Planning CommissionJune 11, 2024

04 NPA-2023-0002.02 - 1307 and 1309 E. 4th Street; District 3 — original pdf

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Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN AMENDMENT REVIEW SHEET NEIGHORHOOD PLAN: East Cesar Chavez Neighborhood Plan and Plaza Saltillo (TOD) Station Area Plan DATE FILED: July 14, 2023 NPA-2023-0002.02 CASE#: PROJECT NAME: 1307 and 1309 E. 4th Street PC DATE: May 28, 2024 ADDRESS/ES: 1307 and 1309 E. 4th Street DISTRICT AREA: 3 SITE AREA: 0.29 acres OWNER/APPLICANT: AGENT: Drenner Group, PC (Leah M. Bojo, AICP) CASE MANAGER: Maureen Meredith STAFF EMAIL: Maureen.Meredith@austintexas.gov TYPE OF AMENDMENT: Change in Future Land Use Designation JLCC Interests, LLC PHONE: (512) 974-2695 From: Specific Regulating District To: Specific Regulating District To amend specified properties within the East César Chávez (ECC) neighborhood plan and the Land Use and Design Concept Plan map(s) in the Plaza Saltillo TOD Station Area Plan from Live/Work Flex to TOD Mixed Use. The existing land use on the future land use map (FLUM) is Specific Regulating District. There is no proposed change to the future land use map. Base District Zoning Change Related Zoning Case: C14-2023-0153 From: TOD-NP (live/work flex subdistrict) To: TOD-NP (TOD mixed-use subdistrict) NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN ADOPTION DATE: East Cesar Chavez Neighborhood Plan adopted May 13, 1999. Plaza Saltillo (TOD) Station Area Plan adopted December 11, 2008 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 ACTION: CITY COUNCIL DATE: TBD PLANNING COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION: June 11, 2024 – (action pending) May 28, 2024 – Postponed to June 11, 2024 on the consent agenda at the request of the Neighborhood. [F. Maxwell – 1st; A. Woods – 2nd] Vote: 10-0 [G. Cox off the dais. P. Howard and A. Phillips absent]. STAFF RECOMMENDATION: Staff supports the applicant’s request to change the Land Use and Design Concept map from Live/Work Flex to TOD Mixed Use. BASIS FOR STAFF’S RECOMMENDATION: The applicant is proposing to amend the Land Use and Design Concept Plan map(s) in the Plaza Saltillo TOD Station Area Plan from Live/Work Flex to TOD Mixed Use so the project can participate in the Density Plus Height Bonus Program. This program will require the proposed multifamily development to reserve a minimum of 15% of the entire square footage as affordable, on-site units for those earning no more than 50% Medium Family Income (MFI). The current designation as Live/Work Flex does not allow the property to participate in this program. Staff supports the applicant’s request because of the property is located 0.2 miles from the Plaza Saltillo Station where increased density can be supported. The TOD Mixed Use is the highest density designation that will allow for more residential and commercial uses to be developed within ¼-mile of the Plaza Saltillo Station. LAND USE DESCRIPTIONS: EXISTING LAND USE: Specific Regulating District - This map designation is intended for areas that have an adopted regulating plan. This district will be identified on the Future Land Use Map but is not considered a typical land use category. The purpose of this designation is to make the user aware of the Regulating Plan and that it should be reviewed for development regulations. Yes Imagine Austin Decision Guidelines Yes Imagine Austin Growth Concept Map: Located within or adjacent to an Imagine Austin Activity Center, Imagine Austin Activity Corridor, or Imagine Austin Job Center as identified the Growth Concept Map. Name(s) of Activity Center/Activity Corridor/Job Center: Complete Community Measures 2 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 • Property is within the Plaza Saltillo Neighborhood Center • Approx. 0.15 miles north of E. Cesar Chavez Street and activity corridor • Approx. 0.20 miles south of E. 7th Street and activity corridor Yes Mobility and Public Transit: Located within 0.25 miles of public transit stop and/or light rail station. • 0.2 miles from Plaza Saltillo Station Red Line • Bus routes on Waller Street and E. Cesar Chavez Street No Mobility and Bike/Ped Access: Adjoins a public sidewalk, shared path, and/or bike lane. • Approx. 