REGULAR CALLED MEETING OF THE DOWNTOWN COMMISSION Wednesday August 20, 2025, 5:30 p.m. Austin City Hall, Council Chambers, Room 1001 301 W 2nd Street Austin, Texas 78701 Some members of the Downtown Commission may be participating by videoconference. The meeting may be viewed online at: http://www.austintexas.gov/page/watch-atxn-live Public comment will be allowed in-person or remotely via telephone. Speakers may only register to speak on an item once either in-person or remotely and will be allowed up to three minutes to provide their comments. Registration no later than noon the day before the meeting is required for remote participation by telephone. To register to speak remotely or in person, please contact Christi Vitela at Christi.Vitela@austintexas.gov or (512) 974-2792. CURRENT BOARD MEMBERS: Ed Ishmael, Chair Kimberly Levinson, Vice Chair Pat Buchta David Carroll Liz Coufal Nathan McDaniel Charles Peveto Nancy Pollak Sania Shifferd Philip Wiley Jennifer Franklin Nkiru Gelles Nelly Paulina Ramírez CALL TO ORDER AGENDA PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL The first ten speakers signed up prior to the meeting being called to order will each be allowed a three-minute allotment to address their concerns regarding items not posted on the agenda. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Downtown Commission regular called meeting on July 16, 2025. DISCUSSION ITEMS 2. Presentation by David A. Colligan, Chief Operating Officer, Rally Austin, regarding possible downtown site developments. 3. Presentation by Pat Buchta, Chief Executive Officer, regarding Austin Texas Musicians. 4. Presentation by Daniel Kavelman, Projects and Policy Manager, Shoal Creek Conservancy, regarding the Cypress and Shoal Creek Public Space Strategy. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 5. Approve a Recommendation to Council regarding Homelessness Response 24-Hour Oasis Access. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS ADJOURNMENT The City of Austin is committed to compliance with the American with Disabilities Act. Reasonable modifications and equal access to communications will be provided upon request. Meeting locations are planned with wheelchair access. If requiring Sign Language Interpreters or alternative formats, please give notice at least 2 days (48 hours) before the meeting date. Please call Christi Vitela at the Office of the City Clerk, at (512) 974-2792 for additional information; TTY users’ route through Relay Texas at 711. For more information on the Downtown Commission, please contact Christi Vitela at Christi.Vitela@austintexas.gov or (512) 974-2792.
Downtown Commission Meeting Minutes Wednesday, July 16, 2025 Downtown Commission Regular Called Meeting Minutes Wednesday July 16, 2025 The Downtown Commission convened in a regular called meeting on Wednesday July 16, 2025, at Austin City Hall Chambers, Room 1001, 301 W 2nd Street in Austin, Texas. COMMISSIONERS IN ATTENDANCE: Ed Ishmael, Chair Kimberly Levinson, Vice Chair Pat Buchta David Carroll Nathan McDaniel Charles Peveto COMMISSIONERS IN ATTENDANCE REMOTELY: Jennifer Franklin Nkiru Gelles Nancy Pollak Nelly Paulina Ramírez Sania Shifferd CALL TO ORDER Chair Ishmael called the Downtown Commission Meeting to order at 5:30 p.m. PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL None. APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Downtown Commission regular called meeting on May 21, 2025. The minutes from the meeting of May 21, 2025, were approved on Vice Chair Levinson’s motion, Commissioner Peveto’s second on a 6-0 vote. Commissioner Shifferd was off the dais. Commissioner Pollak abstained. Commissioners Coufal and Wiley were absent. 1 Downtown Commission Meeting Minutes Wednesday, July 16, 2025 STAFF BRIEFINGS 2. Staff briefing by Shanisha Johnson, Planner Principal, District Planning, Planning Department regarding the Downtown Austin Plan Update. The presentation was made by Shanisha Johnson, Planner Principal, District Planning, Planning Department. DISCUSSION ITEMS 3. Update regarding the Design Commission’s recent work as it relates to the Downtown Commission. Commissioner Gelles provided an update. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 4. Approve the Downtown Commission 2024-2025 Annual Internal Review. The motion to submit the Downtown Commission 2024-2025 Annual Internal Review without the commission’s approval was approved on Vice Chair Levinson’s motion, Commissioner Peveto’s second, on an 8-0 vote. Commissioners Coufal and Wiley were absent. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS Shoal Creek Conservancy Austin Texas Musicians ADJOURNMENT A motion to adjourn the meeting at 6:18 p.m. was approved on Vice Chair Levinson’s motion, Commissioner Peveto’s second an 8-0 vote. Commissioners Coufal and Wiley were absent. 2
