Council Approves Affordable Housing Districts' Creation UPDATE

SOUTH AUSTIN, TX -- In efforts to combat negative effects of gentrification on established neighborhoods, city officials have approved the creation of homestead preservation districts promoting affordable housing development-- including one in South Austin.

Austin City Council members approved formation of affordable housing districts at their most recent regular meeting Dec. 17. The move also includes a mechanism to fund their creation through property taxes derived from high-end developments on land that was previously city-owned.

The municipal action represents the most substantive steps council’s taken to stem the tide of gentrification-fueled displacement of residents from their homes in light of soaring property rates.

As builders of luxury housing are lured to areas of the briskly developing city--primarily the now-trendy East side that was once largely a Latino working-class hub—homeowners’ property rates have steadily increased.

Nowhere is that more evident than on the East side, where property rates have risen exponentially in recent years. As a result, many residents have been forced to move out to cheaper parts of town—sometimes to outlying areas of the county.

To stem the tide of further displacement, council approved creation of three new homestead preservation districts in parts of the city most affected by residential displacement spurred by gentrification:

• In Southeast Austin, bounded by Interstate 35 and Parker Lane to the west; the Colorado River to the north; Bastrop Highway to the East; and Highway to the south.

• In East Austin, with boundaries encompassing north of Colorado River; east of Springdale Road and Airport Boulevard; continuing east just beyond Ed Bluestein Boulevard; and extending north up to Oak Springs Drive.

• In North Austin, located near the intersection of Interstate 35 and East Anderson Lane.

Additionally, the city approved financing the districts’ creation with partial proceeds from new development—increasingly luxury high-rises appealing to a more affluent demographic—situated on land once owned by the city.

District 4 Council member Greg Casar pushed for the districts’ development, extending on legislation created by Dist. 51 State Rep. Eddie Rodriguez in 2005. Since passage of Rodriguez’s legislation, only one historic preservation district, in East Austin, has been created.

“In upcoming housing committee meetings, we are going to consider more housing preservation districts that stretch further into southeast Austin and in north central Austin,” Casar said.

He reiterated the purpose of the passed measures: “This is a tool for promoting economic integration by strategically investing affordable housing money in areas that could gentrify soon and have some level of displacement and in some areas that already have displaced folks.”

District 3 Council member Pio Renteria—who’s long championed development of affordable housing—applauded passage of the new affordable housing initiatives. More often than not, it’s minorities who are most affected by the unintentionally corrosive effects of gentrification, Renteria said.

“This tool came about because of gentrification,” he said. “It’s the displacement of lower-income people,” Renteria said. “This is a tool to help people stay here in the inner city and not have to move out of town.”

Such districts will enable people in a range of socioeconomic backgrounds to co-exist, he added: “We’re able to create an area where it is mixed income, where people of all economic levels are able to live and exist in these areas.”