CULTURAL VALUE AND SHOULD BE PRESERVED. THE BUILDING IS A CONTRIBUTING ELEMENT TO THE HISTORIC FABRIC OF EAST AUSTIN AND ROBERTSON HILL AND SWEET HILL. ITS AGE ARCHITECTURAL CHARACTER AND CONNECTION TO THE AREA'S EARLY DEVELOPMENT MAKE IT AN IMPORTANT PHYSICAL REMINDER OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD'S HISTORY. DEMOLISH, DEMOLISHING THE STRUCTURE WOULD RESULT IN AN IRREVERSIBLE LOSS TO THE COMMUNITY AND FURTHER ERODE THE HISTORIC CHARACTER OF OUR NEIGHBORHOOD. AT THIS TIME, THERE IS NO CLEAR OR CONCRETE PLAN FOR REDEVELOPMENT THAT WOULD JUSTIFY THE PERMANENT LOSS OF THIS HISTORIC RESOURCE PRESERVATION, REHABILITATION, OR ADAPTIVE REUSE SHOULD BE FULLY EXPLORED AS A VIABLE ALTERNATIVE THAT RESPECT BOTH THE SITE'S HISTORY AND THE SURROUNDING COMMUNITY. THE ROBERTSON HILL NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION RESPECTFULLY URGES THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND ALL RELEVANT DECISION MAKING BODIES TO DENY THE DE DEMOLITION REQUEST FOR 9 0 7 EAST 13TH STREET AND SUPPORT EFFORTS THAT PRIORITIZE PRESERVATION OF HISTORIC RESOURCES IN EAST AUSTIN. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. AND I'M GONNA GO OFF SCRIPT AND JUST SAY, WHEN THIS HOME WAS BUILT, THERE WAS ONLY 4,400 PEOPLE THAT LIVED IN AUSTIN. UM, THE FAMILY, UH, ONE OF THE, THE UNCLE OF THE MAN WHO BUILT IT WAS ONE OF THE FIRST CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS WHO WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR PAVING CONGRESS AVENUE BY BRICK. AND SO THESE HOMES ARE MORE THAN JUST LIKE A CRUMMY LOOKING BUILDING. THEY HAVE FAMILIES OF, YOU KNOW, OUR CITY, UH, INFRASTRUCTURE. THIS IS LIKE KIND OF AMAZING HISTORY. I DID A LOT OF RESEARCH AT THE, UM, UH, THE HISTORIC, UH, PLACE HISTORY CENTER. SURE, YEAH. THE, HIS HISTORY CENTER DOWNTOWN. AND I JUST LEARNED A LOT AND IT WAS KIND OF AMAZING. SO I'M JUST THANKFUL FOR YOU ALL TO HEAR ME. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS SAMMY RES. YEAH. WELCOME. AND PLEASE STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD. YES. HI, MY NAME IS SAMMY RAEZ. OKAY, UM, GOOD EVENING. UM, I'M HERE TONIGHT TO SPEAK AGAINST THE PROPOSED DEMOLITION OF A HISTORIC HOME IN EAST AUSTIN, MORE SPECIFICALLY, 9 0 7 EAST 13TH STREET. THIS HOUSE IS NOT JUST A DWELLING, IT IS A WITNESS. IT HAS STOOD THROUGH GENERATIONS OF FAMILIES THROUGH SEGREGATION, RESILIENCE, THE RISE OF MUSIC, CULTURE, AND COMMUNITY THAT MADE THE CITY WHAT IT IS. WHEN WE DEMOLISH HISTORIC HOMES LIKE THIS ONE, WE ARE NOT SIMPLY CLEARING LAND. WE ARE ERASING HISTORY. AND ONCE HISTORY IS ERASED, IT CANNOT BE REBUILT. EAST AUSTIN HAS ALREADY LOST SO MUCH OF ITS CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT HAS SWEPT THROUGH THIS NEIGHBORHOOD AT A PACE THAT FEELS RECKLESS AND DEEPLY DISCONNECTED FROM THE PEOPLE WHO LIVE HERE. WHAT ONCE WAS A PLACE TO DEFINED BY CULTURE, CREATIVITY AND COMMUNITY IS INCREASINGLY BEING REPLACED BY DEVELOPER BUILT HOMES THAT FEEL OUT OF PLACE, OVERSIZED, IDENTICAL, AND FRANKLY IN ICE. SORT OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD. THESE BUILDINGS DO NOT HONOR THE SCALE, THE STORY OR THE SPIRIT OF EAST AUSTIN. THEY SIGNAL THAT PROFIT MATTERS MORE THAN PEOPLE. I MOVED TO AUSTIN FROM SAN ANTONIO OVER 10 YEARS AGO BECAUSE OF WHAT THE CITY STOOD FOR. I WAS INSPIRED BY ITS [01:15:01] AUTH AUTHENTICITY, ITS WEIRDNESS, ITS RESPECT FOR ART, HISTORY, AND COMMUNITY. I FELL IN LOVE WITH NEIGHBORHOODS THAT FELT LIVED IN NOT MANUFACTURED. SEEING THAT AUSTIN DISAPPEAR, SEEING IT REPLACED WITH LUXURY DEVELOPMENTS THAT COULD EXIST IN ANY CITY IN AMERICA HURTS MY HEART. IT FEELS LIKE WE ARE TRADING SOMETHING IRREPLACEABLE FOR SOMETHING DISPOSABLE. HISTORIC HOMES ARE ANCHORS. THEY GROUND COMMUNITIES, THEY REMIND US WHERE WE'VE BEEN AND HELP SHAPE WHERE WE'RE GOING. WHEN WE ALLOW THEIR DESTRUCTION, WE SEND A CLEAR MESSAGE ABOUT WHOSE STORIES MATTER AND WHOSE DO NOT. AND TOO OFTEN IN EAST AUSTIN, IT IS THE STORIES OF LONGSTANDING HISTORICALLY MARGINALIZED COMMUNITIES THAT ARE THE FIRST TO BE ERASED. PROGRESS DOES NOT HAVE TO MEAN DESTRUCTION. GROWTH DOES NOT REQUIRE ERASURE. WE CAN REBUILD HOUSING WHILE STILL PROTECTING HISTORY. WE CAN INVEST IN THE CITY WITHOUT STRIPPING IT OF ITS SOUL. I URGE YOU TO STOP THE DEMOLITION OF THE HISTORIC HOME AND TO TAKE A STRONGER STAND FOR PRESERVATION IN EAST AUSTIN. PLEASE CHOOSE MEMORY OVER AMNESIA, COMMUNITY OVER CONVENIENCE AND HEART OVER HASTE, BECAUSE ONCE THESE HOMES ARE GONE, THE AUSTIN THAT INSPIRED SO MANY OF US TO MOVE HERE WILL BE GONE TOO. AND NO AMOUNT OF DEVELOPMENT CAN BRING IT BACK. THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME. THANK YOU. NEXT SPEAKER, PLEASE. OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS RIVER DEANA. OKAY. PLEASE COME FORWARD AND STATE YOUR NAME FOR THE RECORD. OKAY. HI, UH, DO I GET THREE MINUTES? THAT THAT'S CORRECT. OKAY. GOOD EVENING, UH, COMMISSIONER AND, UH, CHAIRMAN AND COMMISSIONERS. THANK YOU FOR EXISTING. MY NAME IS RIVER DELANO AND I CURRENTLY LIVE AT 9 0 9 EAST 13TH, WHICH IS NEXT DOOR TO THE HOUSE IN QUESTION. AND I'M A KIND OF UNIQUE PERSON AS I USED TO OWN 9 0 7 FOR ABOUT 13 YEARS. I THINK I SOLD 9 0 7 EAST 13TH AFTER A YEAR OF SAYING NO TO THEM. I DID SELL TO EUREKA. I SENT BY EMAIL MY CONTRACT FRONT PAGE, WHICH SHOWS THAT THIS HOME IS CURRENTLY OWNED BY EUREKA, NOT THE HOLDING COMPANY, YOU KNOW, UNDERNEATH IT. AND I ALSO SIT SUBMITTED BY EMAIL, A DESIGN SHEET BECAUSE I HAD, WHEN I WAS LIVING THERE, JAMIE, JAMIE CHIKO, THE ARCHITECT, DO A DESIGN FOR THE HOME, WHICH I NEVER BUILT, BUT IT'S A VERY ELABORATE DESIGN. AND WE HAD IT APPROVED ALL THE WAY UP TO BREAKING GROUND WHEN I DECIDED TO NOT DO IT. THE POINT IS THAT IN THIS DESIGN, YOU CAN BUILD MAXIMUM ENVELOPE BEHIND THE FRONT TWO HISTORIC ROOMS WITHOUT EVEN BEING ABLE TO SEE ANYTHING IN THE BACK. SO THE FRONT TWO ROOMS ARE THE WAY IT'S ALL SITUATED, CAN HIDE AND LOOK ONLY LIKE THE HISTORIC FRONT WITH A LOT OF CONSTRUCTION IN THE BACK. UM, I SUPPORT NOT DEMOLISHING THE FRONT TWO ROOMS AS THEY WERE BUILT IN THE 1880S, I GUESS IT WAS. AND, UM, I GAVE A HANDWRITTEN DEED OVER TO EUREKA WHEN I SOLD IT TO THEM AND JUST ASKED THEM IN A LETTER TO NOT EVER DEMOLISH THE FRONT TWO ROOMS. I THINK THAT THIS IS, THERE'S A UNIQUE ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN HERE IN THAT MY GOOD FRIEND IS FROM FINLAND AND SHE SAID THAT SHE SPENT A LOT OF TIME IN SWEDEN EVERY YEAR. AND THAT THIS HOME HAS A VERY UNIQUE SHAPE THAT THE SHAPES OF THE HOME REMIND HER OF SWEDISH HOMES, THE COMMON HOME IN SW SWEDEN. AND I ALSO BELIEVE THERE'S A HIGH COMMUNITY VALUE BECAUSE, UM, NOT MANY OF THE HISTORIC HOMES ARE LEFT IN THE NEIGHBORHOOD. AND ALSO THE HOME IS IN TERRIBLE CONDITION. BUT I, I BELIEVE EUREKA SHOULDN'T BE REWARDED FOR LETTING THAT CONDITION GO SO NEGATIVE. THERE WERE SQUATTERS THERE THROUGHOUT THE LAST YEARS THAT THEY'VE OWNED IT. AND IN FACT, THERE WAS EVEN A DEAD BODY LOCATED THERE THAT THEY DIDN'T KNOW WAS THERE UNTIL THE BODY HAD TURNED TO LIQUID AND THE WHOLE NEIGHBORHOOD COULD SMELL IT. AND THAT'S HOW BAD OF OWNERS THEY'VE BEEN. AND I DON'T WANT THEM TO BE REWARDED FOR JUST LETTING THE FRONT TWO ROOMS GET INTO BAD CONDITION. WHEN I SOLD IT TO THEM, IT WAS IN PERFECTLY LIVABLE CONDITION. UM, THERE'S A AMERICAN NEIGHBOR WHO LIVED ACROSS THE STREET FROM ME FOR 70 YEARS NAMED DELORIA GRANT, AND SHE GAVE ME A LOT OF STORIES ABOUT THAT BLOCK AND THE NEIGHBORHOOD THAT ARE REALLY BIG AND IMPORTANT STORIES. AND I CAN SEE MY TIME IS UP. SO I WAS GONNA LIST OFF QUICKLY ABOUT 10 OR 12 IMPORTANT STORIES AND IMPORTANT PEOPLE WHO'VE BEEN ASSOCIATED WITH THE BLOCK. THANK YOU. UM, THAT CAN BE, UM, PART OF, OF OUR RECORD. SO THANK YOU VERY MUCH. OKAY. UM, MAY I EMAIL THE STORIES AFTER TONIGHT AND STILL GET IT IN THE RECORD? ABSOLUTELY. OKAY, GREAT. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT. THANK YOU. UH, NEXT SPEAKER PLEASE. OUR LAST SPEAKER ON THIS ITEM IS [01:20:01] PAULINA KOVICH. HELLO, MY NAME IS FLYNN KOVICH. I DON'T HAVE TOO MUCH TO ADD. I JUST WANNA SAY THAT I'M FOR THE HISTOR HISTORIC ZONING TO PREVENT THE DEMOLITION OF THIS PROPERTY. UM, AS WE KNOW, EUREKA OWNS A HUNDRED, UH, THEY OWN 160 PROPERTIES AND THEY DO NOT DEVELOP THEM. THEY ONLY DEMOLISH THEM. IN FACT, A NEIGHBOR HAS TOLD ME THAT THEY'VE ALREADY HIRED A DEMOLISH DEMOLITION COMPANY FOR THIS PROPERTY BECAUSE THEY THINK THEY'RE JUST GONNA SAIL THROUGH AND DEMOLISH THIS HOUSE. SO I HOPE THAT YOU DO NOT LET THAT HAPPEN. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. DO WE HAVE OTHER SPEAKERS? WE DO NOT. OKAY. COMMISSIONERS, UH, THOSE ARE THE SPEAKERS. I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING. SO MOVED. SECOND. COMMISSIONER RO, SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER COOK. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE INDICATE BY RAISING YOUR HAND. AND I SEE ALL HANDS RAISED. SO THE PUBLIC HEARING IS CLOSED. I WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION. WE HAVE, UH, INITIATED, UH, THIS AS A HISTORIC ZONING RECOMMENDATION. UH, BUT WE WILL NOW NEED A, UH, A MOTION IF THAT IS GOING TO BE HOW WE WISH TO PROCEED. I'D MOVE TO RECOMMEND HISTORIC ZONING OF THE FIRST TWO ROOMS AS DEFINED BY STAFF BASED ON THE CRITERIA OF ARCHITECTURE AND HISTORIC ASSOCIATIONS. AND I DON'T BELIEVE I NEED TO, DO I NEED TO REOPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING ON RECOMMENDATION? I THINK WE CONFIRMED LAST TIME THAT WE DO NOT. YES, COMMISSIONER, IT WILL MOVE ON TO PLANNING COMMISSION, AT WHICH POINT IT WILL RECEIVE A NEW SET OF MAIL NOTIFICATION. SO AT THIS STAGE, YOU JUST NEED TO RECOMMEND I'LL SECOND. OKAY. UH, SO THAT'S COMMISSIONER COOK, WHO'S THE SECOND COMMISSIONER? LA ROCHE, UH, COMMISSIONER COOK. YES. UH, YEAH. THE, THE BUILDING IS REMARKABLY INTACT, HAS GREAT INTEGRITY CONSIDERING ITS AGE AND TYPE OF CONSTRUCTION. UH, THE PORTS CHANGES HAPPEN IN THE PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANCE AS NOTED IN THE REPORT, AND DON'T IMPACT THE ABILITY OF THIS BUILDING TO CONVEY ITS HISTORY. AND OBVIOUSLY I THINK THERE'S STILL A LOT MORE, UH, TO LEARN, UH, ABOUT ITS HISTORY. UH, I THINK IT HAS SOLID ARCHITECTURAL AND HISTORIC ASSOCIATIONS. UH, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY, IT WAS RECOMMENDED AS A LOCAL LANDMARK BY THE EAST AUSTIN 2016 EAST AUSTIN HISTORIC RESOURCES SURVEY. SO IT SHOULD NOT BE A SURPRISE, UH, TO THE OWNER. UH, WE'VE DONE THESE SURVEYS TO PROVIDE SOME CONSISTENCY AND EXPECTATIONS, AND IT'S RECOMMENDED THERE. I DON'T SEE ANY, ANY REASON TO OVERRIDE THAT RECOMMENDATION HERE. UH, THE STRUCTURES REPORT WAS NOT CONVINCING TO ME THAT THE BUILDING IS A LOSS, UH, HAVING SEEN HERE IN BEAM THERE. UH, I THINK THE FRONT PART OF THE HOUSE LOOKS TO BE IN, IN AMAZING CONDITION. UM, AND IT'S CLEARLY BEEN BEEN EVIDENCED HERE BY TESTIMONY THAT IN ADDITION TO THE REAR, THIS IS A HOUSE THAT IS PERFECTLY SUITED FOR AN ADDITION TO THE REAR AND, AND RETAINING FULL ENJOYMENT OF THE PROPERTY AND, AND ADDING, ADDING TO ITS UTILITY. I DON'T SEE ANY REASON TO TEAR THIS BUILDING DOWN. AND FINALLY, I WANNA SAY THANK YOU FOR THOSE WHO CAME AND TESTIFIED. UM, IT TAKES A LOT OF TIME AND COURAGE TO COME UP HERE ON A WEDNESDAY NIGHT AND, AND SPEAK TO THIS. AND TO HAVE FOUR PEOPLE WITH STRONG FEELINGS AND ASSOCIATIONS ARE REALLY IMPORTANT. I ENCOURAGE YOU TO RETURN TO PLANNING COMMISSION AND I ENCOURAGE YOU TO RETURN TO CITY COUNCIL. IT MAY TAKE THREE OR FOUR TIMES, DEPENDING ON HOW MANY READINGS AND POSTPONEMENTS IT MAY GET, BUT, UH, YOU KNOW, PRESERVATION UNFORTUNATELY, EXCEPT FOR SIXTH STREET AND CONGRESS AVENUE AND THE CAPITAL IS NOT AS MUCH OF PART OF AUSTIN'S DNA AS IT SHOULD BE. AND IT TAKES EFFORTS LIKE THIS TO REALLY MAKE IT BECOME SO, SO I ENCOURAGE YOU TO, TO KEEP RETURNING AND, AND KEEP PUSHING THIS. THANK YOU. OKAY, COMMISSIONER LA ROCHE. OH, I WANT TO ECHO COMMISSIONER COOK'S COMMENTS ABOUT THE SURVEY. I, I TOO FELT THAT THAT SHOULD HAVE BEEN AND WAS TRANSPARENT TO THE OWNER. AND THEN SECONDLY, AS MANY OF MY COLLEAGUES ON THE DIA KNOW ARE ALSO FAIRLY ANNOYED WITH THE, UH, THE ENGINEERING REPORTS THAT DO JUST UNJUST COLORING OF THE CHARACTER OF THE STRUCTURE. SO I'LL LEAVE IT AT THAT. LET I, LET ME TAKE IT ONE STEP FURTHER BECAUSE I MEAN, OBVIOUSLY THIS IS AN ISSUE THAT HAS COME UP IN OTHER DISCUSSIONS WHERE AN ENGINEER MAKES A VERY DEFINITIVE STATEMENT ABOUT DEFICIENCIES OF A STRUCTURE THAT'S VERY OLD, BUT OFTENTIMES IMPOSING CURRENT OR MORE MODERN STANDARDS. AND DISREGARDING THE FACT THAT CERTAIN KINDS OF CONSTRUCTION, THOUGH IT MAY NOT MEET WHAT WE WOULD DO TODAY, HAVE LASTED FOR MORE THAN A HUNDRED YEARS AND PROBABLY HAVE ENOUGH INTEGRITY TO BE VALUED. UH, I KEEP READING IN THE REPORT ABOUT ALL THIS EXTRA BRACING THAT'S NOT THERE, UH, BUT IT NEVER WAS THERE. SO BY HIS DEFINITION, THAT WOULD BE AN UNSAFE BUILDING THE DAY IT WAS BUILT. AND THAT'S NOT TRUE. SO I, I THINK THERE'S JUST, THERE'S A LOT OF CROSSTALK IN THESE KINDS OF REPORTS. AND THAT ONE IN PARTICULAR, I, I, I MAYBE, UH, WOULD ASK THE ENGINEERS IF THEY MIGHT WEIGH IN ON THIS, UH, [01:25:01] ALARMIST DISCUSSION ABOUT HOW MUCH LATERAL BRACING, UH, WAS REQUIRED WHEN IT'S NOT PART OF THAT ORIGINAL CONSTRUCTION. IF WE HAD TO IMPOSE THAT STANDARD, THERE WOULDN'T BE MUCH LEFT IN HYDE PARK. UM, IT IT, IT JUST SPEAKS TO THE LACK OF A, THE, UM, CODE REQUIREMENTS THAT THE CITY IS LACKING THAT DEAL WITH, UH, PRESERVATION OF EXISTING STRUCTURES AND OTHER COMMUNITIES HAVE IT NEIGHBORING COMMUNITIES HAVE IT. IT'S JUST SOMETHING THAT THE CITY SHOULD ADDRESS. YEAH, AND JUST TO BE CLEAR, THE CITY HAS ADOPTED UNIFORM BUILDING CODE FOR EXISTING BUILDINGS, BUT IT'S VERY OFTEN THAT NOT EVERY INSPECTOR, NOT EVERY ENGINEER IS AS FAMILIAR WITH THAT DOCUMENT AS THEY SHOULD BE. AND THERE ARE PARTS OF THAT WHICH CAN BE EXPANDED UPON AND AND ENHANCED WITHIN OUR CODES. AND I THINK THOSE ARE AREAS THAT WE CERTAINLY DO WANT TO ENCOURAGE AS WELL. IT, IT, IT DOESN'T GO FAR ENOUGH TO ADDRESS RESIDENTIAL CONSTRUCTION, AND SO IT'S, IT'S DEFICIENT IN THOSE AREAS AND, UM, THERE ARE, YOU KNOW, THERE ARE SOME STRONG ADVOCATES FOR, FOR ADDITIONAL CODE ADOPTION. SO WE HOPE WE GET THERE. YEAH. YES, COMMISSIONER ACTON. UM, I WILL SAY, I'LL SAY AT LEAST THIS ONE WAS DONE BY AN ENGINEER. UM, WE GET A LOT OF THINGS THAT AREN'T, BUT AT THE SAME TIME, THERE'S A NUANCE THAT, THAT CHUCK KNOWS VERY WELL, UM, WHEN YOU'RE LOOKING AT HISTORIC STRUCTURES ABOUT, LIKE, IF YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT YOUR BRACING AND LATERAL, UM, YOU YES, PER