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Austin staff present timeline for land development code amendments; state law changes could alter schedule
Summary
Planning Department staff briefed the Housing and Planning Committee on the timeline for multiple Land Development Code amendments, including the University Neighborhood Overlay update, tree preservation changes, tiered density bonuses and notification modifications. Staff warned recent Texas legislation may require adjustments to the schedule.
Stevie Greathouse, division manager in the City of Austin Planning Department, told the Housing and Planning Committee on July 12 that staff have refined the schedule for multiple forthcoming Land Development Code amendments and will continue to adjust dates as they evaluate the impacts of the recent Texas legislative session.
Greathouse said work is already underway on a range of topics: a University Neighborhood Overlay (UNO) update that was postponed at the June 5 City Council meeting and is scheduled to return to council on Sept. 25; proposed tree-preservation and planting requirement amendments that could appear on the Aug. 28 council agenda; and study work on potential new mixed-use and missing-middle zoning districts with results expected in the fall and potential code amendments in early 2026. She also said staff are integrating phase 2 of the equitable transit-oriented development overlay with citywide density bonus program updates and incorporating direction from a June 5 resolution on tiered density bonuses.
Greathouse cautioned that staff “will be continuing to work with the law department and our city executives to evaluate the impacts of the recent Texas legislative session on our work,” and that stakeholders should expect adjustments as staff ensure compliance with state law. When asked about timing, Greathouse said Senate Bill 840 would go into effect on Sept. 1 "I believe that is the case," she said, while adding she did not want to be quoted as a legal interpretation.
Other items Greathouse listed: work on modifications to notification requirements with a goal to bring forward modifications by the end of 2025; initial outreach this fall on an East Riverside corridor plan update (with adoption possible in 2026); and an anticipated downtown density bonus update that would move forward with a potential Downtown Austin plan review, with both potentially returning for review and adoption in late 2026. She said the schedule included with the meeting materials is ambitious and will be refined as projects move forward.
Council members asked for additional outreach and coordination: Council Member Mike Siegel asked whether meetings with the University of Texas about UNO concerns had been scheduled; Greathouse said staff were working to schedule those conversations "in partnership with city executives over the summer." Chair Natasha Harper Madison and other members raised questions about the interaction of these code efforts with other planning and outreach priorities.
For more information or to provide feedback, Greathouse directed the public to speakupaustin.org/ldcupdates.
