19 Imagine Austin PC FY25-26 CIP - Memo of Recommendations — original pdf

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FY2025-2026 Capital Improvement Recommendations Item: XX Description: FY2025-2026 Capital Improvement Recommendations Background: Required by City Charter, Article X. Planning, Section 4. The Planning Commission – Powers and Duties: “The Planning Commission shall: (4) Submit annually to the city manager, not less than 90 days prior to the beginning of the budget year, a list of recommended capital improvements, which in the opinion of the commission are necessary or desirable to implement the adopted comprehensive plan or element or portion thereof during the forthcoming five-year period.” Summary of Item: These capital improvements are intended to further the City’s long-term vision and aspiration of being a “beacon of sustainability, social equity and economic opportunity; where diversity and creativity are celebrated; where community needs and values are recognized; where leadership comes from its citizens and where the necessities of life are affordable and accessible to all” (Imagine Austin Vision, p.2). Imagine Austin has eight Priority Programs that provide the structure and direction to implement the plan’s policies and actions:  Invest in a compact and connected Austin  Sustainably manage our water resources  Continue to grow Austin’s economy by investing in our workforce, education systems, entrepreneurs, and local businesses  Use green infrastructure to protect environmentally sensitive areas and integrate nature into the city  Grow and invest in Austin’s creative economy  Develop and maintain household affordability throughout Austin  Create a Healthy Austin Program  Revise Austin’s development regulations and processes to promote a compact and connected city This List of Recommendations is organized by these eight Priority Programs. In the lists below, items with an asterisk (*) are substantially the same from the FY 24-25 Capital Improvement Memo of Recommendations and remain relevant today. 19 Imagine Austin PC FY25-26 CIP Memo of Recommendations1 of 6Invest in a Compact and Connected Austin Implement the Austin Strategic Mobility Plan (ASMP). * • • Align investments with the updated Bicycle Plan, Urban Trails Plan, and new Sidewalks, Crossings, and Shared Streets Plan. * • Continue to deliver Mobility Bond improvements funded in 2016, 2018, and 2020. * • Expand the amount of Vision Zero safety improvements to address the disproportionate share of people of color among severe crash victims in Austin. * • Prioritize capital renewal and maintenance of infrastructure that supports our mobility goals. * • Focus capital improvements and maintenance of infrastructure within areas that are intended to be compact and connected, such as Imagine Austin Activity Centers & Activity Corridors and Equitable Transit-Oriented Development station areas. * Sustainably manage our water resources • Review the city’s resilience to extreme weather events and other impacts of climate change to ensure the safety of city residents, ensure the reliability of electric, water, and other critical infrastructure, and identify long-range capital improvements to improve resiliency in an equitable manner. * • Continue to design and implement 2018 bond projects for Flood Mitigation, Open Space, and Water Quality Protection. * • Support implementation of Austin's Water Forward Plan strategies, including: o Enhancements to the City’s centralized reclaimed water system to meet growing non-drinking water demands in the future. o Infrastructure enhancing Austin Water’s current water loss reduction program - focusing on leak response, leak detection through tried and tested techniques, pilot testing emerging leak detection technologies, and, through its Renewing Austin program, repairing and replacing water mains. Continue to grow Austin’s economy by investing in our workforce, education systems, entrepreneurs, and local businesses • Support the implementation of capital improvements recommended by the Austin Public Library Comprehensive Strategic + Facilities Plan. * • Align with the Citywide Strategic Plan by promoting a resilient local economy that prioritizes small and BIPOC-owned businesses through defined programs and services that enable upward economic mobility. * • Support the recommendations outlined in the 2022 Disparity Study to ensure programmatic enhancements are carried out in line with Imagine Austin. * • Promote access and equity on City procurement opportunities, by providing more supportive services to small-, minority-owned, women-owned, and disadvantaged businesses. * • Prioritize and advance capital improvement projects within City-led redevelopment projects, as directed in Council Resolution No. 20220324-056 regarding the Colony Park Sustainable Community. * • Sustainably invest in the Infrastructure Academy defining economic development opportunities and developing a robust, skilled labor force to deliver generational construction and infrastructure projects. 