SRCC EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES
TUESDAY, September 6, 2022 @ 7:00 PM
Zoom Teleconference
MINUTES
Only members may vote. As an officer, you should be a member. Please confirm by emailing membership@srccatx.org.
Meeting was called to order at 7:02pm.
1. 7:00 Executive Meeting Welcome
Presenter throughout unless otherwise noted: Wendy Todd, President (5 min)
2. 7:05 Membership report & voting
Reminder that members must remain in good standing by paying their dues to participate in SRCC business and actions, such as voting and making motions. (5 min)
Participants who are not members of the Executive Committee are not eligible to vote
3. 7:10 August 2022 Executive Committee Meeting Minutes
Approve minutes. (5 min)
Motion by Sam Martin/Dan Fredine to approve the August minutes. No comments or corrections – minutes were approved as posted.
Remaining meeting dates in 2022: GM Sept 20; EC Oct 4; GM Oct 18; GM Nov 15; EC Dec 6
4. 7:15 Treasurer’s Report
All reports available upon request to the Treasurer: treasurer@srccatx.org
Presenter: Will Andrews, Treasurer (5 min)
Income has been greater than expenses, and we are net positive for the year to date (end of August).
5. 7:20 Standing Committee updates re: events/goals/issues
Presenters: Committee Chairs, including 1) Planning and Zoning; 2) Historic Preservation; 3) Finance; 4) Mobility; 5) Public Safety; 6) Parks and Environment; 7) Schools; and 8) Communications (10 min)
- Planning and Zoning. Statesman PUD is going back to Council on the 15th for second reading. Bill Bunch is meeting with the Watershed Department and Council Member Tovo’s aide to discuss parkland aspects. There is a case regarding the old VFW Hall. SRCC P&Z will be meeting with the client before the next General Membership meeting and the client will be speaking at the General Membership meeting (the Neighborhood Planning Contact Team agreed to allow the out-of cycle application, and will meet again after the City-hosted informational meeting to determine its position regarding the project).
- Historic Preservation. Susan Armstrong Fisher gave the update. Paula Kothmann and Susan Fisher are transitioning to be co-chairs; Susan has been active on the committee for the last 6 months. There are 3 potential areas of Travis Heights that are interested in becoming Local Historic Districts (LHDs); 1900 block of Kenwood, 2000 block of Alameda, and a block of Newning. Preservation Austin would like to use the neighborhood as a model for some educational materials, and Susan will participate in the development. There was a question about sign toppers for the LHDs. It was agreed that they are under consideration.
- Finance. Nothing to report.
- Mobility. Cap Metro – their last outreach was in June about environmental impacts, expect more in the fall when the environmental assessment is complete. I35 – see later item. S Congress Parking PTMD – presentation from the City will likely happen at the October General Membership meeting. Currently reviewing mobility projects that were proposed by the NPCT.
- Public Safety. Nothing to report.
- Parks and Environment. Have been working on a community grant application to APF, and are working with the City to vet the proposal. Will include fixing trails, replacing failed equipment, etc.. If there are any items that need attention, please contact David Todd.
- Schools. Nothing to report.
- Communications. The newsletter is underway and the articles are being selected. There are a handful of new signs that are available to be distributed. Might want to have another version of the signs that would be easier to read while driving by in the car. Using the map that shows current locations of the signs helps to consider where additional signs could be used. It was also suggested that anyone who would want a sign should take one, and not be as concerned about the strategic placement since we have so many that are not in use. It was asked if Travis Heights Elementary School could include an announcement of upcoming SRCC meetings on the electronic message board. There was discussion about having an event at Little Stacy to celebrate the 50th anniversary of SRCC and the 20th anniversary of Kaboom. Considering holding the event on Saturday Nov 5th (the 1st day of Travis Heights Art Trail). Thinking about having it early, as part of the flow with the Travis Heights Art Trail. Looking for ideas and volunteers, and include a signup effort.
6. 7:30 Additional Updates from Representatives and Coordinators
9) Norwood; 10) GSRC NPCT; 11) EROC NPCT; 12) ANC; 13) SCC; 14) South Central Waterfront; 15) St. Edward’s; 16) S. Central Affordable CDC; and 17) Ad-hoc Land Development Code Revision (10 min)
No updates were given. Considering removing #16 & 17, since neither of these have had reports in the last year.
NEW BUSINESS
7. 7:40 I-35 Updates and Speaker at GM
Discuss updates to I-35 plans and proposals. Adam Greenfield, Executive Director of Rethink 35 would like to present at our 9/26 GM Meeting. Discuss presentation and questions for Adam.
Presenter: Mark Thompson, SRCC Mobility Chair (10 min)
There is an alternative proposal for I-35 to force all non-local traffic to SH130, to return I-35 to be more of a boulevard. This has been done in other places before. This may be considered for a future meeting, perhaps in November.
