In a Vote Thursday, Austin City Council voted to give height and density bonuses to bar and personal improvement districts as though they are providing housing.
In the continued drive to offer developers bonuses like the DB90 and the ETOD automatic upzonings, that allow very tall buildings next to homes, the city passed on Thursday an ordinance for a Density Bonus Creative Space Combining District (DBCS) (+amendment).
But unlike DB 90, which is supposed to provide a small amount of affordable housing, this district is for lower rents for “cocktail lounges,” “performance venues,” and “personal improvement services” (fitness or weight loss studios, etc.). There is no provision that the businesses’ benefits be passed on to consumers, but as seen below, the business’s impacts will be passed on to nearby residents.
This new combining district will designate certain areas of at least 3 acres as DBCS. Individual properties within the district will then qualify for the DBCS zoning. The properties within the district must be zoned commercial and less than 50% residential. With this overlay, the developer gets 30 feet of additional height, no FAR (Floor area ratio) limits, no building cover limits, in most cases no setbacks, and no compatibility.
The requirement for these spaces is that 25% of the ground floor must be eligible to be leased for “affordable creative space.” Affordability means the rent is 50% of the citywide average retail space rent or an unknown fixed ratio of revenues. How the citywide average retail space rent is determined is a detail that the ordinance does not address. It is not necessary to provide “affordable creative space” if the developer pays a fee in lieu – an option that will almost certainly be taken.
The upshot is that developers now have a new formula for buying height and density without providing affordable housing, regardless of the impact on nearby residents. The free market has never been freer, and neighborhoods have never been more in jeopardy.