The Bouldin Creek Neighborhood Association Zoning Committee met on Dec. 11 to discuss the Oak Creek Village development. As part of the proposed Phase 2 development at Oak Creek Village, the property owner is requesting to remove some restrictions on the height of the buildings and the amount of units that can be developed.
Oak Creek Village is an apartment building at the northeast corner of South 1st Street and W Oltorf St and, currently, includes 173 units of low-income restricted affordable housing.
In order to complete the Phase 2 development plan as proposed, the property owner must request a zoning change from the city, which then must be approved by the Planning Commission and then by the Austin City Council. It is common for developers or property owners to request support for a zoning change from neighborhood groups like the Bouldin Creek Neighborhood Association.
According to one attendee, there were 15 people in attendance at the meeting to hear about the zoning change. The Bouldin Creek neighborhood consists of over 5,600 residents.
Neighborhood associations can support the zoning request, oppose it, take no position, or request that accommodations be made by the property owner.
“I highly recommend that we communicate to the owner and their representatives that are here our three to four highest priorities for this project," said Greg Smith, a resident of Bouldin Creek and the Vice President of the Bouldin Creek Neighborhood Association. "From what I have heard you all say, the list would be: 1) clean up the creek and make the creek presentable; 2) Make the tallest portion of the development be on the far southeast portion of the new building closest to Oltorf; and 3) capture all the water to protect against flooding.”
The height of the building, flooding, the creek, and parking were all concerns raised at the meeting
“Thank you Cindy (Former President of the Bouldin Creek Neighborhood Association) for all your hard work in the past on this project. The time you spent is not lost on me,” said Smith. “But, you all voted for the current city council members who ran telling us they wanted higher density on transit corridors and, now, have proven with recent approvals that projects that check all those boxes will be supported. It is best that we work with this property owner to get the best project for all our neighbors.”
The property in question and the Bouldin Creek neighborhood are in City Council District 9. In December 2022, voters in District 9 elected Councilmember Zo Qadri. To contact his office about this development, visit here.