Planning Commission asks Council to defend the HOME initiative - Austin Monitor

"The letter, submitted to Council as a recommendation that passed unanimously during a meeting on September 9, argues that a host of "new or conflicting regulations" on the part of city staff in several departments, mixed with flaws in the language of the ordinances that make up the initiative, threaten to block a "substantial portion" of the housing boost it was intended to create."

"Some specific issues identified in the letter include a "loophole" that applies site plan landscaping requirements to third units on lots developed under the initiative, an Austin Water rule that requires a separate water meter for each unit on a lot and Austin Energy rules that can sometimes require would-be builders to cover the cost of major infrastructure upgrades, among others."

"To address them, Commissioners asked Council to "direct the city manager... to work with relevant city departments and stakeholders to harmonize The City's technical codes, ordinances and criteria manuals, eliminating contradictions and prioritizing rules or mandates to reduce regulatory barriers to HOME." "This is just, if you will, a cleaning of HOME," chair Greg Anderson said during a meeting. Several people involved in development in Austin spoke in favor of the commission's recommendations during the meeting."

HOME Initiative aimed to allow homeowners, landlords and developers to build more units per lot to increase Austin's affordable housing supply. Regulatory conflicts, departmental technical rules, and flaws in ordinance language risk preventing the initiative from delivering the expected housing increase. Identified obstacles include site-plan landscaping requirements applied to third units, a requirement for separate water meters per unit, and energy policies that can shift major infrastructure upgrade costs to builders. A harmonization effort targeting technical codes, ordinances and criteria manuals was requested to eliminate contradictions and reduce regulatory barriers to HOME. Development stakeholders voiced support for the harmonization push to enable growth.

Read at Austin Monitor