Zoning Changes Coming to West Campus and North Campus
Zoning Changes Coming for the UT Campus Area
It’s no big secret that, along with Austin’s booming downtown condo market, the popular university-area neighborhood of West Campus and North Campus have seen some major changes in recent years. As recently as 1999, there were essentially no big new properties on the market like those we have now, and it wasn’t until 2004 that the University Neighborhood Overlay plan passed, pacing the way for the massive growth of new apartments.
Since 2004 literally thousands of new units have come available in West Campus - properties such as The Block on Campus, The Quarters, The Vintage West Campus, and The Texan Shoal Creek - and now it seems as if further changes are in order.
Read on to learn more about the developments in the works to further alter the landscape of the UT Campus neighborhoods through substantial zoning changes (as covered here by our beloved Daily Texan newspaper) and about how it will affect prices for West Campus apartments, North Campus condos, and more.
The changes that are proposed are primarily concerned with something called MF-4 or “multi-family” zoning regulations. The idea here is that the university community would be better served by limiting the number of shared living spaces in the area - a move that would push co-op housing further away from UT Campus. The Central Austin Neighborhood Plan Advisory Committee (CANPAC) met on Monday, June 21st to discuss the current zoning laws, and they are going to present their evaluation to the City Council soon. One thing is certain - if the proposal goes through, it will almost certainly increase the cost of rent for students living in the West Campus area.
The proposed rationale for the plan is to limit the ability of large projects or properties such as fraternities and sororities from changing what’s been described as the “single family nature” of the neighborhood. There have also been proposals floated to convert ALL free parking in the West Campus area to paid parking or parking with residential permits only - the idea again being limiting the number of group residential spaces and preserving a more traditional “single-family” feel in the area.While the original reforms passed in 2004 with the UNO changes were designed to increase the amount of student housing to reduce cost for renters (who account for about 70% of West Campus residents), many now feel that those changes have gone to far and are pushing back against them.
As John Lawler, a CANPAC member and SG representative at UT Austin, points out - there is a lack of student voices on the CANPAC which would seem to leave out those in favor of keeping the existing zoning regulations. From the Daily Texan article:
“Single-family districts surrounding the West Campus area do not want semi-dense housing [such as] co-ops and Greek housing to be allowed, like they currently are, in their neighborhoods,” Lawler said.
The city’s zoning and ordinances board recommended zoning changes be passed on to the Planning Commission, the last step before City Council, without hearing the opinion of students.
“We directed a letter to them to postpone [their discussion of the laws],” Lawler said. “But they went ahead and did it anyway.”
We’ll be continuing to follow the developments as they take place and will keep you updated as news is released. You can also learn more about the review process for projects and changes such as this one here, or check out a strong voice against the proposed changes from the University Area Partners (a group that represents businesses, property owners and churches near the University).
For more information about UT Austin Real Estate or any other Austin Real Estate, please check us out online. We’re your information source for UT Austin real estate, West Campus property, North Campus property, and property management. To get connected with an agent immediately, call 512.472.9378 or email info@westcampusliving dot com.
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