08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 4 - Staff Report — original pdf

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NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN AMENDMENT REVIEW SHEET NEIGHORHOOD PLAN: Brentwood/Highland (Highland) Combined and Lamar Blvd/Justin Lane Transit-Oriented Development (TOD) Station Area Plan (SAP) CASE#: NPA-2024-0018.02 DATE FILED: April 9, 2024 PROJECT NAME: 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar PC DATE: May 13, 2025 ADDRESS/ES: 6801, 6817, and 6901 N. Lamar Blvd DISTRICT AREA: 4 SITE AREA: 2.25 acres OWNER/APPLICANT: Nassour Jimmy & Parkview Partners Ltd & Parkview Partners II Ltd AGENT: Drenner Group, PC (Leah M. Bojo, AICP) CASE MANAGER: Maureen Meredith PHONE: (512) 974-2695 STAFF EMAIL: Maureen.Meredith@austintexas.gov TYPE OF AMENDMENT: Change in Future Land Use Designation From: Specific Regulating District To: Specific Regulating District To amend the Brentwood/Highland Combined Neighborhood Plan and the Lamar Boulevard/Justin Lane Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Station Area Plan (SAP) by changing the maximum building height on the property from 60 ft to 160 ft by participating in the Density Bonus. The existing land use on the future land use map is Specific Regulating District. There is no proposed change to the future land use map. Base District Zoning Change Related Zoning Case: C14-2024-0152 From: TOD-NP To: TOD-NP Height increase to 160 ft. NEIGHBORHOOD PLAN ADOPTION DATE: Brentwood/Highland Combined NP approved May 13, 2004. Lamar Blvd/Justin Lane Station Area plan approved December 11, 2008. 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 41 of 22 CITY COUNCIL DATE: TBD ACTION: PLANNING COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION: May 13, 2025 – (action pending) STAFF RECOMMENDATION: To support the applicant’s request to change the maximum building height on the property from 60 ft to 160 ft by participating in the Density Bonus BASIS FOR STAFF’S RECOMMENDATION: The property is near the CapMetro Red Line Crestview Station where high-density development is encouraged. Recent zoning cases have been approved for higher-density development in the area to support and encourage the use of the extensive public transit services in the area. The applicant’s request to increase the maximum building height to 160 feet to build approximately 272 residential dwelling units with commercial uses is consistent with the changing nature of the area. 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 Yes Imagine Austin Decision Guidelines Complete Community Measures 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: • Within the Crestview Station Tower Center Activity Center • Frontage on North Lamar Blvd, an activity corridor. • Near Airport Blvd, an activity corridor Yes Mobility and Public Transit: Located within 0.25 miles of public transit stop and/or light rail station. • Frontage on North Lamar Blvd, has multiple bus routes and Metro Rapid bus • Near bus routes on Airport Blvd, St. Johns Ave., and Guadalupe Street • Near Metro Rail line - Crestview Station Yes Mobility and Bike/Ped Access: Adjoins a public sidewalk, shared path, and/or bike lane. Yes Connectivity, Good and Services, Employment: Provides or is located within 0.50 miles to goods and services, and/or employment center. • Multiple commercial businesses along North Lamar Blvd and Airport Blvd 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 42 of 22 Yes Connectivity and Food Access: Provides or is located within 0.50 miles of a grocery No No store/farmers market. Connectivity and Education: Located within 0.50 miles from a public school or university. • 0.9 miles from T.A. Brown Elementary School Connectivity and Healthy Living: Provides or is located within 0.50 miles from a recreation area, park or walking trail. • 0.6 miles from Highland Neighborhood Park No 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.) 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. • Proposed approx. 272 dwelling units • 10% of development square footage@80% or less of the current MFI • Approx. 100 units estimated @ 80% MFI Yes 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. • 272 dwelling units proposed Yes Mixed use: Provides a mix of residential and non-industrial uses. No 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 “Yeses” No Not known Not known No 8 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 43 of 22 Proximity to Imagine Austin Activity Centers and Corridors 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 44 of 22 Proximity to Public Parks 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 45 of 22 Proximity to Public Transportation 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. 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 46 of 22 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 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 47 of 22 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 applicant proposes to amend the Lamar Blvd/Justin Lane TOD Station Area Plan to amend the maximum building height from 60 feet of 160 feet which would only be attainable by participating in the Density Bonus. The applicant proposes 272 residential dwelling units. Density Bonus affordability requirements are, for ownership units, 10% of the development square footage at 80% or less of the current MFI, which will be approximately 100 units estimated at 80% MFI. For rental units, 10% of the development square footage at 60% or less of the current MFI, which will be approximately 100 units estimated at 60% MFI. For more information on the proposed zoning case, see staff report for