From the Co-Prez...
than three unrelated adults over the age of 17 per side in a duplex. Neighborhood activists in Central Austin, where most Superduplexes have been built, would like to see that applied throughout SF3 because of the danger that the developers who have been building Superduplexes will simply start building Very Large Houses with 12 bedrooms and pitch these to the same student market that has filled the Superduplexes. There is no limit on the size of house that can be built or how many bedrooms it may have, provided only that it and its drives, walks and other water-shedding surfaces do not cover more than 45% of the lot. Fortunately, the ordinance was passed on first reading only and must be read and voted on twice more so there is still time to ask the Council to amend it. A very convenient way to contact the entire City Council is to use this Internet link: www.ci.austin.tx.us/council/groupemail.htm. People concerned about Superduplexes in the neighborhood, which should be everyone, ought to contact the Council to thank them for the ordinance and urge them to improve it by broadening the residency restriction to cover all SF3 property. Austin has had a residency limit for many years that currently says no more than six unrelated persons per side in a duplex.
This is why there have been a rash of 12 bedroom duplexes but no 14 bedroom projects.
Incidentally, the reason there have been so many Superduplexes in Central Austin, aside from the proximity of the University, is that the newer subdivisions built or annexed in the last twenty or thirty years are nearly all zoned SF2 which prohibits both duplexes and garage apartments. Most of these newer developments also have deed restrictions limiting land use to single family houses only.
Elsewhere, the Legislature continued its time-honored tradition of Austin-bashing by advancing several bills that would exempt churches from zoning to various degrees. The sponsor of one of these bills readily admitted it was intended to benefit the Hyde Park Baptist Church. We hope that these bills have died in the debacle following the attempt to divide Austin into four different Congressional Districts and thereby un-elect Congressman Doggett.
| -- | Gary Penn HPNA Co-President garypenn@swbell.net |