THE CODE OR PER WHAT YOU WOULD DO NOW, BUT THERE'S DIFFERENT WAYS THEY HANDLED THAT WITH THE MATERIALS THAT THEY USE. YOU KNOW, YOU CAN'T SAY THAT IF YOU'VE GOT, YOU KNOW, YOU, THEY, THEY USE THE SIDING, THEY USE INTERIOR FINISHES, THEY USE OTHER THINGS THAT THAT DID THAT. AND THERE'S A NUANCE TO UNDERSTANDING THAT. AND THERE'S A NUANCE TO FINDING SOMEBODY THAT KNOWS THAT THAT IS GONNA SAY ONE THING VERSUS SOMEBODY THAT DOESN'T UNDERSTAND THAT. SO IT'S GONNA SAY ANOTHER, WHICH IS NICE THAT THAT'S WHY WE HAVE THIS OPPORTUNITY OF A DISCUSSION TO BE LIKE, WE DON'T PUT MUCH CREDENCE IN THIS. OR AS I'VE SAID BEFORE, EVERYTHING IS REPAIRABLE. IT JUST DEPENDS ON HOW MUCH TIME, MONEY, AND EFFORT YOU'RE WILLING TO SPEND ON IT TO REPAIR IT. AND THAT COMES DOWN TO HOW IMPORTANT IS THE HISTORIC FABRIC. YOU KNOW, IF THE ALAMO HAD THE SAME PROBLEMS, I IMAGINE PEOPLE WOULDN'T BE COMPLAINING ABOUT HAVING TO TRUST IT UP VERSUS OTHER THINGS. AND SO IT ALWAYS, THERE'S ALWAYS A BALANCE THERE AND, AND FINDING THAT. BUT YES, I'M ALSO NOT REALLY, UH, SWAYED MUCH BY, BY THIS COMPARED TO HOW THIS WAS ORIGINALLY BUILT. AND, AND SOMEWHAT OF AN EASE OF FIXING THIS IN THESE FRONT TWO ROOMS AND, AND THEN ADDING ONTO TO THE BACK. I MEAN, WE'RE TALKING ALSO TALKING ABOUT A RELATIVELY SMALL AREA THAT NEEDS SOME REWORK HERE. SO, UM, I WILL BE SUPPORTING THE MOTION. UH, I'M ALSO GLAD YOU MENTIONED THAT FRONT TWO ROOMS. UM, SOME OF THE OTHER A A AGAIN, UH, OBVIOUSLY OBSERVATIONS, WHICH ARE CERTAINLY LEGITIMATE, UH, DESCRIBING SOME OF THE DETERIORATION WITHIN THAT STRUCTURE. BUT, UH, IF YOU LOOK CLOSELY, ALMOST ALL OF IT HAVING TO DO WITH THE LATER EDITION, WHICH WOULD NOT BE PART OF OUR MOTION. SO THAT COULD BE REMOVED AND CERTAINLY WOULD NOT IN IMPEDE THE STRUCTURAL, UH, INTEGRITY OF THE REST OF THE BUILDING. UH, NOR WOULD IT LESSEN THE IMPORTANCE OF THE HISTORIC FABRIC THAT WOULD BE REMAINING, UH, IF WE, IF THAT WERE RESTORED. YEAH. TO THAT POINT, ANY, ANYTHING THAT WOULD BE ADDED ONTO THE STRUCTURE WOULD ONLY REMEDY THE MAJORITY OF WHAT WAS CITED IN THE ENGINEER'S REPORT WITH RESPECT TO, UH, THE FRAMING SYSTEM, LATERAL BRACING, ET CETERA. SO WHEN YOU DID THAT, YOU WOULD ALSO RESOLVE ALL THOSE ISSUES TO THE FRONT TWO ROOMS. WELL SAID. , UH, COMMISSIONERS MORE COMMENTS. I JUST WANTED TO MAKE ONE MORE COMMENT TO, UM, ADD SOME PERSPECTIVE TO THE EAST AUSTIN 2016 EAST AUSTIN HISTORIC RESOURCES SURVEY. UM, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS ADDITIONAL HISTORY THAT WASN'T EVEN IN THAT SURVEY AND IT WAS LISTED AS A POTENTIAL LOCAL LANDMARK, BUT IT'S ALSO A DOUBLE-EDGED SWORD. THERE'S THE PROPERTY ON CANTERBURY, UM, THAT WAS UP TONIGHT THAT I CHOSE NOT TO PULL, UH, FOR DISCUSSION. 'CAUSE THOUGH IT'S A GREAT HOUSE ON A GREAT STREET, UM, IT NOT BEING RECOMMENDED ON THAT SURVEY. YOU KNOW, IT'D HAVE TO BE PRETTY OUTSTANDING FOR US TO, TO COUNTER THOSE, UH, COUNTER THAT RECOMMENDATION. BUT, UH, THAT WAS THE REASON I DIDN'T PULL THAT ONE. BUT, UM, I JUST KIND OF WANTED TO GIVE SOME, SOME OVERALL PERSPECTIVE ON THE, THE POWER OF THE SURVEYS AND THE IMPORTANCE OF PROPERTY OWNERS, REALTORS, UH, DEVELOPERS WHO ARE LOOKING. UH, IT'S A REAL GOOD PLACE TO START IF YOU WANT TO HAVE ANY QUESTIONS ABOUT POTENTIAL HISTORIC VALUE OF [01:30:01] THE HOME YOU'RE LOOKING AT. OKAY. YES. COMMISSIONER RICE, I JUST ALSO, UM, AND KNOW I WON'T SPEAK TOO MUCH ON THIS. I JUST, I, I'M REALLY CONFUSED AS TO WHY WE HAVEN'T HEARD A WORD FROM THE DEVELOPER OTHER THAN THAT LETTER. UM, I, I WAS HOPING TO HEAR FROM THEM TONIGHT. UM, AND I, I'D ALSO JUST, I'M, I, I DUNNO, I'M GONNA BE SUPPORTING THE MOTION. I TOO, UM, INITIATE THE ZONING BECAUSE I DON'T KNOW, I THINK I SHARE MY FELLOW COMMISSIONER'S FRUSTRATIONS WITH THE WAY THIS PROCESS HAS PLAYED OUT. AND I AGREE THAT THIS, UM, RISES TO THE VERY HIGH STANDARD THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, AN OWNER OPPOSED ZONING, UM, ENTAILS. UM, AND PARTICULARLY THE FACT THAT CITY STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION IS JUST FOR THE, THE FRONT PORTION OF THE PROPERTY. SO THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, THE, AS THE SPEAKER, UH, NOTED, THE ENTITLEMENTS THAT ALLOWED UNDER THE CURRENT ZONING COULD BE, UM, COULD BE DEVELOPED ON THE NON HISTORIC PORTION OF THE LOT. SO, UM, I'M GONNA BE SUPPORTING THE MOTION. OKAY. ANY FURTHER DISCUSSION? ALRIGHT. HEARING NONE, UH, WE HAVE A MOTION TO PROCEED WITH THE HISTORIC ZONING BASED ON THE ARCHITECTURE AND THE ASSOCIATION. UH, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR OF THE MOTION, PLEASE INDICATE BY RAISING YOUR HAND AND I DO SEE IT AS UNANIMOUS. ALRIGHT. UH, AS COMMISSIONER COOK HAS MENTIONED, UH, THIS IS, UH, OWNER OPPOSED. AND SO WHEN IT GOES IN FRONT OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION AND IN THE CITY COUNCIL, OBVIOUSLY, UM, WE WILL PASS ON OUR RECOMMENDATION, BUT WE CERTAINLY ENCOURAGE THE NEIGHBORS TO CONTINUE THEIR PERSISTENCE. THANK YOU. ALL RIGHT, COMMISSIONERS, [5. HR-2025-158169; C14H-1986-0003 – 3710 Cedar St. Confederate Woman's Home ] THAT BRINGS US UP TO ITEM NUMBER FIVE. UH, THIS IS AN ITEM IN LOCAL HISTORIC DISTRICT. UH, THE 37 10 CEDAR STREET IS THE CONFEDERATE WOMEN'S HOME, AND WE HAVE PULLED THIS ONE FOR DISCUSSION. THANK YOU, CHAIR. THIS IS A PROPOSAL TO CONSTRUCT TWO, UH, COURTYARD ADDITIONS AT A, UH, CURRENT CITY OF AUSTIN LANDMARK. UM, THE PRO PROJECT SPECIFICATIONS ARE, UM, AT THE INTERIOR COURTYARD CONSTRUCT, A TWO STORY ADDITION BEHIND THE MAIN STRUCTURE OF THE COMPLEX, AS WELL AS CONSTRUCT A REAR ADDITION AT THE REAR HOME LANE FACING SURFACE STRUCTURE, AS WELL AS REPLACE WINDOWS AS REQUIRED DUE TO FAILURE OR DETERIORATION. THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS ARE BASED ON THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR STANDARDS FOR REHABILITATION AND ARE USED TO EVALUATE PROJECTS AT HISTORIC LANDMARKS. UM, THE, THE PROJECT AS REVISED AN AMENDMENT MEETS THE APPLICABLE STANDARDS. UM, PREVIOUS HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION, UH, ACTION ON THIS CASE WAS, UM, FROM THE JANUARY 7TH, 2026 MEETING. UM, THE APPLICATION WAS POSTPONED WITH THE REFERRAL TO THE JANUARY 14TH ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW COMMITTEE, WHICH THE APPLICANTS ATTENDED AND, UM, HAD REVISED THEIR PLANS PRIOR TO, UH, THAT ATTENDANCE. UM, THIS APPLICATION WILL TIME OUT ON MARCH 23RD, 2026. SO THAT MEANS THAT WITH THIS MEETING AND NEXT MEETING ARE THE LAST TWO OPPORTUNITIES FOR THE, UM, COMMISSION TO ACT ON IT. UM, THE ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW COMMITTEE FEEDBACK INCLUDED, UH, UM, UH, THE NEW CONSTRUCTION OF THE SOUTHERN NON LANDMARK. HALF THE PROPERTY ARE NOT INCLUDED IN THIS APPLICATION DUE TO IT NOT BEING, UM, UH, ZONED AS HISTORIC. UM, CURRENTLY, UM, THE, UH, COMMITTEE ALSO RECOMMENDED TO INVESTIGATE THE HISTORY OF THE CORNER TOWER AND FORMER CALL AID, CONSIDER A HYPHEN OR OTHER MINIMAL CONNECTION BETWEEN THE HISTORIC SECTION OF THE PROPOSED ADDITION, ENSURE THE ADDITION CLADDING MATERIAL IS SIMILAR, BUT DIFFERENTIAL TO THE HISTORIC, UM, IF HISTORIC MATERIALS THAT THE REAR COURTYARD WOULD BE COVERED, ENSURE THAT THEY REMAIN IN PLACE AS BEST AS POSSIBLE. AND, UM, THAT THE LOCATION OF THE ENTRANCES AND PUNCHED OPENINGS AT THE WINDOWS OR NON HISTORIC PERFORATIONS ARE IDEAL. THEREFORE, STAFF RECOMMENDATION IS TO APPROVE THE CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS IN A CONCURRENCE WITH THE ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW COMMITTEE FEEDBACK. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. UM, COMMISSIONERS, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OF STAFF? DO WE HAVE, UH, THE APPLICANT HERE? YES, WE DO. ABBY PENN. OKAY. GOOD EVENING, CHAIR AND COMMISSIONERS. UM, I'M ABBY PENNER. I'M HERE REPRESENTING THE WAVERLY NORTH DEVELOPMENT. UM, JUST AS A REMINDER, THIS IS GOING TO BE 76 UNITS OF A HUNDRED PERCENT AFFORDABLE HOUSING, UM, WHICH INCLUDES OVER 55% OF THOSE UNITS BEING WITHIN THESE HISTORICAL STRUCTURES. SO THE, UM, THE ADDITIONS INTO THE COURTYARD IS GOING TO ALLOW US TO FIT AS MANY OF THOSE UNITS IN THESE HISTORIC STRUCTURES AS POSSIBLE. AND, UM, AS WAS MENTIONED, WE WENT TO THE ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW COMMITTEE ON THE 14TH. UM, WE HEARD THE, UM, [01:35:01] THE SUGGESTIONS WE TOOK THEM, WE TALKED WITH OUR ARCHITECT. UM, THIS WILL ALSO BE SUBMITTED TO THC AND NPS BY THE END OF THIS MONTH. UM, AS WE ARE ALSO PURSUING STATE AND FEDERAL HISTORIC TAX CREDITS, UM, THEY WILL HAVE A LOT OF INPUT ON THE FACADES ON WHAT WE ARE ALLOWED TO EDIT IF THE WINDOWS ARE ALLOWED TO BE REPLACED, IF SO, WITH WHAT. UM, AND SO THAT WILL BE A VERY EXTENSIVE PROCESS THAT WE'LL ALSO MAKE SURE THAT THESE BUILDINGS STAY INTACT. AND ALSO, I WANTED TO ADDRESS THE CHAIRS, UM, QUESTIONS ABOUT THE ROOFS FROM LAST MEETING. YES. UM, I WENT BACK TO MY, UM, HISTORIC CONSULTANT. THE ISSUE IS, IS THAT THE END OF THE PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANCE IS 1973. AND THESE ARE THE ROOFS THAT WERE THERE IN 1973. SO IF I GO BACK FURTHER, I END UP HAVING TO DEMOLISH ANYTHING WHERE THERE'S A GYM BUILDING THAT'S ON THE 38TH STREET DIED THAT WOULD HAVE TO BE DEMOLISHED TO GO BACK TO THE OTHER ROOFS. AND THEN IT WOULD ALSO, UM, AFFECT THE NORTH WING ADDITION. AND SO THAT WOULD REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF SQUARE FOOTAGE IN THIS HISTORIC BUILDING, WHICH WOULD REDUCE THE AMOUNT OF UNITS. AND SO UNFOR, SO YOU SAID IN 73, WHICH IS THE END OF THE PERIOD OF HISTORIC RIGHT. WHICH IS WHEN WE'RE, BUT DO YOU KNOW WHEN THAT ROOF WAS ACTUALLY MODIFIED? I DON'T, I CAN LOOK BACK AT MY NOTES AND SEE IF SHE SAID, BUT, BECAUSE IF, IF, IF THE BACK WAS PUT ON AT THE TIME WHEN THE ROOF WAS STILL THE WAY IT WAS HISTORICALLY, THEN YOU'D STILL BE FINE. WELL, YES, BUT BASED ON HER, SHE SAID WE CAN'T MIX AND MATCH THE FEATURES FROM DIFFERENT DATES, RESTORING THE CHARTS, RESTORING THE TURRETS, WE REQUIRE DEMOLISHING THE GYM AND RESTORING THE WHOLE NORTH WING. UM, IT WOULD ALSO DISMISS THE SIGNIFICANCE AND CHANGES MADE TO ACCOMMODATE THE DEAF AND BLIND, UM, CHILDREN WHEN THIS WAS THE SCHOOL FOR THE BLIND. WELL, I, I'M, I'M NOT, I'M NOT THRILLED WITH THAT ANSWER, BUT, UH, IT MIGHT MIGHT BE WORTH, WORTH CONTINUING TO DISCUSS IT, UH, OR AT LEAST RESEARCH IT. HAPPY TO. THAT'S JUST BEEN OUR INITIAL FEEDBACK ON THIS. YEP, FOR SURE. YEAH, I THINK IT WAS JUST RIGHT ON TOP. . UM, ARE THERE OTHER, UH, DO YOU HAVE OTHER ITEMS THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO POINT OUT? UM, THE COLON AID AT THE REAR, UM, IF YOU'RE STANDING ON A HOME LANE, I KNOW THIS IS A POINT OF DISCUSSION, IT WAS SOMETHING WE TALKED ABOUT AT ARC AS WELL. THOSE COLUMNS WILL BE INTEGRATED INTO THE UNITS. SO ALTHOUGH YOU WON'T BE ABLE TO SEE THEM FROM HOME LANE WHENEVER YOU'RE IN THE UNIT, YOU WILL STILL HAVE THOSE COLUMNS AS IT'S KIND OF IN BETWEEN LIKE THE KITCHEN AND LIVING ROOM AREA. SO THEY'LL BE ENCOMPASSED WITHIN THE BUILDING AND NOT DEMOLISHED. OKAY. COMMISSIONERS, ANY QUESTIONS OF THE, UH, APPLICANT? I HAD A QUESTION. WOULD YOU BE, UH, GIVEN THAT YOU HAVE, UH, THE UPCOMING REVIEW WITH PARKS AND AND HISTORICAL COMMISSION, WOULD YOU BE AMENABLE TO A POSTPONEMENT JUST TO GATHER THAT INFORMATION FOR ONE, ONE FINAL ROUND BEFORE WE MOVE YOU ON HERE? OR IS THERE ANY REASON THAT YOU REALISTICALLY, BASED ON THE TIMELINES THAT WE'RE GETTING BACK FROM THC AND NPS, WE WOULDN'T HAVE ANYTHING, UM, WITHIN THE TIMEFRAME. LIKE WE'RE GONNA BE SUBMITTING TO THEM IN THE NEXT COUPLE WEEKS, BUT I'M NOT EXPECTING FOR US TO HEAR ANYTHING SUBSTANTIAL BACK. OKAY. UM, WHERE IT WOULD FIT WITHIN THIS TIMELINE, BUT GIVEN THE TIMELINES INVOLVED THERE, IN ANY CASE, AND THIS NOT HOLDING YOU UP, WOULD YOU BE AMENABLE TO A POSTPONEMENT JUST TO HAVE THE PUBLIC HEARING OPEN FOR ANOTHER MONTH AND GATHER, GATHER A LITTLE MORE INFORMATION? I KNOW YOU'D RATHER NOT . YEAH, I WOULD PREFER, UM, NOT TO JUST BECAUSE THIS IS A, UM, T-D-H-C-A LOW INCOME HOUSING TAX CREDIT PROJECT. WE ARE ON TIGHT DEADLINES. UM, THERE'S, UM, THERE'S JUST DEADLINES THAT WE NEED TO KEEP MOVING FORWARD. THERE'S ELEMENTS AND SUBMITTING OUR BUILDING PERMITS AND OKAY. ET CETERA. SO. GOTCHA. OKAY. THANKS. OKAY. AND THIS IS A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS, SO, UM, IF, IF THERE'S AMBIGUITY ABOUT WHETHER THIS WILL BE APPROVED OR NOT, THAT THAT COULD IMPACT SOME OF THE OTHER APPLICATIONS. UM, OKAY. AND, AND I DID HAVE, COULD YOU SPEAK ALSO TO THE TWO ITEMS THAT WERE POINTED OUT IN THE, UH, THE BACKUP THAT, YOU KNOW, THERE WAS THE WINDOW THAT'S, IT'S A DOOR NOW THAT'S SHOWN AS A WINDOW, ALTHOUGH IT'S A MODERN DOOR, IT'S SHOWING AS A WINDOW GOING BACK IN, UH, THAT WAS A DOOR ORIGINALLY AND THEN TO THE SOUTH, I THINK THERE WAS ANOTHER DOOR THAT WAS SHOWN. YEAH. AM I ABLE TO SEE I WASN'T, I DON'T KNOW IF I WAS PROVIDED A COPY OF THE BACKUP THAT WAS SUBMITTED BY, UM, IN OPPOSITION, SO I DON'T KNOW EXACTLY. I DON'T WANNA SPEAK TO A DOOR THAT'S A WINDOW THAT I HAVEN'T SEEN. I THINK IT'S IN THE PUBLIC COMMENT IN THE BACKUP. YEAH, I, I THINK IT WAS GENERALLY, UM, IT WAS SHOWING THE, THE FINAL INTENT WERE ON THE ELEVATIONS AND NOT, THERE WASN'T AS MUCH DETAIL GIVEN TO EXACT DOCUMENTATION OF THE EXISTING CONDITIONS. UM, 'CAUSE I KNOW YOU'RE MORE INTERESTED IN THE HISTORIC CONDITIONS AND WHERE IT'S GONNA END UP. BUT, UM, THERE WERE TWO ISSUES RAISED THAT, THAT GAVE ME A LITTLE BIT OF PAUSE ABOUT. UM, THERE WAS THE DOUBLE DOOR IN THE, THE NORTHEAST TOWER THAT'S SHOWN AS A WINDOW. 'CAUSE I THINK THAT'S HOW IT'S GONNA END UP IN THE FINAL DESIGN. UH, OKAY. AND HISTORICALLY THERE WAS A DOOR TO THE NORTH THERE AS WELL THAT I CAN SEE NOW HAS BEEN [01:40:01] ENCLOSED. UM, AND THEN THERE WAS A, ON THE UPSTAIRS I THINK LEFT THERE WAS A, A WINDOW THAT WASN'T, WASN'T A DOOR, BUT I THINK EVERYTHING UPSTAIRS IS NOT A HISTORIC AGE. RIGHT. ON THE, SO ON THAT MAIN BUILDING, EVERYTHING IS LIKE ON THAT, UH, CEDAR LANE OR CEDAR STREET FACADE, UM, IS OF THE SAME HISTORIC AGE. SO I KNOW THERE IS AN, UM, AN ERROR THAT MY ARCHITECT MADE, BLESS HIM. BUT, UM, WHERE THE TOP PART WAS SHOWING, UM, CLOSED IN WHEN IT WILL STILL REMAIN AS THE OPEN, UM, PORCH THAT IT IS NOW. AND THEN, UM, FOR THE DOOR ON THE, LIKE ON THE TURRET, IF, IF WE WANT TO KEEP THAT AS A DOOR LIKE, OR IF LIKE NPS AND THC SAY YOU NEED TO KEEP THIS AS A DOOR, WE WILL BECAUSE THERE WILL BE OTHER WINDOWS. UM, BUT WE WILL PROBABLY, YOU KNOW, SECURE THAT DOOR SO IT DOESN'T BECOME A POINT OF, YOU KNOW, SECURITY FOR, 'CAUSE THAT'S GONNA BE A UNIT. UM, OKAY. THANK YOU. OKAY. