[CALL TO ORDER]
[00:00:05]
EVERYONE HAVING A QUORUM PRESENT WITHIN COUNCIL CHAMBERS.
I NOW CALL THIS MEETING OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION TO ORDER AT 6:01 PM FIRST, LET'S TAKE ROLE.
PLEASE LET US KNOW YOU'RE HERE WHEN I CALL YOUR NAME.
COMMISSIONER LON IS NOT WITH US THIS EVENING.
COMMISSIONER POWELL, IT LOOKS LIKE HAS JUST JOINED US VIRTUALLY.
WE'LL CIRCLE BACK TO HIM HERE.
AS USUAL, TONIGHT'S MEETING WILL BE HYBRID, ALLOWING FOR A VIRTUAL QUORUM AS LONG AS THE COMMISSIONER SERVING AS CHAIR IS PRESENT IN CHAMBERS.
THEREFORE, WE HAVE COMMISSIONERS HERE AT CITY HALL AND IN ATTENDANCE, VIRTUALLY SIMILARLY, SPEAKERS CAN PRESENT HERE FROM COUNCIL CHAMBERS OR PARTICIPATE VIRTUALLY VIRTUAL COMMISSIONERS.
PLEASE REMEMBER TO SEND YOUR SIGN-IN SHEET TO OUR STAFF LIAISON PER THE CLERK'S GUIDELINES.
AND PLEASE HAVE YOUR GREEN, RED, AND YELLOW ITEMS FOR VOTING.
PLEASE REMAIN MUTED WHEN YOU'RE NOT SPEAKING AND RAISE YOUR HAND TO BE RECOGNIZED.
BUT OF COURSE, IF I DON'T SEE YOU, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO UNMUTE AND AND LET ME KNOW.
VERBALLY, WE'LL HAVE ASSISTANCE FROM MS. GARCIA IN ANNOUNCING THE SPEAKERS DURING OUR PUBLIC HEARINGS.
[PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL]
MS. GARCIA, DO WE HAVE ANYONE SIGNED UP TO SPEAK DURING PUBLIC COMMUNICATION? YES.CHAIR, WE HAVE ONE SPEAKER, PHILLIP WILEY.
PHILLIP, YOU'LL HAVE THREE MINUTES.
UH, I'M HERE SPEAKING ON MY OWN BEHALF AS A DOWNTOWN RESIDENT FOR 33 YEARS.
UM, FOUR WEEKS AGO I WAS HERE TALKING ABOUT IMAGINE AUSTIN AND MOBILITY ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT, AND PROMISE YOU I WOULD COME BACK.
SO THIS IS ME FULFILLING THAT PROMISE.
UM, HOPEFULLY THIS WILL BE A WRAP.
UH, THE FIRST CHART TALKS ABOUT AS, AS, AS A SUMMARY MOBILITY ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT I'VE DISCOVERED IS BASICALLY EQUAL TO WHAT WE CALL COMPACT AND CONNECTED.
AND THAT IS CORE PRINCIPLE NUMBER ONE IN IMAGINE AUSTIN, WHICH IS A REQUIRED COMPREHENSIVE PLAN BY THE STATE OF TEXAS.
UH, GOING INTO THE NEXT PART OF THE CHART, MOBILITY ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT OR MOD, I'M SORRY.
IT EQUALS, AND, AND I'M, I'M USING THE AUSTIN LANGUAGE.
IT EQUALS EWOK PLUS E-BIKE, PLUS E TODD PLUS EPAR.
AND EPAR DOESN'T REFER TO PARKING A CAR, IT REFERS TO A PARK.
SO THIS IS KIND OF THE SEQUENCE THAT IMAGINE AUSTIN LAYS OUT.
THEREFORE, UH, MOBILITY ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT IS ACTUALLY GREATER THAN EAD.
EAD IS A SUBSET OF MOBILITY ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT.
SO IT, IT, MOBILITY ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT IS GREATER IN, IN MANY WAYS, BUT, BUT IT'S GREATER IN TERMS OF DENSITY BECAUSE THE MOBILITY ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT ALGORITHM HAS TO INCLUDE A LOT OF HIGH NON-RESIDENTIAL USES.
SO WHEN YOU LOOK AT UT AND YOU LOOK AT THE STATION THAT GOES UP TO UT, EVERYTHING THAT'S EAST OF UT IS CLASSROOMS. YOU'RE NOT LIVING IN THOSE CLASSROOMS. EVERYTHING WEST OF THERE IS HOUSING, QUOTE UNQUOTE, EVERYTHING.
SO BECAUSE OF THAT MIX, IT'S GONNA HAVE TO BE DIFFERENT THAN IF YOU'RE OFF ON A CORRIDOR SOMEWHERE WHERE YOU'RE DEALING WITH A A, A STATION THAT'S PRIMARILY RESIDENTIAL WITH A SMALL MIX OF, UH, COMMERCIAL, UH, AS PART OF IT.
THEREFORE, UM, THE, THE, THE DENSITY PER ACRE FOR THE RESIDENTIAL PORTION HAS TO BE HIGHER IN MOBILITY ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT THAN IT IS FURTHER OFF FROM THE CENTER.
OTHERWISE, AND WE SEE THIS IN SOME OLD BIG CITIES THAT DIDN'T DO IT RIGHT, OTHERWISE, WE GET EMPTY STATIONS OUTSIDE OF THE COMMUTER SPIKE TIMES AND EMPTY STATIONS ARE PERCEIVED AS UNSAFE, AND EVENTUALLY THAT CAN BECOME A REALITY THAT IT IS UNSAFE.
UM, SO, UH, NEXT CHART PLEASE.
AND I DON'T WANNA MISS THE CHANCE TO APOLOGIZE FOR A SLIP AND ERROR I MADE LAST TIME.
I'M, I'M NOT VERY GOOD WITH NAMES OF THINGS.
I REFER TO THE EPICENTER OF COMPACT AND CONNECTED AS THE ANA AND IT'S ACTUALLY THE CAMBRIDGE TOWER AND THAT'S WHERE, UH, WE BEST PRIORITIZE WALK AND BIKE ACCESS IN THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS, CHAIR.
THAT CONCLUDES THE SPEAKERS FOR PUBLIC COMMUNICATION.
[Consent Agenda]
AGENDA IS THE APPROVAL OF MINUTES FROM THE JANUARY 27TH AND FEBRUARY 10TH[00:05:01]
MEETINGS.DOES ANYONE HAVE ANY EDITS TO THOSE MINUTES? OKAY, HEARING NONE THOSE MINUTES WILL BE ADDED TO THE CONSENT AGENDA.
OUR FIRST ACTIVITY TONIGHT IS TO VOTE ON THE CONSENT AGENDA.
ITEMS THAT ARE CONSENT APPROVAL, DISAPPROVAL, POSTPONEMENTS OF PUBLIC HEARINGS OR NON-DISCUSSION ITEMS. VICE CHAIR HANEY WILL READ THE PROPOSED CONSENT AGENDA AND SPECIFY THOSE THAT ARE CONSENT POSTPONEMENT AND NON-DISCUSSION.
AND AFTER THIS COMMISSIONERS, YOU'LL HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO REQUEST ANY CONSENT ITEMS BE PULLED FOR DISCUSSION.
VICE CHAIR HANEY, WOULD YOU MIND READING THE CONSENT AGENDA FOR US? SURE THING.
UM, ITEM NUMBER TWO IS NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN AMENDMENT NPA 2 0 25 DASH 0 3 1 0 180 7 0 1 NORTH MOPAC MULTIFAMILY IN DISTRICT 10.
UH, THE AGENDA SAYS THAT THAT IS UP FOR STAFF POSTPONEMENT, BUT THAT IS ACTUALLY NOW GOING TO BE NEIGHBORHOOD POSTPONEMENT TO APRIL 14TH BY AGREEMENT OF THE PARTIES.
ITEM NUMBER THREE IS REZONING C 14 DASH 2025 DASH 0 0 88, UH, WHICH IS 87 0 1 NORTH MOPAC MULTIFAMILY IN DISTRICT 10 AS WELL.
THE AGENDA SHOWS A STAFF POSTPONEMENT TO MARCH 24TH, BUT AGREEMENT OF THE PARTIES, UM, UH, IT'LL BE NEIGHBORHOOD POSTPONEMENT TO APRIL 14TH.
ITEM NUMBER FOUR IS NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN AMENDMENT 2 0 2 5 0 0 2 6 2.
MIDDLE FISKVILLE AUTOMOTIVE SALES IN DISTRICT FOUR.
ITEM NUMBER FIVE IS A REZONING C ONE FOUR DASH 2 0 25 DASH 0 0 9 9.
MIDDLE FISKVILLE AUTOMOTIVE SALES IN DISTRICT FOUR.
ITEM NUMBER SIX IS NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN AMENDMENT 2 0 2 4 DASH 0 1 8 0.01, WHICH IS 7 0 0 3 7 0 0 5 AT 7 0 0 7 GUADALUPE STREET REZONE IN DISTRICT FOUR.
THAT IS UP FOR APPLICANT POSTPONEMENT TO APRIL THE 28TH.
ITEM NUMBER SEVEN IS A REZONING C 14 DASH 2 24 DASH 0 0 3 6, WHICH IS 7 0 0 3 7 0 0 5 7 0 0 7 GUADALUPE STREET REZONE IN DISTRICT FOUR.
THAT IS ALSO UP FOR APPLICANT POSTPONEMENT TO APRIL THE 28TH.
ITEM NUMBER EIGHT IS, UH, NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN AMENDMENT 2 0 2 5 DASH 0 0 2 0 0.04.
CONGRESS VIEWS IN DISTRICT TWO.
UH, THAT ITEM WAS ORIGINALLY STAFFED POSTPONEMENT, UH, TO APRIL 14TH, BUT BY AGREEMENT OF THE PARTIES, THAT'S GOING TO BE STAFF POSTPONEMENT TO APRIL THE 28TH.
ITEM NUMBER NINE IS A REZONING C 14 DASH 2025 DASH 0 0 5 1 WOODWARD MIXED USE FLATS IN DISTRICT THREE.
THAT IS UP FOR APPLICANT POSTPONEMENT TO APRIL 14TH.
ITEM NUMBER 10 IS REZONING C 14 DASH 2025 DASH 0 1 0 9 WESTLAND CHURCH SITE IN DISTRICT NINE.
ITEM NUMBER 11 IS A REZONING C 14 DASH 2026 DASH ZERO FOUR SPRINGDALE FARM FOLLOW-UP IN DISTRICT THREE.
THAT IS UP FOR NEIGHBORHOOD POSTPONEMENT TO APRIL THE 14TH.
ITEM NUMBER 12 IS A REZONING C 814 DASH 2 25 DASH 0 0 0 1 600 EAST RIVERSIDE PUD, UH, IN DISTRICT NINE.
THAT IS UP FOR INDEFINITE POSTPONEMENT BY STAFF.
ITEM NUMBER 13 IS REZONING C EIGHT 14 DASH 20 0 8 DASH 0 8 7 0 2 SOUTH SHORE PUT EDITION AND DISTRICT THREE IS UP FOR APPLICANT POSTPONEMENT TO MARCH THE 24TH.
ITEM NUMBER 14, LDC AMENDMENT C TWO ZERO DASH 2025 DASH ZERO SIX AMENDMENT TO THE EAST RIVERSIDE CORRIDOR REGULATING PLAN IN DISTRICT THREE THAT IS UP FOR APPLICANT POSTPONEMENT TO MARCH THE 24TH.
ITEM NUMBER FIVE IS AN LDC AMENDMENT, C TWO ZERO DASH 2 25 DASH 0 1 9 ZONING SIGN POSTING UPDATES.
ITEM NUMBER 16 IS DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS SP DASH 2 0 2 6 DASH 0 0 4 8 C CP WEST MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR.
BOULEVARD AND OASIS STREET IN DISTRICT NINE.
THAT ITEM IS UP FOR DISCUSSION.
VICE CHAIR HANEY, DO ANY COMMISSIONERS NEED TO RECUSE OR ABSTAIN FROM ITEMS ON THE AGENDA? OKAY, MS. GARCIA, DO WE HAVE ANY SPEAKERS SIGNED UP TO SPEAK ON ANY OF THE CONSENT ITEMS? YES, CHAIR.
STARTING WITH ITEMS FOUR AND FIVE, WE'LL FIRST THIS, THESE ITEMS ARE OFFERED FOR CONSENT.
WE'LL FIRST BE HEARING FROM THE APPLICANT ELLE MEAD.
ELLE, YOU'LL HAVE FIVE MINUTES.
THIS ITEM IS OFFERED FOR APPLICANT POSTPONEMENT TO APRIL 14TH.
WE'LL FIRST BE HEARING FROM THE APPLICANT VICTORIA HASSI VICTORIA, YOU'LL HAVE FIVE MINUTES.