DOWNTOWN CREATIVE HUB PROPOSAL BACKGROUND While Austin has long branded itself as the “Live Music Capital Of The World”, Austin Texas Musicians has learned from its base of 6000+ working Central Texas musicians that they, by and large, are less and less interested in playing downtown due to a variety of challenges, including: • Safety • Parking • Performance Pay Rates • Green Room Space BACKGROUND With less and less musicians performing in the downtown core, Austin’s vital tourism economy is in danger of collapse. Rather that keeping pace with rapid downtown growth, our cultural economy stands to disappear, leaving a downtown core that serves only new residents and businesses, while losing the vital tourism dollars that drive sustainability and future growth. Additionally, 2023 news reports show that downtown offices spaces are becoming increasingly vacant, underlining need for services that bring new revenue sources to downtown Austin. Musicians must be able to work downtown in a way that is safe and economically feasible. A THREE-TIERED SOLUTION Austin Texas Musicians nonprofit proposes the following three-tiered solution that will serve to bring music back to downtown austin: 1. Redevelop existing downtown spaces to serve as a “Green Room” Creative Hub 2. Create parking solutions in partnership with Travis County D.A. Garza and Judge Brown 3. Bolster existing “Gig Buddy” program with Council action and budget for Block-by-Block liability insurance and increased overnight staff BACKGROUND Austin’s former City Hall municipal building, located at 8th & Colorado, is currently being reviewed by Rally Austin as a potential Creative Hub. With 60,000 sq. ft. of space across three floors and a basement, Austin is now presented with a rare opportunity to support our Cultural Arts ecosystem. CREATIVE HUB • At 60,000 sq. ft., three stories and a full basement with garage and hydraulic load-in, the old City Hall building at 8th & Colorado holds immense potential as a Creative Hub for music, theater and dance. • ATXM toured the space in the summer of 2023 upon the invitation of Rally Austin. • We then polled group members to determine best uses of such a space for our music community: CREATIVE HUB: POTENTIAL USES • Overwhelmingly, group members pointed to need for a “Green Room” space of sorts… a safe place where they can go before and after downtown gigs to prep for performance, send booking emails, or work on marketing. • Arts nonprofit offices to …
BOARD/COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION Downtown Commission Recommendation Number: ___________________: HOMELESSNESS RESPONSE 24-HOUR OASIS ACCESS WHEREAS nearly one-in-three people experiencing homelessness in Austin-Travis County are chronically homeless; and WHEREAS the City has identified alleviating homelessness as a key priority; and WHEREAS the City of Austin adopted the State Homelessness Response System report and modeling (the “Report”) as a guideline to inform investment in the homelessness response system; and WHEREAS the Report states that the number of people seeking homelessness services for the first time has increased dramatically; and WHEREAS that number is expected to continue to rise; and WHEREAS Austin’s Homelessness Response System (“HRS”) serves a diverse population with needs ranging from short-term assistance to permanent housing programs; and WHEREAS short-term services are crucial and effective for meeting the urgent needs of the unhoused; and WHEREAS the Oasis is a safe, welcoming outdoor space on the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless (“ARCH”) campus providing a rare place downtown for unhoused individuals to simply be off the streets, away from businesses, and outside without disruption; and WHEREAS the Oasis provides a dignified place for people to meet their basic needs—like showering and resting—away from storefronts, parks, or sidewalks—helping to reduce the visible effects of unsheltered homelessness while also improving hygiene, health outcomes, and access to services; and WHEREAS by offering a consistent, supportive space, the Oasis contributes to a more orderly and compassionate downtown, while fostering long-term solutions to chronic homelessness; and WHEREAS, due to its proximity to the ARCH and other homeless services, the Oasis provides dignity, relief, and connection to the support needed for stability and well-being; and WHEREAS currently the Oasis is only open to the unhoused during the day from 8:00 AM to 7:00 PM seven days a week, turning out onto the streets at night after 7:00PM those accessing the Oasis during the day; and WHEREAS the ARCH’s proximity to Austin’s entertainment district means weekend evenings see an influx of people accessing the bars and restaurants along 6th Street and Red River Street; and Draft WHEREAS with adequate funding, the Oasis could remain a 24-hour refuge for the unhoused on Friday and Saturday nights, giving them an alternative to being on the streets; and WHEREAS the cost of providing 24-hour access to the Oasis on Fridays and Saturdays with associated services would be $75,000.00 per year; and WHEREAS it is the considered opinion of the Downtown Commission that …
