10 minute read
Smart, Complete, Community Design
12 The Accessible Employment Center (Smart, Complete, Community Design)
The aim of this development scenario would be three-fold. First, the site would be developed as a major jobs center with at least one major employer in the site. Second, we would leverage emerging technologies such as the Internet of Things, the sharing economy etc. to shape the built environment within the site. This development would serve as a sort of incubator and test case for the smart cities of tomorrow. We would aim to develop a large town center in the area that the Imagine Austin comprehensive plan designates as a town center. Third, the jobs center would serve to anchor areas of mixed use development and a town center. This would generate a livework-play within the study site and allow residents to access myriad services with minimal to no driving.
Advertisement
12.1 THE VISION
The essential vision for this scenario is a tech center that anchors a town center and various mixed-use development. This vision situates the site within the context which is why we do not propose high density develop in this scenario. It is unlikely, given the transportation options to the site and the physical location of this area, that the site would be able to support truly high density development.
Figure 25. Scenario 2 zoom
11.2 THE GOALS, OBJECTIVES, AND ACTION STEPS
This ambitious plan would prioritize the following set of targeted goals, objectives, and action steps to would help bring this vision to life.
Land use
Land use patterns shall promote a diversified economic base within the site
o
Objective: 90% of residents shall have walking access to small-scale retail services
Action Step 1: Encourage mixed use development through rezoning of the parcels in the development area
o
Action Step 2: Increase the density of housing units in select areas to create walkability
Objective: 100% of residents shall have access to retail store within 1 mile of there home
Action Step 1: Ensure sufficient mixed-use zoning within the site to ensure retail access
Action Step 2: Zone for small scale neighborhood retail spaces and live/work spaces within the site
Land use patterns shall be attractive to large employers
o
Objective: 20% of the land shall be devoted to large-scale employer usage
Action Step 1: Land use shall be rezoned to provide at least 30% of the land for commercial and office
o
space
Action Step 2: The city shall provide tax inducements to attract business to the area
Objective: Land use patterns shall provide sufficient ancillary services to office space
Action Step 1: Land shall be rezone such that office space is close to retail services
Transportation Action Step 2: The City shall provide tax incentives to attract retail services to the area
Promote alternative, active transport modes as an alternative to driving
o
Objective: All employment centers shall be accessible by public transit, shared mobility services or active transport modes
Action Step 1: Work with Capital Metro to encourage the rerouting of bus routes into the site Action Step 2: Work with private, shared mobility services like Lime Bike and Bird to encourage the
o
development of shared mobility services within the site
Objective: A majority of residents will have walking or biking access to retail services
Action Step 1: Ensure that zoning is consistent with this goal through the rezoning of various parcels
Action Step 2: Work with the Austin Department of Transportation, Public Works Department and private
developers to encourage the development of bike lanes and quality sidewalks Increase the accessibility of the site to all people
o
o
Housing Objective: The total miles of roads, sidewalks, and bike lanes in the site will be increased by at least 25%
Action Step 1: Ensure developers provide appropriate subdivision services like roads etc. within the housing
developments
Action Step 2: Work with stakeholders like TXDOT etc. to provide appropriate funding for increasing roads etc. within the site
Objective: Ensure that the road network is well connected with as few cul-de-sacs as possible within the site
Action Step 1: Encourage developers to connect road networks between developments through tax incentives or other means
Action Step 2: Leverage additional financing from the state in build a more connected road network
The site shall a diverse and attractive mixture of housing types
o
Objective: At least 40% of the units in the site shall be multifamily units
Action Step 1: Use Low Income Housing Tax Credits to finance the development of affordable housing in the
o
site
Action Step 2: Rezone portions of the site to encourage dense building types within parts of the site
Objective: At least 30% of the units shall be affordable housing units
Action Step 1: Use tax credits to induce the development of affordable housing units Action Step 2: Give density bonuses to developers to encourage the development of affordable housing
units
Housing units shall promote diversity and enhance the quality of life for residents
o
Objective: Enhance the housing situation for both new and existing residents
Action Step 1: Ensure that some of the development within the site is directed towards to providing existing residents within the site with desirable services like parks etc. Action Step 2: Engage the public in a participatory process to assess their desires for the site
o
Objective: Protect existing housing stock and avoid displacing existing residents as much as possible
Action Step 1: Avoid upzoning existing areas of housing to protect the housing stock
Action Step 2: Work with developers to encourage development in new areas away from existing housing
Environment stock
Green space will enhance the quality of life for residents and workers
o
Objective: Sufficient open space shall be provide so that residents can pursue a diverse mixture of recreational opportunities
Action Step 1: Home developers shall be incentivized to build walking, biking, and hiking trail within their developments
Action Step 2: 30% of the land shall be maintained as open space through zoning
o
Objective: Open space will be co-located with office space and home so that residents have good access to passive recreation opportunities
Action Step 1: Developers will be required to provide some green space within all new developments
Action Step 2: Zoning will be changed to support this policy objective
Green space and parks shall provide habitat for native plants and animals
o
Objective: 10% of the green space in the site will be restored to a native condition
Action Step 1: The City of Austin will provide landscaping and ecological restoration services for some of the
o
green space in the site area
Action Step 2: Landscaping of areas will be conducted using native plants to encourage habitat restoration
Objective: The majority of landscaping work shall be done with native plants
Action Step 1: Work with stakeholders like landscaping companies and developers to promote the use of native plants Action Step 2: Conduct outreach efforts to the community to encourage the use of native plants in gardens
Infrastructure etc.
