The BOA, which can hear an appeal over a use determination, was scheduled to consider residents’ appeals regarding LifeAustin Church’s amphitheater facility at its regularly scheduled meeting in April. The amphitheater has been the subject of controversy for years, in large part because of amplified sound from worship services and its effect on neighborhoods in the rural residential area.
Residents in the Covered Bridge neighborhood in Southwest Austin can belong to the Covered Bridge Property Owners Association.[/caption]A joint request from a representative of the Hill Country Estates and the Covered Bridge Property Owners Association—the two neighborhood groups that sued the city over its approval of the amphitheater’s construction—has asked for more time to continue negotiations with LifeAustin about the amphitheater, said Leane Heldenfels, BOA liaison with the city of Austin.
"They’re continuing to work on the issues of the case," she said.
Members of the neighborhood groups and the church have been meeting since late 2015 to try to determine next steps regarding the amphitheater in search of common ground.
The board will vote April 11 on whether to postpone the decision to its June 13 meeting, per the appellants’ request, Heldenfels said. After hearing from residents and LifeAustin representatives, the board members could make one of three determinations through a supermajority vote, Heldenfels said.
“They can uphold staff’s current decision saying that it is an allowed use [or] they can overturn staff’s decision and state why they believe staff made an error and what they feel the decision should be. If neither of those has a supermajority vote, then it just [becomes] a non-decision,” she said.
Eight votes are required for a BOA supermajority, she said.
BOA meetings take place in the Austin City Hall council chambers at 301 W. Second St. Information about upcoming meetings can be found at www.austintexas.gov/boa. Meetings are broadcast at www.austintexas.gov/atxn.
