Austin established a new review process for city parks subject to eminent domain proceedings by other entities, including local school districts like Austin ISD that have moved to condemn areas like playgrounds on city-owned parkland.
"This ordinance adds much-needed transparency when another government entity attempts to condemn our public parkland. We’re working hard to add to and protect our parks system so that every Austinite can safely walk to a park, and this will give us another tool to work with," said council member Ryan Alter, who sponsored the strategy earlier this year.
The overview
Since 2020, AISD has condemned nearly 100 acres of city land at 11 campuses citywide. Joint use parks with the city also exist at several other Austin schools, and plans for more school closures and related land sales involving the city have been considered by the district this year.
Under longstanding city policy, the condemnation of public parkland could take place without City Council sign-off or much public review. Alter said this spring that he wanted to update those rules with more protections to manage future condemnations, especially given already limited recreational access citywide.
Council members voted to set new standardized parkland condemnation procedures Aug. 27, based on a March resolution from Alter.
“City parkland is at risk of being lost through condemnation by other government entities, and while some federal, state and local protections exist, they do not currently require replacement value of the parkland, preserve the full legal interest of the City of Austin, nor lay out a clear process for City consultation on mitigation efforts," Alter's original measure stated.
The approach
Now, the condemnation of city parkland will kick off a consultation between Austin officials and the entity involved with the land. The condemnation will also be posted as a City Council agenda item within two months—with more extensive public hearings required in higher-impact cases. And, Austin's resident-led environmental and parks commissions will be notified about those cases before council consideration for their own reviews.
“Really trying to get this more into the public domain, getting more information to people and have this be as transparent a process as possible," Alter said as the new ordinance passed Aug. 27.
The updated policies also call for the city to complete third-party appraisals of condemned parkland to ensure full compensation, and formally evaluate how the loss of that land would impact residents' parks access. Proceeds from any condemnations would be specifically set aside to fund replacement parkland near affected areas.
In other news
Officials passed a separate resolution from council member Vanessa Fuentes in March, alongside Alter's measure, aimed at exploring partnerships between Austin and local school districts that shutter their campuses.
“What the school gets redeveloped into will depend largely on the community around it,” Fuentes said at the time. “What it turns into should be subject to community feedback and to the vision and plans of the school district.”
The move came as AISD's school closure plans were advancing. It also follows the former Rosedale School's closure, and its controversial planned redevelopment opposed by many area residents as a rezoning for that site advanced. The zoning change to allow a multi-story apartment complex there could be approved by council as soon as Sept. 10.
Fuentes' spring resolution directed city management to begin working with area school districts on campus partnership opportunities, and develop a "targeted land policy" to guide Austin's work with other entities on joint development plans.
That resolution asked city management to identify city funding sources to acquire land, report back to council with a policy update by June 1, and create a list of priority land partnerships by Aug. 31. However, none of those steps are complete yet.
City staff held an introductory meeting with AISD in June to discuss possible opportunities at closed or underutilized campuses, an Austin Financial Services spokesperson said. Both city and district staff are now coordinating on AISD's analysis of surplus properties and how they could be used, including new public solicitations for three sites. More districts could soon be involved in the planning process as well.
"Staff is currently reviewing those solicitations with a focus on uses consistent with City strategic plans, including affordable housing, arts and cultural uses, nonprofit hubs, and other adaptive reuse possibilities," the spokesperson said. "While City staff has only been in communication with AISD, staff plans to reach out to all school districts within the city’s full purpose jurisdiction to discuss possible collaboration."
While that work is playing out, Austin hasn't prioritized potential projects or reserved funding.
"There is no priority list at this time, as staff needs to review surplus properties through multiple lenses—including alignment with existing city priorities and availability of existing funding sources," the spokesperson said.
