A highly contested Planned Unit Development proposal for a property off of MoPac is changing course. Austin Zoning and Platting Commission met Sept. 15 to discuss Twelve Lakes LLC’s application for a PUD at Austin Oaks, which is currently zoned for limited office, limited retail and single family dwellings. The ZAP voted 8-3 to postpone a hearing on the case indefinitely, but to conduct a briefing on the progress of a charrette, a collaborative design process with residents, on Nov. 3. Commissioners Jolene Kiolbassa, Jackie Goodman and Ann Denkler cast the dissenting votes. The developer—through the Drenner Group law firm—has gone back and forth with the city about the application for more than a year. During that time, nearby residents have rallied against the proposal, saying it would further congest traffic and negatively affect the environment. Jerry Rusthoven, manager of the city’s Planning and Zoning Department, said he was prepared to ask the ZAP for another postponement to give city staff more time to work with the developer on the application. But hours before the ZAP meeting began, the developer agreed to a charrette, Rusthoven said. He asked the commission to postpone another hearing on the Austin Oaks application indefinitely to see if any resolution or a new application came out of the charrette process. A crowd of neighbors carrying small, yellow signs that read, “Stop the PUD” attended the meeting. ZAP Chair Gabriel Rojas let two residents speak before saying, “We don’t need to hear from the neighborhood any more.” Resident Brad Parsons stood up and said two more residents should be able to speak. Parsons said he was not in favor of a charrette, and unless the developer withdrew the PUD application, the charrette would backtrack progress that city staff has already made. “What we need is the applicant to finish responding to the staff’s comments,” he said. Parsons also said there was a persistent lack of good faith on behalf of the developer. Stephen Drenner of the Drenner Group then addressed the commission. “You get a sense for our challenge,” he said. Drenner said the developer has mainly been working with neighborhood group Northwest Austin Civic Association because the Austin Oaks property is located within the association’s jurisdiction. On Aug. 27, he said, they discussed a charrette. Drenner said his client was ready to “take a time out” and see if a better design idea could be generated on which the developer, the city and the neighborhoods could agree. “We just want to move forward,” he said. Drenner said the developer would pay for the charrette process and hire an independent third party to facilitate. He said the developer would not agree to withdraw the PUD application because he does not want to start from scratch if the charrette process yields no result. “This is not an easy decision for the client to make,” Drenner said. “This has obviously been a difficult issue for staff and for some in the neighborhood.” Rojas said the commission would like to leave the case in 2015, but he expected it would continue into next year. “There’s other people here for cases tonight,” he said. The commission should not be spending so much time discussing Austin Oaks, he added.