C14-2024-0152. PUBLIC MEETINGS: The ordinance-required community meeting was virtually held on January 22, 2025. The recorded meeting can be found here: https://publicinput.com/neighborhoodplanamendmentcases. Approximately 474 community meeting notices were mailed to people with utility accounts and who own property within 500 feet of the subject tracts, in addition to neighborhood and environmental groups who requested notification for the area. Two city staff members from the Planning Department attended, Maureen Meredith and Mark Walters. The applicant’s agents, Leah M. Bojo and Drew Rafaele from Drenner Group attended the meeting along with two people from the neighborhood. Below are highlights from Leah Bojo’s presentation: • The property is about 2.25 acres with some commercial buildings on the site. • The property has excellent current and future public transit services. • The property is in a very walkable area with numerous businesses. • We are requesting a maximum building height of 160 feet with the use of the Density Bonus, which is needed to get to this height. It will have ground floor retail along with residential uses. • • Approximately 272 dwelling units are proposed with the Density Bonus o Ownership Units:  10% of the development square footage @ 80% or less of the current MFI  Approx. 100 units estimated at 80% MFI,  Ownership is set aside for 99 years, or o Rental Units:  10% of development square footage @ 60% or less of the current MFI 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 48 of 22  Approx. 100 units estimated @ 60% MFI.  Rental set aside is for 40 years. Q: There are some areas in our neighborhood that are also up for rezoning, is what we are looking at is specific to these properties? A: Yes, these sites outlined in blue (in the presentation) are only part of this rezoning, I cannot speak to the other properties. Q: How much of the first floor will be dedicated to commercial and/or retail, or will there be any commercial uses beyond the first floor? A: The plan right now would be just the first floor on the full frontage of N. Lamar Blvd. Where the driveway will be is determined at site plan, but the entire frontage is required to be pedestrian-oriented commercial uses. That list is in the TOD plan. Q: Is there any contribution towards Parks or public space amenities? A: We will have to comply with the Parkland Ordinance, but because we are in a TOD, I would expect to pay the fee-in-lieu, which would be higher with this density. Generally, developments don’t provide on-site parkland in a TOD because the TOD already has designed where the open space will be. Q: Are the parking requirements different for TODs? A: Parking is not required anymore, which I think is great news. Generally, we are not at the point where we know how many spaces per unit will be provided, but we have seen in TODs the parking per unit the market asks for is lower. Q: Do you have an idea where the driveway access will be? A: We have talked to staff and are working through this right now, but it’s ultimately up to TPW Department. I’ll have to get back to you on that. Q: Any thoughts on when the property is expected to be developed? A: I don’t have an exact date for site plan submittal, we still need to go to PC and CC. Comments: • The neighborhood would like to see some opportunities for ownership of homes beyond just rental and would like dwelling units that could accommodate families, 2- 3-bedrooms, and not just studios. 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 49 of 22 Applicant Summary Letter from Application 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 410 of 22 Letter of Recommendation from the Neighborhood Plan Contact Team (NPCT) (No letter as of May 2, 2025) From: Meredith, Maureen Sent: Wednesday, April 23, 2025 1:24 PM To: nick.pellicciotto@icloud.com; drinkwaterkid_2000@yahoo.com; katrina.daniel@sbcglobal.net; sarahbigger@gmail.com; carrietea@icloud.com; darienclary@gmail.com; mwilliambeaton@gmail.com; rtomayko@gmail.com Cc: Sirwaitis, Sherri <Sherri.Sirwaitis@austintexas.gov> Subject: Highland NPCT Rec?: NPA-2024-0018.02_6817 N Lamar Blvd Dear Highland NPCT: Cases NPA-2024-0018.02 and C14-2024-0152_6801, 6817, & 6901 N. Lamar Blvd are scheduled for the May 13, 2025 Planning Commission hearing date. If your team would like to submit a letter of recommendation to be included in our staff case reports, please email it to me and Sherri Sirwaitis, the zoning case manager, no later than Weds., May 7th by 3:00 pm. If we receive it after this date and time, we will submit it as late material to the Planning Commission. Please let me know if you have any questions. Maureen Maureen Meredith (she/her) Senior Planner, Long-Range Planning Planning Department 512-974-2695 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. 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 411 of 22 Site 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 412 of 22 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 413 of 22 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 414 of 22 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 415 of 22 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 416 of 22 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 417 of 22 Leah Bojo’s Presentation at the January 22, 2025 Virtual Community Meeting 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 418 of 22 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 419 of 22 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 420 of 22 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 421 of 22 Correspondence Received (No correspondence received) 08 NPA-2024-0018.02 - 6817 & 6901 N. Lamar; District 422 of 22