Southwest Austin | Dripping Springs - July 2022

BUILDING UP CORRIDORS Dozens of VMU projects exist across Austin and more are on the way.

2022 REAL ESTATE EDITION

Development outlook While pointing out the possible ceiling of the change, Smith also said the recent action represents a solid starting point for discussion of housing topics that had historically been rejected in Austin. “In such a tight housing market, it is critical to pri- oritize housing, take meaningful steps to improve our housing inventory, and continue to balance the diverse needs and desires of our city,” Smith said. In addition to a mixed reception overall, an aspect of VMU2 is likely to be challenged in court. Douglas Becker, the lawyer who handled the land code lawsuit, said he may sue over VMU2 given council’s choice to grant extra height without allowing for resident push- back—the same topic the city previously lost over in court this year. Mayor Steve Adler, who pushed for that aspect of VMU, also said he sides with those who view the updates as a half-step. But after highly contentious land-use discussions in the past and ahead of next year’s turnover on council, he also said the measures’ unanimous passage may signal a longer-term shift. “For us to have a process where we could make some impact on [compatibility]—even if it didn’t go as far as many people would have liked to see it go—it represents a signicant move among a lot of people that weren’t willing to even participate in the conver- sation a year before,” he said. For now, more dense projects are in progress city- wide, and the door is open for the rst of these proj- ects to break ground through the VMU program expansion while the overall eects of the compatibil- ity ordinance are yet to be determined. Anito, while supportive of the path council started on, said he is not convinced the recent updates will unlock new opportunities for developers like him. “Unfortunately, I think it’s a bit of a Pyrrhic vic- tory,” Anito said. “The fact that this passed, in the- ory, means that [council is] going to put the issue to bed for a little while. Meanwhile, I’ve got four prop- erties, VMU, and neither of these ordinances mate- rially aects any of them. Nothing changes as far as I’m concerned.”

44 SOUTH

GIBSON FLATS

4411 S. Congress Ave. (South Congress 44 MF-I LP) Units: 227 | Aordable units: 23

1219 S. Lamar Blvd. (Ardent Residetial) Units: 95 | Aordable units: 10

BEN THOMPSONCOMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER

TEXAN NORTH CAMPUS

ARBORETUM VMU

183

5117 N. Lamar Blvd. (Uptown Lofts LLC) Units: 23 | Aordable units: 2

10400 Research Blvd. (Kimley-Horn) Units: 260 | Aordable units: 26

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SUMAIYA MALIKCOMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER

SOURCE: CITY OF AUSTINCOMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER

building heights in exchange for more aordable housing within. Several dozen such projects includ- ing Lamar Union, Ella Parkside and E6 Apartments were completed through the program and dozens more are in the works. Projects built through the program feature a mix of market-rate and income-restricted multifam- ily housing stacked atop shops, eateries and other services. The program update approved in June, called VMU2, expands both height allowances and aord- ability requirements for future projects seeking to go even more vertical and could bring more housing and commercial options to active areas, ocials and city sta said. While VMU has produced more housing than many other similar city incentives, the majority of all sites eligible for the program have not used it—in part due to Austin’s compatibility standards.

And despite council opting to allow up to 50% more height through VMU2, sta analysis found that existing rules limit between half and two-thirds of those properties from building that high. Along large stretches of roads tapped for potential mixed-use projects, homes set even several blocks back from a busy corridor can cap a new building at just 30 feet based on compatibility—an often unworkable restraint for multifamily projects also requiring commercial space and long-term aord- able housing, developers say. Across hundreds of eligible properties, only around three dozen buildings have gone up and about the same amount are now in the works, according to city data. Taylor Smith, deputy director of government aairs for the Austin Board of Real- tors, said it is “dicult to see” the expanded pro- gram becoming a success following VMU’s “limited” track record since its creation in the mid-2000s.

For more information, visit communityimpact.com .

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SOUTHWEST AUSTIN DRIPPING SPRINGS EDITION • JULY 2022