urban planning

Density Bonus Program Stalls

Jude Galligan | January 15, 2010 |

For better or for worse, ROMA’s density bonus recommendations aren’t likely to be adopted anytime soon. The Planning Commission believes that not all party’s concerns have been addressed and they are requesting a four-month review period. My experience with the density bonus recommendations is that ROMA and the City’s Planning and Development Review Department went above and beyond what was necessary to gather input. They’ve held town halls and sought out stake holder input, ad nauseam. Did it feel like a seminar? Yes, at times, because these are complicated issues with a learning curve. As someone that’s opined at these input gathering sessions, I always felt my opinion/concerns/questions were being listened to. Anyone that hasn’t weighed in on this yet cannot credibly claim they’ve not had the opportunity to do so. Difficult decisions will need to be made that will not always assuage the concerns of all parties.

I’m still ambivalent on the density bonus. But it’s easy to be frustrated with City Council and the Planning Commission because there has been a year of planning and citizen input on the recommendations put forth. What does that say about the process of stakeholder input? Maybe an additional four month review is warranted, but the notion that ROMA and the City’s Planning and Development Review Department have not made every effort possible to seek input is patently false, and leaves me to be skeptical that this is nothing more than junk-politics at work.

For two perspectives on the issue of warehouse district protection – a highlight of ROMA’s density bonus recommendation – check out this contribution by Mike McGill and Roger Cauvin.

Statesman link

Shoal Creek Walk Concept

Jude Galligan | December 11, 2009 |

Schlosser Development is proposing a new mixed-use complex in the parking lot to the east of the downtown Austin Whole Foods. The following renderings and description were recently submitted to the City of Austin Design Commission and will be presented on Monday, December 14th. The status is currently conceptual.

The Shoal Creek Walk, a proposed development project from Schlosser Development, will be a true mixed-use building complex located at the corner of West Sixth and Bowie Streets in downtown Austin, Texas. The project will closely conform to the constraints of the site which include a capital view corridor over approximately one half of the property and the Shoal Creek floodplain elevation.

These site limitations create a specific and very limited area where building improvements can be made on the site, by restricting both the building height and the overall footprint of any buildings on the site. Within those limitations, two buildings will be situated along Bowie Street, as the eastern portion of the site is within the floodplain. The high-rise building, at 350′ tall, will be located on the north portion of the property with a total of approximately 490,000 sq. ft. of office, retail and residential uses. The low-rise building will be situated at the corner of West Fifth and Bowie Streets, with primarily offices above the first level retail component for a total of about 100,000 sq. ft.

The two buildings together will provide more than 450,000 sq. ft. of office space, which is of a size able to attract a major employer and will likely be built in phases, to allow accommodation of a variety of tenant sizes. This flexibility will greatly enhance the feasibility of the project moving forward. The larger building will also have a residential component of about 90 units located above the office in what will be a narrower, residential footprint. The residential component adds to the feasibility of the larger building and is consistent with the downtown plan preference for vertically integrated structures.

The parking will be entirely within structured parking garages, both above and below grade, possibly with several surface ADA and drop-off parking adjacent to the building. Materials for the building will be of durable quality and wi ll be consistent with the architecture represented in the Market District.

Not So Great Streets

Jude Galligan | November 17, 2009 |

The phrase “great streets” gets a lot of lip service in downtown stakeholder circles. This has been going on since 2000. We’re all familiar with 2nd Street District, and I think we can generally agree that the City/AMLI knocked it out of the park with this one. It’s a terrific pedestrian experience.

With the Great Streets Program available since 2000, not all buildings constructed since then have fully adopted the notion. Two examples:

1) Hampton Inn

Sure, the New Orleans style terrace is charming, but if you’ve ever walked by the hotel you were almost certainly dodging valet podiums, bellhops, guests, and tiny bistro tables that are so crowded that nobody uses them.

