Austin Real Estate Blog

There is a 350-acre portion of land on Lake Austin Boulevard known as the Brackenridge tract. The city of Austin is considering possibilities for redevelopment, and they went looking for public input. On Saturday, July 12, the Neighborhood Planning and Zoning Department held a public meeting to get this input on future plans for the land. Over 50 residents of West Austin attended the meeting, including some University of Texas graduate students.

The problem is, the city doesn’t really have much say in what happens to the parcel, other than put forth a proposal to buy the 141 acre piece that hosts the Lions Municipal Golf Course. And the city is contemplating that very plan. The current lease expires in 2019.

The land is owned and controlled by the University of Texas and their board of regents has been considering redevelopment for some time now. The city of Austin is attempting to convey the residents’ preferences for development of the land through the public input. But, as city employee Mike Hockmuller, who ran the meeting, explained, “as a state organization, they (UT) kind of trump city rules and regulations.”

Contention arose at the July 12 meeting when opposition to any redevelopment that would destroy the golf course, a field laboratory for biological studies, and existing student housing was voiced.

UT remains interested in what the public has to say, however. They have hired Cooper, Robertson and Partners LLP of New York to make recommendations for development on the land. The New York firm, in turn, is planning a series of meetings with the public in order to continue the dialogue.