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OF THE APPLICANT? ALRIGHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. YEP. DO WE HAVE SPEAKERS NOW? YES, WE HAVE PAMELA BILL IN OPPOSITION. OKAY. ARE THERE ANY FURTHER SPEAKERS IN FAVOR? NO. OKAY. ALRIGHT THEN, MS. BELL, UH, YOUR, YOU'RE WELCOME TO ADD TO YOUR COMMENTS. I THINK THAT, UH, AS YOU GO THROUGH OUR, UM, THE DECK THAT WE SUBMITTED, UM, WE HAD, UH, SEVERAL CONCERNS. UM, MOSTLY WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE EXISTING, UM, BUILDING, AS YOU LOOK AT IT AS IT IS NOW, IT APPEARS THAT WHAT IS BEING SUBMITTED IS NOT CONSIDERING THE ENTIRE PROPERTY WITH A HISTORIC ZONING. IT'S LIKE THE SOUTH END OF THE PROPERTY. THEY'RE TREATING IT LIKE IT DOES NOT HAVE HISTORIC ZONING WHEN WE BELIEVE THAT IN FACT IT DOES. AND SO WE WANT TO SEE ALL OF THE BUILDING, THE DEVELOPMENT TO BE SOMETHING THAT LOOKS LIKE IT ALL GOES TOGETHER. WE ALREADY HAVE A VERY INCONGRUOUS DEVELOPMENT FROM THE DEAF BLIND ANNEX WHEN IT WAS BUILT THERE, FROM WHAT AGE IS CURRENTLY THERE. AND SO IF YOU LOOK AT, UM, SOME OF THE INACCURACIES THAT GO THROUGH THE EXISTING ELEVATIONS, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE, UM, THE, THE BUILDING DOORS, WE'VE, WE'VE TALKED A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THAT. SO I THINK THAT WE CAN, UM, THE EXISTING STREET FACING DOOR WAS ADDRESSED. THAT'S OMITTED. SO IF YOU GO TO THE NEXT ONE, YOU CAN SEE HOW IT ORIGINALLY LOOKED. WE DON'T THINK THAT YOU'VE LOOKED AT THE, THE OLD PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE TECH, FROM THE AUSTIN HISTORY CENTER THAT ARE AVAILABLE ON THIS PROPERTY. SO LOOK AT THE, SO YOU SEE THAT THE, THE STONE PILLAR THAT MATCHES THOSE, IT'S, IT SAYS THAT IT'S NON HISTORIC, BUT IT IS, WHEN YOU LOOK AT THESE PICTURES, IF YOU GO TO THE NEXT ONE, SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT THE ELEVATIONS, IT DOESN'T EVEN LOOK, IT, IT OMITS THE EXISTING CONCRETE RAMPS. SO THERE ARE THINGS THAT ARE TOTALLY LEFT OUT OF WHAT IS BEING PROPOSED. WE DON'T KNOW IF THEY'RE GONNA TAKE THINGS OUT, IF THEY'RE GONNA LEAVE THINGS IN, IT'S VERY SKETCHY THE INFORMATION THAT WAS PRESENTED. GO TO THE NEXT ONE. SO WHAT IS THE FEATURE THAT'S SHOWN ON THE ELEVATION THAT'S PRESENTED AS OF THE EXISTING BUILDING? ARE YOU GOING TO ADD AN ADDITIONAL DOORWAY? THERE'S NO, THERE'S NO FEATURE THERE CURRENTLY. GO TO THE NEXT ONE. SO WE DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT THE NEW MATERIALS THAT ARE GONNA BE PLANNED. WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THE WINDOWS WILL LOOK LIKE WHEN THEY'RE REPLACED AND WE KNOW HOW THOSE ARE IMPORTANT TO THE HISTORIC COMMISSION. HAVE THE CURRENT ONES BEEN INVENTORIED? ARE THEY ONLY LOOKING AT THE HISTORIC SECTION OF THE, THE PROPERTY OR ARE THEY LOOKING ACROSS THE PROPERTY? AGAIN, THAT'S NOT CLEAR FROM WHAT'S BEEN PERMITTED PRESENTED. WE DON'T KNOW WHAT THE REPLACEMENT WINDOWS WILL BE. WE DON'T KNOW ANYTHING ABOUT HOW THE EXISTING MASONRY IS GOING TO BE TREATED TO THE NEXT ONE. WHAT'S THE OPPORTUNITY FOR THE RESTORATION OF [01:45:01] THE CHARACTER DEFINING FEATURES ACROSS THE PROPERTY? NOT JUST ONE END OF IT, BUT ACROSS THE ENTIRE PROPERTY? ARE WE GONNA HAVE SOMETHING THAT LOOKS LIKE HALF OF IT'S HISTORIC AND THE OTHER HALF ISN'T? OR IS THE ENTIRE PROPERTY GONNA BE TREATED AS IT SHOULD BE AS AN ENTIRE HISTORIC PROPERTY? THAT IS HOW WE BELIEVE THAT IT'S ZONED. GO AHEAD. SO COULD THE APPLICANT IMPROVE THE HISTORIC APPEARANCE BY REMOVING SOME OF THE FEATURES THAT WERE LATER ADDITIONS? LIKE WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT FROM THE DEAF BLIND ANNEX AND FROM THE AGE BUILDING. WHAT ABOUT SOME OF THE, ARE THEY GOING TO TAKE OUT THE SECOND STORY OPEN PORCH COLUMNS, ROOFING ON CEDAR? THEY ARE NOT ANYWHERE IN SOME OF THE ORIGINAL PHOTOS OF THIS PROPERTY. HAVE YOU LOOKED BACK AT THE ORIGINAL HISTORIC PHOTOS OF THE PROPERTY? WE DON'T THINK THEY'VE BEEN SUBMITTED TO GO TO. THE NEXT ONE IS THE SITE IS ORIENTED ON A FULL CITY BLOCK SURROUNDED BY FOUR CITY STREETS WITH RELEVANT VIEWS OF THE LANDMARK FROM AT LEAST THREE OF THE STREETS. AND EARLIER YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT DOWNTOWN AND HOW IMPORTANT WAS TO PRESERVE THE VIEWS? WE FEEL THE SAME THING ABOUT OUR NEIGHBORHOOD AND THIS PROPERTY. OKAY. THAT'S YOUR TIME. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. MM-HMM . COMMISSIONERS, ANY QUESTIONS OF THE SPEAKER? ALRIGHT, WE'LL HAVE THE NEXT SPEAKER PLEASE. UH, WE HAVE MR. RICK IVERSON, BUT HE INDICATED TO US EARLIER THAT HE WOULD NOT WISH TO SPEAK. OKAY. ARE ANY OTHER SPEAKERS SIGNED UP? UH, OTHER THAN THAT WE HAVE, THEY'RE GONE. OKAY. WE HAVE NO OTHER SPEAKERS SIGNED UP, BUT PERHAPS THE APPLICANT WOULD WISH TO OFFER A REBUTTAL? YES. WOULD THE APPLICANT WISH TO ANSWER SOME OF THESE ISSUES? YES. SO, UM, AGAIN, THE WINDOWS WILL BE GOING THROUGH N-P-S-N-T-H-C REVIEW, UM, THAT WILL BE A FULL CATALOG. WE WILL SEE WHAT WINDOWS NEED TO BE REPLACED, WHICH ONES CAN REMAIN. AN NPS, AS I'M SURE EVERYONE IS FAMILIAR, IS VERY STRICT ABOUT WHAT YOU CAN DO WITH A WINDOW. WE'VE JUST GONE THROUGH A MULTI-MONTH PROCESS ON A PROJECT THAT WE'RE REDOING IN FORT WORTH. UM, AND SO THAT COVERS THAT. AGAIN, WE WILL ALSO BE GOING THROUGH THE SAME THING WITH THE, IF A DOOR NEEDS TO STAY A DOOR, IF A DOOR CAN BECOME A WINDOW, THAT WILL ALSO BE A PART OF THAT PROCESS. UM, AND I WOULD ALSO LIKE, JUST KIND OF FOR THE RECORD FOR STAFF TO CONFIRM AGAIN THAT THIS BUILDING AND THE BUILDING ALONG HOME ARE THE ONLY TWO BUILDINGS THAT ARE CONFIRMED THAT NEED TO BE GOING THROUGH THIS PROCESS, IF THAT'S POSSIBLE. YEAH. OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE, UH, ZONING ORDINANCE WAS THAT THE, UH, NORTH HALF THE PROPERTY WAS ZONED HISTORIC, BUT THE SOUTHERN HALF WAS NOT. AND THIS WENT THROUGH A ZONING CASE LAST YEAR. UM, ORIGINALLY THE, UM, THE NOTICE WAS JUST A BASE, UM, SF THREE, TWO MF FOUR WITH THE H INCLUDED IN BOTH. BUT AFTER FURTHER INVESTIGATION BY ZONING STAFF ONLY THE NORTH FOUR LOTS HAD THE H DESIGNATION AND THE SOUTHERN FOUR LOTS DID NOT BECAUSE THAT PORTION OF THE BUILDING IS NOT, UM, BEING DEEMED HISTORIC BY THC BASED ON OUR INITIAL, UM, DISCUSSIONS WITH THEM AS WELL. SO THAT'S WHY YOU'RE SEEING THIS PORTION OF THE SITE BEING BROUGHT TO YOU TODAY. AND AS OPPOSED TO THE OTHER ONE THAT WILL GO THROUGH BOTH, IT WILL BE SUBMITTED TO MBS FOR, UM, THEIR USE TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY BELIEVE THAT IT LOOKS GREAT AS ONE DEVELOPMENT, UM, BUT IT'S NOT, UM, COMING TO YOU FOR A CERTIFICATE TONIGHT. YEAH. SO WHAT I'M HEARING YOU SAY IS STAFF THAT THIS IS, UH, THE SECTION THAT IS, IT REQUIRES A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS IS LIMITED JUST TO THOSE AREAS THAT ARE, THAT ARE ZONED SPECIFICALLY HISTORIC. WE WOULD REQUEST IF IT IS, UH, AVAILABLE IF YOU'RE ALREADY HAVING THE STATE REVIEW BOTH PROJECTS TOGETHER, UH, AS A COURTESY, IF YOU WOULD BRING, THERE WAS AN EARLY PRESENTATION WHEN THE TWO WERE SHOWN AS ONE DEVELOPMENT AND WE PRESENTED, UM, RENDERINGS AS WELL TO ARC. AND I BELIEVE THOSE ARE ALSO IN THE BACKUP AS WELL. YEAH. SO WE, WE APPRECIATE AS THOSE DEVELOP, UH, YEAH. UPDATES. UM, HAPPY TO COMMISSIONERS, WE ARE BEING ASKED FOR A, UM, I I HAVE ONE. OH YEAH. UH, WE, WE HAVE, WE HAVE THE ABILITY TO, UH, ASK ANY QUESTIONS. JUST ONE QUESTION TO CONFIRM THAT WE DID, WE DID SEE AND COMMENT ON THE CONSTRUCTION TO THE SOUTH AND ALTERATIONS WERE MADE PER OUR COMMENTS AS [01:50:01] I RECALL. YES. AND AGAIN, WE TEXTURES AND HEIGHTS AND SEPARATIONS AND OKAY. YES. THANK YOU. BASED ON OUR ORIGINAL ART CONVERSATION WHEN WE CAME BEFORE. OKAY. ERS? YES. UM, SO THANK YOU FOR THE PRESENTATION AND UH, APPRECIATE EVERYONE'S THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION MATERIAL AS WELL. AND SO NOW I'M A BIT MORE CONFUSED ABOUT THE TERENCE THAN I WAS WHEN I CAME AND SAT DOWN TONIGHT. SO I THINK HOPEFULLY BETWEEN THE APPLICANT AND THE ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW BOARD, YOU CAN EXPLAIN THAT TO ME BECAUSE IT APPEARS TO ME THAT THE PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANCE GOES BACK TO THE STONE THAT WAS ORIGINALLY THERE. AND NOW MY QUESTION IS YOU CAN'T RECONSTRUCT THE STONE. WHO WOULD LIKE TO ADDRESS THAT? I MEAN, I THINK THE APPLICANT WOULD ADDRESS IT, BUT I KNOW IT HAS TO DO WITH THE, I MEAN THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF RESEARCH DONE BY PROFESSIONALS ON THIS AND THERE ARE VERY SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS IN TERMS OF THE PERIOD OF INTERPRETATION. I MEAN, TO, I DON'T WANNA GET, I DON'T WANNA SPEAK ANY FURTHER THAN THAT, BUT, BUT THAT'S WHAT WE WERE, THAT'S WHAT WE WERE TOLD. AND UM, MAYBE THE APPLICANT CAN SPEAK MORE TO THAT PAR PARTICULARITY BECAUSE, UM, THE MIXING AND MATCHING OF PERIODS, I MEAN, I, I, THE TURDS I DON'T THINK ARE UNDER THERE, JUST THE GEOMETRY DOESN'T WORK BECAUSE THEY WERE FLUSH WITH THE OUTSIDE AND IT'S SLOPED IN IMMEDIATELY ABOVE THE WINDOWS NOW. UH, BUT IN TERMS OF THE REQUIREMENTS OF RESTORATION, I GENERALLY JUST DEFERRED TO PARK SERVICE AND HISTORICAL COMMISSION IS GONNA HAVE MORE SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS IN TERMS OF THE SPECIFICS OF THEIR APPLICATION. AND, UH, SO IF THE APPLICANT COULD SPEAK MORE TO THAT. SURE. AND SO THE ORIGINAL, ORIGINAL PHOTOS ARE OF THAT MAIN BUILDING AND THAT'S WHEN THERE THE STONE, AND THAT'S WHERE THEY HAVE THE BEAUTIFUL TOP OF THE TURRET AND ALL OF THAT. THAT WAS IN 19, I'M, I'M GONNA MISQUOTE DATES, SO I APOLOGIZE IN ADVANCE. IT WAS IN LIKE 1910. AND SO THAT WAS, THE BUILDING WAS SMALLER. IT WAS JUST THAT FRONT PORTION. UM, THEY CAN, AND THERE'S AN EXHIBIT THAT I UNFORTUNATELY HAVE AUSTIN FURIOUSLY TYPING AND LOOKING FOR, UM, THAT SHOWS WHEN ALL OF THESE ADDITIONS WERE MADE AND THE DATES OF WHICH, WHICH, UM, I BELIEVE SHOULD HAVE, WE TRIED TO HAVE IN THE BACKUP, BUT IT MAY NOT HAVE MADE IT. UM, AND SO THAT WAS THE ORIGINAL BUILDING. THEY ADDED ON STUFF OVER ON THE SOUTH SIDE, THEN THEY ADDED A NORTH WING, THEN THEY ADDED THE GYM, THEN THEY CHANGED THE ROOFS. THEN AT SOME POINT THE STONE DISAPPEARED. THEN AT SOME POINT THEY ADDED ON THE ENTIRE SOUTH EDITION. THAT WAS MORE IN THE EIGHTIES. UM, SO THERE'VE BEEN A LOT OF MODIFICATIONS TO THIS BUILDING. AND SO WE AGREE. I'M TEXTING WITH THE OWNER RIGHT NOW. SHE ALSO AGREES WE DO NOT LOVE THE ROOFS AS THEY ARE, BUT UNFORTUNATELY, IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN THE SPACE THAT WE NEED FOR THESE AFFORDABLE UNITS, WE CAN'T PICK AND CHOOSE, OH, WE LIKE THESE STONE TURRETS WITH THESE ROOFS BECAUSE THEN WE WOULD LOSE EVERYTHING THAT WAS ADDED AFTER THAT POINT. WE WOULD HAVE TO BRING IT ALL BACK TO THAT ORIGINAL, LET LEMME JUMP IN ON THAT ONE. YE YES, BUT ONLY IF YOU CAN DEFINITIVELY STATE WHEN THOSE STONE TURRETS WERE REMOVED. BECAUSE IF WE KNEW, IF, IF WE KNEW THE ACTUAL DATE WHEN THEY WERE GONE, THEN FROM THAT POINT BACKWARDS, ANYTHING THAT WAS THERE AT THAT TIME WOULD STILL BE CONSIDERED WITHIN THE SIGNIFICANT A PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANCE AND COULD BE, UH, MAINTAINED. AS SOON AS YOU ESTABLISH THAT DATE. AND YOU CAN DEFINITIVELY SAY THAT THEN THESE OTHER CRITICAL ADDITIONS CAME AFTERWARDS, THAT IS SOMETHING THAT WOULD MAKE THE CASE THAT YOU'RE TRYING TO MAKE. BUT WITHOUT THOSE SPECIFIC DATES, AND IF IT'S, THEY WERE KIND OF REMOVED SOMETIME, WE KNOW THEY WERE THERE IN 1910, WE KNOW THAT BY THE SEVENTIES THEY WEREN'T. THAT DOESN'T, THAT'S NOT STRONG ENOUGH CASE IN MY MIND TO SAY DEFINITIVELY THAT YOU THOU YOU KNOW, YOU CANNOT BECAUSE UNDERSTOOD. AND THAT'S, AND THAT'S NOT WHAT I'M SAYING. I KNOW THAT WE HAVE THE SPECIFIC DATES. I DO NOT HAVE THEM IN FRONT OF ME RIGHT NOW. THERE IS A ENTIRE EXHIBIT THAT SHOWS WHEN EVERYTHING WAS BUILT AND WHEN EVERYTHING WAS ADDED ON, AND EXCUSE ME FOR LOOKING AT MY PHONE WHILE WE DO THIS. UM, BUT I MEAN THAT'S, THAT'S, THAT'S THE ANSWER TO YOUR QUESTION IS IF, IF WE KNOW EXACTLY THAT THOSE, THOSE STONE TURRETS WERE GONE AND THEN THESE OTHER ELEMENTS WERE ADDED AND THAT'S STILL THE ELEMENT THEY WERE STILL WITHIN THE PERIOD IN THE SIXTIES AND SEVENTIES THAT WE ARE CONSIDERING THE PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANCE. THAT WOULD BE THE REASON FOR THAT. THAT BEING I I, I UNDERSTAND THAT. YEAH. AND I UNDERSTAND COMMISSIONER'S ACTON COMMENT AND COMMISSIONER COOK'S COMMENT. I GUESS WHAT'S NOT CLEAR TO BE IS WHEN THE ARCHITECTURAL REVIEW BOARD LOOKED AT IT, AND BASED ON YOUR CONVERSATION, [01:55:01] I'M KIND OF LED TO BELIEVE THAT YOU WERE INTERESTED IN THE RESTORATION OF THE TURRETS. UH, WE, WE MADE THAT CLEAR. OKAY. I I I HAPPENED TO BE IN ON THAT SAME MEETING AND OKAY. WE DEFINITELY CONVEYED THAT. OKAY. I I'M NOT GONNA BELABOR THE POINT ANY FURTHER. OKAY. I DO HAVE A CHRONOLOGICAL LIST IF IT, IF ANYONE IS, SO 1907 IS THE ORIGINAL CONSTRUCTION AND I HAVE THIS IN A PART ONE AND PART A IF ANYONE WANTS TO READ THE WHOLE THING. SO PART 1907 IS VIRTUAL CONSTRUCTION, 1912 TO 1913, EXTERIOR MASSING AND ADDITIONAL, UM, ADJOINING TO THE SOUTH. IN 1912 TO 1913, EXTERIOR NORTHEAST AND SOUTHEAST CORNER TURRETS WERE ROOF FORM. ROOF FORM CHANGED FROM PURE METAL TO FLAT WITH CRENELATIONS. IN 1917, THE NORTHEAST CORNER TURNER TURRET, UM, ORIGINAL WAS THE PROJECTING STONE ENTRANCES. PORTICOS WAS REMOVED. AND 1917 NORTH ELEVATION AND EAST ELEVATION, SECOND FLOOR PORCH ADDITION OF RAILINGS 1917 ENCLOSURE OF WINDOWS 1917, UM, ROOF OVER SECOND FLOOR WAS EXTENDED. UM, SO YEAH, SO THIS IS NOT AS HELPFUL AS WHAT I HAVE, BUT THOSE ARE THE MAIN THINGS THAT WERE DONE TO THAT MAIN BUILDING IN THOSE YEARS. AND AGAIN, WE HAVE THE FULL PART A IN THE PART TWO WILL BE SUBMITTED BY THE END OF THE MONTH. SO I'M HAPPY TO SUBMIT THAT TO ANYONE WHO WANTS TO READ IT. UM, OKAY. THANK YOU. UH, ANY OTHER COMMENTS OR QUESTIONS OF THE APPLICANT? WE'VE HAD, UH, UH, PUBLIC, UH, TESTIMONY AND A REBUTTAL. UH, I'LL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING MOVED. COMMISSIONER COOK, SECOND COMMISSIONER ACT IN SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE INDICATE BY RAISING YOUR HAND. ALRIGHT. UH, COMMISSIONS, UH, WE'RE OPEN FOR A MOTION. I'D LIKE TO MOVE TO ALLOW ADMINISTRATIVE APPROVAL OF CERTIFICATE APPROPRIATENESS PENDING CORRECTION OF THE THREE ITEMS THAT WERE SHOWN AS NOT ACCURATELY DOCUMENTED AS EXISTING CONDITIONS AND ENSURING ADHERENCE TO DESIGN STANDARDS IN TERMS OF FUTURE TREATMENT OF WINDOWS. OKAY. AND IS THERE A SECOND? ALL SECOND. COMMISSIONER, ACTON. COMMISSIONER COOK, WOULD