10. Backup for proposed resolution in support of proposed Land Development Code amendments — original pdf

Backup

By 2027, preserve and produce 135,000 housing units, including 60,000 affordable housing units*, with 75% of new housing located within ½ mile of Imagine Austin activity centers and corridors. *This goal is based on the Council-adopted Austin Strategic Housing Blueprint. Strategy 1: Offer immediate affordable housing assistance Engage directly with communities that are vulnerable to displacement and connect them with services. Proactively monitor affordable housing properties at risk of losing their affordability status to extend the period of affordability. How we’ll get there: ● Increase fair housing enforcement and education. ● Incorporate robust tenant protections for all rental properties receiving City support, including streamlining the application process for affordable units. ● Support tenant organizing and engagement and provide legal and other assistance to tenants facing eviction or displacement. ● Provide tenant relocation assistance and emergency rental assistance. “I’m concerned that the low- income and marginalized communities in Austin are being pushed out and reducing the vibrancy and diversity of our city.” – Austin community member Strategy 2: Fund affordable housing Increase funding for the City’s current Housing Trust Fund and support capacity building for community development corporations. How we’ll get there: ● The City may purchase properties in gentrifying areas to preserve or develop new affordable housing units with a range of housing types, such as single-family, duplex, townhomes, etc. ● Recalibrate, streamline and expand density bonus programs to serve renters at or below 60% Median Family Income (MFI). Support the creation of deeply affordable units within the growth centers, corridors, and transit-rich areas at 20% and 30% MFI and below. ● Implement a preference policy to prioritize new City-subsidized affordable units for income- qualified households. ● Make the application process for deeply affordable housing easier, more transparent, and more efficient. | 60 Strategy 3: Enhance community engagement for affordable housing and anti- displacement programs Include low-income communities, communities of color, and people with disabilities directly affected by systemic inequalities in the City’s Housing Investment Review Committee activities and when creating anti-displacement programs. Enhance direct outreach of Housing and Planning Department-subsidized affordable units in gentrifying areas with culturally relevant communication strategies. By 2030, 50% of trips in Austin are made using public transit, biking, walking, carpooling, or avoided altogether by working from home*. *Based on City of Austin and Capital Metro data, includes all trips, and was approximately 20% in 2019. Strategy 1: Expand and improve public transportation Work with the Austin Transit Partnership to implement Project Connect and expand and improve public transportation services. How we’ll get there: ● Hire residents from communities negatively impacted by racist transportation-related municipal policies to review past decisions and make recommendations to improve the lives of low-income communities, communities of color, and people with disabilities. ● Conduct a community needs assessment to identify gaps in services based on greatest mobility needs and ensure projects are integrated and coordinated across City departments and other institutions. ● Expand paratransit, defined as flexibly scheduled and routed services available to any community member in the coverage area regardless of distance from bus routes, including those with professional medical and psychiatric diagnoses, guidance, and documentation. ● Ensure that transit improvement projects do not accelerate displacement and gentrification. Strategy 2: Promote free transportation options Create comprehensive, user-friendly resources connecting community members with free transportation options. How we’ll get there: ● Expand free transit options, including through Capital Metro, to provide increased transportation access for low-income communities, communities of color, and people with disabilities. | 61 Local Community-wide Footprint 2021: 11.8 million metric tons CO₂e 13 Consumption-based Footprint How it works: 1. Determine average household for every Census tract in Austin (US Census, ACS) 2. Use a model (like the Consumer Expenditures Survey) to estimate how households spend money, based on above characteristics 3. Calculate emissions using EPA’s Input/Output Model 4. Refine using localized data (electricity source, types of vehicles on the road, other utilities) 16 The Mueller redevelopment is an example of a compact, pedestrian-scaled, mixed-use community that will provide homes for 13,000 people close to downtown Austin. Compact development reduces runoff and can help mitigate floods. Growing Greener The Environmental Benefits of a Compact and Connected Austin Compact development can deliver tangible benefits for the environment – reducing energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, curbing the flow of polluted runoff into streams and lakes, and protecting natural areas and agricultural lands. By adopting strong policies to address any local