8. 7:50 South Central Waterfront (305 S. Congress/Statesman PUD) Updates
Deliver updates re City’s position, readings, PUD vs. Regulating Plan. Discuss response by Economic Development Department’s Sylnovia Holt Rabb.
Presenters: Sarah Campbell, SRCC Planning & Zoning and Wendy Todd, SRCC President (10 min)
Prior to the 2016 adoption of the South Central Waterfront (SCW) Vision Framework Plan, the district consisted of 32 parcels and with nearly as many owners. Existing property owners (Cox, Crockett, City of Austin) have been joined by new owners (Endeavor, Turnbridge) in holding the larger contiguous tracts. SRCC participated in the planning and implementation of the SCW. The city is getting close to having a Regulating Plan, but whether the Statesman project will opt-in is unclear. The applicant is taking the entitlements of height and density from the plan without providing the community benefits described by the plan without a public investment. There seems to be a majority of Council Members, led by the Mayor, who want to get the project moving at greater heights. Yet Council Members Tovo and Alter have indicated that the proposal falls short of the SCW Vision Plan. The Parks Board has asked to to hear the current proposal again. The developer has proposed the six building project as a substantial amendment to an existing PUD. There will likely be amendments made by individual Council Members for specific purposes, but there does not seem to be a cohesive set of requirements or intent to follow the Vision Plan.
During the last City Council meeting about this, SRCC President was given one minute to discuss in front of Council – there was no discourse or questions, but just a moment to state the position of SRCC.
9. 8:00 Candidate Forums
SRCC will be co-hosting two District 9 candidate forums. In advance, prioritize a few questions about I-35, Project Connect, South Central Waterfront, Historic Preservation, Parks, and other neighborhood challenges.
The Hyde Park NA has a 9/5 deadline for questions, however, we may request an extension if we want GM input.
Forums:
With Hyde Park Neighborhood Association (HPNA)
Monday, September 19, 2022
Griffin School
5001 Evans Avenue
7pm
and also by Zoom
contact: Lorre Weidlich <lweidlich@mail2sevenseas.com>
With Bouldin Creek Neighborhood Association
Texas School for the Deaf
Tuesday, October 11, 2022
6:30pm-8:30pm
contact: Ingrid Weigand <ingweig@gmail.com>
Presenter: Wendy Todd, SRCC President (10 min)
We are calling for questions to be addressed by the candidates. One suggestion was related to the contracts that Council negotiates with projects – often neighborhoods are included up front, but then once the project gets going our perspectives are no longer considered. There was a proposal that since CodeNext has been sidelined, there might be an idea of doing district-wide rezoning, and would like to know the candidates positions. Question about support for the waterfront overlay and development along the waterfront. Perspective on Historic Preservation policies and how they would help strengthen Historic Landmark Commission tools. Questions about the practice of stepping around the code and the intent of existing development tools, allowing for PUDs for projects that do not meet the requirements for a typical PUD project. How do they feel about neighborhood associations? How should neighborhood associations provide position statements to council members to assure strong consideration, in particular during a development approval process? What will the candidate do to convince Council to direct the City Manager to make the SCW Regulating Plan a priority? How does the City Council determine when a PUD should apply rather than current regulations, and how does the Council assure the community that it is negotiating in the community’s best interest, and not simply ceding to developer demands?
10. 8:10 GENERAL ANNOUNCEMENTS
SRCC has restarted the NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH program, and is looking for participants. Anyone interested should contact Tom Groce, SRCC Public Safety Chair at tgroce71@gmail.com to get involved!
Do you have questions about using the Neighborhood ListServ? This link will take you to information about subscribing, unsubscribing, posting a message, and more. https://groups.io/g/SouthRiverAustin
Meeting was adjourned at 8:06pm
The next General Membership meeting is September 20, 2022.
The next SRCC Executive Committee meeting is October 4, 2022.
Frequently used acronyms:
ACF: Austin Community Fund
ANC: Austin Neighborhood Council (https://www.atxanc.org/)
BoA: Board of Adjustment
CDC: Community Development Corporation
EROC: East Riverside/Oltorf Combined Contact Team
FLUM: Future Land Use Map
GSRC NPCT: Greater South River City Neighborhood Planning Contact Team
NCCD: Neighborhood Conservation Combining District
NHPA: National Historic Preservation Act
NPCT: Neighborhood Planning Contact Team
PC: Planning Commission
PUD: Planned Unit Development
SCC: South Central Coalition of neighborhood associations
SF: Single Family zoning category
ZAP: Zoning and Platting
Agenda Prepared by Noah Balch, vicepresident@srccatx.org Agenda subject to change. Please check www.srccatx.org for the most updated version.
ZOOM REGISTRATION LINK FOR THIS MEETING: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIqf-uhrTstGtUwJNJpQAGHsmiYSbUZwQtg