MS. HASSI IS WAIVING HER TIME.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IN FAVOR IS RON THROWER.
[00:10:01]
HIS TIME.THIS ITEM IS OFFERED FOR CONSENT.
WE'LL FIRST BE HEARING FROM THE APPLICANT JULES KANE.
JULES, YOU'LL HAVE FIVE MINUTES MS. CAIN'S, HER TIME.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IN FAVOR IS DONNA OSBORNE.
DONNA, YOU WILL HAVE TWO MINUTES.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IN FAVOR IS STEVE AMMOS.
STEVE, YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES.
NEVER GONNA A I'M STEVE AMMOS.
THANK YOU SO MUCH, COMMISSIONERS FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY.
I THINK THERE'S A LETTER OF SUPPORT FROM THE OTTAWA SAUCE NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION WITH MY SIGNATURE ON IT BECAUSE I'M THE CHAIR, BUT I'M NOT SPEAKING FOR THAT HAT.
I'M SPEAKING FROM A PERSONAL POSITION.
UH, WHY? WELL, SINCE THE SUMMER OF 1988, ST.
LUKE'S METHODIST CHURCH HAS BEEN THE VIEW RIGHT ACROSS THE STREET FOR ME AND FOR, SO THAT'S LIKE 38 YEARS.
BUT FOR THE LAST DOZEN YEARS, MY WORK HAS BEEN RUNNING A NONPROFIT HEALTH CODE WHOSE MISSION IS TO EMPOWER PEOPLE TO LIVE HEALTHIER LIVES.
AND THE RESEARCH CLEARLY SHOWS THE BENEFITS AND THE VITAL IMPORTANCE OF SOCIAL CONNECTIONS AND BUILDING POSITIVE COMMUNITIES OF SUPPORT, ESPECIALLY ISSUES AROUND SOCIAL ISOLATION OF US SENIORS, WHICH I TURNED 74 IN MAY.
SO I COUNT THIS ZONING REQUEST HAS A TWOFOLD BENEFIT.
DO I NEED TO KEEP HOLDING THE GREEN THING DOWN? OKAY, COOL.
IF YOU WANNA SEE HOW COOL THIS SPACE IS, GO TO HYDE PARK, CHECK OUT FIRST LIGHT BOOKS AND YOU SEE IT, THE DYNAMICS.
I'VE ALSO HEARD FROM, UH, CITY COUNT, UH, PEOPLE THAT WE ASSOCIATED WITH CITY, UH, THAT THE CONCEPT OF THIRD SPACE, THE IMPORTANCE FOR THAT.
AND THEN THERE'S A SUBJECTIVE EXPERIENCE.
BUT ONE I THINK IS PRETTY WELL GROUNDED OF RESEARCH AND OBSERVATIONS FOR NOW ALMOST 74 YEARS, WHICH IS THE IMPORTANCE ROLE, SPIRITUALITY AND SYMBOLS PLAY IN OUR LIVES AND OUR COMMUNITY.
LUKE'S IS IMPORTANT, ESPECIALLY ON WESTLAND.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND COMMITMENT TO THE OZ COMMUNITY AND CONSIDERATION TO APPROVE THE SONY, WHICH WILL MAINTAIN THAT CHURCH BUILDING.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS PAM GOLIGHTLY.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IN FAVOR IS GRAHAM BROWN.
GRAHAM, YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES.
WE'LL NOW BE HEARING FROM THOSE SPEAKING IN OPPOSITION.
OUR PRIMARY SPEAKER IN OPPOSITION IS SARAH JENKINS.
SARAH, YOU'LL HAVE FIVE MINUTES.
I WAS REALLY CONFUSED ABOUT THE AMOUNT OF TIME I HAVE TO SPEAK, SO IT'LL BE SHORTER THAN FIVE MINUTES.
UH, HI, MY NAME'S SARAH JENKINS.
THANK YOU FOR GIVING ME THE OPPORTUNITY TO TALK TO YOU GUYS TONIGHT.
I LIVE ON PALMA PLAZA WITHIN 500 FEET OF THE ST.
AND YOU PROBABLY KNOW THE CHURCH, UH, THAT'S A SMALL COMMERCIAL DISTRICT FROM ON WESTLAND FROM 10TH TO 13TH STREETS.
THE NEIGHBORHOOD HAS SUPPORTED THESE SMALL BUSINESSES FOR YEARS, AND I FEEL LUCKY TO LIVE AROUND THE CORNER FROM THEM.
BUT THIS QUAINT LITTLE DOWNTOWN IS FACING SIGNIFICANT CHANGE WITH OWNERS OF THE SMALL MOM AND POP BUSINESSES.
PASSING ON, I JUST LIKE TWO WEEKS AGO, MRS. SLED PASSED AWAY, A CUTE LITTLE NURSERY THAT'S BEEN THERE FOR DECADES.
UM, I WANTED TO SPEAK YOU TO YOU TONIGHT BECAUSE I CARE ABOUT HOW WESTLAND IS REDEVELOPED.
I'M ESPECIALLY WORRIED ABOUT THE IMPACT ON THOSE OF US WHO LIVE THE CLOSEST.
UM, WE HAVE A COUPLE OF BUSINESSES ON WESTLAND WITH VIRTUALLY NO PARKING, AND THIS RESULTS IN A LOT OF SPILLOVER PARKING ONTO THE RESIDENTIAL STREETS.
[00:15:01]
OUR NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN IDENTIFIES SOME MAJOR THREATS TO THE INTEGRITY OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD, COMMERCIAL ENCROACHMENT, NON-RESIDENT TRAFFIC AND LACK OF PARKING.THE PLAN ALLOWS FOR MIXED USE, LIMITED TO THE MAJOR STREETS THAT BRACKET THE NEIGHBORHOOD AND THE LITTLE COMMERCIAL DISTRICT ON WESTLAND FROM 10TH TO 13TH.
THE PLAN ALSO STATES NO REZONINGS FROM RESIDENTIAL TO COMMERCIAL ARE RECOMMENDED FOR WESTLAND.
AND I'M ASKING THE CITY TO HONOR OUR NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN AND NOT INCREASE THE COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT ON WESTLAND.
WE ALL LIKE THE SMALL MOM AND POP STUFF.
WE JUST DON'T WANT IT MAXED OUT AND TO FEEL LIKE WE'RE LIVING DOWNTOWN WHEN WE
JUST TO GIVE YOU A SENSE OF THE IMPACT OF THIS PROJECT, THE CITY'S TIA PROJECTED AN INCREASE IN DAILY CAR TRIPS FROM 98 TO 426.
A MORE THAN FULL FOUR FULL FORD.
FULL FOURFOLD INCREASE WITH MANY MORE CARS DRIVING UP AND DOWN OUR STREETS IN SEARCH OF A REAR PARKING SPOT.
WESTLAND IS NARROW WITH MANY PEDESTRIANS AND AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL.
IT'S REALLY NOT SUITED TO INCREASE TRAFFIC.
THE CHURCH PROP PROPERTY HAS GROSSLY INADEQUATE PARKING FOR A POPULAR BOOKSTORE, WHICH HOLDS EVENTS AND HAS A, AS A THOU A THOUSAND MEMBERS.
I HAVE READ THE COMMENTS IN FAVOR OF THE PROJECT.
NEIGHBORS ARE GRATEFUL THAT THE APPLICANT WILL PRESERVE THE CHURCH AND THE LI AND LIMIT THE HEIGHT OF THE BUILDINGS.
THE COMMENTS REFLECT WHAT WE ALL WANT FOR WESTLAND TO RETAIN ITS CHARACTER REMAINING SMALL SCALE AND LOW IMPACT.
I ASK YOU TO BEAR OUR WISHES IN MIND AS MORE REZONING REQUESTS COME FORWARD FOR OUR LITTLE DOWNTOWN CLARKSVILLE.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS, CHAIR.
THAT CONCLUDES THE SPEAKERS ON THIS ITEM.
AND THANK YOU TO OUR SPEAKERS.
DO ANY COMMISSIONERS WANT TO PULL ANY OF THE CONSENT ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION OR OTHERWISE HAVE QUESTIONS ON THE CONSENT AGENDA? CHAIRMAN, MAY I MAKE A COMMENT? YOU MAY.
UH, I WOULD JUST LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE DEGREE OF NEIGHBORHOOD INVOLVEMENT THAT THE, THE TWO CONSENT CASES THAT ARE COMING BEFORE US TODAY HAVE HAD, UH, THE MIDDLE FISKVILLE ROAD SPECIFICALLY IN THE, UH, RE REVISITING OF THE, UH, PROHIBITED USES, I THINK WAS A GOOD CHANGE TO THAT SITE.
AND I'M, I'M HAPPY THAT THE NEIGHBORHOOD WAS ON BOARD WITH THIS CHANGE.
FURTHERMORE, UM, I WOULD JUST LIKE TO SAY THAT I'M PRETTY JEALOUS THAT YOU'RE GONNA GET A FIRST LIGHT BOOKS IN WESTLAND THAT'S IN A CHURCH.
LUKE'S, UH, CHAPEL IS A PRETTY FANTASTIC SPACE IN YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD, AND I'M GLAD TO SEE THAT THAT ISN'T BEING SLATED FOR DEMOLITION AND REBUILDING.
UM, THAT'S A PRETTY FORTUNATE PROJECT.
SO ANYWAY, I JUST WANTED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE FACT OF THE, THE NEIGHBORHOOD INVOLVEMENT WITH THE DEVELOPERS ON BOTH THESE PROJECTS.
ANY OTHER QUESTIONS ON THE CONSENT AGENDA? OKAY.
IS THERE A MOTION AND A SECOND TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING AND APPROVE THE CONSENT AGENDA AND APPROVE THE MINUTES FROM THE PREVIOUS TWO MEETINGS? MOTION FROM COMMISSIONER ROSN SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER BARR RAMIREZ.
WITHOUT OBJECTION, THAT ITEM PASSES AND THIS CONCLUDES THE CONSENT AGENDA.
[16. Downtown Density Bonus: SP-2026-0048C.CP - W. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard & Nueces Street; District 9]
TO OUR ONLY DISCUSSION CASE FOR THE EVENING, WHICH IS ITEM 16.FIRST, WE'LL HEAR FROM STAFF ON THIS CASE.
THANK YOU SO MUCH TO ALL OF OUR SPEAKERS ON THE CONSENT AGENDA.
MADAM CHAIR, COMMISSIONER, GOOD EVENING.
JORGE
IT'S A VERY RARE TREAT FOR ME TO HAVE A DISCUSSION CASE BEFORE YOU, SO I'M VERY EXCITED ABOUT TONIGHT.
UH, IF YOU'LL ALLOW ME JUST TO KIND OF BRING YOU UP TO SPEED, UH, THE SUBJECT PROPERTY FRONTS ON MLK RIO GRANDE ES AND WEST 18TH STREET.
AND THE REQUEST IS FOR A MIXED USE DEVELOPMENT THAT INCLUDES ABOUT 435 RESIDENTIAL UNITS, RETAIL SPACE, AND HOTEL USES.
THE SPECIFIC REQUEST IS TO, UH, REQUEST A RECOMMENDATION FROM THE PC AS WELL AS
[00:20:01]
EVENTUALLY THE COUNCIL INCREASE ENTITLEMENTS UNDER THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM THAT INCLUDED IN INCREASE IN FLOOR TO AREA RATIO FROM FIVE TO ONE TO 20 TO ONE AND INCREASE THE MAXIMUM BUILDING HEIGHT FROM 120 FEET TO 445 FEET.IF YOU RECALL, NOT TOO LONG AGO, YOU HAD TWO ZONING CASES THAT REZONED THE SUBJECT PROPERTIES FROM VARIOUS, UH, ZONING A OPIA OF CHOICES OF ZONING CLASSIFICATIONS INTO D-M-U-C-O, UH, LIMITING CERTAIN SPECIFIC LAND USES, UH, BEFORE YOU.
TONIGHT IS THE REQUEST TO INCREASE DENSITY AND HEIGHT TO THOSE MAXIMUMS I MENTIONED.
THE PROJECT IS MEETING AND SEEKING GATEKEEPER COMPLIANCE UNDER THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM AND ALSO OFFERING AFFORDABLE HOUSING FEE AND LIE CONTRIBUTIONS IN EXCESS OF 3.3 MILLION, UH, DOLLARS FOR BOTH TRACKS.
COMBINED STAFF HAS CONSIDERED RECENT ENTITLEMENT PATTERNS IN THE AREA, INCLUDING SPECIFIC UNO HEIGHTS, GENERALLY BETWEEN 120 TO 175 FEET IN HEIGHT WHEN PARTICIPATING IN THE BONUS PROVISIONS OF THE UNIVERSITY NEIGHBORHOOD OVERLAY RECENT ETOD AND D-B-E-T-O-D OVERLAY ADOPTIONS HAVE ESTABLISHED, UH, VARIABLE HEIGHTS BETWEEN 60 90 AND ONE 20, DEPENDING ON THE SUBDISTRICT.
