AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin City Council has more than 100 items on its Sept. 21, 2023 meeting. Here’s some of what KXAN is watching:
Palm District plan
Austin City Council will vote on whether to move forward with its Palm District Plan — which covers the Convention Center, Waterloo Greenway, APD’s headquarters and the Palm School and Park.
The proposed district is highlighted in yellow in the City map below:
“This has been a long time coming,” Council Member Vanessa Fuentes said. “At the heart of it is our Palm Park and Palm School which is very important to the Latino community so I’m happy to see that included and to see that move forward.”
According to the Downtown Austin Alliance, the plan will amend the Downtown Austin Plan to more specifically guide future development in the areas highlighted, which focus on eastern downtown.
“We’re bringing forward a few amendments on Thursday,” said Council Member Zo Qadri. “A lot of Mexican-American Austinites called that part of town home and have been displaced and their history has been kind of moved out and I think it’s important for us to do right by them.”
HealthSouth affordable housing
After a deal fell through, the City of Austin is working to figure out what to do with its HealthSouth building in downtown Austin.
People “overwhelmingly” want to see more affordable housing there – with the priority given to people working in the healthcare, hospitality and service industries — according to a community impact survey referenced in a new City of Austin memo.
In response, the City Manager’s Office made a recommendation to convert at least part of the former HealthSouth property into affordable housing. The land is on the corner of Red River and 12th Streets, walking distance from Dell Seton and the heart of downtown.
Austin City Council could discuss next steps for the property with City staff Thursday. In a work session Tuesday, some council members sided with the memo and results of the survey, while others asked the City to consider how it might get the most bang for its buck.
“Our musicians or artists, individuals who work in the hospitality industry, need somewhere to live and what better place than in our downtown area,” Council Member Vanessa Fuentes said.
Expansion of semiconductor plant
Austin City Council members could sign off on an incentive agreement with NXP, a semiconductor manufacturer, which is working to expand its chip manufacturing capacity in Austin.
NXP has been in Austin since 1974 and already has two facilities — one on Ed Bluestein and the other in Oak Hill — which employ nearly 3,000 people, according to a presentation posted in backup.
Austin City Council members asked the City to revise its partnership to include a childcare fund, which will be brought back to the council Thursday.
“NXP’s investment has the potential to generate an estimated annual economic impact of $560 million,” the city previously said in a statement.
Land management plan
Austin City Council members could approve the Parks and Recreation Department’s land management and climate vulnerability plan. It would include addressing wildfire risk and preserving native species, according to the draft plan.
Council Member Alison Alter said the plan will be a set of guidelines for city staff, which will promote climate resilience for the city’s more than 10,000 acres of open space including parks and greenbelts.
“It’s grounded in equity, and it is going to provide us the tools and the guidance that we need to make sure that we have access to parks and preserves for many years to come. Even with climate change,” Alter said.
Land Development Code transparency
Austin City Council is working to encourage more affordable housing by changing its Land Development Code (LDC). The LDC determines what can be built, where and can restrict the number of units on a piece of land.
As Austin City Council makes changes to that LDC to encourage affordability, Mayor Kirk Watson wants to expand transparency of that process by beefing up the notification process.
“As we consider notice going forward on any of these items that make these changes that we are going to at least my hope is that we seek robust, complete notice in a way where people feel like we have a credible process, they’re not being left out,” Watson said in work session Tuesday.
It comes after a group of homeowners successfully sued the city, undoing its complete LDC rewrite, over notification requirements. That same group is expected to be back in court against the City later this month.
Police oversight item
Council Member Zohaib “Zo” Qadri is bringing forward a resolution that would direct City staff to implement parts of Proposition A — a police oversight measure — that voters approved in May. It would not include the parts of the proposition that are wrapped up in negotiations with the Austin Police Association.
It’s not clear which of the proposition apply yet, that would need to be worked out by City staff later.
“We can’t say we’ll do one thing and then do the other,” Qadri said. “We’re making sure that parts of the Prop that don’t relate to meet and confer are implemented.”
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