The more than 2,600-acre Dog's Head area north of US 183 was annexed into city limits this year in anticipation of decades of mixed-use development along the Colorado River. (Matthew Brooks/Community Impact)
Officials formalized the share of future tax revenue from the Dog’s Head in East Austin that'll be directed to public housing and parkland projects.
The update came as an east side coalition launched a campaign to halt planned development in the 2,645-acre zone due to concerns about environmental impacts, public transparency and corporate giveaways.
The setup
The roughly 4-square-mile Dog's Head, named for its outline along the Colorado River, has served for decades as a mining and industrial zone. A rapid series of civic approvals this year set the Dog's Head up for decades of expansive mixed-use construction under landowner Endeavor Real Estate Group.
City Council annexed the area into Austin in May and signed off on a 45-year deal with Endeavor for development across the Dog's Head. That agreement turned over significant oversight authority to Endeavor and city administrators, and drew criticism for being quickly finalized without extensive public review.
The annexation and development plan were conditioned on long-term city funding for some infrastructure needed to support the proposed mix of residential, commercial, office and industrial projects around the district. To that end, Austin leaders also agreed to set up a tax increment reinvestment zone, or TIRZ, that'll reserve a share of growing city tax revenue in the Dog's Head for additions like roads and utilities.
Based on Endeavor's development schedule, the Dog's Head could jump from its minimal taxable value today to nearly $27 billion by the 2060s. If that value is realized, Austin could take in more than $1.7 billion in tax revenue with hundreds of millions directed to the TIRZ.
A separate Dog's Head TIRZ could also be established under Travis County. However, county officials have so far declined to advance that plan involving hundreds of millions of dollars in additional tax revenue.
While next steps toward building the overall mixed-use district are to be determined, an Amazon robotics facility was announced as the Dog's Head's anchor tenant this summer. Work on the 1.2 million-square-foot, $100 million plant is well underway and it could be completed next summer, according to a state filing.
The action taken
Austin and Endeavor's development deal includes some provisions for public benefits, like parkland preservation and a benchmark for affordable housing across any residential additions. In an attempt to provide further community resources, council members also asked to set aside future TIRZ revenue for Austin's housing and park improvement funds.
While the move drew some reservations from city staff due to possible negative impacts on future finances, council members locked in the update on Nov. 5. The TIRZ allocations will be split evenly between the Housing Trust Fund and Parks Enhancement Fund, and include:
5% of both property and sales tax revenues over the zone's first 20 years, projected to total more than $270 million
14% of both property and sales tax revenues over the zone's last 15 years, projected to total nearly $1.5 billion
The funding decision passed with opposing votes from council members José Velásquez, who now represents the Dog's Head area, and Marc Duchen, who noted the move's potential impacts on city finances.
“It’s clearly well-intentioned and maybe good policy, but I’m still concerned that losing flexibility with how remaining tax revenue is allocated could prove a problem for the future and future councils. So I wouldn’t want to see priorities like emergency services moved to the back of the line," Duchen said.
What's next
Updates to the development agreement and mobility plans for the Dog's Head—including a new street network and bridges connecting the district to East Austin and Tesla's Giga Texas site—are now in the works. They're expected to move through public reviews starting in December ahead of planned council consideration in March.
As city planning continues, a local coalition is seeking to terminate Austin's long-term development deal with Endeavor. Defend Dog's Head is now circulating a petition to end the agreement and require more extensive community review of all future district planning.
The Defend Dog's Head initiative involves groups like People in Defense of Earth and Her Resources, or PODER; Go Austin/Vamos Austin, or GAVA; the Party for Socialism & Liberation Austin; and east side residents. A political action committee, Bark Back PAC, was also formed for the campaign.
If the petition is signed by at least 20,000 city voters, it could land on a future election ballot. A campaign representative said it aims to reach the requirement in the spring, and over 1,000 signatures have been solicited so far.
Members of the Defend Dog's Head coalition spoke about their petition campaign to end the city's long-term development agreement for the Dog's Head area on Nov. 9.Ben Thompson/Community Impact
The city didn't respond to questions about the petition's enforceability, or what steps Austin could be forced to take with regard to the Endeavor agreement if the measure is eventually approved by voters.
“As we understand, the petition is in the early stages of the initiative process. If a petition is submitted, the City Clerk will review the signatures and determine if the petition satisfies applicable legal requirements," a city spokesperson said.
Under that amendment to the city charter, all resident petition measures like Defend Dog's Head's can now only be decided in the next November election of an even-numbered year. Proposition G changed the current practice of putting those items on the ballot in the next available election date, without any timing considerations.
If the Dog's Head petition campaign is successful, the issue can't be brought to a public vote until November 2028.
