Zoning commission approves consent agenda; commissioner offers to put Riverplace corridor small‑area plan recommendation on next agenda

The Austin Zoning and Planning Commission approved its consent agenda on Tuesday, adopting staff recommendations and scheduling two staff or neighborhood postponements, and heard a public request that the commission recommend a small‑area plan for a rapidly growing corridor in northwest Austin.

The consent agenda included minutes from the May 20 meeting and a set of rezoning and PUD items. Chair Hank Smith called for a motion; Commissioner Lonnie Stern moved to approve the consent agenda and a second was recorded. The chair announced the consent agenda passed "unanimous with the exception of items 2 and 3 from Greenberg." Vice Chair Betsy Greenberg asked to be recorded as voting no on items 2 (Research Park PDA amendment) and 3 (Duval PDA rezoning), saying she was concerned that PDAs can function as PUDs without community benefits and that item 3 had been troubling to neighbors in prior years. Item 5 (Riverplace PDA amendment) carried a neighborhood request to postpone; the commission agreed to a neighborhood postponement to July 1. Item 6 (Goodnight Ranch PUD amendment) was postponed at staff request to July 15. Item 7 (Camelback PUD amendment) remained on the consent agenda with staff recommendation.

Public comment and future agenda request

At the start of the meeting, resident Jennifer Muschthaler — a District 10 resident and former planning commissioner — asked the commission to consider putting forward a recommendation asking City Council to initiate a small‑area plan for the corridor near Riverplace, where she said growth has outpaced arterial capacity. Muschthaler told commissioners the area near FM‑2222 and FM‑620 has only two main arterial routes and has shown some of the city’s highest population growth, and she said Planning Commission had previously passed a unanimous recommendation for Council to start a small‑area plan.

After discussion among commissioners, a District 6 commissioner volunteered to cosponsor placing the item on a future commission agenda so staff could prepare information or a recommended motion for commission consideration. Chair Smith instructed staff to add the request to a future agenda once a sponsor and cosponsor were recorded.

Speakers on consent items included Richard Settle and Chris Mayfield; Jonathan (last name not specified) and other speakers signed in on various consent items and some waived remarks. The commission noted several consent items had speakers either in favor or opposition and accommodated those presentations as part of the consent process.

What’s next: The Riverplace small‑area plan request will be added to a future agenda after a sponsor and cosponsor were recorded; item 5 is postponed to July 1 and item 6 to July 15. The cases on the consent agenda will proceed to City Council according to the normal timeline for commission recommendations.