210 feet from the Red Line Trail Yes Yes Connectivity, Good and Services, Employment: Provides or is located within 0.50 miles to goods and services, and/or employment center. Connectivity and Food Access: Provides or is located within 0.50 miles of a grocery store/farmers market. • 0.4 miles from Target Grocery • 0.4 miles from Royal Blue Grocery • 0.6 miles from Whole Foods 0.7 miles from Sanchez Elementary School 0.9 miles from Zavala Elementary School 0.2 miles from Comal Pocket Park 0.2 miles from Pepe’s Park 0.6 miles from Pan American Park • • • • • • • • No Connectivity and Education: Located within 0.50 miles from a public school or university. Yes Connectivity and Healthy Living: Provides or is located within 0.50 miles from a recreation area, park or walking trail. Yes Connectivity and Health: Provides or is located within 0.50 miles of health facility (ex: hospital, urgent care, doctor’s office, drugstore clinic, and/or specialized outpatient care.) 0.2 miles Community Care Collaborative 0.2 miles from CommUnityCare: East Austin Health Center 0.3 miles from Integral Care - East 2nd Street Yes Housing Affordability: Provides a minimum of 10% of units for workforce housing (80% MFI or less) and/or fee in lieu for affordable housing. • Applicant proposes participation in the regulating plan’s density and height development bonus by reserving at least 15% of the total square footage of multifamily rental development as affordable habitable space at, or below 50% of the area MFI. Housing Choice: Expands the number of units and housing choice that suits a variety of household sizes, incomes, and lifestyle needs of a diverse population (ex: apartments, triplex, granny flat, live/work units, cottage homes, and townhomes) in support of Imagine Austin and the Strategic Housing Blueprint. Mixed use: Provides a mix of residential and non-industrial uses. Culture and Creative Economy: Provides or is located within 0.50 miles of a cultural resource (ex: library, theater, museum, cultural center). Culture and Historic Preservation: Preserves or enhances a historically and/or culturally significant site. Creative Economy: Expands Austin’s creative economy (ex: live music venue, art studio, film, digital, theater.) Workforce Development, the Economy and Education: Expands the economic base by creating permanent jobs, especially in industries that are currently not represented in particular area or that promotes a new technology, and/or promotes educational opportunities and workforce development training. Industrial Land: Preserves or enhances industrial land. Number of “Yes’s” Yes Yes No No No No No 9 3 Proximity to Imagine Austin Activity Centers and Corridors Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 4 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 Proximity to Public Parks 5 Proximity to Public Transportation and Urban Trails Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 IMAGINE AUSTIN GROWTH CONCEPT MAP Definitions Neighborhood Centers - The smallest and least intense of the three mixed-use centers are neighborhood centers. As with the regional and town centers, neighborhood centers are walkable, bikable, and supported by transit. The greatest density of people and activities in neighborhood centers will likely be concentrated on several blocks or around one or two intersections. However, depending on localized conditions, different neighborhood centers can be very different places. If a neighborhood center is designated on an existing commercial area, such as a shopping center or mall, it could represent redevelopment or the addition of housing. A new neighborhood center may be focused on a dense, mixed-use core surrounded by a mix of housing. In other instances, new or redevelopment may occur incrementally and concentrate people and activities along several blocks or around one or two intersections. Neighborhood centers will be more locally focused than either a regional or a town center. Businesses and services—grocery and department stores, doctors and dentists, shops, branch libraries, dry cleaners, hair salons, schools, restaurants, and other small and local businesses—will generally serve the center and surrounding neighborhoods. 6 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 Town Centers - Although less intense than regional centers, town centers are also where many people will live and work. Town centers will have large and small employers, although fewer than in regional centers. These employers will have regional customer and employee bases, and provide goods and services for the center as well as the surrounding areas. The buildings found in a town center will range in size from one-to three-story houses, duplexes, townhouses, and rowhouses, to low-to midrise apartments, mixed use buildings, and office buildings. These centers will also be important hubs in the transit system. Regional Centers - Regional centers are the most urban places in the region. These centers are and will become the