Preserving and Protecting West Austin
The West Austin Neighborhood Group (WANG) is a non-profit organization of residents with the shared goal of preserving West Austin and protecting it from deterioration. WANG is concerned with community development, ecology, safety, and any other matters that indirectly and directly affect the quality and character of the neighborhood and the City of Austin.
Contact Us
Let us know about neighborhood issues and concerns! You can reach us at wang-board@westaustinng.com
WANG Newsletter
Sign up to receive our E-Newsletter! Please send an email to newsletter@westaustinng.com Latest Issue: WANG May/June 2021 E-Newsletter
Special Events
Muny Updates
The West Austin Neighborhood Group supports the preservation of the entire 141 acres and all 18 holes of Lions Municipal Golf Course (MUNY) as a historic public golf course and open green space. We are working with the Muny Conservancy and Save Historic Muny District to preserve MUNY in perpetuity, for the citizens of Austin to enjoy forever.
The future of Muny is still undetermined. The City of Austin and University of Texas continue to discuss future development of the Brackenridge Tract, and possibly Lions Municipal Golf Course. Therefore it is essential that we join together to voice our support for the preservation of all 141 acres of historic MUNY, to the Mayor, City Council members and to the University of Texas President and Board of Regents. If the University develops the land, we will lose not only Muny’s history, but one of the last beautiful tracts of open green space in Austin. Once it’s gone, we can’t ever have it back. Please visit the Muny Conservancy website at savemuny.com to learn how you can help with the effort to Save Muny forever, to serve our entire diverse Austin community, golfers and non-golfers alike.
The historic Lions Municipal Golf Course will be 100 years years old in 2024. Celebrations for the 100 year anniversary of Muny are being planned. Please visit www.savemuny.com for more information.
“Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you’ve got til it’s gone? They paved paradise, put up a parking lot.” -Joni Mitchell
Land Development Updates
What Passed? and What Is Coming?
Land Code Changes Passed in 2023 (“H.O.M.E” Phase 1)
More Dwelling Units on Single-Family Lots
Three dwelling units per lot are now authorized in single-family districts SF-1, SF-2, and SF-3. An 11,500 square foot lot zoned SF-2 or SF-3 can now have six units without a zoning change, with a re-subdivision into two lots. If you don’t know your property’s current zoning designation, you can find it by entering your address here.More Cars on Your Street
If more than one unit is being built on the lot it can be 15 feet from the street, with up to four parking spaces in the front yard. Mayor Watson’s council eliminated minimum parking requirements earlier in 2023, so all other parking may be on the street.More Short-Term Rentals (STRs)
For a duplex or two-unit build, one unit can be used as an STR. For three units, there are no restrictions on short-term rentals.Loss of “McMansion” Protections
Floor area ratio (FAR) regulates the cumulative size of structures on a site, and Phase 1 of “H.O.M.E” increases FAR as additional units are added. If all or part of an existing dwelling unit is preserved, the new units are exempted from the limits. The previous “McMansion” rules, limited FAR to .4, meaning a 4,000-square-foot house was allowed on a 10,000 square foot lot. Under Phase 1 of “H.O.M.E.”, a landowner or developer can build 10,000 square feet of units on a 10,000-square-foot lot if the existing unit is preserved.Loss of Occupancy Limits
Local housing occupancy limits are removed, overriding previous rules limiting occupants to four unrelated people or fewer.Reduction in Minimum Lot Sizes
Having established the right to build three units per lot in Phase 1, the city council plans to reduce minimum lot sizes from 5,750 feet in SF-2 and SF-3 zones during Phase 2. It also plans to reduce the 10,000-square-foot-lot limit in SF-1 to a much smaller size (perhaps as small as 2,500 square feet) and allow existing single-family lots to be subdivided into multiple lots. According to the council’s Housing and Planning Committee, the planned ordinance will “adjust setbacks, height, and impervious cover for single-family zoning to allow more units on smaller lots.” After lot subdivision, the net effect will be as many as nine or more units on existing lots depending on current size.Extreme Changes to Compatibility Standards
The city plans to reduce compatibility standards to only regulate building height for the first 75 linear feet from a single family home.Happy New Year to our West Austin Neighborhood Group members and neighbors. Please join us for our first meeting of 2024, on Wednesday January 10, 6 PM at the Howson Public Library. 2023 presented many challenges for our growing neighborhood and City. We hope to continue working with City policy makers to encourage more COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT as a stronger part of City Planning this year.