YOU LIKE TO SPEAK TO YOUR MOTION? YEAH. AS, AS YOU'VE ALL SEEN NOW, THIS DISCUSSION GOT MUCH MORE COMPLICATED IN THE ARCHITECTURAL VIEW COMMITTEE AND YOU'RE, YOU'RE KIND OF HEARING A BIT OF IT. UH, AND I THINK IT DEFINITELY DESERVED A HEARING AND ESPECIALLY WHEN WE HAVE PEOPLE FROM THE, THE COMMUNITY WHO ARE HERE TO DISCUSS IT. UM, BUT YEAH, I WOULD DEFINITELY LIKE YOU TO PROVIDE ALL ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FOR BACKUP TO THIS CASE. SO ANYONE WHO'S INTERESTED CAN, CAN FIND IT AS IT COMES IN. AND, UM, I'M GLAD WE ANSWERED THAT, THAT ZONING QUESTION. AND WE DID HAVE SOME INPUT ON, ON THE, UH, ADDITION TO THE SOUTH, UH, OUR ABILITY TO REQUIRE RESTORATION OF ELEMENTS IS NOT VERY CLEAR BECAUSE WE USUALLY HAVE VERY BROAD PERIODS OF INTERPRETATION AND WE ALLOW MIXING AND MATCHING AND WE GENERALLY DON'T ENFORCE RESTORATION OF ELEMENTS UNLESS THEY'RE REALLY IMPORTANT. UH, BUT HISTORICAL COMMISSION AND PARTS CAN, AND THEIR REQUIREMENTS ARE MUCH MORE SPECIFIC THAN OURS. AND KNOWING THAT THIS IS UP FOR, UH, TAX CREDITS AND THERE'S EXTENSIVE RESEARCH BEING DONE AND THERE'S DECISIONS BEING MADE THAT ARE MUCH DEEPER THAN WE'RE GONNA MAKE, I KIND OF TRUSTED THAT PROCESS IN KNOWING THAT ANYTHING THAT I'VE SEEN THAT IS, UH, ORIGINAL HISTORIC MATERIAL IS BEING RETAINED. UM, AND UM, AGAIN, THIS BUILDING HAS UNDERGONE SO MANY MORE CHANGES. WHEN WE STARTED SEEING THE PICTURES AND SAW IT STARTED, IT'S, IT'S SURPRISING HOW MANY CHANGES IT'S GONE THROUGH. YOU CAN, YOU CAN READ A FEW OF THEM AND A FEW OF THEM ARE REALLY SURPRISING, BUT IT JUST CREATES A REALLY COMPLICATED STORY THAT PARKS AND HISTORICAL COMMISSION IS GONNA BE PARSING THROUGH IN TERMS OF THAT, UM, THE TAX CREDIT PROCESS. SO, UH, I DIDN'T SEE ANY HISTORIC MATERIAL BEING LOST. UH, THE MAIN THING I KIND OF HAD QUALMS WITH WAS THE, THE BULKINESS OF THE ADDITION IN THE REAR. THAT IS, YOU KNOW, WE TALK ABOUT CORNER PROPERTIES. THIS IS ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, A THREE-SIDED PROPERTY. AND WE, YOU KNOW, GENERALLY ALLOW ADDITIONS TOWARD THE REAR OF THE BUILDING WHEN NO HISTORIC FABRIC IS BEING LOST. AND THAT IS THE CASE HERE. IT IS BEING COVERED UP, BUT IT IS NOT BEING LOST. UH, IN TERMS OF SOME OF THE MATERIALS, UM, THEY LOOK LIKE NOT TOP-NOTCH MATERIALS, THEY'RE, THEY'RE AFFORDABLE MATERIALS FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING. THEY LOOK ATTRACTIVE. THEY'RE, THEY'RE, THEY'RE STURDY FOR GOOD DURABILITY, UH, LIKE THE SPLIT FACE CU AND THE STUCCO HARDY PANEL. BUT THEN YOU LOOK AT THE ORIGINAL BUILDING, WHICH APPEARS TO BE MADE FROM MANUFACTURED BLOCK, IT WAS BUILT AS AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN 1907. I THINK THAT'S JUST KIND OF A CONTINUATION OF THE HISTORY OF THIS BUILDING AND THE SCENE. CONTINUED USE OF THE HISTORY [02:00:01] OF THIS BUILDING, UH, WAS INTERESTING TOO. SO, SO FOR ALL, FOR ALL THESE REASONS, I I FELT CONFIDENT THAT THE HISTORY WILL BE RESPECTED, THAT THE WINDOWS AND DOORS IN PARTICULAR, I'M GLAD THOSE WERE BROUGHT UP. THE DOOR IN QUESTION IS NOT AN ORIGINAL DOOR. THE OPENING IS ORIGINAL, BUT OTHER OPENINGS HAVE EXISTED AND BEEN ENCLOSED, SO I DON'T HAVE TOO MUCH HEARTACHE ABOUT THAT BEING INFILLED. UH, AS LONG AS THE FRAME IS IS KEPT TO PORTRAY THE ORIGINAL OPENING. AND AGAIN, THE REQUIREMENTS, I, I DIDN'T WANNA MAKE ANY REQUIREMENT THAT WAS GONNA FOUL THE TAX CREDIT PROCESS AT DIFFERENT LEVELS. 'CAUSE WE COULD REQUIRE SOMETHING THAT WOULD BE IN CONFLICT WITH THEIR REQUIREMENTS AND THEREBY WE COULD BE FOULING THEIR ABILITY TO GET THIS TAX CREDIT, UH, PROJECT FOR AFFORDABLE HOUSING. SO, VERY COMPLICATED PROJECT. I, I FEEL COMFORTABLE RELEASING THE CERTIFICATE APPROPRIATENESS WITH THOSE FEW LITTLE CAVEATS, UH, TO BE RELEASED ADMINISTRATIVELY UPON CONFIRMATION. AND OBVIOUSLY YOU CAN SEE WHY IT WAS WORTHY OF DISCUSSION. NEED TO GET EVERYTHING INTO THE RECORD. COMMISSIONER ACTON, UH, I CONCUR WITH COMMISSIONER COOK. I ALSO THINK THE CORRECTING THOSE FEW LITTLE, UH, MINOR ISSUES, THIS IS GONNA GO THROUGH A PROCESS. N-P-S-T-H-C, UM, I THINK A LOT OF THE ITEMS THAT, THAT THE COMMUNITY HAD ISSUES WITH WILL BE KIND OF ADDRESSED THERE. THESE ARE ALSO NOT PURE TIME CAPSULES. THERE ARE, YOU KNOW, BOTH OF THOSE ENTITIES ALLOW THINGS TO BE CHANGED AND MODIFIED FOR USE. UM, AND A LOT OF TIMES IT IS VERY APPROPRIATE TO TRY TO GET THESE THINGS TO BE USED. AS YOU CAN SEE FROM ONE OF THE LAST CASES WE HAD, WHEN WE DON'T ALLOW THINGS TO CHANGE AT LEAST A LITTLE BIT AND FOR BE NEW USES, PEOPLE END UP JUST ABANDONING THEM. AND THEN WE HAVE THESE HARD DECISIONS OF WHAT HAPPENS WHEN IT SITS ABANDONED FOR 10 YEARS BECAUSE YOU COULDN'T ACTUALLY RETROFIT IT A BIT TO MAKE IT, UH, FIT FOR YOU. SO I'LL BE SUPPORTING, UH, THIS MOTION FOR THE, UH, STIPULA OF APPROPRIATENESS. THANK YOU COMMISSIONERS. ANY MORE DISCUSSION? AND I, I JUST FOR THE RECORD AS WELL, UM, WHAT THE THCS REVIEW, UH, WITH THE TAX CREDIT PROGRAM WILL ENTAIL IS WAY MORE DETAILED AND FAR MORE THOROUGH THAN WE WOULD BE AND CERTAINLY WILL ADDRESS, UH, EVERY ISSUE THAT THE NEIGHBORS HAVE BROUGHT UP. UH, IN TERMS OF MATERIALITY, UH, AND WHAT IS APPROPRIATE. UH, I'M STILL GONNA GO PLUG FOR THOSE TURRETS, IF THERE'S SOME TIME YOU CAN PUSH ON THAT ONE. BUT THERE AGAIN, UH, THAT, THAT FURTHER REVIEW, UH, WOULD DETERMINE WHETHER THAT'S EVEN POSSIBLE. ALRIGHT, UH, COMMISSIONERS, WE HAVE A MOTION ON THE FLOOR FOR, UH, APPROVING AS PER STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION, THE CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS AND WITH THE CLARIFICATIONS THAT WERE ADDED BY COMMISSIONER COOK IN HIS MOTION FOR ADDITIONAL REVIEW AND RELEASE. WITH STAFF'S, SIGN OFF. AND I'LL NOTE I DIDN'T REOPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING 'CAUSE I THINK THIS IS THE END OF THE ROAD FOR THIS CASE. IS THAT THE RIGHT THING TO, TO DO? OKAY. I BELIEVE THAT'S CORRECT, YES. ALRIGHT, SO WE HAVE A MOTION. AND SECOND, ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE INDICATE BY RAISING YOUR HAND. AND I SEE ALL HANDS ARE RAISED. IT IS UNANIMOUS. THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH. ALRIGHT, COMMISSIONERS, THAT BRINGS US UP TO OUR ITEM NUMBER [8. HR-2025-145729 – 2100 Barton Springs Rd. Zilker Park Barton Springs Bridge] EIGHT, UH, 2100 BARTON SPRINGS ROAD. THAT IS THE BARTON SPRINGS BRIDGE. THANK YOU CHAIR. THIS IS OUR FINAL DISCUSSION ITEM THIS EVENING. ITEM EIGHT AT 2100 BARTON SPRINGS ROAD IS A PROPOSAL TO CONSTRUCT A NEW BRIDGE IN PLACE AT THE EXISTING CONTRIBUTING BRIDGE, UH, RECONSTRUCT TRAILS AND RE RESTORE THE STREAM BANK. THE PROPOSED NEW BRIDGE WILL REPLACE THE EXISTING 1925, UH, AND 1946 BARTON CREEK BRIDGE AT BARTON SPRINGS ROAD IN AZ MORTON. DETERIORATION AND DEFERRED MAINTENANCE NECESSITATE BRIDGE REMOVAL WITH STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS, DEGRADATE DEGRADATION BEYOND REPAIR AND SAFETY CONCERNS, INCLUDING FLOOD CONTROL AND PEDESTRIAN SAFETY ISSUES. DRIVING COUNCIL APPROVAL FOR THE BOND PROGRAM IN 2023, THE SELECTED DESIGN APPEARS TO BE THE MOST COMPATIBLE OF THREE ORIGINAL OPTIONS. PROPOSED MATERIALS WILL MATCH THE EXISTING BRIDGE, BRIDGES, CONCRETE AND ASPHALT CONSTRUCTION. THE PROPOSED BRIDGE UTILIZES A SET OF ARCHED PIERS, REFLECTIVE OF THE EXISTING BRIDGES, DESIGN ORIENTED TRANSVERSE TO THE SEWER STRUCTURE OF THE BRIDGE TO PROVIDE A MAXIMUM AMOUNT OF VI OF VISIBILITY THROUGH THE UNDERSIDE. UH, THE PROPOSAL SHOWS THE BRIDGE HAS BEEN WIDENED TO ACCOMMODATE TWO LANES OF TRAFFIC PLANTERS AND SEEDING WITH SHADE DEVICES ON EITHER SIDE. STREETSCAPE ELEMENTS HAVE BEEN SELECTED TO BLEND WITH THE BRIDGES SURROUNDINGS AND WILL BE MINIMAL MINIMALLY VISIBLE ABOVE THE HANDRAIL. PROPOSED LIGHTING IS SIMPLE AND DESIGN AND THE PROPOSED STREAM BANK AND PEDESTRIAN PATHWAYS ARE SUPPORTED BY LER MASONRY AND STONE NEY RETAINING MALLS. THE CITY OF AUSTIN'S HISTORIC DESIGN STANDARDS ARE BASED ON THE SECRETARY OF THE INTERIOR STANDARDS FOR REHABILITATION AND ARE USED TO EVALUATE PROJECTS IN NATIONAL REGISTERED DISTRICTS. AND, UH, THIS PROJECT MOSTLY MEETS THE APPLICABLE STANDARDS, UM, AND SOME DEPARTMENT COMMENTS ON THIS. THE TIMELINE FOR THIS IS, UH, AN INTERESTING ONE BECAUSE THIS, UH, PROPOSED PROJECT IS ALSO CURRENTLY [02:05:01] IN REVIEW BY THE TEXAS HISTORICAL COMMISSION AND TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION AS PART OF THE NHPA SECTION 1 0 6 AND DOTA SECTION FOUR F PROCESSES AS IT UTILIZES FEDERAL FUNDS. UM, REPLACEMENT OF THE BRIDGE WAS APPROVED BY CITY COUNCIL IN 2023 AS PART OF THE BOND APPROVAL PROCESS. AND AS THE HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION'S PURVIEW IS ULTIMATELY TO RECOMMEND STRUCTURE SLATED FOR DEMOLITION TO CITY COUNCIL. AND FOR THIS CITY COUNCIL HAS ALREADY DECIDED TO ALLOW DEMOLITION OF THE EXISTING BRIDGE, UM, BY VOTING FOR ITS REPLACEMENT. UH, THE DEMOLITION WILL UNFORTUNATELY NOT RETURN TO THE HISTORIC LANDMARK COMMISSION TONIGHT FOR DELIBERATION AS COUNSEL HAS ALREADY MADE A DECISION. THUS, THE STAFF RECOMMENDATION IS TO COMMENT ON AND RELEASE THE PLANS, ENCOURAGING THE APPLICANT TO COMPLY WITH THE FOLLOWING THC FEEDBACK WHEN IT'S RECEIVED, AND TO REQUEST THE APPLICANT FOLLOW THE APPROPRIATE CITY PROCESS IF OTHER CONTRIBUTING STRUCTURES ARE TO BE REMOVED OR MODIFIED AS PART OF THE LARGER PROJECT. THAT CONCLUDES THE STAFF PRESENTATION. THANK YOU VERY MUCH. THANK YOU, COMMISSIONERS. DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OF STAFF? YES, COMMISSIONER LAROCHE. SO IN OUR, IN OUR BACKUP THERE, THERE ARE FOUR DIFFERENT OPTIONS, ONE OF WHICH IS PARTIAL REHABILITATION. IS THAT ON THE TABLE OR DID THE CITY COUNCIL APPROVAL OF THE DEMOLITION PACKAGE TRUMP THAT OPTION? MY UNDERSTANDING, COMMISSIONER, IS THAT CITY COUNCIL HAS VOTED ON THE REPLACEMENT BRIDGE, UH, THAT IS SELECTED IN THE PRESENTATION, BUT THE APPLICANT CAN SPEAK A LITTLE BIT FURTHER TO, UM, HOW THEY GOT TO THIS PARTICULAR OPTION FOR REPLACEMENT INSTEAD OF THE REHABILITATION OPTION. THANK YOU. HAVE A QUESTION? YES, COMMISSIONER HACKMAN. SO THAT MEANS THAT IN OR IN ORDER SINCE SO REHAB IS OFF THE TABLE, UNLESS WE DECIDE TO LANDMARK THE BRIDGE. THAT'S CORRECT. REHABILITATION HAS ALREADY BEEN TAKEN OFF THE TABLE BY CITY COUNCIL. UM, BUT THE CAVEAT HERE IS THAT CITY COUNCIL HAS ALREADY VOTED ON THE DEMOLITION, WHICH MEANS THAT IF Y'ALL VOTE TO LANDMARK, IT WILL GO BACK TO CITY COUNCIL, AT WHICH POINT THEY WILL SAY WE HAVE ALREADY VOTED. BUT JUST CYCLING BACK, LIKE THERE'S NO, THERE IS ABSOLUTELY NO OPTION. THERE'S ABSOLUTELY NO OPTION FOR REHABBING THE BRIDGE AT THIS POINT. I'LL LET THE APPLICANT SPEAK TO HOW THEY GOT THERE, BUT THAT'S MY UNDERSTANDING. AND THE PROPOSAL BEFORE US TODAY IS THE, UH, ONE OF THE THREE OPTIONS PROPOSED FOR REPLACEMENT INSTEAD OF REHABILITATION. OKAY. SO LET ME CLARIFY. UM, GOING THROUGH THE PRESENTATION, WHICH I'M JUMPING AHEAD, BUT THEY SHOW THE ANALYSIS, THEY SHOW THE VARIOUS OPTIONS, THEY SHOW THE REHAB, AND THEN WE ALREADY HAVE THE ANSWER. SO RIGHT. THEY'RE REVIEWING A PROCESS THAT WOULD'VE BEEN VERY NICE FOR US TO HAVE BEEN PART OF, BUT IT DOESN'T SEEM LIKE ANYTHING THAT'S GOING TO BE SHOWN TONIGHT, IT WOULD'VE MADE A LOT MORE SENSE AT THE BEGINNING OF THE PROCESS NOT TELLING US HOW THEY GOT HERE AT THE END. SO, OKAY. I HAVE A QUESTION AND WITH THAT WELL GO AHEAD, COMMISSIONER. GO AHEAD. DO YOU HAVE A QUESTION? I GONNA, YEAH, I WAS JUST GONNA SAY, WHY WERE WE THE LAST TONIGHT? WELL, MAYBE WE SHOULD WAIT FOR THAT QUESTION TO BE ADDRESSED IN THE PRESENTATION OR COMMISSIONER RO, DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING ELSE? WELL, I MEAN, THE, THE WHOLE THING IS EXTREMELY DISAPPOINTING. WE, WE'VE TALKED AT LENGTH ABOUT ENGINEERING STUDIES AND WHAT I HAVE IN MY BACKUP WOULD, WOULD BE WOEFULLY INEFFICIENT, INSUFFICIENT TO JUSTIFY REMOVAL OF THAT BRIDGE. I MEAN, THERE'S NO, THERE'S NO, THERE'S ENOUGH DETAIL IN HERE THAT, AND, AND SO THE, THE COST IMPLICATIONS OF REHABILITATION VERSUS REPLACEMENT ARE SKEWED BY, AT LEAST FOR ME TO OPINE AND FOR ME TO, AS A STRUCTURAL ENGINEER WITH AMPLE BRIDGE EXPERIENCE TO ADVISE MY COLLEAGUES ON THE DAAS, THERE'S NOT, THERE'S NOT ADEQUATE INFORMATION FOR ME TO DO THAT. THE, THE, THE, THE REHABILITATION BUDGET THAT'S PROVIDED TO ME BASED ON THE BACKUP I HAVE NOW, THERE MAY BE, YOU KNOW, MAYBE THE APPLICANTS WILL TELL ME THAT THERE'S WAY MORE DETAILED REPORTING SOMEWHERE, BUT WHAT'S PROVIDED TO ME IS INSUFFICIENT. AND I WOULD TELL MY COLLEAGUES THAT YOU CAN'T EVALUATE IT ON THIS. OKAY. WELL WE HEARD STAFF'S PRESENTATION. UH, WE HAVE AN APPLICANT WHO HAPPENS TO ALSO REPRESENT THE CITY IN THIS CASE. SO, UH, WE SHOULD HEAR FROM THE APPLICANT. GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS. UM, FOR THE RECORD, I AM AMIKA BO AND I AM THE ASSISTANT DIRECTOR OVER CIVIL ENGINEERING [02:10:01] SERVICES IN AUSTIN, TRANSPORTATION PUBLIC WORKS. I JUST WANNA INTRODUCE, UM, TWO OF OUR TEAMMATES HERE. UH, WE HAVE KAREEM HELMI, HE'S THE STRUCTURAL ENGINEER ON STAFF IN OUR DEPARTMENT, AND WE ALSO HAVE OUR DESIGN CONSULTANT, ARNOLD ASHBURN, HERE TO ANSWER QUESTIONS. AND I BELIEVE ON THE LINE FROM FLORIDA, WE HAVE, UM, BRADLEY TOUCHSTONE, THE BRIDGE ARCHITECT, AND HE IS HERE TO GIVE YOU THE PRESENTATION. OKAY. UH, MR. TOUCHSTONE, WOULD YOU PROCEED? YES. UH, GOOD EVENING AND, AND THANK YOU FOR THE TIME. UH, I'M BRADLEY TOUCHSTONE. I AM THE BRIDGE ARCHITECT WITH URSA ECOM AND I'M SPEAKING ON BEHALF OF THE BARTON SPRINGS BRIDGE PROJECT TEAM. UM, AND I'VE BEEN ASKED TO PROVIDE AN OVERVIEW OF THE PROJECT DEVELOPMENT PROCESS. JUST WANT TO CONFIRM REAL QUICK IF EVERYBODY CAN HEAR ME OKAY. YES. UH, AND WERE YOU HEARING OUR QUESTIONS OF STAFF PRIOR TO THIS? I DID, ABSOLUTELY. OKAY. SO PERHAPS YEAH, AS YOU GO THROUGH YOUR, BE SENSITIVE TO THAT, I'LL TALK TO THE DIRECTOR FOR THAT. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU. AND ALSO, I APOLOGIZE, THERE'S ABOUT A TWO MINUTE VIDEO DELAY, SO I'M GONNA BE FLYING BLIND A BIT. THERE WAS A PRESENTATION THAT WAS PROVIDED IN THE BACKUP MATERIAL AND UNDERSTAND THAT THAT WILL BE SHARED WITH YOU ALL ON THE SCREEN. AND I'M GONNA JUST TOUCH ON SOME OF THE, THE HIGHLIGHTS. THIS IS A PRESENTATION THAT WAS GIVEN, UM, TO THE, UH, EXCUSE ME, THE TEXAS HISTORIC COMMISSION AND HAS BEEN UPDATED, UM, SLIGHTLY. AND I'LL START ON PAGE THREE AND, AND JUST NOTE THAT THE BRIDGE WAS BUILT A HUNDRED YEARS AGO AND IS A WONDERFUL EXAMPLE OF, OF, OF A SPANDREL LARGE STRUCTURE. UH, IT WAS DOUBLED IN SIZE IN 1946 TO ITS CURRENT CONFIGURATION, UH, AND HAS SERVED THE COMMUNITY FOR THE PAST 80 YEARS IN ITS CURRENT FORM. UH, SKIPPING TO PAGE FIVE, UH, WE'VE OUTLINED THE PROJECT PURPOSE AND NEED FOR THE, UH, FOR THE PROJECT AND IT CENTERS ON, UH, SAFETY CONGESTION AND INSUFFICIENT MULTIMODAL ACCOMMODATIONS. UH, AND IT'S WORTH NOTING THAT THIS WORK HAS BEEN UNDERTAKEN IN CONSULTATION WITH OTHER STAKEHOLDER AGENCIES, INCLUDING THE TEXAS DOT, THE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION, UH, AND THE TEXAS HISTORICAL COMMISSION. UM, THE, AND AS YOU CAN SEE, THE, THE PROJECT NEED REALLY IS THE CENTERED ON SAFETY, AND THAT'S A FUNCTION OF THE AGE OF THE STRUCTURE. AND SO, SKIPPING TO PAGE NINE, WE DID EXAMINE BOTH REHABILITATION AND REPLACEMENT OPTIONS. UM, THE PROJECT BEGAN WITH AN EXAMINATION OF BOTH OF THESE OPTIONS FOLLOWING SECTION 1 0 6 GUIDELINES, THAT NOTION OF AVOID, MINIMIZE, AND MITIGATE HISTORICAL IMPACTS. AND THE REHABILITATION OPTION STARTED WITH A LIGHT TOUCH PRESERVATION, UH, WHERE ADDITIONAL CAPACITY WAS HANDLED THROUGH A SEPARATE STRUCTURE. SO INSTEAD OF EXPANDING THE SIZE OF THIS BRIDGE, WAS THERE SOME WAY THAT WE COULD JUST VERY DELICATELY REHABILITATE THIS BRIDGE AND THEN LOOK AT SECONDARY STRUCTURES, UH, FOR PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE ACCOMMODATIONS, FOR EXAMPLE, UH, WE ALSO LOOKED AT, UM, A, A MORE INTENSE REHABILITATION OPTION, WHICH INCLUDES A WIDENING OF THE DECK, AND WE'VE BEEN EXPLORING ADDITIONAL REPLACEMENT OPTIONS AS WELL. SO SKIPPING TO PAGE 11, UM, ALTHOUGH APPARENTLY IT WAS NOT INCLUDED IN THE BACKGROUND INFORMATION, A VERY DETAILED STRUCTURAL ANALYSIS, AN INSPECTION HAS BEEN PERFORMED OF THE BRIDGE. AND SOME OF THESE PHOTOGRAPHS DO SHOW, UH, SOME IMAGES FROM THAT, FROM THAT INSPECTION, UH, AND ANALYSIS WHERE YOU CAN SEE THAT THE BRIDGE IS AN ADVANCED STATE OF DETERIORATION AND THEREFORE, BASED ON THAT ANALYSIS, UM, THE LIGHT TOUCH PRESERVATION WAS DEEMED NOT POSSIBLE. UM, IN ORDER TO ACHIEVE CURRENT SAFETY STANDARDS AND TO BREATHE 75 YEARS OF SERVICE LIFE BACK INTO THE PROJECT, IT DOES REQUIRE EXTENSIVE AMOUNT OF, OF WORK TO BE DONE ON THE EXISTING BRIDGE. CAN CAN WE HOLD YOU JUST SO MOVING AHEAD? CAN, CAN WE JUST HOLD YOU RIGHT THERE? SURE, GO AHEAD. WOULD YOU, UH, ABSOLUTELY. YOU HAVE TWO, UH, PRESERVATION STRUCTURAL ENGINEERS. UH, YOU'VE ALREADY HEARD FROM COMMISSIONER LAROCHE, BUT ALSO COMMISSIONER ACTON. UH, WOULD YOU CARE TO JUST EITHER ANSWER THEIR QUESTIONS IN MORE DETAIL AS YOU WRAP UP, OR RIGHT NOW MAYBE IF YOU AREN'T SHOWING US THE ENTIRE BACKUP, GIVE SOME INDICATION OF THE ADDITIONAL ITEMS THAT LED YOU TO CONCLUDE TO MAKE THOSE CONCLUSIONS. SINCE MY EXPERTISE IS IN THE AREA OF, UH, OF BRIDGE ARCHITECTURE, I'D LIKE TO, WITH YOUR PERMISSION, HAVE ARNOLD ASHBURN WEIGH IN ON SOME OF THE, THE SPECIFIC STRUCTURAL, UH, DETERIORATION CONCERNS THAT, THAT LED US TO THAT CONCLUSION. OKAY. UH, WE CAN, WE CAN CONTINUE WITH THE PRESENTATION AND THEN HAVE THAT AS A FOLLOW-UP. DOES THAT MAKE MORE SENSE? YEAH. [02:15:01] OKAY. LET'S DO THAT. WE THANK YOU, BUT LET'S NOT CHANGE SPEAKERS. OKAY. GO AHEAD. PROCEED WITH YOUR PRESENTATION. ABSOLUTELY. AND I APPRECIATE THE QUESTION THAT, THE QUESTION THAT YOU HAVE IS, IS VERY IMPORTANT AND IT ONE, ONE THAT HAS BEEN VERY SERIOUSLY CONSIDERED. OKAY, THANK YOU. UM, AND SO IF WE, IF WE SKIP AHEAD TO PAGE 16, IT REALLY SHOWS WHAT'S INVOLVED IN THE REHABILITATION, UM, OF THE EXISTING BRIDGE. UM, IT WOULD REQUIRE THE REMOVAL OF THE DECK AND THE SPANDREL COLUMNS AS WELL AS THE FLOOR BEAMS. UM, AND THEN THE ARCHES THEMSELVES AND THE, AND THE MAIN STRUCTURAL COLUMNS WOULD UNDERGO EXTENSIVE REPAIRS. AND THEN WE WOULD BE ADDING TWO ADDITIONAL SETS OF ARCHES ON EITHER SIDE OF THE EXISTING BRIDGE. AND SO WHAT WE, WHAT WE, WE WOULD BE DOING IS ESSENTIALLY, UM, ENCASING OR FLANKING THE EXISTING BRIDGE WITH, WITH ADDITIONAL SPANS OF SPAND ARCHES AND COLUMNS. AND THEN SKIPPING TO PAGE 20 TO JUST, UH, TOUCH QUICKLY ON SOME OF THE REPLACEMENT OPTIONS. WE WENT THROUGH A WHOLE PERIOD OF DIFFERENT, UH, PERMUTATIONS LOOKING AT NOT ONLY THE HISTORICAL, UM, NATURE OF THE STRUCTURE, BUT ALSO, UM, THE, THE USER MODALITIES, THE PEOPLE THAT INTERACT WITH THIS BRIDGE AND WHAT THAT EXPERIENCE IS LIKE IN TERMS OF VIEW SHEDS, IN TERMS OF ADJACENCY TO THE TRAIL SYSTEM, THE WATER USERS. UH, AND, AND WE NARROW THAT DOWN BASED ON ALSO, I'LL SAY THAT WE, WE ALSO FOLLOWED THE NATIONAL COUNCIL AND THE SORT PRESERVATIONS DESIGN GUIDELINES FOR REPLACEMENT OF AN HISTORICAL STRUCTURE. SO WE REALLY FOCUSED ON PAYING HOMAGE TO THE EXISTING BRIDGE, BUT NOT TRYING TO CREATE HISTORICAL MIMICRY. BUT INSTEAD WE WANTED TO MAKE SURE THAT WE WERE EXAMINING OPTIONS THAT WERE CLEARLY OF THEIR TIME THAT REPRESENTED THE LATEST IN DESIGN AND ENGINEERING PRINCIPLES AND CONSTRUCTION, UH, METHODOLOGIES. AND SO WE ENDED UP WITH A SHORT LIST OF, OF THREE DIFFERENT KINDS OF, OF BRIDGES. A A SINGLE SPAN, SINGLE ARCH UNDERSUNG ARCH BRIDGE, UM, A TWOP SPAN, UH, BRIDGE WITH A Y PIER AND A LONGITUDINAL CONFIGURATION THAT MEANS GOING ALONG THE LENGTH OF THE BRIDGE AND THEN A THREE SPAN BRIDGE WITH Y PEERS IN THE TRANSVERSE DIRECTION. OKAY. AND I JUST FOR THE RECORD, WE, WE, WE HAD A TIMER, BUT AT THE SAME TIME WE INTERRUPTED YOUR PRESENTATION FOR DISCUSSION, SO PLEASE PROCEED. YEP. OH, I'M, I'LL BE AS QUICK AS I CAN. SO PAGE 24, IT, IT REALLY SHOWS WHERE WE, WE COMPARED THOSE THREE OPTIONS BASED ON A RANGE OF REQUIREMENTS INCLUDING COMPLEXITY, UH, VISUAL OPENNESS, COST, AND OPTION THREE, WHICH IS A THREE SPAN TRANSVERSE WIPE BEER CONFIGURATION, UH, WAS CHOSEN AS THE PREFERRED OPTION. PAGE 25 VERY QUICKLY, UH, SHOWS WHERE WE COMPARED THE PREFERRED REPLACEMENT OPTION WITH THE REHABILITATION OPTION. AND THAT DIRECT COMPARISON CLEARLY SHOWS THAT THE REPLACEMENT ALTERNATIVE WAS THE BEST PATH FORWARD. AND THIS, AGAIN, WAS AGREED UPON BY THE, UM, UH, BY THE CITY COUNCIL IN 2023. AND THEN PAGE 28 IS JUST THE BEGINNING OF A, OF A SERIES OF RENDERINGS THAT WE HAVE. AND I CAN TALK ABOUT SOME OF THE ARCHITECTURAL FEATURES OF THE, OF THE PREFERRED ALTERNATIVE. UH, IF, IF, UH, YOU WOULD LIKE FOR ME TO, BUT I'LL PAUSE THERE AND AND ENTERTAIN QUESTIONS. SURE. UH, COMMISSIONERS, ANY QUESTIONS OF THE BRIDGE ARCHITECT? YES, I JUST HAD ONE QUESTION. IT SEEMS LIKE THERE'S A POTENTIAL THIRD WAY THAT I DON'T KNOW IF HAD BEEN DISCUSSED WOULD BE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE EXISTING BRIDGE AT THE EXISTING WIDTH AND MASSING AND CREATING A SEPARATE SMALLER BRIDGE WITH IT APPROPRIATE TO, ITS ITS LOADING, BEING LIGHTER FOR PEDESTRIAN PASSAGE. WAS THAT SOMETHING THAT WAS CONSIDERED? 'CAUSE IT SEEMS LIKE IT'S EITHER REHABILITATE THE EXISTING BRIDGE AND ADD TO IT AND MAKE IT WIDE OR TEAR IT DOWN AND ADD A NEW ONE THAT'S WIDE. IT DOESN'T SEEM LIKE THERE'S ONE THAT KEEPS THE EXISTING WIDTH, BUT THEN PUTS THE PEDESTRIAN ACCENT, WHICH I THINK ARE MUCH NEEDED THERE, BUT PUT THEM ON A SEPARATE PATH. WAS THAT CONSIDERED IT? IT WAS, BUT ONE OF THE REAL CHALLENGES THE PROJECT IS THAT WE NEED TO MAINTAIN TWO WAYS, TWO-WAY TRAFFIC THROUGHOUT THE LIFE OF CONSTRUCTION. AND SO WE'VE GOT TO BE VERY CREATIVE ABOUT HOW WE PARTIALLY BUILD, UH, THE NEW BRIDGE AND THEN, UH, DEMO THE EXISTING BRIDGE AND THEN ADD ADDITIONAL LANES SO THAT THAT MAINTENANCE OF TRAFFIC SCHEME REALLY RULED OUT, UH, THE OPTION THAT YOU'RE REFERRING TO. THANK YOU. OKAY. COMMERS, ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? YES, MR. WRIGHT? UM, I'M JUST LOOKING AT THE, THE DIAGRAMS FOR THE PROPOSAL AND I'M SEEING, UM, TWO LANES OF CAR TRAFFIC EACH WAY IN ADDITION TO THE RIGHT TURN LANE GOING EAST. AND I'M JUST, I'M, I'M CURIOUS ABOUT WHERE THE DECISION TO RESTORE [02:20:01] THE TWO LANES OF WESTBOUND TRAFFIC CAME FROM, GIVEN THAT THERE WERE, THAT'S BEEN ELIMINATED IN THE LAST YEAR OR TWO. UM, AND AS FAR AS I'M AWARE, THAT'S BEEN RECEIVED PRETTY, PRETTY WELL BY THE COMMUNITY. AND I'M JUST, I'M JUST CURIOUS WHERE THAT CAME FROM. UM, I DON'T, ARNOLD IS DEREK, UH, IN THE ROOM BECAUSE I'D LOVE FOR HIM TO BE ABLE TO ADDRESS THE, UH, THE LANE CONFIGURATION AND TRAFFIC CONFIGURATION OPTIONS FOR THE BRIDGE. OKAY. WE'LL JUST, JUST TO ADDRESS THAT ONE ISSUE. UM, BUT WE STILL HAVE OTHER SPEAKERS, SO IF YOU GO AHEAD AND INTRODUCE YOURSELF FOR THE RECORD, SIR, AND IF YOU CAN ADDRESS THAT QUESTION. YEAH. UH, DEREK HALEY WITH URS. UM, SO WHEN THE BRIDGE WAS, UM, EXCUSE ME, WHEN THE PROJECT WAS STARTED, THAT LANE CONFIGURATION WAS WHAT WAS THERE AND IT'S KIND OF CARRIED OVER. UM, WHEN WE PUT IN FOR THE FEDERAL FUNDING, THERE WAS A RIGHT TURN LANE THAT TURNS WEST ON A MORTON THAT HAS BEEN BROUGHT BACK AS WELL. SO THOSE ARE PORTIONS OF THE PROJECT THAT ARE, UM, PART OF, WE'RE PERMITTED AND PART OF NEED TO STAY PART OF THE PROJECT. DOES THAT ANSWER YOUR QUESTION, COMMISSIONER RICE? I, I BELIEVE IT DOES. OKAY. ALRIGHT. UM, ARE THERE OTHER QUESTIONS AGAIN, OF THE BRIDGE ARCHITECT? SO WE'LL CONCLUDE THOSE COMMENTS. UH, THOSE, UH, THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRESENTATION. DO WE HAVE THE SECOND SPEAKER? CAN WE BRING THE STRUCTURAL BACKUP NOW? OPPOSITION? ABSOLUTELY. OKAY. WELL, OR OR WE COULD ASK THAT STRUCTURAL, MAKE A PRESENTATION NOW TO ADDRESS THOSE QUESTIONS. DO THAT NOW OR AFTER? NO, LET'S DO THAT. OKAY. SO IF, IF THERE'S ANOTHER PREPARED SPEAKER, WE'RE READY FOR THAT. IF NOT, WE WOULD LIKE TO SPEAK TO THE STRUCTURAL ENGINEER REGARDING THE STRUCTURAL DEFICIENCIES, IF THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING THAT YOU WOULD DIS UH, PLEASE PRESENT, IDENTIFY YOURSELF FOR THE RECORD, AND THEN BE PREPARED TO DISCUSS. HI, I'M ARNOLD ASHBURN. I'M THE PROJECT MANAGER FOR URSA ECOM ON THE PROJECT. I AM NOT THE STRUCTURAL ENGINEER, BUT I'VE BEEN INVOLVED IN THE PROJECT SINCE WE STARTED, UH, DID THE INSPECTION BACK IN 2016. WE PUT TOGETHER A PRETTY EXTENSIVE, UH, BRIDGE CONCEPTUAL ENGINEERING REPORT, BCER. I DON'T KNOW IF Y'ALL HAVE HAD A CHANCE TO SEE THAT. IT GOES INTO GREAT DETAIL ON HOW WE STARTED AND HOW WE SELECTED THE, THE BRIDGE THAT, THAT WE DID. PART OF THAT, THE REASON I BRING THAT UP IS THAT PART OF THAT, THERE'S AN APPENDIX THAT IS THE BRIDGE INSPECTION REPORT. WE DID A, AN EXTENSIVE INSPECTION DOING MATERIALS TESTING. WE HAD, UH, THREE STRUCTURAL FORENSICS, UH, ENGINEERS ON SNOOPER ON A SNOOPER TRUCK WHERE THEY HAVE THE BASKET THAT GOES UP UNDER THE, THE STRUCTURE. AND THEY WERE, UH, TAKING CORE SAMPLES AND TAKING SURFACE SAMPLES AND DOING, THEY WERE SOUNDING SO THEY WERE TAPPING ALONG THE DIFFERENT MEMBERS AND DIFFERENT THINGS, LISTENING FOR HOLLOW SOUNDS WHERE YOU'RE ALREADY SEEING THE, THE POTENTIAL DELAMINATION AND THEY QUITE FOUND QUITE A FEW ISSUES THERE. AND THAT'S ALL DETAILED IN THAT REPORT. AND HAS THAT REPORT BEEN MADE AVAILABLE TO THE STAFF OR CERTAIN NOT, IT'S NOT PART OF OUR BACKUP. HAVE WE, HAVE YOU PROVIDED THAT TO US? I, NO. OKAY. WE'RE HEARING NOW. WE DON'T THINK SO. OKAY. UM, THEN MAYBE WE HAVE QUESTIONS ABOUT MAYBE SOME OF THE ELEMENTS OF THAT REPORT THAT MAY BE RELEVANT. UH, COMMISSIONERS, DO YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS OF THE, THE, THE SPEAKER? I THINK IT'S A LITTLE BIT OF A FUTILE EFFORT, RIGHT? LIKE AT THIS POINT, BUT I MEAN, I'D LIKE TO UNDERSTAND THE DETERIORATION MECHANISMS. I'D LIKE TO UNDERSTAND THE SECTION LOSS, YOU KNOW, HOW WAS THAT EVALUATED? WHAT, AND MR. HELME MAY KNOW MORE ABOUT THAT. I MEAN, HE, HE'S PROBABLY FAMILIAR WITH THE REPORT, BUT I JUST WANNA UNDERSTAND HOW THE DETERMINATION WAS MADE THAT THE RESTORATION OF THAT PRIME ELEMENTS OF THAT STRUCTURE WEREN'T, WERE DETERMINED TO BE INFEASIBLE BASED ON, I JUST WANNA KNOW HOW WE GOT THERE. AND, HELLO, I'M KAREEM HELMI. UM, I'M WITH THE OFFICE OF CITY ENGINEER. SO IT'S, IT'S DUE TO ALL THE DEFECTS THAT HAVE BEEN IDENTIFIED ON THE EXISTING BRIDGE AND THE SCOURING AND UNDERMINING [02:25:01] OF THE WEST BANK OF THE BRIDGE STRUCTURE THAT LED US TO THIS POINT. AND IN FULL DISCLOSURE, COMMISSIONERS, I WORK WITH KAREEM QUITE A BIT, AND SO , THIS IS, THIS IS PROBABLY AWKWARD FOR BOTH OF US, BUT, UH, UH, THIS KIND OF SPEAKS TO THE DETERIORATION MECHANISMS ON THE BRIDGE ITSELF AND DOESN'T REALLY DISCUSS SCOUR AND UNDERMINING OF THE FOUNDATION ON THE, ON THE, ON THE ABUTMENT. SO I APPRECIATE THAT INPUT. I STILL DON'T THINK IT, I STILL, WELL, I'M IN A TOUGH SPOT CHAIR BECAUSE YOU WANT ME TO DO IT. I JUST NO, I JUST DON'T, I DON'T HAVE ENOUGH INFORMATION TO LIKE, TO, TO, TO SAY, OH, WELL, OKAY, NOW THAT, NOW YOU'VE CONVINCED ME, YOU KNOW, THAT IT, IT IT'S JUST WHAT I HAVE IS, WELL, YOU HAVE JUST A CONCLUSION. YOU, YOU HAVE, IT'S LIKE, IT'S LIKE YOU, YOU HAVE THE ANSWER TO THE EQUATION WITHOUT ANY OF THE NUMBERS. WELL, YOU HAVE A FEW PICTURES OF NEAR SURFACE. YOU HAVE A FEW PICTURES OF NEAR SURFACE DELAMINATION, OTHERWISE THE BAR'S NOT, NOT NECESSARILY EVEN HAVE A LOT OF SECTION LOSS IN THE COUPLE OF PHOTOS YOU HAVE. AND SO I KNOW THIS ISN'T ALL YOU HAVE, BUT YOU KNOW, WHAT WAS, WHEN YOU TOOK CORES, WHAT WAS THE STRENGTH? WHAT DID YOU DO HALF PAST CELL POTENTIAL? DID YOU, YOU KNOW, WHAT DID YOU DO TO DETERMINE WHAT THIS WAS? I MEAN, TO SOME EXTENT MOOT POINT, BUT IT WOULD'VE BEEN AT LEAST AN INTERESTING EXERCISE, UM, TO, I, I GUESS WHAT WE'RE SAYING IS I'M SURE YOU CAN EMPATHIZE WITH OUR POSITION BASED ON THE INFORMATION WE HAVE MM-HMM . RIGHT? LIKE YOU HAVE WAY MORE DETAIL THAN WE DO. WE HAVE, YOU KNOW, SOME NICE PICTURES AND A VERY SUMMARY DESCRIPTION. A COUPLE OF THINGS TO ADD RIGHT NOW, LOADING OF REQUIREMENTS ON THE BRIDGE ARE LIMITED TO THE RIGHT SIDE FOR ANY HEAVY LOAD. SO ONLY THE BUSES CAN RUN ON THAT ROAD, ON THAT SIDE OF THE BRIDGE ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE, THAT'S THE NORTH SIDE. AM I CORRECT? UM, AND ALSO IN THOSE PHOTOS THAT STEEL WAS ALREADY NOT, IT WAS DELAMINATING. IF WE CAN GO BACK TO THAT SLIDE MM-HMM . YOU COULD SEE THAT IT'S, YOU KNOW, STEEL KIND OF AS IT FALLS APART. YEAH. IT'S A SKULL FOLIATION. YEAH. YEAH. SO EVEN TO DO REHAB ON THAT, YOU HAVE TO CHIP BACK CONSIDERABLY TO GET THE SOLIDS. CHUCK, CHUCK AND I DO THIS. CHUCK USED TO WORK, I USED TO WORK WITH CHUCK. I KNOW HOW TO REPAIR CONCRETE. SO I DUNNO WHO YOU THINK YOU'RE TALKING TO. YEAH. BUT THE FACT IS, IS LIKE I SAID BEFORE, MOST EVERYTHING'S REPAIRABLE. IT'S JUST, IS IT WORTH IT OR NOT? AND WHAT WE HAVE TO SIT HERE AND DO IS DETERMINE IF SOMETHING IS WORTH IT OR NOT. THAT'S LIKE OUR WHOLE ROLE UP HERE. AND SO IT TAKES A CERTAIN AMOUNT OF INFORMATION TO DETERMINE IF SOMETHING IS WORTH IT OR NOT. NOW, LIKE I SAID, WE'RE SITTING TO SOME EXTENT LAY MOOT POINT, BUT MAYBE THIS, THIS WILL SPARK SOMETHING IN THE FUTURE THAT IT'S REALLY NICE TO HAVE THAT ENOUGH INFORMATION TO