retail, cultural, recreational, and entertainment destinations for Central Texas. These are the places where the greatest density of people and jobs and the tallest buildings in the region will be located. Housing in regional centers will mostly consist of low to high-rise apartments, mixed use buildings, row houses, and townhouses. However, other housing types, such as single-family units, may be included depending on the location and character of the center. The densities, buildings heights, and overall character of a center will depend on its location. Activity Centers for Redevelopment in Sensitive Environmental Areas - Five centers are located over the recharge or contributing zones of the Barton Springs Zone of the Edwards Aquifer or within water-supply watersheds. These centers are located on already developed areas and, in some instances, provide opportunities to address long-standing water quality issues and provide walkable areas in and near existing neighborhoods. State-of-the-art development practices will be required of any redevelopment to improve stormwater retention and the water quality flowing into the aquifer or other drinking water sources. These centers should also be carefully evaluated to fit within their infrastructural and environmental context. Job Centers - Job centers accommodate those businesses not well-suited for residential or environmentally- sensitive areas. These centers take advantage of existing transportation infrastructure such as arterial roadways, freeways, or the Austin-Bergstrom International airport. Job centers will mostly contain office parks, manufacturing, warehouses, logistics, and other businesses with similar demands and operating characteristics. They should nevertheless become more pedestrian and bicycle friendly, in part by better accommodating services for the people who work in those centers. While many of these centers are currently best served by car, the growth Concept map offers transportation choices such as light rail and bus rapid transit to increase commuter options. Corridors - Activity corridors have a dual nature. They are the connections that link activity centers and other key destinations to one another and allow people to travel throughout the city and region by bicycle, transit, or automobile. Corridors are also characterized by a variety of activities and types of buildings located along the roadway — shopping, restaurants and cafés, parks, schools, single-family houses, apartments, public buildings, houses of worship, mixed-use buildings, and offices. Along many corridors, there will be both large and small redevelopment sites. These redevelopment opportunities may be continuous along stretches of the corridor. There may also be a series of small neighborhood centers, connected by the roadway. Other corridors may have fewer redevelopment 7 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 opportunities, but already have a mixture of uses, and could provide critical transportation connections. As a corridor evolves, sites that do not redevelop may transition from one use to another, such as a service station becoming a restaurant, or a large retail space being divided into several storefronts. To improve mobility along an activity corridor, new and redevelopment should reduce per capita car use and increase walking, bicycling, and transit use. Intensity of land use should correspond to the availability of quality transit, public space, and walkable destinations. Site design should use building arrangement and open space to reduce walking distance to transit and destinations, achieve safety and comfort, and draw people outdoors. BACKGROUND: The plan amendment application was filed on December 6, 2023. The applicant proposes to change the Land Use and Design Concept Map in the Plaza Saltillo TOD Station Area Plan from Live/Work Flex to TOD Mixed Use so the project can participate in the Density Plus Height Bonus Program. This program will require the proposed multifamily development to reserve a minimum of 15% of the entire square footage as affordable, on-site units for those earning no more than 50% Medium Family Income (MFI). The current designation as Live/Work Flex does not allow the property to participate in this program. 