[{"_1":2,"_111":-5,"_112":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,75,87,99],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},"mediaId",6472137,"mediaKeyId","5776968-744eba2ace9822c9519a340668d58d34","parentId",5776968,"title","Housing & Planning Committee files June minutes by unanimous voice vote","audioSeconds",56,"startMs",68000,"endMs",124000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=5776968-744eba2ace9822c9519a340668d58d34&start=68&end=124","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5776968-744eba2ace9822c9519a340668d58d34/thumbnail_68000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6472137/Austin/Travis-County/Texas/Housing-Planning-Committee-files-June-minutes-by-unanimous-voice-vote","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6472137-646917706d175adf6c68c2c3c851d7ea/orig.mp4?Expires=1770555400&Signature=kbD7-ZhjSBUaBORM9YqFaCKjpFSxwoIruZqfmtjzS2jk1r6juOpmNHCPbZVboAnBTTSgSOO0JPNKFTXRtf49W3kAT0bCK0JkoY0bi5QY4~7SwD0peh9Ozhmd6PN8GyuslGFbpPmeeJuTyJHiFrpbVXclUT6rmqxTXglZV4faMbAn4TLk4KFvYi6p---PUk5h4OQfWp~ZpUsUaMX0UqQH249c0rfQMJPCe0gkIbZP6xBYbCuyf5OoVhLv7cBHqJ347RXL3LgUN~VRyytbUh-Fn7fcmBJJUnpsW1sWAMfsMe94piyODLCxUot-yCiiuIBjfkk513eqtfD5O7iqX7wxBw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","Austin","date","2025-09-16T00:00:00Z","article","At the opening of the Sept. 16 Housing and Planning Committee meeting, the committee voted to approve the minutes from its June 12, 2025 meeting.

The chair called for a motion to approve the minutes. The motion was moved by committee member Veil and seconded by committee member Ellis. The chair announced the motion passed unanimously and directed that the minutes be filed with the city clerk in accordance with city code.

No further action was taken on the minutes at this meeting.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Austin - Austin Housing & Planning Committee","oneSentenceSummary","The committee approved and filed the minutes from the June 12, 2025 Housing & Planning Committee meeting by unanimous voice vote.","taxTitle","Austin, Travis County, Texas","taxId",2819,"location","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":76,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":77,"_41":78,"_43":79,"_45":80,"_47":81,"_49":82,"_51":83,"_53":84,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":85,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":86,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6472142,"Local eviction filings hit record high in 2024; advocates urge prevention plans and enforcement of existing protections",1513,3585000,5098000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5776968-744eba2ace9822c9519a340668d58d34&start=3585&end=5098","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5776968-744eba2ace9822c9519a340668d58d34/thumbnail_3585000.jpg","/articles/6472142/Austin/Travis-County/Texas/Local-eviction-filings-hit-record-high-in-2024-advocates-urge-prevention-plans-and-enforcement-of-existing-protections","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6472142-1bfbad6d33233bbe4b1a09cef6b935b8/orig.mp4?Expires=1770555400&Signature=KiKkSnsZnqBlGGqARsID4xNZU7-qQLS6VSMn8h-yXFxcZlDfZLoHJIjWsRvvMjJYtaVkK~zALlPKmRSZuqMQyCdI~dVPgeUxhWGDKTMG4qjShMotiHBIsLewfUOtwRvzkE68JDpHjVBEjZUNVzu29hpEjTba~-PzZwhznDDSY~BWGWO9i0ZeNOOYldmhNPg7qs0298naM3xgZk89mL5gqLFdK1tZ5cza62otI3k98~lOppl-t2N~IqMO29IHNwUjcAzNkaI8eagezza3t7r4W2zloP2PFXVFKh9cCvR~1A-b89bh~DFy6G7jxN4WawAlLolQuhFcqFrdXfoZNV8P3w__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Shoshana Krieger, project director for Building and Strengthening Tenant Action (a project of Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid), briefed the Housing and Planning Committee on Sept. 16 on eviction filing trends in Travis County and policy options to reduce displacement.

Krieger said the group’s 2024 snapshot found 13,210 eviction filings in Travis County in 2024 and that 2025 filings were on pace to meet or exceed 2024 totals. “In 2024, we had the highest filings we’ve ever had with 13,210 eviction filings,” Krieger told the committee. The group’s eviction dashboard, updated weekly, uses court filing records and geocoded addresses to show eviction patterns by tract and council district.

Key findings presented included: a median case duration of about 20 days from filing to judgment in 2024 and 99% of cases disposed within 60 days; the top‑filing properties often file against a large share of households in a given complex (the presentation noted one property with a filing rate around 38%); and tax‑exempt private partnership (TEP) properties—including some that receive public subsidy in exchange for affordability—showed a higher‑than‑average filing rate in the dataset the group examined.

Krieger said the data show eviction filings concentrated historically in the Eastern Crescent but also shifting toward the county edges, where lower‑income households have increasingly moved. She noted limitations: filings are an imperfect measure of displacement because many households receive a notice to vacate and move before a court filing is recorded.