19 Imagine Austin PC FY25-26 CIP Memo of Recommendations2 of 6 • Enhance resources for strategic investments under the City of Austin’s Chapter 380 Economic Development Policy, which is intended to deliver affordable creative space and innovative financing tools for public infrastructure needs to attract development and industry. • Support the implementation of community-recommended capital improvements identified in recognized Economic and Cultural District Strategic Plans: Aldrich at Mueller Street District (In Progress) North Lamar International District Red River Cultural District East 12th Street District East Cesar Chavez District South Congress District African American Cultural Heritage District (In Progress) South First Street District (In Progress) 5th Street Mexican American Heritage Corridor (In Progress) • Support the delivery of the Equitable Cultural District Funding Model that includes, at minimum, recommended strategies for capital investment into cultural district spaces supporting organizational stability, marketing, cultural preservation, economic development, and place-enhancement to designated cultural districts. Invest in the Commercial Stabilization Program to support the equitable delivery of capital improvement enhancements, such as street banners, custom street signs, bike racks, and landscape improvements, in recognized Economic and Cultural Districts. • • Provide dedicated Economic Development Wayfinding funds for pedestrian and vehicular directional and informational signage to important historical, cultural and economic sites for residents and tourists in designated cultural districts including the African American Cultural Heritage District, 5th Street Mexican American Heritage Corridor, and Red River Cultural District. Identify and support sidewalk, street, utilities, and other logistical needs for the long- term resilience of a cooperative and/or non-profit grocery store in an underserved area of Austin, as identified in the Austin Community-Owned Food Retail Initiative. • Use green infrastructure to protect environmentally sensitive areas and integrate nature into the city • Properly evaluate the impacts of capital investments to ensure the equitable • • mitigation of environmental risks across the city. * Invest in green infrastructure that creates or enhances Austin’s network of natural lands and other open spaces. Examples include stream and shoreline restoration, the construction of trails and green streets, open space acquisition, park improvements, community agriculture, and green stormwater retrofits. * Integrate nature into the city by supporting, maintaining, and expanding parks and our urban trail network. * • Continue to design and implement 2018 bond projects for Flood Mitigation, Open Space, and Water Quality Protection. * Grow and invest in Austin’s creative economy • Support the underfunded needs (~$55M) of both Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the George Washington Carver Museum and Cultural Center. For Phase 1, completion of design and full construction cost is estimated at $15 million. Phase 2 facility expansion is estimated to be around $40 million. * • Fully fund Phase 2 of the Asian American Resource Center’s Performing Arts Center. Phase 2 has completed schematic design, and construction is estimated at ~$46M 19 Imagine Austin PC FY25-26 CIP Memo of Recommendations3 of 6 according to the architect and contractor team; however, construction is underfunded at this time. * • Support active studies, such as the Art in Public Places Study and the African American Heritage Facility Study, to ensure programmatic and infrastructure recommendations are carried out in line with Imagine Austin. • Equitably invest in the maintenance, renovation, and replacement of existing buildings and support the creation of new buildings in areas lacking recreation centers, senior centers, activity centers, and administrative buildings. • Support Rally Austin’s projects like the Permitting Development and Review Center Creative Space, Cultural Trust, Block 16 and 18. Develop and maintain household affordability throughout Austin • Increase funding for I Belong in Austin (IBIA), the City’s rental assistance program that directly protects households from eviction, from entering homelessness, and from dislocation in emergencies. * • Continue to fund and expand the Family Stabilization Grant Program for direct investment in families at risk of displacement due to unaffordability, as the program directly increases housing stability and economic prosperity. * • Prioritize future infrastructure investments that support the City of Austin’s goals of anti-displacement, ending homelessness, social mobility, affordable housing (especially for households at or below 30% Median Family Income), housing in high opportunity areas, and housing with access to quality transit. These investments include long-term income-restricted housing development, funding local community development corporations, and land banking for deeply affordable housing. * • Support the rehabilitation of rental properties and the new development of affordable housing on land purchased by the Austin Housing Finance Corporation (AHFC) as part of the strategic land banking recommendation outlined in the Austin Strategic Housing Blueprint (ASHB). * • Coordinate the City of Austin’s capital infrastructure investments with AHFC’s capital expenditures such as land acquisition, development assistance, and the repositioning of publicly owned land for affordable housing. * • Continue to support the development of homes under the Austin Community Land Trust and other local community land trusts to provide long-term homeownership opportunities to Austinites earning 80% or less of the Median Family Income. * • Provide funding for infrastructure in low-income areas undergoing planning processes, such as the Northeast Austin Planning District and Tokyo Electron, while integrating with displacement mitigation planning processes. * • Provide additional funding for current anti-displacement efforts, including the land acquisition, land development, and community-initiated solutions associated with Project Connect. * • Continue to support programs that help existing homeowners maintain and remain in their homes such as the Home Repair Program and the Displacement Prevention Navigator Program. * • Provide gap financing to incentivize developers to provide units at the deepest affordability levels possible. • Redevelop and improve AHFC’s existing inventory, including ongoing investment in maintenance and utility efficiency. 19 Imagine Austin PC FY25-26 CIP Memo of Recommendations4 of 6 • Expand capital and service funding to meet the needs for Emergency Shelter, Permanent Supportive Housing, and Rapid Rehousing projects. Also support additional needs identified by the Homeless Strategy Office and the City Manager in response to Resolution No. 20250130-083. Create a Healthy Austin Program • Align funding with priority program goals, objectives, and action items to promote healthier living by increasing opportunities for physical activity through improvements in active transportation infrastructure and improvements to trail systems; increasing access to basic needs services including food access and preventative health services; and increasing opportunities for recreation by co- locating Austin Public Health (APH) neighborhood centers with the Parks and Recreation Department’s (PARD’s) recreation services. * • Prioritize investments related to public health and safety, and capital renewal such as project rehabilitation and restoration. Maintenance and repair prevention need to be funded appropriately and equitably to minimize premature failures, unacceptable levels of service, and far more expensive replacement of assets. * • Considering recent extreme weather events, additional funding is needed to harden critical infrastructure with a priority on APL, APH, and PARD facilities that serve as neighborhood hubs, shelters, and/or warming/cooling centers. * o Assess the condition, structural integrity, efficiency and functionality of HVAC systems in existing facilities to determine their condition and develop recommendations, a priority list, and a suggested timeline for remediation. o Repair, rehabilitate, and upgrade aforementioned facilities, including purchasing and installing backup power, energy efficiency updates, building hardening and other necessary items to improve resilience. Revise Austin’s development regulations and processes to promote a compact and connected city • Planning Staff is coordinating with Council to prioritize code updates and, at this time, based on current efforts, do not require CIP funding. However, an update of the City’s Comprehensive Plan, Imagine Austin, is necessary to guide equitable land use regulations. * Other Recommendations and Considerations The following recommendation, though it does not fall under a specific Priority Program, is relevant across all programs and for the effective implementation of Imagine Austin. • Invest in data infrastructure to support regularly updated implementation progress tracking for Imagine Austin. * Staff Recommendation: Recommended 19 Imagine Austin PC FY25-26 CIP Memo of Recommendations5 of 6 Board and Commission Actions: Planning Commission: May 13, 2025 Submit to the city manager, no later than May 31, 2025, the recommended list of capital improvements, which in the opinion of the commission are necessary or desirable to implement the adopted comprehensive plan or element or portion Council Action: N/A Sponsor Department: Planning Department City Staff: Christopher Crain, Christopher.Crain@austintexas.gov, (512) 974-8041 April Geruso, April.Geruso@austintexas.gov, (512) 974-9364 19 Imagine Austin PC FY25-26 CIP Memo of Recommendations6 of 6