impacts of greater density, such as encouraging the use of green infrastructure to manage stormwater, Austin can develop in a way that will bring lasting environmental benefits. Austin Is Growing and Sprawling The city of Austin is experiencing explosive population growth, which has brought both dynamism and environmental prob- lems. Compact development is a greener way for Austin to grow. Compact Development Delivers Environmental Benefits Compact development benefits the environment in numerous ways: • Water quality: Compact development reduces the total amount of land required for development and produces less runoff to the watershed than sprawl for the same amount of housing capacity. • Energy use and greenhouse gas emissions: People living in compact neighborhoods drive 20 to 40 percent less than those living in sprawling neighborhoods, using less energy and reducing air pollution. Duplexes and low-rise apart- ments also use half as much energy as single-family homes. • Water use: Reducing lot sizes can reduce demand for water- ing and other outdoor uses, which accounts for more than a fifth of Austin’s annual water consumption. • Flood risk: Taller buildings accommodate more people while covering less land. Compact urban development minimizes the amount of paved land at the watershed scale, which decreases runoff and combats flood risks. • Air quality: Compact cities experience up to 62 percent fewer high ozone days than sprawling cities. Ozone pollu- tion causes approximately 2,100 premature deaths in Texas each year. Data from U.S. Census Bureau What Is Compact Development? Compact development focuses regional growth in population and jobs within mixed-use neighborhoods that feature a vari- ety of types of housing, ranging from single-family homes and townhomes to apartment buildings. Compact development enables growth while minimizing conversion of natural land. Successful compact development can yield a high quality of life, creating walkable neighborhoods with open spaces, intercon- nected streets, access to public transit, and the ability to walk or bike safely and enjoyably. Car dependence in Austin is driven by sprawling development patterns and lack of access to public transportation. Smart Policy Can Reduce Local Impacts of Compact Development Compact forms of development deliver environmental benefits at the regional level, but may create localized impacts. Through smart public policy, Austin can address many of the local im- pacts of compact development. • Reducing local flood risks and protecting groundwater: Green stormwater infrastructure (GSI) can help compen- sate for the increase of impervious cover in densely devel- oped areas by using natural drainage processes to capture and cleanse rainwater on-site. GSI features can reduce wa- ter pollution and make floods less severe. • Improving urban air quality: Compact development im- proves regional air quality, but may cause traffic congestion and air pollution on a local level. Improving public trans- portation, increasing the use of tailpipe emission-free elec- tric vehicles, providing “mobility as a service” that reduces the need for car ownership, and improving conditions for walking and biking can all help improve urban air quality. • Fighting the urban heat island effect: Developed areas tend to have higher temperatures than their surround- ings, as buildings and sidewalks absorb and radiate heat. One study focused on development in Houston found that placing shade trees near buildings and using light-colored roofing and paving materials that reflect sunlight could save energy, decrease peak power demand, and cut carbon emissions by an amount equivalent to taking more than 199,000 passenger vehicles off the road. Well-designed compact development can limit the environmental impacts of urban growth, while creating a wider range of housing options and improving quality of life close to the city center. The LDC Rewrite Provides an Oppor- tunity to Shift Away From Sprawl To accommodate the continued influx of new people to the city while minimizing the increase of developed land, Austin is revising its land development code for the first time since the 1980s. This revision process, called the LDC rewrite, gives the city a golden opportunity to reshape how it develops for coming generations. Expanding the areas within Austin where compact and walk-able neighborhoods can be built would reduce the pressure for further sprawl, protect our environment, and enhance our qual-ity of life. Austin should adopt a new development code that increases neighborhood walkability, provides affordable “miss-ing middle” housing such as townhomes and small single-family houses, and reduces the considerable environmental damage caused by sprawl. of impacts compact Strategies are available to mitigate many of the potential lo-cal development. Compact development should also be accompanied by sustainable demand management public measures, green stormwater infrastructure systems, passive building design and other policy measures and technologies, to make Austin a sustainable city. trans-portation transit, For more information and the full report, please visit: environmenttexascenter.org Photo credits: Front — staff photos. Back — right, Jon Lebkowsky via Flickr, CC-BY-SA 2.0. and left, staff photo.