DETERMINE HOW STRONGLY WE NEED TO FIGHT FOR SOMETHING BEING WORTH IT. AND THAT'S, THAT'S I THINK WHERE WE ARE SITTING IS WE DON'T HAVE THAT INFORMATION. WE CAN GET TO THE REPORT TO THEM TOO. OH, ANOTHER COMMENT, SORRY. UM, COMMISSIONERS, WE HAVE THE BRIDGE CONCEPT ENGINEERING REPORT FROM 2023 PRIOR TO THE COUNCIL ACTION. SO WE CAN PROVIDE THAT, UM, AS BACKUP TO THIS OR, YOU KNOW, POST-MEETING YEAH. AS WELL AS THE, THE EVALUATION REPORT. THE CONDITIONS, UH, EVALUATION WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL. UH, IF NOTHING ELSE, JUST SO THE RECORD'S COMPLETE. CERTAINLY. OKAY. UM, ARE THERE OTHER ITEMS THAT THE, UH, APPLICANT WISHES TO PRESENT OR WE COMPLETED THE PRESENTATION. ALRIGHT. ARE THERE SPEAKERS THEN SIGNED UP? AND DO WE HAVE ANY IN FAVOR? WE HAVE NO OTHER SPEAKERS IN FAVOR, BUT WE DO HAVE EIGHT SPEAKERS IN OPPOSITION. UH, THE FIRST BEING. OKAY, BUT LET ME JUST, BEFORE WE CALL THIS SPEAKERS IN OPPOSITION, LET ME MAKE IT VERY CLEAR TO EVERYONE HERE, INCLUDING THE COMMISSIONERS, THAT THIS IS IN FRONT OF US BECAUSE OF THE WESTLINE NATIONAL REGISTER, UH, THE, THE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC DISTRICT. OUR JURISDICTION IS FOR DISCUSSION AND WE DON'T HAVE A FINAL SAY. WE CAN DISCUSS ITEMS AND HOPE THAT THEIR ADVICE IS ADHERED TO AND OUR EXPERIENCE IS PART OF THE RECORD. UH, THAT'S WHY WE HAVE OTHER DISCUSSIONS, UH, FOR SIMILAR PROJECTS THAT ARE IN THESE HISTORIC DISTRICTS. UH, HAVE I GOT THAT RIGHT? STAFF IS THERE, I MEAN THAT OUR, OUR WHOLE POINT IS TO, UH, SHARE OUR IDEAS DURING A DISCUSSION PERIOD, BUT WE DO NOT HAVE THE FINAL SAY ON A PROJECT OF THIS KIND AS IT WAS MENTIONED, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF IF WE DECIDE WE'RE GONNA ZONE IT HISTORIC. [02:30:01] THAT'S CORRECT. CHAIR, A MINOR CORRECTION THAT THIS IS A ZILKER PARK NATIONAL REGISTER. HISTORIC DISTRICT. OH, I'M SORRY, I'M, I JUMPED, I LOOKED AT THE WRONG ONE ON THE AGENDA. THE ZILKER, THE ZILKER PARK HISTORIC DISTRICT. YES. THAT'S THE REASON WE'RE TALKING ABOUT IT. AND THAT IS OUR PURPOSE IS TO MAKE SURE THESE COMMENTS ARE, UH, GIVEN TO AN APPLICANT SO THAT THEY CAN MAXIMIZE THE USE OF THAT. UH, OBVIOUSLY WE'VE ALREADY TALKED ABOUT THE SEQUENCE, BUT UH, PLEASE BE AWARE, WE DO NOT HAVE FINAL SAY IN TERMS OF THIS IS NOT A CERTIFICATE OF APPROPRIATENESS. ALRIGHT. YES, COMMISSIONER MURRAY. A QUICK QUESTION, I JUST WANNA CLARIFY, UM, THAT DEMOLITION HAS ALREADY BEEN APPROVED BY COUNSEL, SO WE ARE NOT DISCUSSING DEMOLITION TONIGHT. ARE WE JUST MAKING COMMENTS ON THE PROPOSED NEW CONSTRUCTION? I THINK IT'S APPROPRIATE FOR US TO DISCUSS ALL ASPECTS OF THE PROJECT, UH, BECAUSE THEN THAT WILL BE PART OF THE RECORD, BUT, UH, I THINK WE CAN PRETTY MUCH READ INTO THE DISCUSSION, UH, ITEMS. UH, WHAT WILL BE MOST BENEFICIAL AT THIS POINT CERTAINLY WOULD HAVE MORE TO DO WITH THE DESIGN OF THE CURRENT BRIDGE. UH, THAT, THAT'S, THAT'S A FAIR STATEMENT. SO, JUST JUST A POINT OF CLARIFICATION THEN. UH, IT, WE ONLY HAVE LIMITED TOOLS TO KIND OF RESPOND AND MAKE OUR FEELINGS KNOW. RIGHT. BUT ONE OF THOSE TOOLS COULD BE DESIGNATION THAT'S ALWAYS AVAILABLE TO US FOR THESE TYPES OF SITUATIONS. CORRECT. RECOMMENDING DESIGNATION. YES. UNDERSTOOD. YEAH, INITIATING HISTORIC ZONING WOULD, WOULD, WOULD BE THE FIRST STEP IN THAT SITUATION. OKAY. ALRIGHT. WE HAVE SPEAKERS SIGNED UP. YES, WE DO. ALRIGHT. OUR FIRST IN OPPOSITION SPEAKER IS BOBBY LEVINSKY. OKAY. MR. LEBINSKI, ARE YOU HERE? I DO NOT BELIEVE THAT THEY ARE HERE, ALTHOUGH THEY ARE A VIRTUAL SPEAKER. NOPE, NOT ONLINE. SORRY. OKAY. OUR NEXT VIRTUAL SPEAKER IS HEATHER. OKAY. WHO ALSO DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE ONLINE. OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS DAVID WEINBERG, WHO DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE HERE AS EITHER. OKAY. OUR NEXT SPEAKER IN OPPOSITION IS BILL BUNCH. OKAY, MR. BUNCH. WELCOME. THANK YOU CHAIR COMMISSIONERS FOR YOUR SERVICE TO OUR COMMUNITY. REALLY APPRECIATE IT. BILL BUNCH, ATTORNEY EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR WITH SAVE OUR SPRINGS ALLIANCE, FORMER PRESIDENT OF THE ZILKER NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION. YOU SHOULD HAVE IN YOUR BACKUP A RESOLUTION FROM THE ZNA AS WELL AS FROM THE BARTON HILLS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION OPPOSING THIS, UM, SAVE OUR SPRINGS, OPPOSING IT, REWILD AUSTIN OPPOSING IT. UM, AND I ASK YOU, I BEG YOU TO REALIZE THAT THIS IS NOT MOOT YET. THE CITY DOESN'T HAVE THE MONEY TO GO FORWARD WITH IT RIGHT NOW. THEY MADE THAT CHOICE IN 2023 WHEN INFORMATION WAS BEING HIDDEN FROM THEM. UM, AND THE WHOLE THING HAS CHANGED QUITE A BIT AND I'LL TOUCH ON THE KEY POINTS OF THAT. UM, PLEASE POSTPONE THIS FOR ONE MORE MONTH TO GET THE INFORMATION YOU NEED. THERE IS AN ENGINEERING ASSESSMENT REPORT THAT I THINK YOU'LL FIND VERY INTERESTING. THERE'S TRAILS THAT I WALK ON, RUN ON, AND THEN I SWIM UNDER THIS BRIDGE ON A REGULAR BASIS. YOU CAN GO LOOK AT THIS BRIDGE UNDERNEATH AND SEE THAT IT'S IN GOOD SHAPE. THOSE UGLY PICTURES YOU SEE, THAT'S NOT EVEN WHERE THE ENGINEERING REPORT SAYS THERE'S A PROBLEM. UM, THAT'S, IT DOESN'T LOOK GOOD, BUT IT'S REPAIRABLE. UM, SO YOU HAVE HAVE A LETTER I, I HOPEFULLY FROM TOM CAM STRUCTURAL ENGINEER WHO'S LITERALLY BUILT BRIDGES FOR THE CITY WHO REVIEWED THEIR REPORT, DID A VISUAL INSPECTION AND SAYS POINT BLANK THAT THIS VERY MUCH CAN BE TAKEN CARE OF. UH, AND SHOULD BE, I MEAN, WE GOT BRIDGES CENTURIES OLD IN EUROPE THAT ARE STILL BEING TAKEN CARE OF AND WE SHOULD DO THE SAME WITH THIS ONE. UM, THE TRAFFIC SAFETY ISSUES, THERE'S NO DATA WHATSOEVER THAT THE MR THE GENTLEMAN MENTIONED. THERE'S NO MENTION WHAT, THERE'S NO DATA WHATSOEVER TO SAY THERE'S A TRAFFIC SAFETY PROBLEM HERE. UM, THE REPORT YOU HAVE HERE THAT I GAVE YOU, THE, THE, UH, FROM 2023, THIS WAS HIDDEN. THIS [02:35:01] WAS NOT AVAILABLE TO COUNSEL WHEN THEY DECIDED IN 2023. THIS IS SUPPOSED TO LOOK AT SPECIFICALLY COMPARING THE REPLACEMENT TO THE REHAB. THEY PUT THE THUMB ON THE SCALE BECAUSE THE REHAB IS REALLY A REHAB AND EXPANSION. BUT EVEN THAT, IF YOU FLIP OVER TO PAGE NINE, UM, AND THE CHART THAT I'VE HIGHLIGHTED WHERE THEY DID THE COST COMPARISON, OKAY, OPTION THREE REPLACEMENT. THAT IS THEIR PREFERRED ONE. THEY SAID EVEN WITH THE LIFECYCLE COST AT THAT POINT, THEY'RE ESTIMATING 13.3 MILLION, WHEREAS THE REHAB, WHICH WAS REHAB WITH A BIG EXPANSION THAT WE DON'T NEED, THEY DIDN'T EVER MENTION REALLY 17.8 MILLION. WELL, THE COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWS REPORTED IN APRIL OF THIS YEAR THAT IT'S NOT 13.3 MILLION LIFECYCLE. IT'S NOT THE 10.2 MILLION CONSTRUCTION. IT'S 54.5 MILLION. SO THEY RIGGED THE DEAL AND NOW THEY'RE GETTING THE 54 MILLION. GO BACK TO THE BEGINNING WHEN THIS CONTRACT WAS FIRST LET TO THIS GIANT CORPORATION, ACOM. NOW URS GO TO THEIR WEBSITE, ALL THE SERVICES, THEY DO. NOT A SINGLE WORD ABOUT TAKING CARE OF PRESERVING AND MAINTAINING HISTORIC STRUCTURES OR HISTORIC BRIDGES. THEY TEAR STUFF DOWN AND THEY BUILD GIANT NEW STUFF FOR BIG BUCKS. AND IT WAS A COMPLETE CONFLICT OF INTEREST TO LET THEM BOTH ASSESS THE BRIDGE AND HAVE ALREADY BE IN LINE TO DESIGN A NEW ONE. YOU GET THE OBVIOUS ANSWER AND, AND IT'S A FRAUD. AND NOW WE SEE IT'S A FRAUD BECAUSE THE PRICE TAG ISN'T 10.2 MILLION. IT'S 54.5 MILLION NOW. THE COUNCIL NEVER HAD ANY OF THAT INFORMATION. THEY DON'T EVEN HAVE THE MONEY. THEY GOT A $32 MILLION GRANT FROM THE FEDS. AGAIN, WITHOUT Y'ALL'S INPUT, WITHOUT THE HONEST INFORMATION ABOUT THE INTEGRITY OF THE BRIDGE, UH, AND WITHOUT THE REAL MONEY NUMBERS. SO PLEASE, IF YOU'LL POSTPONE THIS FOR A MONTH, I'D LOVE TO, MR. CAM COULDN'T BE HERE TONIGHT. HE COULD MEET YOU DOWN THERE. YOU COULD LOOK AT IT. WE CAN GET THE ENGINEERING REPORT TO LOOK AT, WHICH DOESN'T IDENTIFY THOSE UGLY PICTURES AS A PROBLEM. THEY IDENTIFY THE DECKING AS A PROBLEM AND THAT'S WHY THEY SHOWED THOSE RIBS WITH THE DECKING REMOVED. THEY'RE SAVING THE ARCHES, THE VERTICAL STRUCTURES, THE ARCHES, THE FOUNDATION AND THE CREEK. THEIR OWN REPORT SAID ALL THAT WAS IN GOOD SHAPE. AND HERE THEY'RE SAYING WE CAN TAKE CARE OF THIS FOR A FRACTION OF WHAT THEY'RE NOW SAYING IS GONNA COST TO BUILD THIS GIGANTIC UGLY HIGHWAY BRIDGE THAT'S WAY OVERSIZED AND COMPLETELY UNNECESSARY. SO PLEASE TAKE SOME TIME. IF YOU GIVE THE COUNSEL YOUR INPUT, I THINK THEY WILL REACH A DIFFERENT DECISION, ESPECIALLY SINCE THEY DON'T EVEN HAVE THE MONEY TO DO THIS ANYMORE. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. YES. UH, QUESTIONS, UH, SPEAKER, UM, YES, VERY QUICKLY. YOU SAID YOU WALK UNDER THERE PRETTY REGULARLY? I DO. I RUN, WALK AND SWIM UNDER THIS BRIDGE. IT'S A SPECTACULARLY GORGEOUS BRIDGE FROM UNDERNEATH. IS THERE ANY CURRENT OVERHEAD PROTECTION UP ON THE TRAILS OR ANYTHING UNDERNEATH OF THIS BRIDGE? NO, THERE'S NOT. OKAY. UM, THERE, THERE IS THE EROSION, BUT THAT'S AN EROSION PROBLEM. THERE'S NO NETTING, THERE'S NOTHING, NO TUNNELS. YOU GO THROUGH ANYTHING? NO, THERE'S NO, THERE'S NO NOTHING. LIKE THEY'RE WORRIED ABOUT PEOPLE, SOMETHING FALLING ON THEIR HEADS. OKAY. IT'S COMPLETELY UNPROTECTED. APPRECIATE. OKAY. AND IF YOU WALK UNDER THERE, LOOK AT THE DECKING. THE DECKING IS IN GREAT SHAPE AND THEY JUST REPAVED IT. MR. CLINT KIM MAKES THIS POINT. OKAY. I'M, THEY'RE NOT GONNA BE ASPHALTED IF THERE'S A PROBLEM WITH IT. THAT, THAT, THAT WAS THE ANSWER TO THE QUESTION. UH, OKAY. DO WE HAVE ANY OTHER FOLLOW UP QUESTIONS FROM OTHER COMMISSIONERS? ALRIGHT, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. WE APPRECIATE IT. UM, DO WE HAVE MORE SPEAKERS? WE DO. OUR NEXT SPEAKER IN OPPOSITION IS DAVID HAMAN. UH, GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS. UH, I AM DAVID HAMAN. I'M AN ARCHITECT, UH, PROFESSOR AT THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS, AN AUTHOR. UM, I, UH, HAVE CHANGED TO WHAT I WAS GONNA TALK ABOUT, UH, GIVEN THE CIRCUMSTANCES OF WHAT'S TRANSPIRED THIS EVENING, BUT I ALSO WANNA FOLLOW UP ON WHAT BILL WAS DESCRIBING OR SAYING IT URGE YOU TO USE WHATEVER POWER YOU HAVE TO SLOW DOWN THIS PROCESS OR STOP THE PROCESS. I, UM, UH, [02:40:01] REASONS I WOULD'VE GIVEN HAVING TO DO WITH THE HISTORICAL VALUE OF THE BRIDGE, ET CETERA, ET CETERA. IT SEEMS LIKE THOSE THINGS ARE OFF THE TABLE, BUT REALLY WHAT I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT JUST BRIEFLY AND WHY I WANT TO URGE YOU IS I THINK THAT WHAT YOU DO IS REMARKABLY IMPORTANT. UM, THE REASON I THINK THAT AS, AS AN ARCHITECT, AS AN EDUCATOR AND ONE WHO'S INVOLVED IN PARTICULAR IN TEACHING, UH, OUR STUDENTS ABOUT SITE DESIGN AND ABOUT SUSTAINABLE DESIGN, UM, WITHIN, UM, MY, UH, WORLD, THE DISCUSSION OF ENVIRONMENTALISM IS WITH REGARD TO CONSTRUCTION, HAS REALLY MOVED FROM NEW CONSTRUCTION TO, UH, EMBEDDED CARBON AND OLD CONSTRUCTION. I MEAN, I THINK THIS IS A REMARKABLE OPPORTUNITY FOR THE CITY TO ACTUALLY, THERE IS A PLAN TO FIX THE BRIDGE. UH, IT'S A REMARKABLE OPPORTUNITY TO ACTUALLY, UH, PUT ITS MONEY WHERE ITS MOUTH IS ENVIRONMENTALLY, UH, UH, NOT ONLY IN TERMS OF PRESERVING THE EXISTING, UH, CARBON SINK, WHICH IS ALSO QUITE REMARKABLE AND BEAUTIFUL HISTORICAL BUILDING, BUT ALSO TO AVOID, UH, THE, THE, THE REMARKABLE CARBON COSTS OF THE REPLACEMENT THAT'S BEING PROPOSED. SO I'M GONNA LEAVE IT AT THAT. UH, I WOULD'VE MADE ANOTHER ARGUMENT, UH, BUT I I WANNA URGE YOU TO ALSO, UH, REALLY EXPAND IN A SENSE YOUR OWN DEFINITION OF WHAT IN THAT SENSE PRESERVATION MEANS AND WHAT THE POWER OF PRESERVATION IS, NOT JUST CULTURAL. THIS IS ONE OF THE GREAT CULTURAL SPACES OF AUSTIN. THE, UH, UH, UH, LADY BIRD LAKE, UH, UH, PATH IS WHERE WE TAKE OUR, OUR CONSTITUTION, OUR PA, OUR OUR EO, AND UH, UH, IT'S A PLACE WHERE WE MEET NEIGHBORS AND FRIENDS AND OLDER FRIENDS AND OLDER FRIENDS AND OLDER FRIENDS. AND OVER THE YEARS, THE PLACE WHERE WE HAVE SEEN OLD AND, UH, INCREASINGLY NEW AUSTIN, BUT INCREASINGLY ALSO LESS AND LESS OLD AUSTIN. AND THIS IS ONE OF THE GREAT AND CHARMING MOMENTS OF THAT IMPORTANT PUBLIC SPACE. AND THIS PARTICULAR STRETCH OF BARTON CREEK AND THE VIEW OF THE BRIDGE, WHICH I ALSO PASS UNDERNEATH, DON'T RUN UNDERNEATH ANYMORE. WALK UNDERNEATH, UH, UH, IS, UH, I THINK A HALLMARK, UH, LANDMARK, UH, IN THE CITY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. YES. I HAVE A QUESTION. UH, COMMISSIONER LAROCHE. OH, SORRY. THANK YOU FOR THAT. UM, HE BROUGHT UP AN INTERESTING POINT THAT I HADN'T CONSIDERED THE, UH, THE CO2 COMPARISON. WERE YOU, DID YOU REVIEW DATA? WERE YOU PROVIDED DATA? NO, THERE'S NO DATA. I, I DO THINK THAT IF YOU, UH, UH, GIVEN WHAT WAS BILL WAS SAYING ABOUT THE CONSTRUCTION COSTS VERSUS THE REPAIR COSTS, I, MY OWN GUESS IS THE REPAIR COST IS PROBABLY LESS THE CONS THAN THE NEW CONSTRUCTION COSTS. AND THAT FOR THE DIFFERENCE IN THOSE COSTS, YOU COULD HAVE THE CITY COMMISSION, UH, A STUDY THAT IT COULD THEN ACTUALLY BE QUITE PROUD ABOUT. I MEAN, I LITERALLY THINK THIS IS ONE OF THOSE KIND OF SITUATIONS WHERE THE CITY COULD DO THAT WORK AND ACTUALLY THEN TRUMPET THE FACT THAT THEY'VE, I MEAN, THIS IS A STONES THROW FROM, OR SHOUTING DISTANCE FROM THE EPICENTER OF THE EPICENTER, EPICENTER LANDMARK OF AUSTIN ENVIRONMENTALISM, BARTON SPRINGS ALONG BARTON CREEK. AND THE IDEA THAT THE CITY COULD THEN KIND OF TURN AND SAY, LOOK, WE'VE DONE THE STUDIES. WE'RE GONNA TRY THIS ROUTE, WE'RE GONNA GO THIS ROUTE. BECAUSE PROTECTION OF HISTORICAL STRUCTURE IS NOT JUST CULTURAL. IT'S INCREASINGLY A, A, A PLACE WHERE WE CAN ACT ENVIRONMENTALLY, UH, IN, IN, IN, IN CRUCIAL, UH, EXTRAORDINARY WAYS. I COULDN'T AGREE MORE, UH, WITH THE, UH, MR. BUNCHES ASSESSMENT OF AECOM AND WHAT ITS AGENDA IS WITH REGARD TO CONSTRUCTION IN THE ENVIRONMENT. OKAY. I'M, I'M GOING HAVE TO HOLD YOU, HOLD YOU NOW JUST BECAUSE, UH, THAT WAS THE ANSWER TO A QUESTION. THANK YOU. SO WE'VE CONCLUDED YOUR REMARKS. ARE THERE OTHER QUESTIONS OF THE SPEAKER? OKAY, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. APPRECIATE IT. DO WE HAVE OTHER SPEAKERS? WE DO. OUR NEXT IN OPPOSITION SPEAKER IS WORTHY LAFOLLETTE. THANK YOU COMMISSIONERS, UM, FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY. UM, AND JUST READ YOUR NAME AND FOR THE RECORD, PLEASE. CERTAINLY. UM, WORTHY LAFA, I'M IN THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE FOR BARTON HILLS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION. UM, I'M A LIFELONG RESIDENT OF THE BARTON HILLS AREA. I'M ALSO, UH, BEEN A LIFELONG, UM, ENJOYER OF ZILKER PARK. UM, MY MOTHER WORKED FOR PAR BACK IN THE SIXTIES, UM, AND I WAS A LIFEGUARD BACK IN THE SEVENTIES. I HAVE BEEN CLOSE TIES TO THAT AREA. I'M