August 2025 Downtown Commission Daniel Kavelman, Projects and Policy Manager, Shoal Creek Conservancy A Collaborative Vision for the 3rd Street and Shoal Creek Area The Cypress & Shoal Creek Public Space Strategy was created by Shoal Creek Conservancy and Downtown Austin Alliance in 2021. It aims to make the area safer, more connected, and more inviting through better bikeways, new trail connections, and pedestrian plazas woven together with urban greenery. Through the Cypress & Shoal Public Space Strategy, it is possible to transform forgotten urban pockets into a beautiful, usable, breathable public realm. The name for the strategy is inspired by the historic name for Third Street, originally known as “Cypress Street.” Community Engagement ● Identified as a priority project in Shoal Creek Trail Plan Engagement ● 2019 Council Resolution ● 2020-2021 Development ● Two Rounds of Public Engagement ○ ○ 238 Unique Responses Round 1 245 Unique Responses Round 2 ● Advisory Council and Commissions ○ Urban Transportation ○ PAC and BAC ● Plan published in 2021 Funding ● 12.5M Dedicated to projects in the area in December 2023 ● Potential from downtown developments ● Gap in funding will become clear when project alternatives for the bridge and trestle are published for public input ● Possible sources for additional funding ○ 2026 Bond Program ○ Private donors ○ Other - Preservation Austin, Heritage Grant Program City of Austin - Seaholm Multimodal Connectivity Projects 1. Cesar Chavez Sidewalk 2. Crossing Improvements at West and Walter Seaholm 3. Power Plant Drive 4. Shoal Creek Trail Segment 5. Bridge and Trestle Improvements Power Plant Drive ● Design Options Released January 2025 ● Alternatives 1 and 4 most closely align with Market Plaza Concept ● Public Input under review ● Potential additional improvements ○ Place-making ○ Metrobike Station Bridge and Trestle ● HDR brought on as engineering contractor ● Alternatives will be brought to public by Transportation and Public Works ○ Will have opportunities for public input ● All options include the Shoal Creek Trail underpass Thank you! daniel@shoalcreekconservancy.org ShoalCreekConservancy.org/cypress-shoal-creek
BOARD/COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION Downtown Commission Recommendation Number: 20250820-005: HOMELESSNESS RESPONSE 24-HOUR OASIS ACCESS WHEREAS nearly one-in-three people experiencing homelessness in Austin-Travis County are chronically homeless; and WHEREAS the City has identified alleviating homelessness as a key priority; and WHEREAS the City of Austin adopted the State Homelessness Response System report and modeling (the “Report”) as a guideline to inform investment in the homelessness response system; and WHEREAS the Report states that the number of people seeking homelessness services for the first time has increased dramatically; and WHEREAS that number is expected to continue to rise; and WHEREAS Austin’s Homelessness Response System (“HRS”) serves a diverse population with needs ranging from short-term assistance to permanent housing programs; and WHEREAS short-term services are crucial and effective for meeting the urgent needs of the unhoused; and WHEREAS the Oasis is a safe, welcoming outdoor space on the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless (“ARCH”) campus providing a rare place downtown for unhoused individuals to simply be off the streets, away from businesses, and outside without disruption; and WHEREAS the Oasis provides a dignified place for people to meet their basic needs—like showering and resting—away from storefronts, parks, or sidewalks—helping to reduce the visible effects of unsheltered homelessness while also improving hygiene, health outcomes, and access to services; and WHEREAS by offering a consistent, supportive space, the Oasis contributes to a more orderly and compassionate downtown, while fostering long-term solutions to chronic homelessness; and WHEREAS, due to its proximity to the ARCH and other homeless services, the Oasis provides dignity, relief, and connection to the support needed for stability and well-being; and WHEREAS currently the Oasis is only open to the unhoused during the day from 8:00 AM to 7:00 PM seven days a week, turning out onto the streets at night after 7:00PM those accessing the Oasis during the day; and WHEREAS with adequate funding, the Oasis could remain a 24-hour refuge for the unhoused giving them an alternative to being on the streets; and WHEREAS the ARCH’s proximity to Austin’s entertainment district means weekend evenings see an influx of people accessing the bars and restaurants along 6th Street and Red River Street; and WHEREAS the cost of providing 24-hour access to the Oasis on Fridays and Saturdays with associated services would be $75,000.00 per year; and WHEREAS it is the considered opinion of the Downtown Commission that the benefit of providing 24-hour Oasis …