UH, AND THOSE, UH, HEIGHTS RANGES ARE NEAR TRANSIT, UH, OPPORTUNITIES.
THERE'S ALSO ONGOING UPDATES TO THE CENTRAL CITY PLAN, WHICH YOU ARE PROBABLY AWARE OF, AS WELL AS DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM UNDER PHASE ONE AND PHASE TWO.
THEREFORE, STAFF RECOMMENDS APPROVAL OF THE REQUEST WITH THE FOLLOWING CONDITION, APPROVE UP TO 200 FEET MAXIMUM BUILDING HEIGHT AND THE CORRESPONDING FLORIDA AREA RATIO.
AND THE RATIONALE FOR THAT IS TO ENSURE BETTER CONSISTENCY WITH SURROUNDING ENTITLEMENT PATTERNS THAT YOU SEE UP AND DOWN MLK AS WELL AS ACROSS THE STREET, UH, TO THE NORTH IN THE, UH, NEIGHBORHOOD, UH, UNIVERSITY NEIGHBORHOOD OVERLAY.
UH, THIS ALSO ALIGNS WITH THE EVOLVING POLICY UNDER THE ETOD OVERLAYS AND DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM UPDATES AS WELL.
THIS MAINTAINS ALIGNMENT WITH RECENT COUNCIL ZONING ACTIONS IN THE UNIVERSITY AND CENTRAL CITY PLAN AREA.
THAT CONCLUDES THE STAFF PRESENTATION.
MADAM CHAIR, I'M HAPPY TO TAKE ANY QUESTIONS.
WE'LL NOW BE HEARING FROM THE APPLICANT.
LEAH, YOU'LL HAVE FIVE MINUTES.
AS JORGE SAID, WE, WE'VE TALKED TO YOU A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THIS PROJECT ALREADY, SO I'LL TRY TO GO EFFICIENTLY THROUGH THE SLIDES, BUT, UM, I'LL BE AVAILABLE FOR QUESTIONS AFTER AS WELL.
UM, SO THIS IS THE SUBJECT AREA, UM, THAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT ON MARTIN LUTHER KING BOULEVARD, UH, WHICH IS A CORE TRANSIT CORRIDOR.
YOU CAN SEE THAT WE HAVE THE FULL BLOCK.
UM, AND THIS ALSO SHOWS THAT WE ARE ACROSS THE STREET FROM UNO, UM, 300 FEET ENTITLED HEIGHTS.
UM, AND THEN OBVIOUSLY THE REST OF THE DOWNTOWN AREA TO THE RIGHT OF THE TURQUOISE, UM, IS GOING THROUGH THE NEW CORE PLANNING PROCESS.
UM, SO THIS IS, YOU KNOW, I, I THINK I USED THIS SLIDE BEFORE, BUT I JUST THINK IT REALLY SHOWS, UM, WHAT A GREAT LOCATION THIS IS FOR RESIDENTIAL AND HOTEL USE, WHICH IS WHAT WE'RE PROPOSING HERE.
UM, THIS IS LIKE, THIS IS, I MEAN, IN ADDITION TO JUST UT THIS IS REALLY, UM, A, A PRETTY INCREDIBLE WALKABLE AREA, GREEN SPACE, YOU KNOW, FOOD USES, THINGS LIKE THAT.
UM, SO LIKE JORGE SAID, WHERE RE REZONED TO DMU CO.
SO THAT'S THE BASIS OF THIS REQUEST.
UM, HERE AT THE BOTTOM, YOU CAN SEE WHAT THE SITE LOOKS LIKE TODAY.
UM, AND JUST TO REMIND YOU, 'CAUSE I KNOW YOU DON'T ALWAYS SEE DENSITY BONUS APPLICATIONS, THESE ARE THE GATEKEEPER REQUIREMENTS.
UM, GREAT STREETS ON ALL FOUR SIDES.
UM, MINIMUM GREEN, UH, US AND ENERGY GREEN BUILDING TWO STAR, WE'RE PLANNING FOR THREE, UM, COMPLIANCE WITH URBAN DESIGN GUIDELINES, WHICH WE GOT A UNANIMOUS RECOMMENDATION FOR A DESIGN COMMISSION.
UM, AND THEN THE COMMUNITY BENEFITS CALCULATION, WHICH IS LIKE J HE SAID IS ABOUT 3.3 MILLION, UM, AFFORDABLE HOUSING DOLLARS.
UM, SO THIS IS WHAT THE DENSITY BONUS BOUNDARY LOOKS LIKE TODAY.
UM, WE ARE HALF IN AND HALF OUT, UM, DUE TO SOME OF THE CHANGES THAT HAVE HAPPENED EVEN SINCE WE FILED THESE APPLICATIONS.
WE ARE, UM, WE HAVE, WE HAVE KEPT OUR DENSITY TO THE EASTERN SIDE OF THE SITE.
UM, OUT OF RESPECT FOR THAT SORT OF, UM, JUDGES DONUT HOLD THAT HAS EXISTED FOR ALL THIS TIME.
I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE FUTURE OF IT IS, BUT I DO KNOW THAT I, UP TILL NOW AND INCLUDING NOW, THAT AREA HAS NOT BEEN SUBJECT TO DENSITY BONUSES.
AND SO WE ARE, WE ARE RESPECTING THAT AND ALL OF OUR DENSITY, UM, FROM THE DENSITY BONUSES ON THE EASTERN PORTION OF THE SITE.
SO HERE'S WHAT THE NUMBERS LOOK LIKE.
UM, 120 FEET ENTITLED 4 33 AND A HALF, AND 4 0 6 AND A HALF.
UM, WE'RE ASKING FOR A LITTLE EXTRA ROOM THERE SO
[00:25:01]
THAT WHEN WE GET INTO DESIGN, OBVIOUSLY WE HAVE SOME FLEXIBILITY.UM, AND THEN I THINK IMPORTANT TO NOTE IS THAT THE OVERALL SITE PLAN, THE OVERALL SITE AVERAGES 10 TO ONE FAR, BUT BECAUSE OF THE WAY WE'VE PUSHED THE BONUS AREA OVER, UM, IT'S 20 TO ONE ON THE EASTERN PORTION.
UM, SO THESE ARE WHAT THE ELEVATIONS LOOK LIKE.
I, WE CAN SPEND MORE TIME ON THESE IF YOU'D LIKE.
THE EASTERN ONE ISN'T PARTICULARLY NOTEWORTHY.
YOU CAN SEE HERE FROM THE NORTH HOW THAT DENSITY IS PUSHED OVER.
SAME THING, HERE'S THE WEST AND THEN HERE'S WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE FROM THE SOUTH AS WELL.
YOU CAN ALSO SEE THE, TO THE TOPOGRAPHY THAT WE'RE WORKING WITH ON THIS SITE.
UM, HERE'S THE STACKING DIAGRAMS. THE TURQUOISE IS HO IS CONDO FOR SALE, CONDO, RESIDENTIAL.
THE PURPLE IS HOTEL, AND THEN THE BLUE IS FOR RENT RESIDENTIAL.
UM, AND THEN ON THE BOTTOM FLOOR WE HAVE THE ART SPACE AND SOME RETAIL AND FOOD AND BEVERAGE.
UM, SO THIS IS JUST SOME NEARBY HEIGHT.
I KNOW THERE'S BEEN A LOT OF QUESTIONS ABOUT, AND EVEN JUST NOW FROM STAFF ABOUT WHAT HEIGHT IS NEARBY.
UM, THIS IS LOOKING, UM, TO THE WEST, AND SO YOU CAN SEE KIND OF THE DOWNTOWN PORTION AND YOU CAN SEE UNO AND THEN YOU CAN SEE SOME BUILDINGS THERE, UM, IN BETWEEN.
AND THE 300, LIKE LINDEN'S 3 25, FOR EXAMPLE, DO IS 3 0 7, UM, ET CETERA.
UM, THIS IS WHAT THE NORTHERN HALF OF THE BLOCK LOOKS LIKE FROM A FLOOR PLAN STANDPOINT.
FIRST OF ALL, YOU CAN SEE THE GREAT STREETS, UM, WHICH IS VERY EXCITING.
YOU CAN ALSO SEE THAT WE HAVE, UM, ART SPACE ARTS, CREATIVE SPACE.
WE'VE PUT THAT OVER ON THE WESTERN SIDE OF THE SITE TO SORT OF HAVE THAT BE THE LESS IMPACTFUL SIDE ON THE JUDGES HILL FACING SIDE OF THE PROJECT.
AND THEN WE HAVE, UM, YOU KNOW, WE'RE GONNA HAVE A BAR, WE'RE GONNA HAVE A RESTAURANT, WE'RE GONNA HAVE, UM, OBVIOUSLY THE CONDO LOBBY AND THAT STUFF ON THE EASTERN PORTION.
WE ALSO HAVE OUR ALLEY, WHICH, UM, I THINK I SPOKE ABOUT BEFORE, BUT I'LL JUST MAKE SURE IT'S, UM, IT'S A REGULAR 20 FOOT WIDE ALLEY.
WE'RE MAKING IT A LITTLE BIT WIDER FROM THE SETBACKS OF THE BUILDING, WHICH I'LL SHOW YOU PICTURES OF IN A MINUTE SO THAT PEOPLE CAN ALSO USE IT AS A WAY TO CROSS THE BLOCK.
AND ALSO WE CAN HAVE IT AS AN EVENT SPACE, YOU KNOW, FROM TIME TO TIME.
UM, THIS IS WHAT THE SOUTH SIDE LOOKS LIKE.
UM, I WILL POINT OUT HERE THAT WE ARE REDUCING THIS SITE.
THERE ARE 10 CURB CUTS, NOT INCLUDING THE ALLEY ENTRANCES, AND WE'RE REDUCING IT TO ONE.
UM, SO THERE'S ONE ENTRANCE ON THE SOUTH SIDE HERE OFF 18TH.
THE, UM, PARKING TO THE NORTHERN PORTION OF THE SITE ENTERS FROM THE ALLEY.
WE'RE CLOSING ALL THOSE CRAZY CURB CUTS.
UM, ALL THE WAY AROUND THE BLOCK.
YOU CAN SEE AGAIN THE ART SPACE AND YOU CAN SEE A POCKET PARK, WHICH WAS AN IDEA THAT WAS SUGGESTED TO US AT, WITH THE DESIGN COMMISSION WORKING GROUP THAT WE'VE INCORPORATED.
UM, SO WE ALSO PUT THAT ON THAT SOUTH, SOUTH CORNER SOUTHWEST CORNER SO THAT IT'S SORT OF FACING JUDGES HILL AGAIN, KIND OF MITIGATING, UM, THE DENSITY AND THE, AND THE NEW PROJECT AS IT GOES FROM WEST TO EAST.
THIS IS WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE FROM THE NORTH.
YOU CAN SEE THE TWO TOWERS THERE.
THIS IS WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE FROM THE SOUTH.
UM, AND THEN I'M JUST GONNA KIND OF GO THROUGH THESE, THESE ARE FROM THE DESIGN COMMISSION.
I KNOW YOU DON'T USUALLY SEE THESE, BUT IT'S KIND OF NICE, I THINK FOR Y'ALL TO ACTUALLY SEE A DESIGNED PROJECT.
UM, THIS IS WHAT THAT ALLEY LOOKS LIKE.
YOU CAN SEE ON THE RIGHT THAT IT'S BEEN SORT OF, THIS IS WHAT IT WOULD LOOK LIKE UNDER WHEN IT'S ACTIVATED.
WE ALSO HAVE DONE SOME DESIGN WORK TO WRAP AROUND, WHICH WAS IMPORTANT TO THE DESIGN COMMISSION, SO THAT IT WILL, IT WON'T JUST BE LIKE THE EDGE OF THE BUILDING.
MS. BOJO, SORRY TO CUT YOU OFF.
DOES SHE HAVE THREE MINUTES OR FIVE MINUTES? FIVE.
FINAL THOUGHTS, PLEASE? YOU GOT IT.
SO THIS IS WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE IN THE SOUTHEAST.
UM, THIS IS THE DENSITY BONUS FEE IN LIE REMOVAL OF THE BILLBOARD.
UM, THESE ARE SOME OF THE COMMITMENTS AND CONSIDERATIONS WE'VE MADE TO JUDGES HILL.
I THINK I COVERED ALL OF THESE.
WE ARE WORKING ON OUR RESTRICTIVE COVENANT RIGHT NOW FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONTAMINANTS, AND I HOPE TO HAVE YOUR SUPPORT.
WE'LL, WE'LL BE OUR, OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS PHILLIP WILEY.
