Item2a_ASMP Amendments FAQ — original pdf

Backup

2021 ASMP Amendments Updated Frequently Asked Questions Throughout the ASMP process several questions have been asked frequently by many community members. We hope these answers help clarify this process and elucidate what the ASMP amendments do, as well as what they do not. • Are you taking my property? • Are you changing my zoning? • Are streets expanding? Why are they changing? • If these amendments are adopted, does this action change the size of my property automatically? • My street is narrow. Where is the extra space coming from for future improvements? • Does this mean that our streets will become “patchy,” such as a partial bike lane that runs into parking, since development might not be uniform? • How does the ASMP affect the design of my street? • How did you identify these Street Network Amendments? Q: Are you taking my property? No, the ASMP is not taking or acquiring any land. Let’s go deeper: The ASMP is not a process to acquire land. The ASMP is the city’s Transportation Plan and the transportation element of the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan. Its purpose is to provide the city’s future transportation vision and is used for the long-range development of the city’s transportation network through development regulations. The ASMP identifies the amount of land that a property being developed must dedicate per the Land Development Code to promote public health, safety, and welfare, but the ASMP itself is not acquiring land. Land acquisition occurs during the project development and delivery phases of a Capital Improvement Project. The land that is dedicated through the land development process becomes public right of way to provide public infrastructure according to the standards in the TCM. Land dedication is only triggered for certain types of development: residential development that is a greater intensity than a duplex or commercial development. It does not apply to single-family homes going through the building permit process. Properties that are going through the subdivision process are subject to land dedication, but land dedication is subject to Rough Proportionality, which is a legal statute that requires any land being dedicated be proportional in value to the development’s impact on the transportation network. Because every development is unique it is impossible to definitively determine if a subdivided property would be required to dedicate land, but based on current land values, TCM standards, and the recently adopted Street Impact Fee, it is extremely unlikely for small developments with less than 10 single- family units and 15-25 multifamily units. Q: Are you changing my property’s zoning? The ASMP Street Network does not change your property’s zoning. 1 2021 ASMP Amendments Let’s go deeper: The ASMP and Street Network criteria, such as the Street Level reclassifications and Transit Priority Network changes, do not change zoning. All zoning permissions and changes are regulated by the Land Development Code and the Council process to approve zoning. The Street Network itself is not a driver for land use changes. Additionally, while the Transit Priority Network is associated with policies in the ASMP document, the addition or removal of streets in the Transit Priority Network does not change current zoning regulations. Zoning didn’t change when the ASMP Street Network was first adopted in 2019 and will not change now. Q: Are streets expanding? Why are they changing? The amount of space in the street for vehicle travel lanes is not expanding, and in many cases these lanes are actually reduced. However, additional elements of the right of way (like sidewalks, street trees, etc.) are getting more space. These changes are coming from the updated Transportation Criteria Manual (TCM) and are used for new roads and roadway reconstruction. Let’s go deeper: Although the proposed ASMP Street Network amendments expand the ROW for many (but not all) street cross sections as compared to the adopted ASMP Street Network, the amount of pavement from curb to curb included in an ideal cross section in the updated TCM is less than the standards for the corresponding street level in the old TCM and the 2017 Austin Street Design Guide that informed the adopted ASMP. The expanded ROW number overall is due to increases in the tree and furniture zones, setbacks, and bicycle facilities; the updated TCM is focused on safety, and the standards for vehicle travel lane widths are reduced as compared to the old TCM and the 2017 Austin Street Design Guide. The following graphics compare several updated TCM cross sections with the previous TCM used in the land development process. 2  2021 ASMP Amendments 3 2021 ASMP Amendments 4 2021 ASMP Amendments Q: If these amendments are adopted, does this action change the size of my property automatically? No, the passage of these amendments does not change the existing right of way. Let’s go deeper: Real property must be sold or deeded through an official transaction to become right of way. The ASMP Street Network only establishes the right of way dedication requirements in the Land Development Code and provides a starting point for future projects. The ROW requirements in the ASMP Street Network are only applicable to properties going through the land development process. If your property isn’t being redeveloped, there will be no change to your property based on the ASMP. If your property isn’t along a street with a future project that requires additional right of way and it is not being redeveloped, there will be no change to your property based on the ASMP. If your property is along a street with a future project that requires additional right of way, the necessary amount of right of way will be determined through the project development process and you will be notified then. A change in ROW shown in the Street Network does not mean there is a project. Q: My street is narrow. Where is the extra space coming from for future improvements? As shown below, the width of your street from curb to curb is not the same as right of way. The City may use the full right of way to provide public amenities, such as sidewalks and utilities. Outside of large, capital infrastructure projects such as Project Connect or the Corridor Mobility Bond Program, the City accommodates most street improvements in the existing right of way, and they do not acquire right of way for smaller improvements. Private property may include a house, yard, and setback, while many public elements exist in the public right of way, such as trees, utilities, sidewalks, and the street bed. 5 2021 ASMP Amendments Let’s go deeper: Future improvements to a street may be large, such as Project Connect, or small, such as adding a sidewalk or bicycle facilities. If you live on a street that only has small (sidewalk or bicycle facility) improvements identified, you can expect the City to make these future improvements within the existing right of way. If these projects are implemented, they would be designed to work in the existing right of way and would consider existing constraints like heritage trees. If you live on a street that has larger improvements identified, such as those for vehicle capacity, like adding travel lanes, the City would go through the project development process to identify the necessary amount of right of way needed to implement the project, which may include acquiring additional right of way. The “project development process” is a detailed analysis of all factors that relate to a project that will determine the ultimate street design (e.g., what is the topography, what is the character of the street, is there property that cannot be acquired within the project boundaries, like a cemetery, etc.). In both of these scenarios, if projects are being implemented, properties would be notified in advance of any changes and they would go through a public engagement process. Q: Does this mean that our streets will become “patchy,” such as a partial bike lane that runs into parking, since development might not be uniform? The primary goal of the ASMP Street Network is to preserve right of way for future improvements as properties redevelop. The development review process will determine whether properties incorporate physical changes along their site. Let’s go deeper: An increase in right of way in the Street Network does not mean a physical change to the street is imminent. However, when development occurs it is an opportunity to implement our TCM’s updated street design standards along the site’s frontage. At a minimum, the development will preserve the space required for these improvements by dedicating right of way and setting the building back in relation to the future curb but will not make physical changes to the street. Some developments may even be able to implement the improvements, but this will be determined during the development review process and will consider the full context of the street and the possible changes. In some cases, it may be possible to move the curb to its future location to incorporate updated design standards, but the City will not allow unsafe transportation facilities to be built as part of development. Q: How does the ASMP affect the design of my street? A lot goes into changing the design of a street, and the ASMP doesn’t determine exactly how a street looks. Let’s go deeper: The ASMP is a high-level planning document, and many steps occur after the ASMP during the project development process to produce the proposed design for a street. The ASMP reflects the size and elements of the ideal street as determined by the Transportation Criteria Manual and specific modal plans (such as the Sidewalk Plan, Bicycle Plan, etc.). Any street with a proposed change will go through its own project development process that is independent of the ASMP process. The ASMP is used as the starting point in the project development process, which includes a detailed analysis to propose design alternatives for the project. At that point in time a public engagement process would occur to incorporate community input into the final design that moves forward for implementation. 6 2021 ASMP Amendments Q: How did you identify these Street Network Amendments? We used the following criteria to identify amendments: • City plans and criteria manuals that have been adopted or updated since April 2019 • More detailed engineering plans that have been conducted since April 2019 • Project Connect System Plan and engineering plans • Errors and omissions in the adopted ASMP Street Network Let’s go deeper: These proposed amendments are meant to update the adopted ASMP Street Network to align with different and up-to-date City documents and plans. For example, Project Connect and several Mobility Bond projects have completed more detailed engineering plans since the ASMP was adopted. The City's Transportation Criteria Manual (TCM) was updated in 2021 replacing the previous draft standards. The proposed amendments reflect these more specific engineering plans and align the Street Network with the updated requirements in the TCM.  You can read more about the TCM update, each of the Street Levels, and how they affected the ASMP Amendments in our first Storymap Presentation. 7