Advocacy recommendations presented to the committee included adopting eviction prevention plans at properties (particularly at properties receiving public subsidy or tax exemption), ensuring enforcement of existing protections attached to publicly funded and RHDA properties, and improving tenant navigation, multilingual notice and case management capacity. Krieger described several tenant stories—seniors at a subsidized property known in the briefing as “Arbors”—to illustrate how operational practices (for example, refusing partial payments) and weak enforcement can accelerate evictions and cause harm even when small arrears might be addressed.

Council members and staff discussed enforcement of protections on properties that receive public subsidy, the role of city‑funded rental assistance and the possibility of requiring eviction prevention measures in incentive programs. Krieger and committee members identified eviction prevention plans and improved tenant navigation as actionable, locally permissible steps that could reduce filings and mitigate harm.

No committee vote was taken on the briefing. Krieger said BASTA’s eviction dashboard and underlying datasets are available to staff and the public to inform further analysis and policy design.","Building and Strengthening Tenant Action (BASTA) presented a Travis County eviction dashboard showing 13,210 filings in 2024 and rapid case resolution; the group urged upstream eviction prevention measures and enforcement of protections on subsidized properties.",{"_33":88,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":89,"_41":90,"_43":91,"_45":92,"_47":93,"_49":94,"_51":95,"_53":96,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":97,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":98,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6472147,"City-funded tenant relocation program review: cost study finds $6,000 cap likely insufficient for mobile homes",1546,1397000,2943000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5776968-744eba2ace9822c9519a340668d58d34&start=1397&end=2943","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5776968-744eba2ace9822c9519a340668d58d34/thumbnail_1397000.jpg","/articles/6472147/Austin/Travis-County/Texas/City-funded-tenant-relocation-program-review-cost-study-finds-6000-cap-likely-insufficient-for-mobile-homes","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6472147-e3a93de57c4d22420a81b9a10c245f32/orig.mp4?Expires=1770555400&Signature=S47cXaA1NbcaBxaqSyhxD9zTubo0I0vVp-w8QEkxh-eX1o8xT3-wdiZ1x8bzOx-tdoo5J4v6sljKqLuFtHRjvGs7qasKSq37siqIJGU1uOqqHVtX-fjcScYbcUxJVd3anxiBW348vq713GBrmPUoT3chK6ByvO02fNu45h6nULk4w6IIrhu5Dx-D6vmOuDxdHSNUzcculJQ3eeCnq3oLcw2MLdlRr59OR5~BjitpnW4OmfdoxWeJ10~IkvT-HVHUbOMQNVYEZ08Oogu5tIZa6ALkPrJIVqWfgZPxR8ua-F3jnde0a8H-N17F5CoqM7VttPvSAPWdVfaoUXCLL0okmQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Susan Watkins, division manager in the Austin Housing Department, briefed the Housing and Planning Committee on Sept. 16 about the tenant notification and relocation ordinance and a completed relocation cost study by Eco Northwest.

Watkins said the tenant notification and relocation ordinance—first adopted in 2016 and revised in subsequent years—requires notice when demolition or major renovation is proposed for multifamily properties of five or more units and for certain mobile home site changes. The ordinance and program rules (first codified in 2017) include mechanisms for city-funded relocation assistance; state law changes eliminated developer‑fee options, so Austin currently operates a city-funded relocation program.

Eco Northwest summarized the cost study results. Jada Gilad and Amanda (Eco Northwest) told the committee their analysis examined local rental market conditions, past demolition trends, and the practical costs tenants face when required to relocate. Eco Northwest estimated per‑household relocation costs (total assistance needs vary by unit size and by whether the household is in a mobile home): for small units (studio/one-bedroom) the study estimated a low of about $3,100 and a high of about $6,300 per household; for mobile home households the study estimated a low of about $9,000 and a high of $15,000 per household when including moving, storage and temporary lodging where needed.

Current program parameters and operations described to the committee: the city-funded Tenant Relocation Program (funded in FY23 and administered under contract by Lavier Logix) is available to households at or below 70% of Area Median Income (AMI) for multifamily residents and 80% AMI for mobile home residents. Services in the program include housing locator assistance (up to 50 miles), moving and storage assistance, rental payment assistance, and other case management services. The program currently has a $6,000 per‑household cap.

Watkins and the Eco Northwest presenters recommended several actions for the city to consider: adjusting compensation awards by household size and housing type (noting the $6,000 cap is unlikely to meet mobile‑home relocation costs), continuing to use a 50‑mile assistance radius while tracking whether applicants lose eligibility because they find housing outside the radius, and extending notification timelines to give tenants more time to locate replacement housing (current ordinance timelines cited in the briefing are 120 days for multifamily and 270 days for mobile homes).

Committee members asked about program funding and usage. Watkins said the council previously allocated about $700,000 (with later additions) to the program and that the vendor, under the city contract, has developed intake and application rules. Watkins and a program manager present said they would return with detailed fiscal usage figures by fiscal year; they reported the fund had not yet been fully expended and that much of the assistance to date had been provided on a case‑by‑case referral basis.