QUITE FAMILIAR WITH THE BRIDGE AND THE BRIDGE'S HISTORY. UM, WE VOTED UNANIMOUSLY AS EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE, UM, IN OPPOSITION FOR A LOT OF THE REASONS STATED HERE. WE THINK THAT THERE IS A CHANGE OF THE BRIDGE THAT, OR, OR COMMUNITY IMPACT THAT IS NOT BEING CONSIDERED. WE THINK THAT THE COST OF THE CHANGE IS NOT WORTH IT. UM, WE BELIEVE THAT THERE'S A LOT OF FACTS HAVE BEEN [02:45:01] LEFT ON THE GROUND. UM, WE HAVE OUR OWN ENGINEERS IN BARTON HILLS WHO HAVE LOOKED AT IT. THEY'VE READ THE REPORT, THE 2023. THEY'VE ALL QUESTIONED, UM, WHAT'S GOING ON. THEY ALMOST ALL UNANIMOUSLY, THIS IS LIKE MARTINEZ ENGINEERING, UM, PEOPLE LIKE THAT. UM, THEY SAY THAT THERE NEEDS TO BE MORE DISCUSSION. THIS IS NOT, UM, DONE PROPERLY. UM, THERE'S JUST NOT ENOUGH INFORMATION, NOT ENOUGH DATA. OUR NEIGHBORHOOD IS VERY PROUD. IT IS, UM, A LOT OF LONGTIME PEOPLE. UM, WE ARE BOTH VERY HISTORICAL CONSCIOUS. WE'RE VERY MUCH TIED TO THE BRIDGE, UM, TO THE PARK ITSELF. WE ARE ALSO ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE. WE THINK THE NEW BRIDGE DOES NONE OF THE ABOVE. UM, WE ADVOCATE FOR TAKING THE GOOD BONES OF THE BRIDGE, THOSE ICONIC ARCHES FOR INSTANCE. EVERYBODY KNOWS ABOUT THAT. THEY TAKE THEIR PICTURES FROM, FROM THE CANOES THAT THEY, WHEN THEY RIDE THE TRAIN, THEY PASS BY. EVERYBODY'S GOT MEMORIES OF THOSE PIECES. WE ALSO, UM, WE JUST THINK THERE MAY BE JUST REPLACE THE DEBT. WE'VE, YOU KNOW, NOBODY'S SAID ANYTHING ABOUT THAT, BUT YOU KEEP THE BONES OF THE BRIDGE. THE USE CASES THAT EVERYBODY KEEPS GOING BACK TO FOR THE NEW BRIDGE HAVE CHANGED. THERE'S ONLY ONE LANE, YOUR POINT WAS DEAD ON THE USE CASES AREN'T THERE. UM, FOR HAVING FOUR LANES OF TRAFFIC RIGHT NOW, TWO LANES WOULD BE SUFFICIENT OR MAYBE ONE RIGHT TURN LANE ONTO AZ MORTON. WE'RE ALSO FEAR FOR THE CHANGE ON, UM, UMLA THE HISTORICAL DAMAGE THAT COULD BE DONE WITH ALL THAT, THAT CLIFF IS NOT STABLE THEN WE THINK THAT THIS IS BEING A RUSH JOB. I DO WANT TO SAY I'M ABOUT READY TO RUN OUT OF TIME. I APPRECIATE IT. I HOPE YOU GUYS DO THE RIGHT THING. THIS IS NOT A DONE DEAL. CITY COUNCIL DOES NOT HAVE THE MONEY. THANK YOU. THANK YOU. YES. COMMISSIONER RICE. UM, I JUST HAVE A QUESTION. IF THE NEIGHBORHOOD HAS A POSITION, IF THE, IF IN, IN THE EVENT THAT THIS BRIDGE PROJECT WERE NOT TO GO FORWARD, UM, JUST ON THE, ON THE NOTE OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL, UM, SIDES, UM, I, AS I'M A CYCLIST IN THE CITY AND I, I ACTUALLY, I WROTE OVER THAT BRIDGE TO GET TO THIS MEETING TODAY. UM, I, I DECIDED TO RIDE MY BIKE TO THE MEETING 'CAUSE I WANTED TO CHECK OUT THE BRIDGE FOR MYSELF. UM, AND UH, I'M, YOU KNOW, I WILL ACKNOWLEDGE THAT THE CURRENT BRIDGE, I THINK THE, THE BIKE LANES ON THE BRIDGE ARE INADEQUATE FOR AN AN INEXPERIENCED CYCLIST. AND I'M JUST CURIOUS IF THE NEIGHBORHOOD HAS A POSITION ON, IF THE PROJECT WERE NOT TO GO FORWARD, WHAT ALTERNATIVES FOR AN IMPROVED, UM, BIKE ROUTE WOULD BE BECAUSE SPEAKING, AT LEAST FROM MY PERSONAL EXPERIENCE, THE PEDESTRIAN AND BICYCLE BRIDGE ON THE HIKING BIKE TRAIL, I THINK IS A, IS UNDER, IS OVER CAPACITY AS IS. UM, AND TOTAL, WE TOTALLY AGREE, SIR. UM, WE WERE THINKING THAT YOU SEPARATE THE CONCERNS. THE BRIDGE ITSELF MARRIES THE CONCEPT OF TRYING TO KEEP PEDESTRIAN TRAFFIC ON ONE BRIDGE. THE ONLY REASON WHY THERE'S NOT SEPARATE BRIDGES, I BELIEVE THIS GOES BACK TO THE PARK FOUNDATION, WHO IS, UH, RATHER STUBBORN ABOUT PUTTING JUST A DEDICATED SET OF BRIDGES OVER THOSE BRIDGES COULD BE PREFAB, THEY HAVE LOW IMPACT ON THE ENVIRONMENT AND THEY COULD EASILY DO IT OVER BY TOME IS WHERE I ASSUME YOU WERE TALKING ABOUT THE, THE OVER INDEX BRIDGE. YES. YEAH. THAT BRIDGE CAN EASILY BE EXPANDED WITHOUT MAJOR COSTS, MAJOR ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE AND, UM, WOULD BE OF MUCH GREATER USAGE THAN TOUCHING THE MAIN BRIDGE. THANK YOU. OKAY. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? THANK YOU VERY MUCH. NEXT SPEAKER. THANK YOU. OUR NEXT IN OPPOSITION SPEAKER IS TOMMY JOAQUIN HANCOCK. GOOD EVENING COMMISSIONERS AND STAFF. THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK AND FOR LISTENING TO INPUT ON THIS ITEM. MY NAME IS TOMMY JOAQUIN HANCOCK. I'VE BEEN A RESIDENT IN THE BARTON HILLS NEIGHBORHOOD FOR OVER 30 YEARS AND A MEMBER OF THE BARTON HILLS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION. I LIVE APPROXIMATELY ONE HALF MILE FROM THE BRIDGE AND AM A FREQUENT USER OF THIS ZILKER PARK BRIDGE. MY GOAL IN SPEAKING TO YOU THIS EVENING IS TO HELP BRING ATTENTION TO AND HIGHLIGHT THE IMPORTANCE OF SAVING THE HISTORIC ZUCKER PARK BRIDGE. REHABILITATION SHOULD BE CONSIDERED FURTHER REPLACEMENT SEEMS TOO HASTY. INFORMATION HAS BEEN LIMITED AND SOME QUESTIONED AND CONTESTED. I FEEL THE PUBLIC HAS BEEN MISLED ABOUT THE REALISTIC FACTORS RELATED TO THIS ISSUE. I'M SURPRISED THAT THIS INFORMATION HAS NOT BEEN PROVIDED FOR YOUR PURVIEW SOONER. I AGREE WITH THE COMMENTS OF THE PREVIOUS SPEAKERS OPPOSING THIS PROJECT AND DEMOLITION OF THE BRIDGE. I APPRECIATE THE AESTHETIC QUALITIES OF THE ZILKER PARK BRIDGE AND ITS ORIGINAL DESIGN. IT'S ICONIC. [02:50:01] I WALK UNDER IT ON A REGULAR BASIS AND FIND IT TO BE A PLEASANT AND REFRESHING THROWBACK TO ANOTHER ARCHITECTURAL ERA. ANY MEASURES TO SAVE THIS LANDMARK IS APPRECIATED. SAVING THE BRIDGE COULD SAVE MONEY. DESTROYING THE BRIDGE WILL NEGATIVELY IMPACT THE CREEK AND PARK ENVIRONMENT. THE REPLACEMENT DESIGN IS COSTLY AND UNATTRACTIVE. THE CITY NEEDS TO PROPERLY MAINTAIN ALL OF OUR HISTORIC BRIDGES, INCLUDING OVERDUE REPAIRS ON THE ZILKER PARK BRIDGE. OUR NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION IS CALLING FOR SAVING THIS BRIDGE AND EITHER ADDING AN AFFORDABLE BIKE AND PEDESTRIAN BRIDGE OR EXPANDING THE EXISTING ONE. I URGE YOU TO OPPOSE DEMOLITION IN ORDER TO PRESERVE THE BRIDGE, IMPROVE BIKE AND PRO ACCESS, MINIMIZE ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE, AND KEEP BARTON SPRINGS OPEN AT ALL TIMES. I APPRECIATE YOUR CONSIDERATION OF THIS INFORMATION AND THANK YOU. OKAY, THANK YOU. I DO QUESTION WHY IT HAS NOT BEEN FURTHER REVIEWED BEFORE THE DECISION TO DEMOLISH THE BRIDGE WAS MADE BY THE CITY COUNCIL AND I THINK THAT THAT HAS BEEN BROUGHT UP BY PREVIOUS SPEAKERS. I'M GLAD TO ANSWER ANY QUESTIONS, BUT IT DOES MEAN SOMETHING TO ME. THE BRIDGE WHOLE SENTIMENTAL VALUE FOR ME AND THAT, AND I'M A, I'M JUST I RESIDENT OF AUSTIN SPEAKING ON BEHALF OF A, A PART OF AUSTIN. OKAY, THANK YOU VERY MUCH. APPRECIATE IT. OKAY, NEXT SPEAKER. OUR LAST IN OPPOSITION SPEAKER IS PATRICIA BOBBECK. I, GOOD EVENING MR. CHAIR AND COMMISSIONERS AND THANK YOU VERY MUCH FOR WORKING FOR US. WE APPRECIATE YOUR, YOUR EFFORTS ON OUR BEHALF. MY NAME IS PATRICIA BOBBECK. I AM A HYDROGEOLOGIST PHD HYDROGEOLOGIST AND I SPEND A LOT OF TIME IN ZILKER PARK, UH, WALKING AROUND UNDER THE BRIDGE AND, UH, A LOT, UM, SWIMMING IN, IN BARTON SPRINGS BECAUSE THAT'S WHAT A HYDROGEOLOGIST DOES. WE DEAL WITH WATER THAT IS IN THE ROCK. SO I WANTED TO SAY ABOUT THE, THE, UM, THE BRIDGE THAT WE REALLY NEED TO SAVE IT BECAUSE IT'S BEAUTIFUL, UH, CURVACEOUS AND IT'S A JOY TO WALK UNDERNEATH IT. I SPEND A LARGE AMOUNT OF MY TIME IN PARIS, FRANCE IN THE SUMMERTIME DOING HYDROGEOLOGY. AND I CAN TELL YOU THAT THERE ARE AT LEAST 30 BRIDGES OVER THE SAND RIVER IN FRANCE, AND A NUMBER OF THEM ARE OLDER THAN A HUNDRED YEARS AND THEY'VE HAD MAJOR FLOODS IN ALONG THE SAND SINCE 1910. SO WE NEED TO SAVE OUR, OUR HISTORIC BRIDGE. UM, IT WOULD, IT SHOULD BE EASY TO RESTORE. I'VE WALKED UNDERNEATH IT AND I'VE SEEN THE, THE, THE REBAR THAT THAT IS SHOWING IN SOME PLACES I BET A LOT OF THOSE BRIDGES IN FRANCE DON'T EVEN HAVE REBAR, NOT LET ALONE REBAR THAT MIGHT BE SHOWING. SO I THINK, I THINK WE SHOULD REALLY, UM, PRESERVE BRIDGE THE, IT'S SO BEAUTIFUL AND WHEN YOU WALK UNDERNEATH IT, YOU SEE THOSE CURVES AS OPPOSED TO MOST OF THE NEWER BRIDGES THAT ARE JUST LIKE SQUARE PILLARS DOWN AT THE GROUND. AND THERE'S USUALLY ALL KINDS OF DISGUSTING GARBAGE AND TRASH AT THE BOTTOM OF THEM. AND ANOTHER REASON THAT WE SHOULD PRESERVE OUR BRIDGE RE REHAB IT IS THE COST OF REPLACING IT. ALL OF THAT CONCRETE WILL COST A WHOLE LOT OF MONEY AND THERE ARE ADVERSE ENVIRONMENTAL EFFECTS TO MINING ALL THAT CONCRETE AND, AND USING IT TO BUILD A BIG NEW UGLY BRIDGE IN, UM, IN AUSTIN. SO I SAY LET'S FOLLOW THE, THE EXAMPLE OF PARIS, FRANCE. LET'S MAYBE MAINTAIN OUR BRIDGES A LITTLE BIT MORE. SO THEY LAST A COUPLE HUNDRED YEARS AND LET'S HAVE BEAUTIFUL CURVACEOUS BRIDGES OVER BARTON CREEK. THANK YOU. OKAY, THANK YOU. AND IF THAT'S ALL THE SPEAKERS, THERE ARE NO OTHER SPEAKERS. OKAY. THEN AGAIN, IT'S A COURTESY IF THE, UH, APPLICANT WOULD WISH TO ADDRESS ANY ISSUES THAT WERE RAISED BY THE OPPOSITION, YOU'RE WELCOME TO. WE DON'T HAVE ANY OTHER FURTHER COMMENT. UH, WE WILL PROVIDE THE BACKUP INFORMATION TO MAKE THE RECORD COMPLETE, UM, AS I MENTIONED THE UM, BCER REPORT AND THE CONDITIONS REPORT. OKAY. UH, I KNOW THERE [02:55:01] ARE PROBABLY SOME OTHER QUESTIONS FOR YOU FROM COMMISSIONERS, IF NOT, I KNOW I HAVE SOME, SO ANY OTHER QUESTIONS? WELL, I'VE GOT ONE. GO AHEAD. UM, SO I MEAN, I KNOW WE'VE SAT UP, WELL, I GUESS THIS ISN'T NECESSARILY A QUESTION FOR, UH, I GUESS THIS MIGHT BE A QUESTION FOR STAFF. UM, YOU KNOW, WE WERE TALKING ABOUT HOW THE ONLY I GUESS, THING THAT WE COULD DO TO POSTPONE WOULD BE TO INITIATE HISTORIC ZONING. COULD, COULD WE JUST POSTPONE THIS ITEM ANOTHER MEETING TOO? IS THAT AN AN OPTION AS WELL? YES, COMMISSIONER, YOU CAN POSTPONE AS WELL. OKAY. AND THEN I GUESS, UM, AND THAT WOULD JUST ALLOW US TO CONTINUE THE, THE HEARING AS WE, UH, WOULD DO IN A, IN ANY DISCUSSION WE HAVE WITH THE NATIONAL REGISTER. YEAH, ABSOLUTELY. PROPERTY. AND THEN I, I GUESS TOO, I GUESS ONE QUESTION I'VE GOT IS RELATED TO THE FEDERAL FUNDING. UM, WHAT IS KIND OF THE TIMELINE FOR THAT? IF, IF THINGS WERE TO POSTPONE BY LIKE A MONTH OR TWO CONSIDERING, YOU KNOW, OPTIONS LEFT TO US, UM, WOULD THAT AFFECT THE FEDERAL FUNDING OR HOW TIGHT OF A TIMELINE IS THAT? IT IS TIED TO THE TIMELINE. WE ARE CURRENTLY WORKING WITH THE TEXAS DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION FOR OUR ENVIRONMENTAL CLEARANCE THROUGH THE NEPA PROCESS. THE PROJECT IS AN ADVANCED DESIGN AND, UM, WE HAVE TO GET THE NEPA APPROVAL IN ORDER TO, UH, SECURE THE CONSTRUCTION GRANT OF 32 MILLION THAT WAS AWARDED. UM, SO, UM, YEAH, THIS DOES, UM, IMPLICITLY IMPACT THE TIMELINE. YEAH. BUT WELL, I GUESS WOULD ONE MONTH POSTPONEMENT NA LIKE, I GUESS, WOULD YOU GUYS GIVE UP THE FEDERAL FUNDING BECAUSE OF THAT OR, OKAY. NO. OKAY. WE HAVE NO MORE QUESTIONS. OH, COMMISSIONER. SO INTERESTING POINT. SO, UH, YOU'RE WORKING WITH TXDOT BECAUSE THEY'RE BRINGING SOME FEDERAL FUNDING TO THE TABLE? OUR FUNDING IS FROM FHWA. YEAH. BUT THE NEPA CLEARANCE IS, UH, BEING HANDLED THROUGH T SO, SO THE, IS THE TXDOT FUNDING TIED TO THE BRIDGE EVALUATION? UH, CLEARING THE NEPA IS A PREREQUISITE FOR US TO RECEIVE THE FEDERAL FUNDING. AND TDOT IS THE AGENCY THAT IS ADMINISTERING THE NEPA REVIEW AND APPROVAL PROCESS ON BEHALF OF FHWA. BUT I KNOW WITH PREVIOUS FULL DISCLOSURE, UH, I USED TO WORK FOR TDOT AND, AND SO IT'S BEEN A WHILE, SO I'LL PROBABLY GET SOME OF THIS WRONG. UM, BUT I KNOW FOR BR FUNDS, THEY, IT'S CONTINGENT UPON THE CONDITION RATING OF THE BRIDGE. DOES THAT HAVE A BEARING ON THIS CASE? I'M SORRY, COULD YOU REPEAT THE QUESTION? WELL, IF IT, IF IT'S ON THE, IF IT'S ON THE TDOT SYSTEM, THEN BRIDGE REPLACEMENT FUNDS, THEY'RE CONTINGENT UPON THE, THE BRIDGE APPRAISAL ITSELF, RIGHT? AS A, AS A CONDITION OF FUNDING. AND MY QUESTION IS, IS WOULD THAT BE THE CASE HERE? WELL, SO FHWA IS ACTUALLY ADMINISTERING, THIS IS A KIND OF A DIFFERENT METHOD THAT WE HADN'T RUN INTO BEFORE. FHWA IS ACTUALLY, UH, ADMINISTERING IT, BUT TEXDOT IS RUNNING THE NEPA PART OF THE, OF THE PROCESS, BUT THAT'S ALL THAT THEY'RE DOING. BUT, BUT FH W'S FUNDING? YES. I'M STILL TRYING TO GET TO THE BOTTOM OF MY QUESTION. IS IT CONTINGENT UPON COMMISSIONER ROCHE THE BRIDGE RATING? I THINK STAFF, UH, HAS A, HAS A COMMENT TO MAKE. I DON'T KNOW THAT I CAN ANSWER YOUR QUESTION DIRECTLY, BUT THERE'S A LITTLE MORE CONTEXT I THINK IS IMPORTANT TO UNDERSTAND. AND PLEASE IF, IF I SAY SOMETHING THAT'S INCORRECT, SOME OF THIS IS JUST MY EXPERIENCE WITH THE PROJECT OVERALL. THERE WAS AN RFP FOR REPLACEMENT OF THE BRIDGE ISSUED MANY YEARS AGO. I WANNA SAY IT WAS 2014. THERE WAS CONCERN BY THE COMMUNITY ABOUT THE SORT OF MOVING STRAIGHT TO REPLACEMENT. AND OUR DE UH, PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT AT THE TIME PULLED THAT BACK. UM, I KNOW THAT THERE WERE DISCUSSIONS, I DON'T KNOW IF YOU WERE THERE AT THE TIME WHERE THEY WORKED WITH HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICE TO REISSUE THE RFP TO EXPLORE REPLACEMENT. I SAY THIS BECAUSE AS YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT ALTERNATIVES TO REPLACEMENT AND DEMOLITION IS, YOU KNOW, PART OF, [03:00:01] UH, A PROCESS. AND WE KNEW THAT IN ORDER TO GET FEDERAL FUNDING, THAT THAT WAS, THAT WAS NECESSARY. AND I WAS AT PARKS AND REC AT THE TIME. SO I WAS ADVISING IN A DIFFERENT ROLE, UM, IN MY ROLE AS THE SORT OF CULTURAL RESOURCE MANAGER. SO IT'S MY UNDERSTANDING THAT, YOU KNOW, THE, INITIALLY THIS PROJECT WAS FUNDED WITH LOCAL FUNDS AND THAT THE FEDERAL FUNDING CAME A LITTLE BIT LATER, IF I'M NOT MISTAKEN. AND SO SOME OF SOME, AND A FEW ARE AWARE, UM, THE STATUS OF FEDERAL FUNDING IS A LITTLE BIT UNCERTAIN AND NOT COMPLETELY CLEAR. UM, IT'S A VERY STRANGE TIME AND THINGS ARE A LITTLE BIT IRREGULAR. SO I JUST SAY THIS TO, UH, WE ARE WORKING AS THE HISTORIC PRESERVATION OFFICE CLOSELY WITH THE CULTURAL RESOURCE TEAM AT TXDOT AND WITH THE TEXAS HISTORICAL COMMISSION. I CAN'T ANSWER YOUR QUESTION DIRECTLY EXCEPT TO SAY THAT WE SEEM TO HAVE MOVED PAST THAT PART. WE ARE ACTIVELY WORKING ON MITIGATION STRATEGIES TO DO OUR VERY BEST TO KIND OF MAKE THE NEW DESIGN AS COM YOU KNOW, HOPEFULLY THE NEW DESIGN BEING AS COMPLIMENTARY AS POSSIBLE AND ENSURING THAT, UM, ANY THREATS TO EXISTING HISTORIC RESOURCES. LIKE FOR EXAMPLE, IF YOU ARE AWARE, THERE ARE TWO ICONIC ENTRY COLUMNS INTO THE PARK AS YOU COME IN. SO SOME OF THE CONCERNS THAT THE STAFF HAD EXPRESSED WAS ABOUT HOW THE BRIDGE WOULD IMPACT THAT. UM, UMOFF IS ALSO ON THE NATIONAL REGISTER, YOU KNOW, UM, BUT THAT CLIFFSIDE, AS YOU PROBABLY KNOW, IS VERY UNSTABLE. AND IT'S IN MY UNDERSTANDING THAT THIS PROJECT WILL ALSO DEAL WITH THAT, WHICH IS A GOOD THING FOR THE MOF. SO THERE ARE SOME, YOU KNOW, I I, THE, THE REPLACEMENT OF THE BRIDGE, I, I, YOU KNOW, IS IS SOMETHING THAT IS A LOSS, BUT THERE ARE SOME POSITIVE THINGS, UM, ABOUT THE PROJECT. UM, YOU KNOW, IT SHOULD HAVE BEEN, YOU KNOW, IT, IT'S NOT NECESSARILY REQUIRED TO BE REVIEWED BEFORE A DEMOLITION PERMIT, BUT IT IS A BEST PRACTICE AND IT'S SOMETHING THAT I THINK SHOULD HAVE HAPPENED. BUT IT, IT, THE PROJECT HAS BEEN A LITTLE BIT, LIKE I SAID, UM, THERE WAS, IT'S, THERE'S SOME, BEEN SOME IRREGULARITIES, BUT I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW, WE ARE WORKING CLOSELY WITH THE TEXAS HISTORICAL COMMISSION, WITH OUR CITY STAFF AND TXDOT, UM, ON THOSE MITIGATION STRATEGIES. I HOPE THAT'S HELPFUL. I I APPRECIATE THAT DIRECTOR, BUT I ALSO HAVE AN OBLIGATION TO THE COMMUNITY AND THAT'S WHY I SIT ON THIS DAAS AND I NEED TO UNDERSTAND SEVERAL PEOPLE BROUGHT UP FUNDING. AND FUNDING IS A, A MAJOR COMPONENT OF THIS. JUST MY PAST HISTORY. I KNOW HOW SOME FHWA FUNDING WORKS, I KNOW HOW BRIDGE REPLACEMENT FUNDING WORKS AND THERE'S TRIGGERS FOR THAT FUNDING. AND I JUST, IT, IT'S KIND OF, IT, IT'S THE SAME AS HOW THE CONDITION ASSESSMENT OF THE EXISTING BRIDGE. I, I JUST WANT THESE MEMBERS THAT ARE SIT ON THE DA AND HAVE TO MAKE THAT DECISION. I WANT THEM TO HAVE THE FULL FACTS ON HOW THAT WAS ARRIVED SO THAT EACH OF THEM CAN, CAN MAKE THEIR DECISION ON WHAT THE PATH IS, WHAT THE APPROPRIATE PATH IS FORWARD. THAT'S ALL. I'M NOT, I'M NOT ADVOCATING A POSITION ON THE DA, I'M SIMPLY INTERESTED IN GETTING THE FULL FACTS THAT, THAT UNDER THAT FOR THE FOUNDATION OF THIS DECISION. THAT'S ALL I TOTALLY UNDERSTAND. I COULDN'T ANSWER YOUR QUESTION SPECIFICALLY. I JUST WANTED YOU TO KNOW THE STAGE THAT WE WERE IN, IN TERMS OF NEPA REVIEW AND IF THAT WAS HELPFUL IN ANSWERING YOUR QUESTION. 