by Daryl Slusher | Aug 8, 2023 | City Council 2023, Land Development Code/Zoning, Leslie Pool HOME proposal
Council Member Leslie Pool’s proposal to change zoning definitions and criteria on single family housing could affect up to an estimated 171,944 “parcels” or properties. That estimate was provided by City staff in response to an inquiry from the Austin Independent....
by Daryl Slusher | Jul 13, 2023 | Land Development Code/Zoning, Leslie Pool HOME proposal
In a move that would have dramatic effects on neighborhoods in every part of Austin, Council Member Leslie Pool is proposing to redefine single family zoning categories to allow at least three units per lot in all areas zoned Single Family — SF 1, SF 2, SF3 and...
by Daryl Slusher | May 31, 2023 | Land Development Code/Zoning, Texas Legislature
It’s the end of May in an odd numbered year. In Texas politics that always means good news and bad news. The good news is that the Texas Legislature has adjourned. The bad news is that there is always the possibility that the Governor may call them back for a special...
by Daryl Slusher | Apr 27, 2023 | Austin Elections, ETODs, Land Development Code/Zoning, True Stories
It’s election time again in Austin with Prop A and B, both about police oversight, on a May 6 ballot. Early voting is already underway. Prop A was put on the ballot by police accountability activists while Prop B looks like a sneak attack from the Austin Police...
by Daryl Slusher | Apr 25, 2023 | Land Development Code/Zoning
The Austin housing market has made the national news again. The latest is an article in Bloomberg which explores one of the subjects we’ve covered frequently here. That is the New Urbanist mantra that simply building more housing, especially apartments, will lower...
by Daryl Slusher | Apr 4, 2023 | City Council 2023, Land Development Code/Zoning, Texas Legislature
We haven’t brought it up much in these pages, but the Texas Legislature has been in town since late January. So we probably need to take a look at proposed bills that would target Austin. In a fairly recent phenomenon, many of the bills are written to target...
by Daryl Slusher | Mar 22, 2023 | ETODs, Land Development Code/Zoning
OK, we’re going to talk about ETODs again, that is Equitable Transit Oriented Developments. Readers may recall that when we last discussed ETODs, right before Spring Break and SXSW, the City Council was about to take up City staff’s recommendation to “accept” the...
by Daryl Slusher | Mar 6, 2023 | ETODs, Land Development Code/Zoning
There’s a new acronym in town. It’s ETOD, which stands for Equitable Transit-Oriented Development. The City recently released a 184 page report titled the “Equitable Transit-Oriented Development Policy Plan.” ETODs are something of a blueprint, or zoning map, intended...
by Daryl Slusher | Feb 2, 2023 | City Council 2023, Land Development Code/Zoning, Police and Public Safety
Austin housing prices have made the national news in a new way recently, but there has been a paucity of local coverage about it. According to multiple national media outlets, the financial giant Goldman Sachs predicted that Austin will be one of four metropolitan...
by Daryl Slusher | Nov 30, 2022 | Land Development Code/Zoning
The holiday season is here. While some may be coasting already, for people in many walks of life the period between Thanksgiving and Christmas means a mad rush to get things done before the end of the year. And, of course, that is the case at Austin City Hall. The...