8 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 Existing: Live/Work Flex Proposed: TOD Mixed Use For more information on the proposed changes to the Plaza Saltillo (TOD) Regulating Plan, see zoning case report C14-2023-0153. PUBLIC MEETINGS: The ordinance-required community meeting was virtually held on March 4, 2024. The recorded meeting can be found here: https://publicinput.com/w6188. Two City staff members attended the meeting from the Planning Department, Maureen Meredith and Mark Walters. Leah Bojo and Drew Raffaele from Drenner Group, PC, the applicant’s agents attended. No one from the neighborhood attended. Below are highlights from Leah Bojo’s presentation: 9 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 • Property is 0.29 acres. • Current uses are commercial office space. • The request is to change the Land Use Concept Map in the plan from Live/Work Flex to TOD Mixed use which will allow us to use the density and height bonus program: o Rental – reserve a min. of 15% of the entire square footage as affordable, on- site units for those earnings no more than 50% MFI. • The property has transit access. o Approx. 500 feet from Plaza Saltillo Station. o Approx. 210 feet from the Lance Armstrong Bikeway o Waller Street: One-way protected bike lane is proposed. o Comal Street: bike lanes are proposed. o E. 2nd Street: Neighborhood Bikeway is proposed. There were no attendees at the meeting to ask questions. 10 Applicant’s Summary Letter from Application Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 11 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 12 Letter of Recommendation from the Neighborhood Plan Contact Team (NPCT) Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 (No letter as of June 5, 2024) From: Eric Ryan Pace Sent: Tuesday, June 4, 2024 7:52 PM To: Meredith, Maureen <Maureen.Meredith@austintexas.gov> Cc: Leah Bojo <lbojo@drennergroup.com>; Drew Raffaele <draffaele@drennergroup.com>; Tomko, Jonathan <Jonathan.Tomko@austintexas.gov> Subject: Re: ECC NPCT Rec?: NPA-2023-0002.02_1307 E. 4th St Hi Maureen, Sorry for the miscommunication on the postponment; ECC's next monthly meeting is on June 19th, and we'd be ready to submit a letter for the June 25 PC meeting if possible. Best, -ep On Tue, Jun 4, 2024 at 5:51 PM Meredith, Maureen <Maureen.Meredith@austintexas.gov> wrote: Dear East Cesar Chavez NPCT: Staff case reports for the June 11 PC hearing are due tomorrow, Weds, June 5th at 5:00 pm. If your NPCT Team would like your letter of recommendation to be included in the staff case reports, please email it to me and Jonathan by that time. If we receive it after this date and time, we will submit it as late material to the Planning Commission. Thanks. Maureen 13 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 From: Meredith, Maureen Sent: Thursday, May 16, 2024 1:32 PM Cc: Leah Bojo <l >; Drew Raffaele < >; Tomko, Jonathan <Jonathan.Tomko@austintexas.gov> Subject: ECC NPCT Rec?: NPA-2023-0002.02_1307 E. 4th St Importance: High Dear East Chavez NPCT: Cases NPA-2023-0002.02 and C14-2023-0153_1307 & 1309 E. 4th Street are on the May 28, 2024 Planning Commission hearing date. If your Team would like to submit a letter of recommendation to be included in the staff case reports, please email it to me and Jonathan Tomko, the zoning planner, no later than Wednesday, May 22, 2024 by 5:00 pm which is when our staff reports are due. If we receive it after this date and time, we will submit it as late material. Thanks. Maureen Maureen Meredith (she/her) Senior Planner – Long-Range Planning Division City of Austin Planning Department 6310 Wilhelmina Delco Dr. Austin, Texas 78752 (4th Floor) P: (512) 974-2695 E: Maureen.Meredith@austintexas.gov Please Note: Correspondence and information submitted to the City of Austin are subject to the Texas Public Information Act (Chapter 552) and may be published online. Por Favor Tome En Cuenta: La correspondencia y la información enviada a la Ciudad de Austin está sujeta a la Ley de Información Pública de Texas (Capítulo 552) y puede ser publicada en línea. 14 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 Site 15 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 16 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 17 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 18 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 19 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 20 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 21 Leah Bojo’s Presentation at the April 22, 2024 Virtual Community Meeting Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 22 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 23 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 24 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 25 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 26 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 27 Planning Commission: June 11, 2024 Correspondence Received (No correspondence received as of May 22, 2024) 28