'CAUSE I, I CAN'T SPEAK TO EXACTLY THE TRIGGERS OR, OR ANYTHING, BUT I WANTED YOU TO UNDERSTAND THAT WE ARE DOING OUR VERY BEST, UM, TO, TO, TO MAKE IT AS GOOD AS POSSIBLE. OKAY. ARE WE GONNA HAVE ANY, ANY ADDITIONAL COMMENTS? UM, NOT AT THIS TIME. UM, WE ARE GOING THROUGH NEPA PROCESS. IT'S BASICALLY RUN THROUGH TEXT DOT AND AFTER WE COMPLETE THE PROCESS AND WHEN SUCCESSFUL, WE WILL, UM, ENTER INTO A CONTRACT WITH FHWA TO SECURE THE FUNDING. OKAY. COMMISSIONER PLEASANT WRIGHT, DID YOU HAVE ANYTHING? CHAIR, I BELIEVE COMMISSIONER OR, UH, VICE CHAIR EVANS, EXCUSE ME. UH, HAS, OH, I'M SORRY. VICE CHAIR EVANS. YES, CERTAINLY. I'VE JUST GOT A COMMENT, NOT A QUESTION. UM, IF ANY PART OF THE REASON THAT WE'RE AT THIS POINT IS BECAUSE OF, UH, DEFERRED MAINTENANCE ON THE BRIDGE, FOR ME, IT TRIGGERED A TERM THAT WE USE OFTEN IN OUR PROCEEDINGS, WHICH IS DEMOLITION BY NEGLECT. AND I WOULD HAVE TO ECHO COMMISSIONER ROCHE'S COMMENTS WHEN WE BEGAN THIS DISCUSSION OF FEELING VERY DISAPPOINTED. THANK YOU. OKAY. WELL, I I DO HAVE A FOLLOW UP [03:05:01] QUESTION. AND I THINK A LOT OF THESE ISSUES HAVE BEEN RAISED. YOU CAN UNDERSTAND NOT ONLY OUR CONCERN, BUT THE LEVEL OF EXPERTISE THAT WE HAVE THAT WE BRING TO THE CITY, THAT WE AS A COMMISSION ARE CHARGED BY THE CITY TO MAKE AVAILABLE FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE PUBLIC AT SOME POINT. THERE SEEMS TO BE A UNDERSTANDING AND A CONNECTION WITH THE HISTORIC COMMISSION AS THIS PROJECT WAS INITIATED. AND AT SOME POINT, AND I JUST WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHO IS RESPONSIBLE. DID SOMEBODY, WHEN THOSE THREE ENGINEERS WERE OUT THERE LOOKING AT AN EXISTING BUILD, UH, BRIDGE THAT WAS IN A HISTORIC DISTRICT, WAS THERE NOBODY THERE WHO SAID, WE'RE GONNA RUN THESE BY THE HISTORIC COMMISSION? WAS THERE NOBODY THERE? WHO WOULD HAVE SAID WHEN YOU WERE TAKING IT TO THE TEXAS HISTORIC COMMISSION, YOU HAVE A CITY OWNED PROPERTY IN A NATIONAL REGISTERED DISTRICT AND NOBODY SAID, WHERE IS THE, THE LANDMARKS COMMISSION? WHY ARE WE NOT TALKING TO THEM? I I, I AM, I'M FLABBERGASTED MYSELF. AND YOU CAN IMAGINE YOU'RE SHOWING US A PROJECT AND WE'RE HEARING THAT IT'S LATE IN THE STAGES. WE HEAR THAT A, A COUNCIL ACTION HAS ALREADY TAKEN PLACE. WAS THAT A CONSCIOUS DECISION ON SOMEBODY'S PART? IN WHICH CASE I DO THINK THERE'S, AT THE VERY MINIMUM, SOME LEVEL OF RETRO OF, OF FIXING OF A PROBLEM. IF THAT'S IN, IN INTERNAL PROBLEM, THAT NEEDS TO BE ADDRESSED. BUT IF IT WAS JUST NEGLECT OR IF IT WAS JUST OVERSIGHT, AT THE VERY LEAST, I WOULD EXPECT SOME LEVEL OF APOLOGY. UH, THIS IS A VERY SIGNIFICANT PIECE OF ARCHITECTURE, BUT THIS PROCESS THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT, THIS IS STANDARD FOR CITY PROPERTIES. I, I, I WANNA MAKE IT ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN THAT IF THIS HAPPENED ONCE, IT'S NOT GONNA HAPPEN AGAIN. SO CAN YOU GIVE ME SOME ASSURANCE THAT WON'T HAPPEN AGAIN? AND CAN YOU GIVE US SOME INDICATION ABOUT WHY IT HAPPENED IN THE FIRST PLACE? I ACKNOWLEDGE ALL THESE CONCERNS. UM, I'M VERY NEW, NEW TO THIS ROLE, BUT I CAN, UH, WORK WITH OUR DEPARTMENTS, UM, AND GET YOUR A RESPONSE IN A MORE FORMAL WAY. I BELIEVE THAT WOULD BE THE LEAST WE COULD EXPECT FROM YOU. ABSOLUTELY. ALRIGHT, THANK YOU COMMISSIONERS. ANY OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS. UM, I'M JUST, JUST TO CIRCLE BACK TO, UM, PREVIOUS QUESTION ABOUT THE, ABOUT THE CONFIGURATION OF, OF THE ROAD OVER THE BRIDGE. UM, I KNOW IN THE PAST, UM, THE CITY HAD DISCUSSED AND THEN SHELVED PLANS TO RECONFIGURE THE TRAFFIC PATTERNS ALONG BARTON SPRINGS ROAD, WEST OF THE CREEK. UM, AND LOOKING AT THE, AT THE DESIGNS FOR THIS BRIDGE AS PROPOSED, UM, IT, YOU KNOW, WOULD RESTORE THAT TWO LANES OF TRAFFIC EACH WAY. AND I'M JUST CURIOUS IF THE CITY IS, HAS THOUGHT ABOUT THE EFFECTS ON BOTH THE EAST END, AS I MENTIONED EARLIER, OF BARTON SPRINGS ROAD WHERE IT'S BEEN REDUCED TO ONE LANE EACH WAY WITH MINIMAL TRAFFIC IMPACTS, BUT ALSO, UM, IF THAT, IF THAT MEANS THAT THE CITY IS GIVEN UP ON PURSUING A SIMILAR APPROACH ON THE WEST SIDE OF PARDON CREEK. OKAY. YEAH, I'LL TRY TO ADDRESS THAT. SO THE BUILD OUT AND THE LANE ASSIGNMENTS AS THEY ARE, SO WE'RE TALKING ABOUT INTO THE PARK, UH, YOU TALKED ABOUT POTENTIALLY GOING DOWN TO ONE LANE ON THAT SIDE. SO THE WAY THAT IT'S DONE SO THAT THE, THE BIKE LANE AND THE STRIPING DOWN TO ONE LANE, THAT WAS DONE AS A, A PILOT PROGRAM. RIGHT. AND THEN SO, AND IT STUCK AROUND WHAT WE'RE GOING TO BUILD THE TWO LANES THAT ARE IN PLACE, THE NEW BRIDGE WILL HAVE, UM, BEHIND BARRIER SET ALONE BIKE AND PEDESTRIAN ON THE BRIDGE. RIGHT. SO TALKING ON THE, THE WEST SIDE OF THE BRIDGE, WHAT GETS STRIPED OUT THERE IS, YOU KNOW, IT IT'S JUST THAT IT'S JUST STRIPING. SO IT CAN BE, IF WE BUILD IT OUT, THEY CAN, THE, IF THE CITY SO CHOOSES THEY CAN GO WITH, BUT THERE, THERE ALSO IS A SHARED USE PATH FOR THE EXTENTS OF OUR PROJECT, THE PATH THAT WAS BUILT ON THE NORTH SIDE THAT IS BY COMPED ACCESSIBLE NOW. RIGHT. SO, BUT IF TO SAY SO CHOOSE, YOU COULD STRIFE IT TO BE, UM, BY COMPARED ON THE ROADWAY AS WELL. SO, UH, YEAH, I'M JUST TRYING TO [03:10:01] VISUALIZE THIS WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF, YOU KNOW, THE BROADER AREA. AND I, I FEEL LIKE THAT'S PROBABLY CAN FEEL A LITTLE BIT ALMOST IDENTICAL TO THE QUESTION I ASKED EARLIER, BUT I, UM, I APPRECIATE YOUR CLARIFICATION THERE. OKAY. I HAVE A FOLLOW UP. ANY OTHER COMMENTS, COMMISSIONERS? YES. YEP. IF THE ROAD DIET HAS BEEN SUCCESSFUL SO FAR, UH, DOWN TO I GUESS LIKE ONE LANE ON EACH SIDE AND THE NEW BRIDGE PROPOSED IS TWO LANES. EACH SIDE IS THE PROPOSED, UH, BRIDGE, THEN POTENTIALLY TOO BIG OR BIGGER THAN WE NEED. SO WE ARE DESIGNING IT TO THE SIZE THAT IT IS FOR THE FUTURE CAPACITY BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, ANOTHER A HUNDRED YEARS, 75 YEARS. SO THAT, THAT'S, UH, THAT'S PART OF THE REASON. THE OTHER PART OF THE REASON IS IN ORDER TO MAINTAIN THE THROUGH TRAFFIC AS WE'RE IN CONSTRUCTION, WE NEEDED THE ADDITIONAL SPACE SO THAT RATHER THAN BUILDING A TEMPORARY STRUCTURE TO HANDLE THE, UH, TO HANDLE THE TRAFFIC AS WE'RE BUILDING A NARROWER BRIDGE, UH, DECISION WAS MADE SEVERAL YEARS AGO TO JUST MAKE, TO JUST HAVE A STRUCTURE THAT STAYS IN PLACE AND BE ABLE TO UTILIZE IT FOR MORE TRAFFIC IF NEEDED OR ADDITIONAL, UH, BIKE PAD FACILITIES. OKAY. OTHER QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS? MOVE TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING. OKAY. I HAVE A MOTION TO CLOSE THE SEC IN A SECOND WITH COMMISSIONER ACTON. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE INDICATE BY RAISING YOUR HAND. OKAY, I SEE ALL HANDS RAISED. UH, VICE CHAIR EVANS IS, UH, OFF THE DAIS, UH, WAS IS, UH, OFF THE SCREEN, SO SHE WILL BE NOTED AS OFF THE DAIS. UM, BUT THE PUBLIC HEARING IS CLOSED. UH, COMMISSIONERS. UM, OUR POINT IS TO HAVE OUR COMMENTS, UH, IN THE RECORD FOR A PROJECT OF THIS KIND. UM, I THINK WE CERTAINLY HAD A CHANCE TO DO THAT ALREADY. UH, HOWEVER, WE ALSO DID HEAR THE REQUEST POSSIBLY FOR HAVING ADDITIONAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR GETTING ADDITIONAL INFORMATION. SO, UH, AMONG THE MOTIONS WE COULD DO A POSTPONEMENT. UH, IT WOULD ALSO WAS ALSO BROUGHT UP THAT THE OTHER OPTION WE REALLY HAVE IS INITIATING HISTORIC ZONING. UH, BUT WHAT IS YOUR PLEASURE AT CHAIR AT THIS TIME? I WOULD LIKE TO MOVE TO POSTPONE. I DON'T THINK I HAVE PERSONALLY HAVE ADEQUATE ENOUGH INFORMATION TO EVALUATE, UH, MOVING TOWARDS HISTORIC ZONING. SO THEN YOU'LL ALSO, UH, REOPEN THE PUBLIC HEARING THEN AS PART OF THE CORRECT MOTION. OKAY. AND, UH, WELL, LET'S SEE IF YOU HAVE A SECOND AND THEN WE CAN DISCUSS YOUR MOTION SO YOU HAVE A MOTION. WELL, I WOULD LIKE TO ADD ON THAT, BUT I ALSO, UH, SUPPORT A, UH, A LETTER OF DISAPPOINTMENT TO COUNSEL FROM THIS BODY THAT WILL BE NOTED. OKAY. BUT THE MOTION IS THE POSTPONEMENT, UH, WITH THE REOPENING OF THE PUBLIC HEARING. IS THERE A SECOND? COMMISSIONER ACTON. OKAY. WOULD YOU LIKE NOW TO DISCUSS YOUR MOTION? YEAH, I JUST THINK THAT THERE'S, WE'VE HEARD FROM BOTH SIDES, WE'VE HEARD FROM THE COMMUNITY, THERE'S, THERE'S NOT ENOUGH, THERE HAS NOT BEEN ENOUGH INFORMATION PROVIDED TO US TO MAKE AN INFORMED DECISION AND OR RECOMMENDATION IN MY OPINION. OKAY. COMMISSIONER ACTON? UM, YEAH, LIKE COMPLETELY OCCUR. I THINK WE CONCUR. I THINK WE NEED A LITTLE BIT MORE INFORMATION IF OUR, IF OUR ONLY, YOU KNOW, OPTION HERE IS TO MAYBE INITIATE, THEN THERE'S DEFINITELY NOT ENOUGH INFORMATION FOR US TO EVEN TO, TO KIND OF, TO LOOK AT THAT, UH, SERIOUSLY. SO I THINK, UM, I'D APPRECIATE MAKING THOSE REPORTS, UM, GETTING THOSE REPORTS TO US. WE CAN TAKE ANOTHER LOOK AT IT AND THEN, AND THEN REVISIT THIS. UM, SO THAT'D BE, THAT'S WHY I GAVE THE MOTION. OKAY. ANY MORE DISCUSSION? COMMISSIONERS? I, I THINK THE OTHER, UH, IF THIS MOTION PASSES, THE OTHER REQUEST I WOULD MAKE IS SOME INDICATION OF THE RECOGNITION THAT THE, WHETHER IT'S IN THE LETTER OF APOLOGY, I THINK I, I'D BE MUCH MORE INTERESTED IN SOME TYPE OF TIMELINE SEQUENCE WHERE THERE'S A RECOGNITION OF WHERE THE APPROPRIATE INDICATION OF, UH, NOTIFYING OR REVIEW FROM THE HISTORIC LANDMARKS COMMISSION WOULD BE APPROPRIATE FOR A PROJECT OF THIS KIND. AND MAY POTENTIALLY HAVE BEEN THAT MOMENT WHERE THIS PROJECT DID NOT ADHERE TO THAT, UH, THAT BEST PRACTICE. [03:15:01] SO SOME WAY WE COULD GET IN ON THE RECORD WHEN IT SHOULD HAVE TAKEN PLACE. UH, CERTAINLY THIS IS WAY TOO LATE. ALRIGHT. UH, WITH NO FURTHER DISCUSSION, UH, LET'S SEE. UH, VICE CHAIR EVANS IS BACK WITH US NOW, UH, BUT I DO BELIEVE IT'S STILL APPROPRIATE. YOU ARE OFF THE DAIS WHEN WE CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING. UH, SO I THINK OF, OF, OF MY UNDERSTANDING IS, IS ONCE YOU LEAVE THE DAIS, YOU'RE, YOU WILL NOT BE VOTING ON THIS NEXT VOTE, UH, VICE CHAIR EVANS, BUT NOT THAT WE DON'T WANT YOU TO, BUT WE, WE WANT TO BE CONSISTENT HERE, UH, WITH THE CITY CLERK'S REQUIREMENTS. BUT ALL THE REST OF YOU ARE, ARE HERE AND ACCOUNTED FOR AND WE HAVE A MOTION TO POSTPONE AND I WILL CALL THE QUESTION UNLESS THERE'S FURTHER DISCUSSION. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE INDICATE BY RAISING YOUR HAND. ALRIGHT. I'D LIKE TO BE SHOWN ABSTAINING. OKAY. WE HAVE A MOTION THAT IS, UH, ONE ABSTAIN, ONE OFF THE DIOCESE. ALL THE REST OF THE HANDS ARE RAISED AND THAT MEANS, UH, THAT WOULD BE POSTPONED WITH THE REOPENED IF PUBLIC HEARING UNTIL OUR UH, MARCH MEETING. OKAY. THANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH. UH, AT THIS POINT WE HAVE THE CHAIR. YES. WE WOULD LIKE TO, THIS JUST, UM, MAYBE WE CAN FOLLOW UP AND TRY TO UNDERSTAND SPECIFICALLY WHAT INFORMATION WE CAN HELP YOU GET FROM THE APPLICANT FOR YOUR NEXT MEETING. YEAH, THERE MAY BE SOME OTHER CLARIFICATIONS, BUT I DO THINK THAT THAT, UM, CONDITIONS ASSESSMENT REPORT, UH, ENGINEERING REPORT IN PARTICULAR, AND THEN ANY, ANY, UH, CONCLUSIONS THAT BE DRAWN FROM THAT AND THE, AND THE BACKUP ON HOW THE, UH, THE BASIS FOR THE FHWA FUNDING IS OF INTEREST BECAUSE THEY, THEY DO, THEY DO PROVIDE IT BASED ON BRIDGE CONDITION. ALRIGHT. UH, THAT BRINGS [13. Update from the Architectural Review Committee regarding the January 14, 2026 meeting. Members: Commissioners Koch, Alvarez, and Grogan.] US TO ITEM NUMBER 13, WHICH IS THE, UH, UPDATES FROM THE TWO COMMITTEES THAT HAVE MET THIS LAST MONTH. THE ARCHITECTURE REVIEW COMMITTEE. I THINK YOU PRETTY MUCH SAW EVERYTHING THAT WE HEARD. THE CONFEDERATE WOMEN'S HOME THOUGH LONG UNDER DISCUSSION HERE WOULD'VE BEEN LONGER HAD WE NOT BEEN ABLE TO DIGEST THE MANY LAYERS THERE. SO, UH, BUT NOTHING MORE TO REPORT. THANK YOU. AND THEN ITEM NUMBER [14. Update from the Operations Committee regarding the January 21, 2026 meeting. Members: Commissioners Rice, Acton, and McWhorter. ] 14, UH, THE OPERATIONS COMMITTEE, OUR MEETING WAS, UH, CANCELED THIS MONTH FOR LACK OF FORUM, WHICH WAS TOTALLY MY FAULT AND I SINCERELY APOLOGIZED TO MY FELLOW COMMISSIONERS FOR, UH, PUTTING THE WRONG DAY ON MY CALENDAR WASN'T. OKAY. WELL, SO IT'S, WE CAN SHARE, WE CAN SHARE THE BLAME. IT WAS ALL ME, BUT, YOU KNOW, SO I'LL BE AT THIS MONTH'S MEETING, . GREAT. AND AND WE WILL, UH, IN OUR NEXT MEETING, UH, THERE ARE SEVERAL, UH, POSITIONS FOR, UH, THE, UH, EQUITY BASED PRESERVATION PLAN COMMITTEE THAT WE'LL BE ABLE TO FILL AND, UH, OUR POSITION WITH THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION. SO WE'LL HAVE THOSE POSTED ON OUR NEXT AGENDA. ALRIGHT. IF THERE'S NO FURTHER BUSINESS, THEN I WILL ENTERTAIN A MOTION TO ADJOURN. IS THERE A SECOND? SECOND. ALL THOSE IN FAVOR, PLEASE INDICATE BY SAYING AYE, FOR RAISING YOUR HAND. IT IS UNANIMOUS. WE ARE NOW ADJOURNED. * This transcript was created by voice-to-text technology. The transcript has not been edited for errors or omissions, it is for reference only and is not the official minutes of the meeting.