Posting Language
Title
Conduct a public hearing and consider an ordinance amending the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan to update the Austin Strategic Mobility Plan and to adopt the Urban Trails Plan, Bicycle Plan, and Sidewalks, Crossings, and Shared Streets Plan.
De
Lead Department
Transportation and Public Works Department
Fiscal Note
This item has no fiscal impact
Prior Council Action:
September 25, 2014- Ordinance No. 20140925-143 adopting the 2014 Urban Trails Master Plan as a component of the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan was approved on a 7-0 vote.
November 6, 2014- Ordinance No. 20141106-118 adopting the 2014 Bicycle Master Plan as a component of the Austin Metropolitan Area Transportation Plan (AMATP) and the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan was approved on a 6-0 vote with Council Member Spelman absent.
June 16, 2016- Ordinance No. 20160616-072 adopting an updated Sidewalk Master Plan / ADA Transition Plan was approved on a 9-0 vote with Council Member Zimmerman abstaining and Council Member Gallo off the dais.
April 11, 2019- Ordinance No. 20190411-033 amending the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan by adopting the Austin Strategic Mobility Plan (ASMP) was approved as amended on an 11-0 vote.
June 9, 2022- Ordinance No. 20220609-052 amending the Austin Strategic Mobility Plan (Ordinance No. 20190411-033) and amending the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan was approved as amended on a 10-0 vote with Council Member Renteria abstaining.
For More Information:
Richard Mendoza, Interim Director, 512-974-2488; Upal Barua, Development Officer, 512-974-7110; Cole Kitten, Division Manager, 512-974-6442; Gilda Powers, Administrative Manager, 512-974-7092.
Council Committee, Boards and Commission Action:
February 6, 2023 - Briefing to the Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Councils Joint Meeting
February 7, 2023 - Briefing to the Urban Transportation Commission
February 8, 2023 - Briefing to the Commission on Aging
February 10, 2023 - Briefing to the Mayor's Committee for People with Disabilities
February 21, 2023 - Briefing to the Zoning and Platting Commission
February 22, 2023 - Briefing to the Joint Inclusion Committee
February 22, 2023 - Briefing to the Joint Sustainability Committee
February 28, 2023 - Briefing to the Planning Commission
March 2, 2023 - Briefing to the Council Mobility Committee
July 11, 2023 - To be reviewed by the Planning Commission
Additional Backup Information:
The Transportation and Public Works Department (TPWD)recommends City Council amend the Austin Strategic Mobility Plan (ASMP), which is an element of the City’s Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan, and adopt the following updated plans: Urban Trails, Bicycles, and Sidewalks, Crossings, and Shared Streets. The ASMP needs to be amended to align with the updated plans, and to reflect the public engagement conducted throughout the ATX Walk Bike Roll (ATXWBR) planning process. Additionally, the ASMP Street Network will be amended to include the sidewalk, shared street, and bicycle recommendations in those two plans.
TPWD will make the final drafts of the ASMP and the other plans available prior to City Council’s public hearing.
Starting in the Fall of 2020, City staff worked together through the ATXWBR process to update the three active transportation plans.
The ATXWBR planning and public engagement process was centered in racial equity, defined as “the condition when race no longer predicts a person’s quality of life outcomes in our community.” Public engagement was carried out over three phases. Phase 1 included an Equity Scan through interviewing local leaders of historically underrepresented groups to find out how can outreach be improved and hear their concerns. Building on the Equity Scan, an Equity Framework was created using the City’s definition of racial equity to guide how planning decisions would be made and how public engagement would be conducted with the community. During Phase 2, public engagement opportunities focused on where the trails, sidewalks, and bicycle systems get built and how projects get prioritized. The three draft plans were released for public comment in Phase 3 of the engagement process, which began in January 2023. In February and March of this year, the updated plans were presented at various Boards and Commissions meetings and at the Council Mobility Committee meeting to collect additional feedback. In April, the Planning Commission will provide its recommendations for the three plans and the ASMP.
The ATXWBR effort was supported by the Community Ambassador Program, which hires community members to collect feedback. Ambassadors collected feedback on how people get around Austin and how walking, biking, and rolling can be improved. Ambassadors primarily focused on gathering input from communities of color and other unrepresented groups in Austin to reach the planning efforts of the Equity Framework goals.