Antone's Nightclub
An SOS Editorial
RECEIVED Tue., April 20, 2004
Dear Editor,
The city of Austin has snatched defeat from the jaws of victory with respect to stopping big-box development in the Barton Springs recharge zone. Environmentalists and MoPac South neighbors won a victory last October when Wal-Mart announced it would not pursue its plans for a 200,000-square-foot Supercenter at MoPac and Slaughter Lane. But since then, city officials have passed up two opportunities to put the nail on the big-box coffin and instead seem to be going out of their way to assist Wal-Mart or some other equally big, big-box store to locate at that sensitive site.
In December, when the City Council enacted a No Big Box Over the Aquifer zoning ordinance, the council at the 11th hour approved a special exemption for the Wal-Mart site at Slaughter Lane and MoPac. Wal-Mart had already backed out, and this site had no grandfathered rights to a particular zoning category, and the settlement agreement did not obligate Austin to allow big-box development there. So after the resounding victory for neighborhoods and the aquifer, why did the city give it all away?
Now we learn, as of April 1, that the city has approved the Wal-Mart site plan. The city could have rejected the site plan and prevented big-box development simply by requiring adherence to the law – specifically the 300-foot setback from a recharge feature called Big Oak Cave. Instead, city staff granted an administrative variance to allow a roadway essential to big-box development through the setback. (City staff apparently has even authorized a nonpaved construction road through the setback.)
The city twice now has passed up the opportunity to stop big-box development in the recharge zone at Slaughter Lane and MoPac. Why has the city again chosen to side with developers against the unified wishes of neighborhoods and the environmental community?
The city of Austin has snatched defeat from the jaws of victory with respect to stopping big-box development in the Barton Springs recharge zone. Environmentalists and MoPac South neighbors won a victory last October when Wal-Mart announced it would not pursue its plans for a 200,000-square-foot Supercenter at MoPac and Slaughter Lane. But since then, city officials have passed up two opportunities to put the nail on the big-box coffin and instead seem to be going out of their way to assist Wal-Mart or some other equally big, big-box store to locate at that sensitive site.
In December, when the City Council enacted a No Big Box Over the Aquifer zoning ordinance, the council at the 11th hour approved a special exemption for the Wal-Mart site at Slaughter Lane and MoPac. Wal-Mart had already backed out, and this site had no grandfathered rights to a particular zoning category, and the settlement agreement did not obligate Austin to allow big-box development there. So after the resounding victory for neighborhoods and the aquifer, why did the city give it all away?
Now we learn, as of April 1, that the city has approved the Wal-Mart site plan. The city could have rejected the site plan and prevented big-box development simply by requiring adherence to the law – specifically the 300-foot setback from a recharge feature called Big Oak Cave. Instead, city staff granted an administrative variance to allow a roadway essential to big-box development through the setback. (City staff apparently has even authorized a nonpaved construction road through the setback.)
The city twice now has passed up the opportunity to stop big-box development in the recharge zone at Slaughter Lane and MoPac. Why has the city again chosen to side with developers against the unified wishes of neighborhoods and the environmental community?
Brad Rockwell
SOS Alliance
SOS Alliance