Champions rezoning passes first read

Austin City Council approved rezoning Champions Tract 3, 6409 City Park Road, Austin, as multifamily, or MF 4, June 23 during the first reading of a proposal to rezone the site from its general office designation.

Developers are seeking to construct a 325-unit apartment complex on the tract—45 acres of undeveloped land on the south side of RR 2222, between City Park Road and Loop 360.

The parcel was once part of a 250-acre ranch owned by the Champions family, said Jerry Rusthoven, planning manager for the city of Austin. Following a series of lawsuits between Austin and the Champions family, the tract’s environmental regulations remained governed by the city’s watershed ordinance restrictions that existed in the 1990s, he said.

The Planning and Zoning Department recommended a zoning change to multifamily to allow for the development of the complex. The change would cap the daily trips on the tract to 2,100 trips and limit building height to 53 feet, Rusthoven said. Developers had sought mixed-use zoning for the tract’s original plans that included additional office and clinic uses.

At the council hearing, the developer, through his attorney, agreed to leave the eastern half of the property undeveloped and comply with MF 4 zoning requirements.

Neighbor Carol Lee said the project lacks access to a major roadway—Loop 360—with access limited to arterial roadways RR 2222 and City Park Road.

“Another apartment complex in the area really does nothing to complete our community or meet the ideals of mixed-use development,” Lee said. “We drive these roadways daily and know this intersection cannot safely accommodate another 2,100 vehicles daily without additional right of way and roadway improvements.”

Although the council approved rezoning the tract to MF 4, Council Member Sheri Gallo added limiting the development of the eastern side of the property. The second and third readings are scheduled for Aug. 11. The council previously decided to allow speakers to address members at either its June 23 or Aug. 11 hearings.