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Originally Posted by Geographer
These high density student housing blocks provide a model for affordable housing in the rest of Austin and other cities. Right now, affordable housing options in Austin are old, low rise apartments. These high density towers allow new, tall buildings to be constructed that provide a large amount of affordable apartments. The floor plans probably are not suitable for families but there are many single and childless renters in need of low cost housing.
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UNO could be a model for many other areas of the city desperate for housing and with decent transit options. Sadly, we still give a megaphone to those who fear change (typically older, white, wealthier, central city, single family homeowners) and completely ignore the needs of the majority. Good news is, NIMBYism is being called out by more and more people.
We now have a council with seven of eleven who are not NIMBYs and one of the four sometimes tries not to be so there is hope. That said, elections are around the corner and two of the strongest housing skeptics, Pool and Alter, are up for reelection (Districts 7 and 10 respectively). More importantly in the short term we need to see what those who fight hardest to maintain exclusionary zoning are up to. Prop J died as it should but they will likely try to repeat the same kind of nonsense. Another pointless petition, a lawsuit, both?
Our land development code is garbage and the longer we keep it around the worse the housing crisis will get.