PHILLIP WILL BE SPEAKING IN FAVOR.
PHILLIP, YOU'LL HAVE TWO MINUTES.
I JUST WANNA KNOW, WHILE MR. WILEY'S GETTING SET UP, THAT COMMISSIONER LAN HAS JOINED US.
MR. WILEY, IF YOU DON'T MIND JUST PRESSING THE RED BUTTON.
PHIL WILEY, DOWNTOWN RESIDENT.
UM, SPEAKING AT THE BEGINNING AS THE, UM, DOWNTOWN AUSTIN NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION PRESIDENT.
UM, THIS IS OUR LETTER SAYING WE SUPPORT THE PROJECT.
IT'S CLOSE TO A HUNDRED THOUSAND JOBS.
IT'S CLOSE TO TWO, TWO PROJECT CONNECT STATIONS, YADA YADA.
UM, THIS IS WHAT I CONSIDER TO BE THE OVERALL EPICENTER OF COMPACT AND CONNECTED IN THE CITY AND IN THE METROPOLITAN AREA.
THE EXITS TO THE FAR RIGHT IS THE CAMBRIDGE BUILDING I TALKED ABOUT EARLIER.
THE ONE THAT'S IN THE MIDDLE IS THE JACK BROWN
[00:30:01]
SITE, AND THE ONE TO THE LEFT IS THE ANA SITE THAT I PROBABLY GAVE SOME OF MY NEIGHBORS A HEART ATTACK WHEN I SUGGESTED THERE SHOULD BE A THOUSAND FOOT TALL BUILDING THERE.THE, UM, THIS IS ABOUT AS GOOD AS IT GETS AND WE JUST, I SHOWED THESE CHARTS TO COUNCIL RECENTLY, AND I SAID, LOOK, IF WE'RE GOING TO UP ZONE 47 ACRES IN THE DOMAIN, AND WE DON'T COUNTER THAT BY DOING 47 ACRES DOWNTOWN, YOU REALLY NEED TO UNDERSTAND WHAT THE EFFECT IS TO YOUR 50 50 MODE SHARE MODEL BECAUSE WE KEEP GETTING FURTHER AND FURTHER OFF THE PATH, IF YOU WILL.
THIS IS, UH, A VIEW OF THE COFFEE SHOPS FROM THAT AREA.
AND BY THE WAY, I WORE THIS SHIRT BECAUSE I'M A MSU ALUMNI AND I, I WAS ABLE TO WALK FROM MY HOUSE JUST TO THE LEFT OF THE LEFT BUILDING FROM THE PRIOR CHART, UH, TO SEE A DOZEN BASEBALL GAMES IN THE LAST THREE WEEKS.
UM, BUT AS, AS YOU CAN SEE HERE, ALL THE COFFEE, UH, SHOPS NEXT CHART.
AND BY THE WAY, NONE OF THEM ARE SOUTH OF, OF, UH, MLK IN NORTH OF 15TH.
THIS IS THE ONLY PLACE, THE BLUE IS THE SUBJECT SITE.
THIS IS THE ONLY AREA IN, IN THE STATE WHERE YOU CAN WALK TO THREE EARLY VOTING LOCATIONS IN THIS AMOUNT OF TIME.
IT, IT DOESN'T GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND SERVICE.
WE'LL NOW BE HEARING FROM THOSE SPEAKING IN OPPOSITION.
OUR FIRST SPEAKER IN OPPOSITION IS BRAD SNOW.
HE'LL BE RECEIVING FOUR MINUTES OF TOTAL DONATED TIME FROM STACEY BURLOW AND JEFFREY FRY.
ARE Y'ALL BOTH PRESENT? BRAD, YOU'LL HAVE SIX MINUTES.
I'M HERE TO TALK ABOUT THE ENVIRONMENTAL RISKS ASSOCIATED WITH THE, UH, JACK BROWN CLEANERS SITE AND THE REDEVELOPMENT ON THAT PROPERTY FOR RESIDENTIAL AND FOR RETAIL COMMERCIAL USES.
OKAY, I'M HERE AT THE REQUEST OF, UH, SOME OF THE NEIGHBORS IN THE JUDGES HILL NEIGHBORHOOD.
UM, I AM A LICENSED PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER AND A LICENSED PROFESSIONAL GEOLOGIST IN TEXAS AND SEVERAL OTHER STATES.
I'VE BEEN DOING ENVIRONMENTAL CONSULTING, UM, FOR 44 YEARS.
ALTOGETHER, MY SPECIALTY IS THE INVESTIGATION OF CONTAMINATED, UH, SOIL AND GROUNDWATER SITES.
TYPICALLY INDUSTRIAL SITES, SOMETIMES COMMERCIAL, LIKE A DRY CLEANER.
AND SO MY INVOLVEMENT IN THESE PROJECTS HAVE RUN FROM, UH, DUE DILIGENCE ASSESSMENTS FOR PROPERTY TRANSACTIONS TO, UH, CONDUCTING, UH, SOIL AND GROUNDWATER CONTAMINATION INVESTIGATIONS TO EVALUATING HUMAN HEALTH RISK AND ECOLOGICAL RISK AT PROPERTIES, DETERMINING WHETHER THERE'S A NEED FOR ANY KIND OF A REMEDY, ANY KIND OF A CLEANUP OR ANY KIND OF MEASURES THAT WOULD PROTECT HUMAN HEALTH.
AND THEN I HAVE, UH, A LOT OF EXPERIENCE THEN ALSO WITH IMPLEMENTING THOSE PRESCRIBED REMEDIES THAT I DESIGN AND OVERSEE, UH, IN THE FIELD.
UM, AS I MENTIONED, I'M WORKING WITH THREE NEIGHBORS, UH, WHO ARE, UH, FROM THE JUDGE HILL NEIGHBORHOOD.
THEY ASKED ME TO, UH, SOMETIME BACK A COUPLE MONTHS AGO TO EVALUATE THE SITE.
AND SO BASICALLY MY ASSIGNMENT WAS TO, UH, REVIEW FILES MAINLY FROM THE TEXAS COMMISSION ON ENVIRONMENTAL EQUALITY.
SO THE TCQ FILES RELATED TO THE INVESTIGATION THAT HAD BEEN DONE AT THIS PROPERTY.
AND SO, UH, MY EVALUATION, UH, DETERMINED THAT THERE'S ACTUALLY SOME RISKS, UH, HUMAN HEALTH RISKS THAT WERE NOT ADDRESSED, UH, DURING THE T CQS, UH, EVALUATION OF THE PROPERTY.
AND I'M GONNA GET INTO IT, BUT THE, THE MAJOR ONE HAS TO DO WITH THE POSSIBILITY OF VAPORS COMING OFF OF, UH, THE DRY CLEANING CHEMICALS THAT ARE IN THE SOIL AND GROUNDWATER, PARTICULARLY IN THE GROUNDWATER, AND THAT THEY WOULD, UH, MIGRATE UPWARDS THROUGH THE SOIL, UP THROUGH BUILDING FOUNDATIONS AND INTO, UH, BREATHING SPACES, INDOOR, UH, AND EFFECT INDOOR AIR INSIDE THESE BUILDINGS.
AND SO, BECAUSE THIS IS GONNA BE REDEVELOPED, THAT'S ONE TYPE OF RISK.
ANOTHER KIND TYPE OF RISK IS, UH, WORKERS THAT ARE GONNA BE POTENTIALLY EXPOSED, EXPOSED TO THESE CHEMICALS THROUGH VAPORS OR THROUGH DIRECT CONTACT WITH THE SOIL WHILE THEY'RE DOING THEIR WORK, UH, DURING THE CONSTRUCTION, AND THEN SUBSEQUENTLY AFTER THE SITE IS REDEVELOPED.
ASSUMING THAT GOES FORWARD, THEN THERE COULD BE OTHER EXPOSURES THROUGH DIGGING
[00:35:01]
UTILITY TRENCHES AND THINGS OF THAT NATURE.AND SO, UH, I'M GOING TO TOUCH ON THESE THINGS, BUT MY REAL FOCUS IS ON WHAT'S KNOWN AS VAPOR INTRUSION.
AND SO VAPOR INTRUSION, AS I SAID, IS WHERE THE VAPORS COME OUT OF THE GROUND.
IT'S SPECIFICALLY OUT OF THE GROUNDWATER, AND THEY COME THROUGH THE SOIL AND THEY ENTER INTO THE BUILDING.
AND SO THAT'S A SIGNIFICANT RISK AT THIS SITE.
EVERYBODY LOVES A TABLE WITH NUMBERS.
SO, UH, YOU CAN GO TO SLEEP NOW.
UH, ACTUALLY I'LL, I'LL JUST DRAW YOUR, YOUR EYES, UH, TO THE, TO THE COLUMNS.
THE, THE FIRST CHART THERE, THESE ARE THE MAXIMUM GROUNDWATER CONCENTRATIONS THAT ARE COMPARED AGAINST U-S-E-P-A VAPOR INTRUSION SCREENING LEVELS.
AND SO, UH, THAT'S A KIND OF A FIRST CUT EVALUATION OF WHETHER THERE'S A POTENTIAL RISK HERE.
AND SO, AS YOU'LL SEE, THE CONCENTRATIONS OF PCE TETRA CHLORINE, UH, HAVE BEEN AS HIGH AS 2100 TIMES GREATER THAN THAT SCREENING LEVEL.
LIKEWISE, 1,690 TIMES GREATER THAN, UH, THE SCREENING LEVEL FOR TCE, WHICH IS A DEGRADATION PRODUCT OF THE PCE.
AND THEN LIKEWISE FOR VINYL CHLORIDE, IT'S BASICALLY AN INFINITE OR INDETERMINATE, UH, TIMES GREATER BECAUSE, UH, THEY DON'T CONSIDER ANY AMOUNT OF, OF VINYL CHLORIDE TO BE SAFE, TO BE BREATHED, TO, TO BE, UH, BREATHED IN.
UH, AND SO THOSE ARE THE MAXIMUM CONCENTRATIONS.
THE LATEST DATA CAME FROM THE PERIOD OF, UH, 2019 TO 2020.
AND YOU CAN SEE EVEN WITH THE LATEST DATA, YOU STILL HAVE VERY HIGH EXCEEDANCES OF THOSE SCREENING LEVELS.
UH, 4 84 TIMES FOR PCE 400, SIX TIMES HIGHER FOR TCE.
AND THIS IS JUST A MAP VIEW OF THE VISL, THE VAPOR INTRUSION SCREENING LEVELS.
AND SO KIND OF TRAIN YOUR EYES ON THE YELLOW HIGHLIGHTED AREAS.
YOU CAN SEE THAT THE FIRST MAP IS FROM, GOSH, I CAN'T EVEN READ IT.
AND YOU CAN SEE THE STUFF IS SPREAD OUT, INCLUDING, UH, TO THE FAR SOUTHEAST AND MW SIX.
YOU HAVE CONCENTRATIONS ABOVE THE SCREENING LEVEL FOR VINYL CHLORIDE.
AND SO THAT'S OF A CONCERN AND YOU SEE THE SAME KIND OF PATTERNS IN THE OTHER TWO SAMPLING DATES.
SO I JUST WANTED TO GO AHEAD AND HIGHLIGHT MY, UH, CONCLUSIONS AND THE RECOMMENDATIONS.
FIRSTLY, UH, WE HAVE THESE VERY HIGH CONCENTRATIONS THAT I'VE ALREADY GONE OVER.
THAT'S A POTENTIAL, UH, HUMAN HEALTH CANCER RISK FOR PEOPLE THAT WOULD BE RESIDING THERE.
UH, OR, UH, VISITING THE, THE RETAIL ESTABLISHMENTS FOR THE WORKERS IN PARTICULAR, UH, MY RECOMMENDATIONS THAT THE OWNER DEVELOPER, UM, THAT THEY EVALUATE THE VAPOR INTRUSION RISK FURTHER AND THAT THEY INSTALL A VAPOR BARRIER AND THAT THEY APPLY AN ENVIRONMENTAL RESTRICTIVE COVENANT.
AND IN PARTICULAR, I WOULD REQUEST THAT THE CITY BE WILLING TO SIGN AS A, AN ENFORCEMENT ENTITY FOR THE ENVIRONMENTAL RESTRICTIVE COVENANT.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS MARISELA MADDOX.
SHE'LL BE RECEIVING TWO MINUTES OF DONATED TIME FROM MEGAN MEISENBACH.
MEGAN, ARE YOU PRESENT? MARIELLA, YOU'LL HAVE FOUR MINUTES.
MY NAME IS MARIELLA MADOX AND I'M A RESIDENT OF JUDGES HILL AND I LIVE FOUR BLOCKS FROM THE JACK BROWN CLEANERS PROPERTY.
I WANNA BEGIN WITH THE ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUE.
THE NEIGHBORHOOD'S GOAL HAS NEVER BEEN TO STOP THE REDEVELOPMENT.