No formal action was taken Wednesday; staff asked to return with updated budget and usage figures and to continue tracking outcomes, including how often applicants find housing outside the 50‑mile radius.","Austin staff and consultant Eco Northwest presented a completed tenant relocation cost study, reviewed the city-funded relocation program rules and eligibility (70% AMI for multifamily, 80% for mobile homes), and recommended adjusting awards by unit size and tracking outcomes.",{"_33":100,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":101,"_41":102,"_43":103,"_45":104,"_47":105,"_49":106,"_51":107,"_53":108,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":109,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":110,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":68,"_72":73,"_74":73},6472152,"City planning staff to propose downtown base height limit after state law removes residential floor-area caps",310,131000,441000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=5776968-744eba2ace9822c9519a340668d58d34&start=131&end=441","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/5776968-744eba2ace9822c9519a340668d58d34/thumbnail_131000.jpg","/articles/6472152/Austin/Travis-County/Texas/City-planning-staff-to-propose-downtown-base-height-limit-after-state-law-removes-residential-floor-area-caps","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6472152-e41a949d33db396ad70c649755f3c879/orig.mp4?Expires=1770555400&Signature=bG9VtlPutf6Lq5aD0HtCgN2DA6fo0oi5g9DDT4jBlPCIsaab3dkqnZNHn1fkc-rtMqItlIiWI76XOR1lJcE2BC-diDaYa~HAlJgZ8vDImyTzA5MxKT5oYhhkI8yGwqNjU9GfjPzjOQ94Uy0ltdVUR2A5GGX5PeVMmpwCB6t31ionhy6sMsDiOqb-CWl3rnAVs18E1AsRtyPY~irANx-waTO1hwBhMdaJZiFi00bZ8yJS2Hj6QmA231WmvAYDmU7dzPTS8IrD2UcrlS3S3YVZXxg5hK~KgNyn64pCq9aVMYszJ9T8fR-DaWrNY9C20-gp54gA3hMq594svTDRNk-PeQ__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","City of Austin planning staff told the Housing and Planning Committee on Sept. 16 that they expect to bring a Land Development Code amendment before council by the end of 2025 to address the effects of Senate Bill 840 on downtown development.

The memo and timeline presented Wednesday, and summarized by Stevie Greathouse, division manager with the City of Austin Planning Department, show that staff are developing a proposal “that would create a base height limit within the Central Business District zone” to respond to the state law change removing floor-area limits for residential and mixed-use developments.

The issue: Senate Bill 840 removes a city’s authority to apply a floor-area-ratio cap to certain residential and mixed-use projects. Greathouse told the committee that Austin’s Central Business District historically used floor-area controls to limit the bulk and form of downtown buildings; without a usable FAR, staff say they need a base height cap to provide a predictable limit for base development. Greathouse said downtown projects would still be able to opt into the downtown density bonus program to exceed the base limit.

Staff outlined a compressed schedule for consideration: a special-called Codes & Ordinances joint committee on Sept. 24, the Planning Commission on Oct. 14, and City Council consideration on Oct. 23. Greathouse said detailed materials will be posted on the SpeakUpAustin land development code updates page.

Looking beyond the CBD change, staff presented a multi-year workplan. Notable timeline items in the backup memo include:
- A study of new mixed‑use and missing‑middle base zones due no later than Jan. 2026, with potential code amendments following in late 2026 (staff said an initial phase might be advanced earlier).
- Watershed- and parkland-related drainage easement amendments anticipated in Jan. 2026.
- A package of amendments to clarify how SB 840 is applied across base zones and to address minor code inconsistencies, potentially brought forward for council consideration in February 2026.
- A comprehensive review and recommended changes to citywide density bonus programs, with staff analysis and proposals targeted for May 2026.

Committee members pressed staff on sequencing and timing, noting the citywide density bonus work is linked to how SB 840 changes development economics. Greathouse said the February tranche is intended to give staff and council more certainty about how recently enacted notification requirements (HB 24, as cited in the presentation materials) and other changes will affect implementation before larger incentive programs are revised.

Staff also told the committee they expect to conduct multiple rounds of public engagement on corridor- and downtown-related planning efforts (including an East Riverside corridor update and a broader downtown density-bonus review tied to the Central City District process) during 2026. The presentation emphasized the schedule is ambitious and subject to change as staff incorporate council feedback and statutory clarifications.

The committee did not take formal action on the item Wednesday; the presentation was an informational briefing and staff invited follow-up questions from council offices and stakeholders.

For more information staff said they will post the LDC timeline and proposal materials at speakupaustin.org/ldcupdates.","City of Austin planning staff outlined a timeline to respond to Senate Bill 840 by proposing a base height limit for the Central Business District and a broader set of Land Development Code updates through 2026 and 2027.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Housing & Planning Committee files June minutes by unanimous voice vote

Local eviction filings hit record high in 2024; advocates urge prevention plans and enforcement of existing protections

City-funded tenant relocation program review: cost study finds $6,000 cap likely insufficient for mobile homes

City planning staff to propose downtown base height limit after state law removes residential floor-area caps