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Council approves Calhoun House landmark and postpones East 11th cocktail‑lounge zoning changes to Jan. 22, 2026
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Summary
Council adopted zoning consent items that included a historic designation for the Calhoun House and postponed two related requests (items 86 and 87) to Jan. 22, 2026 after testimony raised questions about whether prior council actions had changed conditional‑use status for cocktail lounges on parts of East 11th Street.
At the Dec. 11 meeting the Austin City Council approved multiple zoning consent items, including a motion to designate the Calhoun House (2401 Givens Ave) as a historic landmark. Preservation advocates and neighborhood representatives described the site as a high‑integrity post‑World War II house significant to East Austin's Black community, and council adopted the consent zoning package without objection.
Separately, council opened public hearings on items 86 and 87, which asked to make cocktail lounge uses conditional at 1201 East 11th Street by amending the East 11th & 12th Street Urban Renewal Plan and the East 11th Street NCCD. Staff recommended denial and noted the Urban Renewal Board and Planning Commission did not recommend the change. Roger Borgelt, representing the property owner, argued the ordinance language and prior council motions indicate cocktail lounge use remained a conditional use in Subdistrict 1 and asked for clarification.
Council Member Natasha Harper Madison raised legal‑record concerns and asked city legal to clarify what prior ordinances changed. City legal stated the ordinances adopted in 2022 limited conditional cocktail‑lounge status to blocks 16 and 18; because of outstanding record questions and the absence of the applicant, Harper Madison moved—seconded and supported by others—to postpone items 86 and 87 to the Jan. 22, 2026 council meeting. Staff confirmed no re‑notice is required for that postponement.
Next steps: council will revisit items 86 and 87 on Jan. 22, 2026 after staff and city legal reconcile the legislative record; the Calhoun House designation will proceed under the adopted consent package.