OUR GOAL HAS ALWAYS BEEN TO ENSURE THAT THIS SITE IS REDEVELOPED SAFELY AND RESPONSIBLY FOR OUR FUTURE NEIGHBORS WHO WILL LIVE, WORK, AND SPEND TIME.
HERE, I WANNA UPDATE YOU THAT THE PARTIES ARE CURRENTLY NEGOTIATING A PRIVATE AGREEMENT THAT WOULD INCLUDE A COMMITMENT BY THE PROSPECTIVE OWNER TO CONDUCT ADDITIONAL VAPOR TESTING.
AND IF THOSE RESULTS WARRANTED ADDITIONAL REMEDIATION, IT IS MEANINGFUL PROGRESS.
AND IT IS IMPORTANT TO REMEMBER WHY THIS MATTERS.
UM, THE LAST PUBLISHED TEST, AS MR. SNOW HAS INDICATED, SHOW CONTAMINATION LEVELS MORE THAN 400 TIMES THE APPLICABLE VAPOR INTRUSION SCREENING LEVELS FOR RESIDENTIAL USAGE.
THERE IS A STRONG INDICATION THAT THIS SITE IS NOT READY TO BE LIVED IN OR WORKED ON.
OUR SECOND ISSUE WITH THE PROJECT IS COMPATIBILITY OF HEIGHTENED SCALE.
TWO TOWERS EXCEEDING 400 FEET WOULD BE DRAMATIC OUTLIERS IN RELATION TO THE SURROUNDING AREA, THE HISTORIC JUDGES HILL NEIGHBORHOOD, AND EVEN THE UT TOWER, WHICH IS 307 FEET.
[00:40:01]
BOJO INDICATED, THIS CORRIDOR IS ALSO A GATEWAY TO THE AUSTIN MUSEUM DISTRICT AND TO THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS CAMPUS.SO WE ALL AGREE THAT THIS IS A VERY IMPORTANT AREA OF DOWNTOWN AUSTIN.
SO WHAT IS BUILT HERE WILL SHAPE HOW THIS PART OF THE CITY IS EXPERIENCED.
THE CITY AND THE NEIGHBORHOOD HAVE LONG, LONG RECOGNIZED THE IMPORTANCE OF LOWER HEIGHTS AND APPROPRIATE TRANSITIONS IN THIS AREA.
AND THE CITY IS NOW ACTIVELY REEVALUATING THE BROADER SAN CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT PLANNING FRAMEWORK.
ALLOWING A SINGLE PROJECT SUCH AS THIS ONE TO EXCEED THOSE EXPECTATIONS NOW WOULD EFFECTIVELY REWRITE THE ESTABLISHED STANDARDS BEFORE THAT LARGER PLANNING PROCESS IS COMPLETED BY YOUR CITY STAFF.
THIS IS NOT AN ARGUMENT AGAINST REDEVELOPMENT, IT IS NOT AN ARGUMENT AGAINST THOUGHTFUL DESIGN.
I RECOGNIZE THAT THEY HAVE PRODUCED A BEAUTIFULLY DESIGNED BUILDING.
IT IS AN APPEAL FOR TWO THINGS, SAFEGUARDS FOR PUBLIC SAFETY AND TRUST, AS WELL AS DESIGN COMPATIBILITY AND APPROPRIATE HEIGHT.
FOR THOSE REASONS, I ASK THAT YOU, NUMBER ONE, USE YOUR INFLUENCE TO CONTINUE TO ENCOURAGE THE PERSPECTIVE DEVELOPER TO COMMIT TO THE ADDITIONAL TESTING AND REMEDIATION.
IF THAT DATA REVEALS THAT IT IS NEEDED AND ACCEPTS CITY STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION OF 200 FEET FOR BOTH BUILDINGS ON THIS SITE, THIS APPROACH WOULD BETTER RESPECT THE SURROUNDING AREA, THE HISTORIC JUDGES HELD NEIGHBORHOOD, AND YOUR CITY STAFF'S ONGOING PLANNING WORK.
OUR NEXT SPEAKER IS JOSU, HOWARD JOSU WILL BE RECEIVING TWO MINUTES OF DONATED TIME FROM MARK SEGER.
MARK, ARE YOU PRESENT? YES, I'M JOE SUE HOWARD, YOU'LL HAVE FOUR MINUTES.
GOOD EVENING COMMISSION MEMBERS.
MY NAME IS JOE SUE HOWARD AND I'M HERE TONIGHT TO EXPRESS MY CONCERNS ABOUT THIS PROJECT'S DRASTIC HEIGHT AND IT'S RESULTING IN COMPATIBILITY IN THIS AREA OF AUSTIN.
I WISH TO REITERATE THAT THE CITY STAFF AGREES AND RECOMMENDS A MAXIMUM OF 200 FEET.
I LIVE IN A STATE AND CITY LANDMARK TO LANDMARK HISTORIC HOUSE, WHICH IS A MERE 200 FEET FROM THE REQUESTED CHANGE.
THERE ARE AT LEAST 14 OTHER SUCH LANDMARK STRUCTURES SURROUNDING THIS PROJECT AS WELL.
I FEAR TWO BUILDINGS EACH OVER 400 FEET TALL WILL OVERWHELM AND MINIMIZE THE IMPORTANCE OF SOME OF AUSTIN'S MOST HISTORIC ASSETS.
THESE HISTORICAL SITES ARE SHOWN IN GREEN ON THIS MAP SURROUNDING THE PROPOSED SKYSCRAPERS IN RED.
THESE SITES INCLUDE SUCH STRUCTURES AS AN ABNER COOK HOME ON WEST AVENUE AND THE GOOD OLD WOOTEN HOME ON MARTIN LUTHER KING JR BOULEVARD.
THIS SLIDE CONTAINS PHOTOGRAPHS OF THESE OUTSTANDING HISTORIC PROPERTIES, THESE PROPOSED TWIN TOWERS ABOVE THE HISTORIC JUDGES HILL DISTRICT, WHICH WAS EXPECTED TO BE PROTECTED UNDER THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN.
THAT IS A COMPROMISE REACHED AFTER MONTHS AND MONTHS OF WORK BY THE CITY AND THE COMMUNITY.
THE DOWNTOWN AUSTIN PLAN VISION AND ITS REGULATION IS TO DECREASE BUILDING HEIGHTS AS ONE MOVES FURTHER AWAY FROM THE CENTRAL CORE AND CLOSER TO THE JUDGE'S HILL DISTRICT.
BUT THESE TWIN TOWERS WILL LEAP UP OUT OF NOWHERE TO OVER 400 FEET TALL, DWARFING EVERYTHING AROUND THEM, INCLUDING EVEN THE NEW COURTHOUSE, ALL THE BUILDINGS AT NUNO, AND ESPECIALLY THE BELOVED UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS TOWER.
THIS SLIDE SHOWS THE HEIGHT OF THE THIS REQUESTED CONSTRUCTION SHOWN ON THE LEFT, THE 445 FOOT TALL BUILDING IN RELATION TO THE HEIGHT OF EXISTING BUILDINGS, WHICH ARE EVEN FURTHER AWAY FROM JUDGES HILL AND ALL SUBSTANTIALLY LESS TALL.
THIS SLIDE SHOWS THE SAME BUILDINGS BUT ON AN AREA MAP.
THE PROPOSED BUILDING IS THE ONE IN RED.
THE EXISTING BUILDINGS ARE BLUE, AND THE AREA OF UNO, WHICH IS DIRECTLY ACROSS MLK FROM THE JACK BROWN SITE, IS CAPPED AT 175 FEET.
YOU CAN SEE THAT THE SHORTER BUILDINGS ARE ALL TO THE EAST OF THE PROJECT AND AWAY FROM JUDGES HILL DISTRICT.
JUST AS THE DAP ENVISIONED, THE DEVELOPER IS ESSENTIALLY ASKING THE CITY TO GRANT CENTER CITY HEIGHTS WHILE ENJOYING SUBURBAN PRICE DIRT.
TWO ITEMS STIPULATED IN THE URBAN DESIGN GUIDELINES CHECKLIST, WHICH ARE TO BE CONSIDERED IN GRANTING SUCH DENSITY.
BONUSES ARE RESPECT ADJACENT HISTORIC BUILDINGS AND QUOTE, PROTECT IMPORTANT PUBLIC VIEWS.
[00:45:02]
MY OVERSHADOWING AUSTIN'S HISTORY AND THE UNIVERSITY OF TEXAS TOWER.THIS PROJECT HAS COMPLIED WITH NEITHER.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME AND YOUR SERVICE TO THE CITY OF AUSTIN.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR COMMENTS CHAIR.
THAT CONCLUDES THE SPEAKERS ON THIS ITEM AND WE WILL NOW BE HEARING FROM THE APPLICANT FOR A REBUTTAL.
HELLO COMMISSIONERS, UM, JUST TO QUICKLY RESPOND TO SOME OF THE POINTS THAT WERE MADE, UM, I'LL START WITH THE, UM, WITH THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERN.
SO I JUST WANNA POINT OUT A COUPLE THINGS, WHICH IS, FIRST OF ALL THAT THIS IS NOT A ZONING ISSUE.
THIS IS SOMETHING THAT, UM, THAT WILL BE HANDLED LATER IN THE PROCESS.
UM, WE, WE DO HAVE, WE HAVE GONE THROUGH TCEQ PROCESSES.
WE HAVE RECEIVED A CLEAR PHASE ONE, HOWEVER, WE HAVE ALSO AGREED AND ARE, ARE TO REITERATE WHAT MARY, UH, MARIELLA SAID, WORKING ON A RESTRICTIVE COVENANT TO GO ABOVE AND BEYOND TO MAKE SURE, BECAUSE OF COURSE NO ONE WANTS A, NO ONE WANTS A CONTAMINATED SITE AND NO ONE WANTS PEOPLE TO BE ON ONE.
UM, THE SECOND THING I WOULD SAY IS THAT STAFF'S RECOMMENDATION IS JUST NOT FEASIBLE.
THAT HEIGHT JUST IS NOT A FEASIBLE PROJECT.
SO WE'VE, AS YOU CAN SEE, UM, FROM THE WORK AND THE PROCESS WE'VE GONE THROUGH, WE, WE HAVE A PROJECT HERE AND IT WILL WORK AND, AND IT HAS TO BE AT THE HEIGHT THAT WE'RE PROPOSING.
UM, AND THEN I JUST WANNA KIND OF END WITH THE FACT THAT I, YOU KNOW, FROM THE VERY BEGINNING OF WORKING ON THIS PROJECT, I HAVE, UM, BEEN SO IMPRESSED BY HOW MANY BOXES IT CHECKS.
UM, THE LOCATION IS ONE OF THEM GREAT STREETS ON ALL FOUR SIDES, REMOVING A BILLBOARD, PROVIDING ART SPACE TRANSIT, SUPPORTIVE DENSITY.
I MEAN, THIS ONE IS JUST KIND OF HITS IT OUTTA THE PARK.
I KNOW I HAVE A BIAS, BUT I JUST WANNA SAY THIS REALLY DOES CHECK A LOT OF THE BOXES THAT WE'VE BEEN TALKING ABOUT FOR A REALLY LONG TIME AS A CITY.
AND SO I HOPE TO HAVE YOUR SUPPORT TONIGHT.
THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR SPEAKERS.
I'M LOOKING FOR A MOTION TO SECOND TO CLOSE THE PUBLIC HEARING ON THIS ITEM MOTION BY COMMISSIONER BRETTON, SECONDED BY VICE CHAIR HANEY WITHOUT OBJECTION.
THAT ITEM PASSES AND WE WILL MOVE INTO OUR ROUND ROBIN.
SO I HAVE SLOTS FOR EIGHT COMMISSIONERS TO ASK QUESTIONS OF ANYONE FOR FIVE MINUTES EACH.
WHO WOULD LIKE TO START US OFF? COMMISSIONER BRETTON, I HAVE SOME QUESTIONS FOR THE APPLICANT.
I HAVE A GOOD COUPLE OF QUESTIONS IN FACT.
SO, UH, SOME OF THEM, IF, IF YOU MIGHT BE ABLE TO SUMMARIZE IT WOULD BE VERY HELPFUL.
UH, COULD YOU PLEASE EXPLAIN, UH, OR SUMMARIZE THE CONVERSATIONS YOU'VE HAD WITH THE NEIGHBORHOOD RELATED TO A RESTRICTIVE COVENANT AND THE, UH, ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES ON THE SITE? YES.
UM, WE HAVE RECEIVED A, WE'VE BEEN TALKING WITH THEM, UM, FOR A FEW WEEKS NOW ABOUT THE COVENANT WE RECEIVED.
WE SENT THEM A DRAFT LAST WEEK.
WE RECEIVED COMMENTS BACK FROM THEM ON FRIDAY.
