Neighborhood Wins, Then Loses at ZAP

A Southwest Austin neighborhood group says it was caught off guard by a city commission that reversed its vote on a set of development waivers just minutes after rejecting the requested variances.

At its May 17 meeting, the Zoning and Platting Commission first voted to deny waivers sought by Cypress Ventures Realty Invest­ments for a planned mixed-use development on the site of the shuttered Cinemark Theatre across from Barton Creek Square Mall. The commission then took a short break and, after returning to the dais, moved to reconsider the case, which ultimately led to an affirmative vote for Cypress.

The second vote came after residents who testified against the waivers had cleared the meeting room on the belief that they had won their first neighborhood battle. "We're very green," said Lynne Harrison-David, president of the South Bee Cave Woods Neighbor­hood Association. She was referring to the NA's lack of familiarity with the city development process and the lobby muscle that goes with it. The experience served as a wake-up call for what was once a loosely organized neighborhood group. The NA has since launched a website (www.southbeecavewoods.com) and is asking ZAP to reconsider the case, and may appeal to City Council.

Cypress' previously approved site plan for Tarlton 360 Town­homes calls for 229 townhomes and condos with office and retail, including restaurant space. The redevelopment would replace an existing brownfield in the Barton Springs recharge zone – a vacant cinema and parking lot. Cypress had sought development waivers to allow for more density in height and square footage and for construction on a vegetative slope. Once developers agreed to eliminate construction on the slope – giving Cypress one less building and three fewer residences – commissioners voted 4-1-1 to approve the remaining variances. Removing the slope construction from the site plan satisfied the environmental concerns of commissioner Donna Tiemann, who switched her vote to join the majority.

During the public hearing on the proposal, Cypress lobbyist David Armbrust expressed his frustration with the NA's opposition to the plan after signing off on the proposal the year before. Harrison-David countered that the neighborhood group had not previously been given a traffic impact study for the site, which she and others say underestimates the amount of traffic generated by the residential component of the development. In particular, residents pointed out that the newcomers would be trying to turn left, or north, onto Walsh Tarlton to get to grocery stores, two neighborhood schools, and the post office. Walsh Tarlton is a pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly arterial that extends from Bee Cave Road to Loop 360. Children toting backpacks are familiar figures on the roadway as they make their way to and from school.

Commissioner Sandra Baldridge noted that while "neighborhoods typically rely on a [traffic impact study] to defeat a project," she wondered if the commission had the authority to recommend reducing the speed limit on the street. That sounds good in theory, but as ZAP Chair Betty Baker pointed out, a slower speed would only cause additional backup. In any case, the development will require overall road improvements, with most of the costs borne by the city.