2) Champions @ Courtyard Marriot

If you know this corner, you know there is a string of cabs parked along 4th street. Here we see a hard fence forcing pedestrians towards the street, and creating an uninviting al-fresco experience for bar patrons. The far end of this fence terminates into a round-a-bout entrance into the Courtyard. A better alternative to activate this corner would be planters like we see at Annies, which would also provide an entrance to the the restaurant along 4th street.

photos courtesy of Mike McGill

Waller Creek Meeting Notes

Jude Galligan | November 13, 2009 |

At last night’s WCCAC meeting:

1) We learned that the City is negotiating the purchase of three contiguous lots located along southbound frontage road and bounded by 4th and 5th Streets. This area hosts the east bank of Waller Creek between 4th and 5th and is currently used as a surface parking lot. The land acquisition will be purchased with funds from the Waller Creek Tunnel Project, and will likely become a temporary staging ground for the construction of the tunnel. Ironically [to me at least] these lots are not on FEMA’s 100 year flood maps, and therefore wouldn’t directly benefit from the tunnel improvements designed to remove land from the 100 year flood plain. The lots are encumbered by Capitol View Corridors, though. You can see the lots under “Kuykendall Addn”.

2) The WCCAC made an official recommendation to City Council that the Strategy 1 improvements identified by ROMA’s Waller Creek District Master Plan be included in the items for the 2010 Transportation Bond. The bond is limited to issues of mobility, including pedestrian uses such as the conversion of Sabine Street into a promenade.

3) Perry Lorenz provided citizen communication that the 21c project is moving forward and the development team is flying to Austin from Louisville with updates in the first week of December. In addition to getting a more comprehensive project status, we should receive a better idea of the amount and types of consideration the project is paying towards Waller Creek improvements adjacent to the property.

4) The I-35 Makeover project is going to be complete in 2010 and will be funded from the parking fees collected underneath I-35. No word yet on improvements to the 4th Street overpass, but WCCAC requested to be included as a stakeholder should that discussion commence.

5) Matt Knifton of the Texas Rowing Center provided citizen communication about TRC’s bid for the boathouse. Notably, last year TRC donated roughly $30,000 in community outreach in the form of education and classes for minority children and those with disabilities. Matt estimated that as a PARD concessionaire since 1999, the TRC has returned over $400,000 to the city;moreover, throughout a 20 year lease of the new boathouse, there is potential to generate nearly $3MM in concession revenue for the city. The TRC would have the opportunity to further increase their community outreach programs, making the lake more accessible to more Austinites.

In summary, it’s nice to see action and momentum!

-Jude

Republic Square Park Improvements

Jude Galligan | November 4, 2009 |

Phase 1 improvements to Republic Square should be complete before the new year

One of downtown Austin’s most cherished parks is Republic Square, located between 4th and 5th streets, just west of the Plaza Lofts. The park has been under construction, recently getting a much needed face lift. Charlie McCabe, director of the Austin Parks Foundation, visited with DANA yesterday to discuss the progress of the park’s improvements, and to share a bit of history.

Did you know this is where Edwin Waller, the first Mayor of Austin and the namesake of Waller Creek, in 1839 held the original land auction for Austin’s downtown blocks?

From Austin Parks Foundation

“…city lots were auctioned under the shade of the live oak trees on what is now called Republic Square. A small grove of live oaks – known as the Auction Oaks – survive at the southwest corner of the square today.”

The focal point of the park is a 300 year old oak tree. Considering this was a parking lot for decades, with asphalt up to the tree, it’s astonishing these trees have survived so long. The new design by TBG Partners gives the tree breathing space with a raised ipe wood deck built around the tree.

Other changes to the park include leveling the berms – the raised artificial grass hills – which limited visibility into the park. Republic Square will actually grow by 17′ to the west, as San Antonio St becomes a promenade in front of the stairs to the still-under-construction Federal Courthouse. Beginning in January, when the phase one improvements are complete, the Austin Farmers Market will relocated into the park.

The Austin Parks Foundation works diligently to raise money for Austin parks. The $450,000 improvement budget comes from the Austin City Limits music festival, Downtown Austin Neighborhood Association, Downtown Austin Alliance, General Services Administration, Gables Apartments, and others.