IT'S CURRENTLY IN REVIEW WITH OUR ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER.
UM, AND WE GO, WE ARE SCHEDULED TO GO TO COUNCIL ON THE 26TH.
SO THE PLAN IS TO HAVE THAT FINALIZED AND EXECUTED BY THE TIME WE GO TO COUNCIL.
YOU ALREADY ANSWERED ONE OF MY OTHER QUESTIONS.
UH, WHAT REMEDIES ARE BEING PROPOSED AS A PART OF THAT OR CONSIDERED? UM, SO I CAN'T REALLY SPEAK TO THAT.
I, BUT I WILL SAY THAT IT, IT DOES INCLUDE LANGUAGE ABOUT TESTING AND THEN THE APPROPRIATE REMEDIES.
I, I WOULD ASSUME THAT ONCE IT COMES BACK FROM OUR ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER, WE'LL HAVE MORE ON THAT.
UH, SO IF THE PROJECT ISN'T MOVED FORWARD, WOULD THOSE REMEDIES HAPPEN? NO.
UH, ARE YOU FAMILIAR WITH THE UNION ON SAN ANTONIO BUILDING ON SAN ANTONIO IN 21ST? YES.
DO YOU KNOW HOW TALL IT IS? I DON'T, BUT I CAN FIND OUT.
ONE OF THE, ONE OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD, UH, SPEAKERS ACTUALLY MENTIONED IT IS 300 FEET.
I ACTUALLY LIVED NEXT TO IT WHEN IT WENT UP AND I LIVED NEXT TO THE OTHER TOWER THAT WENT UP, TORE ON THE OTHER SIDE OF NEW ASIS.
SAME SIDE OF NEW ASIS AS THIS PROJECT.
AND THERE ARE MULTIPLE TRANSIT STOPS VERY CLOSE IN PROXIMITY IF THE FAR AND THE HEIGHT THAT YOU ARE ASKING FOR AREN'T APPROVED, BUT WE DO SOMETHING IN THE MIDDLE MAYBE OF WHAT THE STAFF RECOMMENDATION IS AND WHAT YOU ARE PROPOSING, WHAT MIGHT HAPPEN TO THE MASSING OF THE BUILDING.
SO I DON'T KNOW BECAUSE THIS PROJECT WOULD NOT GO FORWARD.
YOU WOULD, SO WE HAVE, WE CANNOT CONSIDER IT ALTERNATIVES.
FOR EXAMPLE, IF YOU WERE GIVEN 300 FEET, YOU MIGHT HAVE TO SHIFT THAT AROUND IF IT OH YES, YES.
IT WOULD HAVE TO ENCROACH CLOSER TO JUDGE.
UH, AND THEN YOU ALREADY ANSWERED MY TIMELINE ON THE RESTRICTED COVENANT.
SO THOSE ARE ALL OF MY QUESTIONS.
OTHER COMMISSIONERS WITH QUESTIONS? COMMISSIONER ROJAN, GO AHEAD.
UH, I APPRECIATE YOU COMING OUT AND THANK YOU FOR THE CONVERSATION WE WERE ABLE TO HAVE EARLIER, UH,
[00:50:01]
WHICH YOU GAVE ME SOME BACKGROUND IN THIS CASE.UH, YOU MENTIONED ON OUR PHONE CALL THAT THE, AND AND IN YOUR TESTIMONY TODAY THAT THE RECOMMENDATION FROM STAFF IS RELATED TO SOME EXISTING CASES IN THE IMMEDIATE AREA, SPECIFICALLY THOSE IN UNO AND THE FACT THAT WE ARE QUITE A GREAT DISTANCE FROM DOWNTOWN WHERE THERE ARE BUILDINGS OF THIS SCALE.
WHEN IT COMES TO SOMETHING LIKE ADOBE, UH, WHICH IS A BUILDING I BELIEVE EXCEEDS 300 FEET, WHICH IS WITHIN SIGHT OF THIS SITE, TWO DIFFERENT WORDS SOUND THE SAME.
UM, WHEN IT COMES TO A BUILDING LIKE THAT, WOULD YOU HAVE ARGUED AT THE TIME THAT THAT WAS AN INAPPROPRIATE, UH, STRUCTURE FOR THAT SITE OR IN, IN YOUR VOICE OF A SPEAKING FROM STAFF'S PERSPECTIVE? I, I COULDN'T SPEAK IF I MAY.
I COULDN'T SPEAK AS TO THE APPROPRIATENESS, BUT THE CONSIDERATION OF THE HEIGHTS AND DENSITIES IN UNO WAS A PARTIAL CONSIDERATION IN THE STAFF'S ANALYSIS.
SO IT DOESN'T ENCOMPASS EVERY SINGLE BUILDING DUE TO THE FACT THAT THERE ARE PERHAPS ONE OR TWO BUILDINGS THAT EXCEED WHAT YOU COULD BUILD IN CERTAIN AREAS OF UNO.
BUT KNOWING THAT JUST DIRECTLY ACROSS THE STREET IS HOVERING AROUND AN AVERAGE OF 175 FEET ALLOWED BY THAT SUBDISTRICT, THAT WAS THE CONSIDERATION.
I COULDN'T SPEAK AS TO THE APPROPRIATENESS OF THOSE HEIGHTS BEING GRANTED OVER 300 FEET.
THAT WOULD BE A CASE BY CASE SCENARIO.
AND THE STAFF RECOMMENDATION IS, UH, INTENDED TO KEEP, UH, I THINK YOU, YOU MENTIONED SOMEWHAT OF A, A LEVEL PLAYING FIELD OF, OF ALL THE BUILDINGS IN THE AREA, SO THERE'S A RESTRICTION ON HEIGHT AND THEY ALL KIND OF REACH THAT COMMON ELEVATION.
UM, WHEN IT COMES TO, UH, A POSSIBLE DECISION BY THIS COMMISSION TO UH, SUPPORT THE APPLICANT AND THEIR REQUEST FOR HEIGHT, HOW DOES THAT IMPACT THE ADJACENT PROPERTIES IF THEY WERE TO COME UP FOR ZONING? ARE THEY IMMEDIATELY ALLOWED TO ACHIEVE THE SAME HEIGHT THAT THE APPLICANT IS REQUESTING? NO.
COMMISSIONER THEY, IT WOULD OBVIOUSLY START OUT BY LIMITING BASED ON THE BASE ENTITLEMENTS OF THE ZONING CLASSIFICATION.
SO STARTING WITH THAT THEN AN APPLICANT, WHETHER IT'S ON EITHER SIDE OF THIS PROJECT, WOULD SEEK EITHER RELIEF THROUGH THE ZONING BASE ENTITLEMENTS OR BE ABLE TO APPLY THROUGH THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM.
AND DURING THE CONVERSATION, YOU ALSO MENTIONED THIS IS UNUSUAL SITE BECAUSE IT'S AN ENTIRE CITY BLOCK THAT IS OCCUPIED HERE, WHICH IS NOT GONNA BE COMMON IN THIS AREA.
UM, TO WIT, IF, UH, A NEIGHBORING PROPERTY THAT WAS ONLY A QUARTER OF THE SIZE REQUESTED 400 FEET, THERE WOULD NOT NECESSARILY BE CAUSE FOR GRANTING THAT HEIGHT ON THAT SITE SIMPLY BECAUSE OF THE ZONING PERMITTED ON THIS SITE.
WELL THAT'S CORRECT, BUT THE CHALLENGING PART OF IT IS THAT SMALLER SITES USUALLY REQUIRE MUCH GREATER FAR BASED ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE DENSITY ON THE F FLOOR PLATE.
SO IT'S OBVIOUSLY A CORRELATION BETWEEN THE SITE AREA AND THE SQUARE FOOTAGE.
AND SO THE, THE SMALLER THE SITE, ESSENTIALLY THE TALLER YOU GO, YOU SEE THAT EVIDENCE BY UH, MOST OF THOSE POINT TOWERS ON RAINY STREET, WHICH YOU CAN AVERAGE ABOUT 20,000 SQUARE FEET OR SO, SEEKING FA UP TO 32 TO 1, 25 TO ONE, ET CETERA.
THAT ONE COULD MAKE A REASONABLE ARGUMENT THAT IF THAT IS WHAT'S REQUIRED TO MAKE THOSE PROPERTIES PENCIL OUT, PERHAPS OUR ZONING NEEDS TO BE UPDATED TO ACCEPT THAT REALITIES OF THE ECONOMIES OF THOSE BUILDINGS PERHAPS.
ARE THERE COMMISSIONERS WITH QUESTIONS? COMMISSIONER BARR RAMIREZ? I JUST HAVE ONE.
UM, 'CAUSE I HADN'T SEEN THE SLIDES BEFORE WITH THE MASSING HOW YOU SAID 400 ON ONE SIDE.
HOW HIGH IS THE THE JUDGE'S HILLSIDE? THE HILLSIDE WOULD STAY AT THE FACE ZONING OF ONE 20.
COMMISSIONER MAXWELL, UM, MS. BOJO, YOU CAN
'CAUSE OBVIOUSLY WE'RE HERE TALKING ABOUT THE DENSITY BONUS AND THERE IS ALSO A FEE AND LIEU THAT'S ASSOCIATED WITH THAT THAT I'M LOOKING AT IN THE BACKUP.
CAN YOU SPEAK TO THOSE NUMBERS? YES, SORRY, I DON'T, I THINK THEY, I THINK THEY'RE IN ONE OF THE SLIDES IN THE, IN THE PRESENTATION, IS THAT CORRECT? THEY ARE.
WE WILL LOOK AT THE PRETTY PICTURES.
I, I THINK I JUST WANTED TO UNDERSTAND BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY BECAUSE YOU'RE PARTICIPATING IN THE DENSITY BONUS, WE'RE GETTING ADDITIONAL FEE AND LOSE.
SO CAN YOU I GUESS, SORT OF SPEAK TO, BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY
[00:55:01]
THE ADDITIONAL HEIGHT ENSURES ADDITIONAL FUNDING FOR OUR AFFORDABLE HOUSING PROJECTS, IS THAT CORRECT? THAT'S RIGHT, THAT'S RIGHT.SO WE WOULD BE PAYING FOR THE FAR OVER FIVE TO ONE.
SO WITH THE DMU YOU GET FIVE TO ONE FAR, WE'RE ASKING FOR TWO ON THESE TWO PORTIONS.
AND SO WE'RE PAYING FOR 15 TO 20, WHICH IS UM, SIGNIFICANT IN THIS CASE.
UM, AND I CAN TELL YOU HOW IT BREAKS OUT IF YOU'D LIKE, BUT IT'S BASICALLY LIKE 1.25 ON ONE AND 1.75 ON THE OTHER BECAUSE OF THE YES, THAT'S LIKE I WAS GONNA SAY BUT 3.5 IN TOTAL.
FOR THE, AND OBVIOUSLY ANY ADJUSTMENTS IN HEIGHT WOULD OF OF COURSE LOWER THE AMOUNT THAT WAS BEING PAID IN FEE AND IS THAT CORRECT? FOR SURE.
AND THEN, UH, I GUESS GOING BACK TO THE HEIGHT BUILDING HEIGHTS, IF WE CAN GO BACK TO THAT SLIDE REALLY QUICKLY, UM, BECAUSE OBVIOUSLY THERE'S A LOT OF VARIATION IN BUILDING HEIGHTS BETWEEN WHAT WE'VE SEEN FROM SOME OF THE NEIGHBORHOOD PRESENTATIONS AND FROM YOUR OWN MAP.
SO IT DOES SEEM LIKE THERE'S A LOT OF DIFFERENT SORT OF, I GUESS HAVE YOU ALL LOOKED, WHEN YOU LOOKED AT THE SITE, YOU DID CONSIDER WHAT SORT OF, HOW TALL IT WOULD BE RELATIVE TO THE SCALE OF THE OTHER BUILDINGS IN CLOSE PROXIMITY? YES.
AND CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, THERE WAS AN UNO DISCUSSION LAST YEAR THAT GOT POSTPONED, IS THAT CORRECT? YES.
UM, AT THAT POINT IN TIME, WOULD ONE OF THE SUBJECT DISTRICT SUBDISTRICTS BEEN POTENTIALLY HIGHER IS ACROSS THE STREET THE RECOMMENDATION WAS THAT IT WOULD'VE BEEN HIGHER? OBVIOUSLY THAT'S BEEN STALLED OUT, BUT YES.
SO DIRECTLY ACROSS THE STREET HAD THAT UNO UM, PLAN ACTUALLY PASSED, YOU WOULD ALREADY BE LOOKING AT UH, HIGHER ENTITLEMENTS DIRECTLY ACROSS THE STREET FROM THE SITE, IS THAT CORRECT? THAT'S RIGHT.
