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City Council Rezoning Dec. 1

KEY POINTS
  • The Austin City Council is scheduled to vote on its latest rezoning plan on December 1, 2022. Here’s the proposed map.
  • Residents can help protect their property rights by filing new rezoning protests no later than November 30, 2022
  • If approved, the city’s proposal would authorize the construction of larger developments closer to existing homes


ACTION

  • Please consider signing this protest that will be submitted to City Council. With enough signatures, what is called a Super Majority of the council will need to vote in favor of the changes over our petition against them.
  • Sign up to speak at the Dec. 1 City Council meeting HERE. Items 55 or 56 AGAINST
  • Talk about this with your neighbors.
Here’s more detail from our co-chair Canid;
 

This coming Thursday, December 1st, City Council will be discussing and voting on a revision to the Land Development Code that will affect our neighborhood and many others across the city.  LDC amendments about residential development on commercial properties, reduced compatibility in corridors and parking requirements, and an Equity-Transit-Oriented-Development (ETOD) Policy Plan will eliminate the current notification process to neighboring property owners and affect their right to protest zoning changes for adjacent properties.  Council has twice been denied through lawsuits to move forward with similar plans to remove citizen voice from the land development process, yet here we are again. 

Those of you that have been around here for a while know that the negotiations between mega developers and neighbors have resulted in improvements to parks, bike trails, increased the number of affordable housing options for our community, and even resulted in tax relief for at risk families in our neighborhood.  The changes that are being discussed and voted on this Thursday will open opportunities for neighborhood incompatible development, while creating barriers for the type of inclusive improvements your neighbors have been working on for the past several years.

  

Thank you all for your time and concern!

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September Meeting *NEW TIME AND PLACE

Hello Neighbors!

We’re back with three meetings this fall. All meetings will be in person at Willie Mae Kirk Library Meeting room from 1-3PM.

AGENDA

1:00 – 1:30 PM Welcome, Introductions

1:30 – 2:00 PM Conspirare

2:00 – 2:30 PM Sharlisa Addison, Willie Mae Kirk Library Branch | Library Manager

2:30 – 3:00 PM Election discussion

Neighborhood Association Elections
SEPT 10 announcing and planning
OCT 8 nominations
NOV 12 we vote
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Feb 12, 2022 Govalle Meeting (ZOOM)

Hi neighbors! Govalle Neighborhood Association Zoom link. Craig volunteers to help run the Zoom meeting so if you are temporarliy redirected to a UT page, that’s why.
 
 
Our meeting agenda is…
10:30-11:30 Intro and Ted’s Trees
11:30-12:00 Redevelopment of Anita Coy AISD site (formerly known as Allan Elementary)
 
Ted’s Trees has been postponed to Feb 22. The petition is gaining signatures, and the case in general is getting new eyes on it every day. So we’re gonna talk about it again. Daniel Llanes is going to join us to speak to the history of this site. We will hopefully have someone from Council Member Pio Renteria’s office join us, and I’ve invited a few other folks that can maybe help answer some of our questions.
 
Some please share the link with your neighbors and we can discuss.


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Ted’s Trees Petition

Please read the letter below and sign our petition.

Click HERE for the petition

Help Stop Massive Development on Ted’s Trees Tract on Tillery.
The owners of Ted’s Trees via their agent, Drenner Group, have asked the City of Austin to throw out an agreement with our community so they can have a blank check to develop whatever they want.

In 2003 when the Govalle Johnston Terrace Neighborhood Plan was approved by the city, part of that plan included a special case for Ted’s Trees, a nursery in the middle of the neighborhood. The plan was created to right the wrongs of the past. As a result of red lining, much of the neighborhood was zoned Commercial and Industrial. In an effort to codify the same protections and rights enjoyed by neighborhoods elsewhere in the city, the neighborhood plan pushed to create zoning for housing.

A compromise was reached with Ted’s Trees. They would be given the zoning Commercial Mixed Use, with the understanding that it applied only to that business, and if/when that business ceases operation, the land will rightfully and automatically be rezoned (SF4a). The restrictive covenant is how this is achieved and it’s this restrictive covenant that the owners would now like removed.

The neighborhood kept up its side of the bargain but the owner is now attempting to retrade the agreement they made to their neighbors and the neighborhood, in order to unencumber the property prior to sale. If the owners of Ted’s Trees are successful in lifting the restrictive covenant, the Govalle Neighborhood association will lose any voice in the future development of the property. This will lead to a very high density development, 60 ft tall in the middle of our neighborhood introducing unwanted side effects such as traffic congestion and noise. The neighborhood plan encourages such density on the perimeter of our neighborhood, namely Airport BLVD and 7th St, saving the middle for a neighborhood for families. The location of Ted’s Trees is in the middle of our neighborhood and should be housing for families. Help us stick to the plan.

Please help us to send a message to the Mayor and City Council that commitments should be honored. Otherwise why would we ever choose to negotiate with developers in the future?

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Short January meeting

 

We’re kicking off the year with a brief meeting.  
Ted’s Trees is still trying to fight the restrictive covenant and now think the city is on their side. We need to re-group and strategize next steps. We’d also like to find some volunteers to form an action committee regarding Ted’s Trees. Ideally some folks that live near Ted’s Trees and care about what happens there.
 
The meeting will be over Zoom and we’d like to keep it to 40 minutes since this is a one topic meeting.
Saturday, January 15, at 10:30am 
Here is the zoom information:
Candi Fox is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/79758492593?pwd=rCXNLUQ8Hq5lfqT_dY-r87lLAQTfVt.1

Meeting ID: 797 5849 2593
Passcode: K8SaaN

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Final Meeting of the Year (Nov. 13) IN-PERSON

EDIT:
Candi and I will be in-person at the butterlfy garden and hope you join us there. For those that can’t here’s the Zoom Link
Join Zoom Meeting
https://utexas.zoom.us/j/91971086702

Meeting ID: 919 7108 6702
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Meeting ID: 919 7108 6702

 
Final meeting of the year this Saturday (NOV. 13)
10:30 AM – 12:00 PM
 
We’ll be meeting in the new butterfly garden at Govalle Elementary, outside and spaced apart. We can’t wait to meet everyone again face-to-face.
 
Only two items on the agenda…
1) CALLING ALL PARENTS LIVING IN GOVALLE!!!
AISD would like to hear your thoughts on programming and facilities as they determine their long-range bond planning focusing on the east side. If you’re here for the long haul, come give your feedback on what kind of classes and facilities you’d like to see.
2) Pecan Grove Update (1129 Tillery)
We’ll be hearing from the non-profit (Live + Make) that will be preserving the pecan grove and building affordable housing in the empty field next to the pecan grove.