Infrastructure shall support the growth of the site as a tech center
o
o
Objective: All residents and business shall have access to fiber optic internet
Action Step 1: Provide tax incentives for the creation of fiber optic internet in the area
Action Step 2: Work with stakeholder groups like AT&T and Grande to encourage the development of fiber
optic internet in the site Objective: Ensure a transit connection between the site and Tech Ridge
Action Step 1: Work with stakeholders such as Cap Metro to develop a bus route between Tech Ridge and the site
Action Step 2: Work with business to encourage the development of shuttle service between the site and
Tech Ridge Infrastructure shall enhance the resilience and sustainability of the site
o
Objective: Sufficient infrastructure will be provided to promote the growth of the site
Action Step 1: Work with the City of Austin to develop the infrastructure in the site Action Step 2: Ensure developers comply with subdivision regulations to provide adequate infrastructure
Objective: Infrastructure will reduce CO2 emissions over the trend scenario
Action Step 1: Work with developers to incorporate green building techniques into the buildings on site
Action Step 2: Work with various stakeholders to create micro-grids for power supply whenever possible
Economic The site will be a major jobs center
o
Objective: Site shall provide at least 20k jobs for the City of Austin
Action Step 1: Work with stakeholders to attract employers to the site Action Step 2: Conduct marketing campaigns to make the site attractive to potential employers
o
Objective: The site will have at least one major employer located within it
Action Step 1: Work with various companies to attract them to the site
Action Step 2: Provide tax incentives to companies to make the site as attractive as possible for employers
The site shall contain a diverse mixture of job types that provides economic opportunity for a variety of people
o
Objective: The site will have no more than 50% of its jobs concentrated in anyone sector
o
Action Step 1: Ensure that zoning is sufficiently diverse to encourage a range of employment opportunities across the site Action Step 2: Work with companies to attract a diverse range of employers to the site
Objective: The jobs housing balance ratio will be increased from 1.1 in the trend scenario to at least 1.3 in this scenario
Action Step 1: Rezone portions of the site to encourage mixed use development Action Step 2: Encourage more renting to provide more housing in the site
12.3 SCENARIO OUTCOMES
The primary means through which the goals of this scenario are achieved is through densification. Figure 25 shows the proposed future land use map. The primary way that the objectives of this scenario are achieved are through up zoning and densification. Compared to the trend scenario this scenario aims to densify along the primary corridors of the study site. Additionally, by working with major stakeholders a major employer will likely be attracted to site.
The primary focus of this site is the tech center, a “Tech Ridge lite”. This land use pattern was developed with aim of creating a medium density employment center within the site. Adjacent to this major employment will be mixed use development and town center. The tec h center itself does not aim to be a work live area, but with the adjacent town center and mixed-use development the site can be become fairly dense. Figure 26 shows the proposed land use mix under this scenario. As one can see the proportion of single family homes has been severely reduced and the amount of office, light industrial, and tech center space has increased.
Figure 27: Future Land Use for Scenario 2 Figure 26: Land Use Mix Under Scenario 2
The primary, positive outcomes of this scenarios are as follows. First, the site will become more walkable and transit friendly. This scenario will see a reduction in the total VMTs in the site. Second this scenario would produce more than 25,000 more jobs as compared to the trends scenario. This would allow the site to function as a major employment center. Additionally, the jobs housing balance would be enhanced moving from about 1.1 in the trends scenario to at least 1.5 under this schema. Moreover, the employment mix of the would of the site would be improved with the types and numbers of jobs being distributed more evenly, Finally, due to the densification of the site there would be net reductions in tons of CO2 produced in the site, water usage etc. Figure 27 shows the positive outcomes for this site.
Figure 28: Positive Outcomes for Scenario 2
The primary limitation to this scenario is attracting a large employer to the site. This may or may not be possible. If a large employer cannot be attracted to the site it would be hard to make this type of scenario work. One possible option, if a large employer cannot be attracted, would be to try to attract several smaller employers. The second major limiting factor for this site would the lack of public transit. In order to make this scenario work we will have to engage with Capital Metro and potentially private ride sharing providers to provide adequate transit to the site.