UM, AND ANY SENSE OF HOW HIGH THAT WOULD'VE BEEN? DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT THAT RECOMMENDATION WAS? I DON'T REMEMBER WHAT THE RECOMMENDATION WAS, BUT I DO, I WOULD LIKE TO POINT OUT IF IT'S OKAY THAT, UM, THAT THE ENTITLED HEIGHT ACROSS THE STREET IS 300.
IT'S 1 75 PLUS THE 1 25, UM, ADDITIONAL.
UM, IN THAT DISCUSSION, THE RECOMMENDATION THAT IS HOPEFULLY WILL BE UNPAUSED AT SOME POINT IS AT COUNCIL, UM, WOULD BE FOR MORE THAN THAT.
UM, BUT I WOULD ALSO POINT OUT THAT THIS IS NOT STUDENT HOUSING.
THESE ARE GONNA BE BY THE UNIT.
SO JUST, I MEAN I KNOW WE'RE TALKING ABOUT HEIGHT, BUT I ALSO WANNA TALK ABOUT THAT FROM A PROJECT STANDPOINT.
THAT THERE'S ALSO LIKE EMPLOYMENT CENTERS AND THINGS NEARBY THAT WE WOULD ALSO BE LOOKING TO HOUSE PEOPLE.
AND CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, 'CAUSE I THINK YOU BRING UP A GREAT POINT HERE THAT WE HAVE ACTUALLY SEEN A LOT OF FAIR NUMBER OF, UM, INDIVIDUALS CHOOSE TO LIVE IN THE WEST CAMPUS AREA JUST BECAUSE THEY HAVE THE TALL TOWERS, THEY HAVE GREAT AMENITIES.
SO I'M ASSUMING THAT THAT WAS PART OF THE REASON THE PROJECT DOES PENCIL AND IS APPEALING BECAUSE PEOPLE WANT TO LIVE IN THIS AREA FOR SURE.
AND DON'T NECESSARILY WANNA LIVE IN STUDENT HOUSING FOR SURE
SO, AND THEN ONE FINAL QUESTION.
WHEN WE TALKED ABOUT UNO LAST YEAR, UM, CORRECT ME IF I'M WRONG, WE DID ALSO TALK ABOUT EXTENDING UNO OVER, UH, WEST MLK BECAUSE TO ADDRESS SOME OF THE BLIGHT ISSUES WE'VE SEEN IN THIS AREA.
SO THAT IS ALSO SOMETHING THAT POTENTIALLY COULD BE UNPAUSED IN THE FUTURE.
WE MIGHT ACTUALLY SEE HIGHER LEVELS OF ENTITLEMENT LIKE THIS PROJECT RIGHT ALONG THAT CORRIDOR.
AND I ALSO WOULD SAY THAT, UM, YOU KNOW, PART OF THE, UM, WHAT HAS SLOWED ONE PART OF WHAT HAS SLOWED DOWN SOME OF THESE PLANNING PROCESSES, 'CAUSE THESE WERE BOTH SCHEDULED TO BE DONE ALREADY, WAS KIND OF COORDINATING THEM.
AND SO IT MAKES SENSE, I THINK TO HAVE AN AREA ON THE NORTH SIDE OF MLK AND AN AREA ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF MLK, YOU KNOW, HAVE SIMILAR, UM, HEIGHTS AND GRADATION.
OTHER COMMISSIONERS WITH QUESTIONS? VICE CHAIR HANEY, GO AHEAD.
UH, ALSO FOR YOU MS. BOJO, UM, I DIDN'T SEE IN THE BACKUP, MAYBE I MISSED IT, BUT DO YOU KNOW HOW MANY KEYS THE HOTEL'S GONNA BE? YES, ROUGHLY.
I, I I JUST ASK BECAUSE YOU KNOW, I, I ALWAYS LOOK AT THINGS FROM A REVENUE STANDPOINT AND THAT THE HOT REVENUE IS A VERY IMPORTANT SOURCE OF INCOME FOR THE CITY.
WE DO HAVE THAT NUMBER AND ONE OF THE ONLY ONES THAT THE STATE DOESN'T SEEM TO MIND US GETTING RIGHT,
IT'S, I WANNA SAY IT'S AROUND 200 KEYS.
UM, HOTEL, UH, HOT, HOT REVENUE, WHICH ALSO BRINGS PARKLAND DEDICATION FEES IN ADDITION TO THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING FEES.
UM, AND THEN DO YOU HAVE ANY IDEA, UM, I KNOW YOU SAID THAT UH, THIS, THIS NEEDS EVERY BIT OF HEIGHT, UM, UH, IN ORDER TO GO FORWARD, BUT IF A SIMILAR PROJECT, YOU KNOW, BY ANOTHER DEVELOPER WERE TO GO FORWARD AT 200 FEET MM-HMM
UM, VERSUS YOUR PROJECT, UH, COULD, COULD YOU MAYBE ESTIMATE WHAT THE DELTA IN, UM, UH, PROPERTY, UH, VALUE MIGHT BE ON THE TAX ROLLS? I WOULD YOU SAY MILLIONS, TENS OF MILLIONS.
I'M PROBABLY NOT QUALIFIED TO ANSWER THAT QUESTION.
I WOULD LOVE TO ANSWER IT, BUT IT'S PROBABLY NOT A GOOD IDEA.
YOUR ENDEAVOR TO ANSWER THE QUESTION LIVE ON THIS ONE.
SLOTS, I CAN'T SEE THE COMMISSIONERS ONLINE AT THE MOMENT, BUT IF ANY OF THEM HAVE QUESTIONS THEY CAN LET ME KNOW.
AND IN THE MEANTIME, UM, GO AHEAD.
COMMISSIONER GANNON, THIS IS A QUESTION FOR STAFF.
[01:00:03]
YES SIR.HOW ARE YOU DOING? UH, I'M GREAT.
UM, CAN YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND THE UNO HEIGHTS AND WHAT DENSITY BONUS BONUSES GO INTO UNO? UM, JUST CAN YOU HELP ME UNDERSTAND? SO, SO TYPICALLY IF I MAY, MADAM CHAIR, YES, PLEASE.
TYPICALLY YOU HAVE, UH, SUB-DISTRICTS WITHIN UNO THAT ALLOW VARIABLE HEIGHTS DEPENDING ON THE PARTICIPATION LEVEL OF PARTICIPATION IN THE DENSITY BONUS PROGRAM.
THERE ARE PROPERTIES THAT EXCEED SOME OF THOSE BASELINES, AND THEN THERE'S PROPERTIES THAT AVERAGE ABOUT 175 FEET ON THE DISTRICT IMMEDIATELY NORTH OF THE SUBJECT PROPERTY.
SO THE UNO DISTRICT DOES ALLOW FOR A VARIANCE IN SOME OF THESE HEIGHTS BASED ON THE PARTICIPATION LEVEL, PARTICIPATION IN THE INTENSITY BONUS PROGRAM.
SO THERE COULD BE A VARIETY OF HEIGHTS THAT YOU CAN LOOK AT DEPENDING ON THE SUBDISTRICT.
CAN YOU GIVE US, UH, UH, YOU'RE SAYING THAT THE HEIGHTS AVERAGE ABOUT 175.
WHAT IS THE BASE ZONE FOR UNO AND WHAT IS THE ADDITIONAL HEIGHT THAT YOU'RE ABLE TO GET? SO TO, TO CLARIFY, THE 175 FEET IS FOR THAT SUBDISTRICT DIRECTLY NORTH.
SO THE BASE ZONING DISTRICTS FOR THOSE PROPERTIES, JUST NORTH OF THE SUBJECT, ARE ABOUT CS.
SO THEY AVERAGE ABOUT 60 FEET OF BASE ENTITLEMENTS AND HEIGHT DIRECTLY NORTH, NORTH OF THAT YOU HAVE MF FOUR, UH, YOU HAVE SOME LOS, SOME GR.
SO THEY'RE AVERAGING ABOUT THE 60 FEET OR SO BASE ENTITLEMENTS.
SO 175 FEET IS THE BONUS HEIGHT ON TOP OF THE 60 FEET OF CS UP UP TO 175 FEET.
MAXIMUM BUILDING HEIGHT FOR THAT PARTICULAR SUBDISTRICT.
NORTH OF THE SUBJECT PROPERTY.
UH, AND WE ALWAYS SAY UP TO, BECAUSE WE'RE TALKING ABOUT MAXIMUM ENTITLEMENT, SO IT DOESN'T INCLUDE, IT'S NOT AN ADDITIONAL 1 75 TO THE 60.
IT'S A TOTALITY OF A HUNDRED, TOTALITY OF 1 75.
SO WHERE DO WE GET THE 300 FEET FROM UNO? UH, I BELIEVE THAT'S ONE OF THE DIFFERENT SUBDISTRICTS I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH.
IT'S A DIFFERENT, WHICH SUBDISTRICT? MM-HMM
DO WE KNOW THE DIFFERENT HEIGHT SUBDISTRICTS? I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH THAT.
SUBDISTRICT COMMISSIONER CHAIR.
UM, THAT HEIGHT WAS ACTUALLY INCREASED TO 320 19.
THAT WAS ONE OF THE CHANGES WE MADE.
IT WAS ORIGINALLY 175, BUT GOT ADJUSTED TO 300 AT THAT TIME.
THE SUBDISTRICT DIRECTLY ACROSS THE STREET, UH, PERHAPS THE ONE THAT ENCOMPASSES THE SUBJECT PROPERTY.
I THINK THAT THAT'S A PRETTY, UH, IMPORTANT PIECE TO GET RIGHT.
IF THE, IF THE SUBDISTRICT DIRECTLY ACROSS THE STREET, IS IT 175 OR IS IT 300? WELL, SO PULLING FROM THE CODE COMMISSIONER, I'M SEEING 175 FEET, BUT I CAN SEE CLARITY ON THAT INNER WEST CAMPUS SUBDISTRICT IS WHAT I'M LOOKING AT.
PLUS 25 IF YOU DID SECOND TIER ADMINISTRATIVE, WHAT WAS THAT? I'M SORRY.
IT'S, THERE'S A SECOND TIER, BUT YOU COULD, COULD WE, UH, COULD I PITCH THE QUESTION TO THE APPLICANT NOW? YEAH.
DO YOU KNOW WHAT THAT SUBDISTRICT IS AND YES.
WHERE THE 300 HEIGHT COMES FROM? I DO.
I'M LOOKING AT THE CODE SECTION HERE.
UM, IT'S MS. BEIER, COULD YOU TURN YOUR MICROPHONE ON PLEASE?
CLEARLY,
UM, IS THE BOUNDARIES, UM, IT'S THE CORE DISTRICT.
I'M GONNA PULL THE MAP UP HERE.
UM, IT'S THE CORE DISTRICT AND UM, THANK YOU.
SO IT'S 175 AND THEN IF YOU PULL UP THE CODE SECTION, YOU GET A HUNDRED, SORRY, YOU GET 175 FEET OF HEIGHT.
AND THEN YOU ALSO GET, YOU DON'T HAVE THE CODE SECTION HERE, DO YOU, IN THE AFFORDABILITY SECTION.
UM, YOU CAN QUALIFY, IT'S IN DIVISION NINE, WHICH WE DON'T HAVE HERE.
UM, IF YOU, I'M SO SORRY, BUT IF I, I PROMISE I CAN FIND IT IF I JUST HAVE ONE MORE MINUTE.
SO WHILE SHE'S LOOKING FOR THAT, UM, A QUESTION FOR STAFF, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
IF THE, UH, SUBDISTRICT DIRECTLY NORTH OF THIS SITE IS AT 300, WOULD THAT CHANGE YOUR RECOMMENDATION? WELL, THAT'S ONLY A PARTIAL CONSIDERATION OF WHAT WE LOOKED AT.
AND, AND YOU'RE LOOKING AT THE CORRIDOR OF MLK AS WELL, THE PROPERTIES TO THE WEST AND TO THE EAST.
AND IN THE DOWNTOWN DENSITY BONUS, UH, PROGRAM WITH THE MAPS THAT ARE ONLINE, UH, THE, THE ONES THAT OFFER THE ADMINISTRATIVE, EXCUSE ME, YOU CAN FEEL FREE TO FINISH ANSWERING YOUR QUESTION.
[01:05:01]
OF THREE TO ONE, FIVE TO ONE, EIGHT TO ONE, AND 15 TO ONE.IT'S A SIGNIFICANT JUMP OF GOING FROM THREE TO ONE AND 90 FEET TO 20 TO 1 445 FEET.
SO LOOKING AT THE TOTALITY OF THE ENTITLEMENTS THAT ARE UP AND DOWN MLK AS WELL AS SOME OF THE OTHER STREETS, UH, FLANKING THIS PARTICULAR PROJECT, THAT WAS THE STAFF CONSIDERATION.
IT WASN'T JUST THE UNO PROPERTIES ACROSS THE STREET.
