Changes to the Capital View Corridor

The Capital View Corridor is a unique Austin phenomenon. As part of the downtown master plan, the city has set aside a number of corridors where development is severely restricted. The corridor essentially requires all buildings to be short so that they don’t block views of the capital from a number of predetermined angles. With 30 such corridors, the result severely limits downtown growth (read our previous posting on this)

In order to increase downtown density, a city council advisory board is recommending changes to the corridors. Here is the summary of today’s news from the Statesman:

Of the 30 city views of the Capitol evaluated by an Austin City Council advisory board, a dozen are being recommended for change.The Downtown Commission characterizes the changes as mostly technical in nature, accommodating the reality of already restricted views because of development or other obstructions. . . In fact, enacting any recommendations in the report would require approval by the City Council or the Legislature, depending on which corridor it is. . . Boyt noted that the commission is proposing to keep 18 view corridors intact and that of the dozen with recommended changes, only three are substantive: deleting or modifying a view corridor that includes Wooldridge Park to allow for redevelopment of nearby lots; adjusting the northern boundary of a view corridor from the MoPac Boulevard (Loop 1) bridge, a change that might allow taller developments along West Fifth and Sixth streets; and realigning the view from Interstate 35 between East Seventh and 10th streets, to remove three blocks where the view is obstructed by buildings and where the view is perpendicular to traffic on I-35.

Given the broad scope of the corridors and their effect on downtown development (do we really need 30 corridors to provide views of the capital), the significant changes proposed to two corridors seems quite reasonable. The challenges to getting these through the council and, if needed, the legislature, may be significant.