SECTION B2B ONE SAYS IN, IN THE OUTER WEST DISTRICT, YOU GET 25 ADDITIONAL FEET FOR THE NEXT TIER.
AND THEN B TWO SAYS THAT IF YOU'RE IN THE INNER WEST CAMPUS DISTRICT, YOU GET AN ADDITIONAL 125 FEET IF YOU DO THE NEXT TIER.
SO 125 AND 175 IS WHERE WE GET TO 300.
SO THAT IS THE ZONE DIRECTLY ACROSS THE STREET.
THAT IS THE ZONE HEIGHT, THAT IS THE ADMINISTRATIVE HEIGHT THROUGH THAT BONUS.
UH, THAT WAS MY ONLY QUESTION.
THANKS COMMISSIONER GANNON, OTHER COMMISSIONERS WITH QUESTIONS.
ALL RIGHT, IF THERE ARE NO FURTHER QUESTIONS, I'M LOOKING FOR A MOTION ON THIS ITEM.
GO AHEAD, COMMISSIONER BRETTON, I WOULD LIKE TO MOVE APPLICANT REQUEST.
DO WE HAVE A SECOND? SECONDED BY COMMISSIONER AHMED.
SO WE CAN TAKE THREE SPEAKERS, FOUR AND THREE AGAINST COMMISSIONER BRETTON, WOULD YOU LIKE TO START BY SPEAKING TO YOUR ITEM? UM, THERE ARE V IN VERY CLOSE PROXIMITY, MULTIPLE BUILDINGS AT 300 FEET, SOME MAYBE A LITTLE BIT ABOVE, SOME BELOW.
THE TOPOGRAPHY ALSO CHANGES HOW THE BUILT FORM FEELS AND LOOKS.
THERE'S $3.3 MILLION GOING TO THE AFFORDABLE HOUSING TRUST FUND.
IF THIS PROJECT GOES THROUGH THE SITE IS REMEDIATED, WE REMOVE A BILLBOARD THAT I HAD TO LOOK AT FOR THREE YEARS ACROSS FROM MY UH, UNIT.
UM, AND THIS IS MINUTES WALK AWAY FROM MULTIPLE HIGH FREQUENCY TRANSIT STOPS.
GREAT NEIGHBORHOOD AND PEOPLE DESERVE TO LIVE HERE AND IT'S A GOOD PROJECT.
ANYONE SPEAKING AGAINST THE MOTION? ANYONE ELSE LIKE TO SPEAK FOR COMMISSIONER AHMED? GO AHEAD.
I THINK IT'S A WONDERFUL PROJECT.
UH, AND IF WE'RE GOING TO HAVE HEIGHT ANYWHERE IN THE CITY OUTSIDE OF THE MAIN PART OF DOWNTOWN, THIS IS, SHOULD BE NEAR THE TOP OF THAT LIST.
UM, AGREE WITH EVERYTHING THAT COMMISSIONER BRETTON MENTIONED.
BUT IN ADDITION TO THAT, I REMEMBER UH, WHEN WE WERE TALKING ABOUT UNO ABOUT A YEAR AGO OR SO, ONE OF THE, UH, ONE OF THE TOPICS WE WERE DISCUSSING IS THE FACT THAT A LOT OF THE BUSINESSES AROUND, UH, WEST CAMPUS AREA, UM, HAVE DIFFICULTY NOT HAVING AS MANY 365, UH, DAY RESIDENTS AROUND THE FACT THAT A LOT OF STUDENTS LIVE IN THIS AREA.
AND SO I THINK BRINGING A LOT OF NON-STUDENTS, A LOT OF PROFESSIONALS IN THIS AREA IS GOING TO HELP MAKE IT A MUCH MORE VIBRANT COMMUNITY.
UH, YOU KNOW, JUST WITH BETWEEN, WITH THE SYNERGY BETWEEN THE STUDENTS AND THESE WORKING PROFESSIONALS.
AND I THINK IT'LL HELP, UH, ALLOW A LOT OF THE BUSINESSES, THE COMMERCIAL IN THE AREA TO UH, SURVIVE AND, AND FLOURISH AS WELL.
SO, UH, I'M EXCITED ABOUT, UH, UH, ABOUT THIS PROJECT STARTING.
ARE THERE COMMISSIONERS SPEAKING FOR OR AGAINST THE MOTION? COMMISSIONER BEREN, YOU WANNA TAKE THE LAST SPOT FOR YES, PLEASE.
UM, FIRSTLY I'D LIKE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE WORK THAT THE NEIGHBORHOOD HAS BEEN DOING WITH THE APPLICANT.
I KNOW THAT Y'ALL HAVE VARYING OPINIONS ON THIS PROJECT AND I KNOW THAT, UM, THE DECISION THAT WE MAY MAKE TODAY MAY NOT BE IN LINE WITH WHAT YOU'RE HOPING FOR.
I DO HOPE THAT, UM, YOUR EFFORTS TOWARDS THE ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS HAVE BORNE FRUIT FOR YOU.
IT SOUNDS LIKE EVERYTHING IS MOVING ALONG WELL AND IN A COORDINATED EFFORT, WHICH I'M VERY HAPPY TO HEAR.
UM, I WILL SAY THAT ON PROJECTS LIKE THIS, UH, AND I'LL SPEAK TO STAFF ABOUT THIS AS WELL, I DO THINK THAT THERE IS AN ELEMENT OF A SITE LIKE THIS THAT IS SPECIAL AND THAT IS WARRANTED.
UM, SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS, UH, WHEN IT COMES FOR WHAT THIS SITE CAN POSSIBLY PRESENT TO THE CITY.
AND I THINK THAT THE HEIGHT HERE ALLOWS THIS SITE TO KIND OF ACHIEVE GOALS THAT ARE NOT POSSIBLE ON SMALLER SITES.
I WOULD LIKE TO ENCOURAGE THE APPLICANT TO REALLY LEAN IN ON THE GROUND FLOOR AMENITIES AND HOW THAT ENGAGES THE CITY.
WE ALREADY HAVE THE GREAT STREETS PROGRAM ON THE TABLE, WHICH IS FANTASTIC.
I THINK REALLY EMBELLISHING WHAT THAT ALLEY COULD BECOME AND MAKE SURE IT DOESN'T BECOME THE BACK OF THOSE TWO BUILDINGS, UH, INCLUDING MAKING SURE THERE'S ACTIVATION ON ALL THOSE CORNERS.
I WOULD REALLY ENCOURAGE YOU TO CONTINUE TO WORK WITH THE APPLICANT TO
[01:10:01]
MAKE SURE THAT YOU HAVE A VOICE IN WHAT HAPPENS DOWN THERE AS WELL.AND WHAT HAPPENS IN THAT PARK.
I THINK THIS IS GONNA BE A TREMENDOUS ASSET TO YOUR NEIGHBOR, YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD.
I'VE SPOKEN TO SOME STUDENTS, UH, THAT HAVE LIVED IN WEST CAMPUS AND THEY, WHILE THEY DON'T LOVE THE 300 FOOT TOWERS FOR OTHER ASPECTS OF THOSE BUILDINGS, NOT RELATED TO HEIGHT, WHAT THEY DID, PRAISE THOSE BUILDINGS FOR TOWARDS THE QUALITY OF THE SPACES ON THE STREET LEVEL AND WHAT IT HAS DONE TO WEST CAMPUS TO HAVE ALL THOSE STREET LEVEL AREAS ACTIVATED FOR THAT USE.
FOR ALL THOSE REASONS, UH, I'M IN SUPPORT OF THIS PROJECT.
THANK YOU COMMISSIONER PETROSIAN.
FINAL CHANCE FOR ANY SPEAKERS AGAINST, OKAY, LET'S GO AHEAD AND TAKE A VOTE.
THOSE IN FAVOR OF APPLICANT REQUEST.
OKAY, THAT PASSES UNANIMOUSLY.
THANK YOU SO MUCH TO ALL OF OUR SPEAKERS WHO ARE HERE THIS EVENING AND TO THE APPLICANT.
LET'S MOVE ON TO OUR DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS AND THANK YOU SO MUCH TO OUR STAFF WHO ARE HERE TO SHARE INFORMATION WITH US ABOUT THIS CASE.
LET'S MOVE ON TO DISCUSSION ACTION ITEMS.
[17. Discussion and action to amend the 2026 annual Planning Commission regular meeting schedule to add March 31, 2026. (Sponsored by Chair Woods and Vice Chair Haney)]
THE FIRST ITEM IS 17.DISCUSSION ACTION TO AMEND THE 2026 ANNUAL PLANNING COMMISSION REGULAR MEETING SCHEDULE TO ADD MARCH 31ST, 2026.
FOR CONTEXT, WHEN WE HAVE A THIRD TUESDAY, WE GENERALLY ADD A SPECIAL MEETING TO HAVE TIME FOR STAFF UPDATES AND REPORTS AND THIS IS AN EXAMPLE OF THAT.
SO WE'RE HOPING TO ADD THIS MEETING AT OUR USUAL TIME, 6:00 PM IN THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS ROOM ON MARCH 31ST.
LOOKING FOR A MOTION TO AMEND THE SCHEDULE TO ADD THAT MEETING MOTION BY VICE CHAIR HANEY.
I'LL GO AHEAD AND SECOND WITHOUT OBJECTION.
THAT ITEM PASSES AND I'D LIKE TO GO AHEAD AND DO A QUORUM CHECK FOR THAT MEETING AS IT MIGHT NOT HAVE ALREADY BEEN ON YOUR CALENDAR.
SO IF YOU ANTICIPATE THAT YOU WILL BE ABLE TO MAKE THAT MEETING ON MARCH 31ST, COULD YOU PLEASE RAISE YOUR HAND AVAILABLE IF YOU ARE AVAILABLE FOR THAT MEETING ON THE 31ST? IT'LL BE 6:00 PM AT 6:00 PM IN THE BOARDS AND COMMISSIONS ROOM WITH A VIRTUAL OPTION AS USUAL.
SO WE WILL NEED TO MAKE SURE THAT ALL OF US WHO COMMITTED TO BEING AT THAT MEETING ARE THERE, UM, EITHER VIRTUALLY OR IN PERSON AND MAYBE ELLA, MS. GARCIA, APOLOGIZE, WE CAN CHECK IN THE WEEK BEFORE TO MAKE SURE THAT WE WILL HAVE QUORUM FOR THAT MEETING.
ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT ITEM? OKAY.
[PERMANENT COMMITTEE UPDATES]
MOVE ON TO OUR PERMANENT COMMITTEE UPDATES.ITEM 18 IS THE CODES AND ORDINANCES JOINT COMMITTEE.
ANY UPDATES ON THAT COMMITTEE? UM, WE HAD A MEETING, UH, TWO WEEKS BE PREVIOUSLY AND WE DISCUSSED, UM, UH, THE SIZE OF OUR ZONING SIGNS.
THE ITEM WILL BE COMING TO PLANNING COMMISSION, HOPEFULLY WITH IN-PERSON DISPLAYS.
UH, COMPREHENSIVE PLAN JOINT COMMITTEE.
I BELIEVE WE HAVE A MEETING COMING UP IN APRIL, UH, SOMETIME, BUT NO UPDATES OTHERWISE.
JOINT SUSTAINABILITY COMMITTEE, WE MET AT THE END OF FEBRUARY AND I ENJOYED OUR THREE HOUR WORKSHOP SESSION ON RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE CITY THAT THEY ADOPT IN THE COMING YEAR.
GREAT SMALL AREA PLANNING JOINT COMMITTEE.
WE MET THIS MORNING AND WE HAD A QUORUM AND WE ELECTED A NEW CHAIR AND VICE CHAIR.
WE'RE VERY EXCITED ABOUT ALL OF THE ABOVE.
UM, UH, AND UH, WE SET OUR MEETING SCHEDULE FOR THE COMING YEAR FOR THE NEXT, UH, QUARTERLY MEETINGS.
SOUTH CENTRAL WATERFRONT ADVISORY BOARD, COMMISSIONER BRETON WHO JUST HAD STEPPED OFF.
[WORKING GROUP UPDATES]
GROUP UPDATES.I KNOW WE HAVE OUR BUDGET WORKING GROUP COMMISSIONER AHMED AND BRETTON, UM, WHO WILL HAVE A RECOMMENDATION FOR US AT OUR NEXT MEETING.
WE'VE MET A COUPLE TIMES AND, UH, WE JUST SENT OUT, UH, AN EMAIL TO STAFF FOR SOME CLARIFICATION THAT'LL HELP US WITH THOSE RECOMMENDATIONS.
THANK YOU FOR YOUR WORK ON THAT GROUP.
ANY FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS FROM THE COMMISSION? OKAY, SEEING NONE, I WILL ADJOURN THIS MEETING OF THE PLANNING COMMISSION AT 7:16 PM THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH.