7/16/03--Letter to Council on Lamar/Bluebonnet Rezoning
This is a letter sent to the Mayor and City Council from Kevin Lewis outlining the Association's positions on the W.O. Harper and Village Trailer Park rezoning requests at South Lamar & Bluebonnet to be heard by Council at their 6/17 meeting:

Re: July 17, 2003 meeting, agenda items 128 and Z 15

Dear Mayor and Council Members,

The South Lamar Neighborhood Association has voted unanimously to oppose the requested zoning change to GR from SF-3 on case C14-02-0189, 2403 S. Lamar Blvd. (Harper tract), and case C14-03-0068, 2409 S. Lamar Blvd. (Village Trailer Park). We also oppose blanket LR in each case. After literally hundreds of hours of research, meetings with stakeholders, study and discussion, we saw compelling reasons to oppose Walgreens’ plans as presented. We do have alternate recommendations. We urge you to consider our position as you decide these cases.

The Walgreens plan intrudes inappropriately far into the neighborhood along a two-lane residential collector, Bluebonnet Lane. The planned depth from the Lamar right-of-way is 285 feet. The typical depth of commercial development fronting Lamar in this area is 180 feet, except at intersections with other arterials such as Manchaca or Oltorf. By their admission Walgreens' plan is their typical suburban layout, adapted not-an-inch to the concerns of the neighborhood. Although they could have built within the 180-foot depth from Lamar—consider the store at Guadalupe and 45th St.—the developers chose instead to put a driveway on a residential street, directly facing an occupied single-family house. This ill-considered and inappropriate layout degrades quality of life for existing residences, which leads to further commercial incursion into residential parts of the neighborhood.

Additionally, the plan dumps a large volume of commercial traffic onto Bluebonnet, our designated Safe Route to School for Zilker Elementary. Staff estimate was that only one-fourth of the allowed 2000 trips per day would use Bluebonnet, but that runs clearly counter to a common-sense assessment by anyone who frequents that intersection. Customers approaching from 3 directions (east- or westbound on Bluebonnet, southbound on Lamar) would use the Bluebonnet entrance. Anyone leaving in those directions would exit to Bluebonnet also. The heaviest use of Bluebonnet would be for southbound Lamar traffic after work, which would need the signal to cross northbound Lamar lanes and to continue south on Lamar.

Regardless of possible improvements to a part of Bluebonnet for 285 feet, no one disputes that the balance of it is residential and lacking curbs, gutters or sidewalks. There is neither a plan nor funding to address that. Walgreens published site criteria call for the intersection of two major arterials. Bluebonnet Lane is simply, clearly not that, and is not an appropriate venue for this intensity of commercial traffic.

We in the neighborhood understand and accept the impetus for development in our area. We do not desire stagnation. We do not oppose all development or redevelopment. What we want is reasonable, appropriate, pedestrian-friendly, human-scale amenities where we live. We voted to support rezoning to LR only the SF-3 part of the trailer park that is less than 180-feet deep from Lamar, which allows a commercially viable lot with access to Lamar. We believe the balance of the trailer park should remain residential, with only residential access to Bluebonnet Lane.

We would support rezoning the rear SF-3 part of the Harper tract to LO, consistent with parking for the use of the existing 3000-s.f. building. LR is inappropriate for Harper either with or without the Walgreens plan; some other uses would also generate too much traffic onto Bluebonnet. We stand ready, indeed eager to hear ideas that add more in utility and beauty to the neighborhood than they impose as costs in traffic, pollution and lost opportunity. Sadly this is not such a plan, and the developer has flatly rejected any modifications to the layout. We would greatly appreciate your support of our recommendations and your rejection of the rezoning as requested.

Sincerely,

Kevin Lewis
President
South Lamar Neighborhood Association
 

7/16/03--SLNA Position on S. Lamar/Bluebonnet Rezoning
This is an edited version of a message SLNA President Kevin Lewis sent to subscribers of the SouthLamarNA email group:

After much study, presentation and discussion, the SLNA members have arrived at a unanimous conclusion on the two zoning cases at S. Lamar and Bluebonnet, where a developer wants to put a Walgreens. We voted without exception at the June 19 meeting to oppose the requested zoning changes on those two tracts. I believe this is a great moment in our neighborhood. We have thought carefully and formed a consensus. We know what we want, and it's not the intense commercial zoning the applicant is asking for. It's not a suburban, cookie-cutter plan that ignores the concerns of our residents. Many, many thanks to Carol Gibbs, Marci Roberts, Bryan King and all the volunteers on the Trailer Park Zoning Study Committee, and to everyone who attended the meeting. Now comes the big challenge: winning over City Council, who will vote at their July 17 meeting.

The neighborhood position:

On both of these zoning cases, we're not trying to prevent reasonable development, just the inappropriate plan offered. We have met with the developer and found them perfectly inflexible: they will make no substantive changes to their plans. They propose to build exactly the same footprint as in a suburban location, a 14,500 square-foot Walgreens with a drive-through. They're requesting GR commercial zoning, which would allow 90% impervious cover and 60-foot building heights. The two key parts of their proposal to which the SLNA is opposed:

1) Walgreens' proposal would extend GR commercial zoning deep into the neighborhood along a neighborhood collector street, Bluebonnet Lane. The average depth of commercial zoning from Lamar in our area is about 180 feet; theirs would extend much farther. This encourages the erosion of residential property as the neighbors of commercial property such as this get fed up and bought out. Instead we would support a reasonable 180-foot commercial depth from Lamar, with a buffer zone of more-dense residential, such as condos, between commercial on Lamar and single family residential in the neighborhood.

2) Walgreens' proposal insists on commercial-traffic driveway access to Bluebonnet. Though theoretically this road would be improved from the driveway to Lamar (that plan remains unclear and the intersection is fundamentally poorly designed), it is still a residential collector only two lanes wide as it goes into our neighborhood, not a major arterial. It is a key route to Zilker Elementary. All the other Walgreens stores in Austin are situated at the intersection of two major arterials, streets that carry a large amount of traffic. Indeed Walgreens' own site criteria state the intersection of two arterials as a key element. Not finding that intersection here, they're hoping it becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy. Build it, and thousands of additional car trips will come. We believe there should be no GR commercial driveway access to Bluebonnet.

On the W.O. Harper tract (the small plot at corner where Anna's Toy was), which is up for 3rd (final) reading July 17, we oppose the requested GR commercial. We support only LO limited office, a less-intense commercial zoning that would allow for parking were the building used as a cafe or store, with a car trip limit of 715 per day.

On the request to rezone 1.3 acres of the Village Trailer Park (abutting Bluebonnet, behind Harper tract), zoning case # C14-03-0068, which is up for a public hearing and first reading (Council vote) July 17, we oppose the requested GR commercial. We would support LR commercial only on a strip that would complete a 180-foot depth from S. Lamar, a continuation of the average commercial depth on Lamar in the area. This would be considerably less than the commercial depth requested and a lighter commercial zoning than requested. It would allow for a reasonable commercial use of the property on Lamar. We oppose GR commercial driveway access onto Bluebonnet.

--Kevin Lewis

7/11/03--SLNA & Walgreens In The Chron
Hey, the Austin Chronicle has taken note of the Walgreens zoning issue. Looks like they got the map wrong, though. The project is much bigger than pictured in the article. -Kevin

   Is Walgreens Too Big and Unfunky for South Austin?   http://www.austinchronicle.com/issues/dispatch/2003-07-11/pols_feature7.html

7/06/03--Burglary on Cinnamon Path
From a neighbor--please contact Ms. Luft at the email address listed if you have any information concerning this burglary:

Last night (Saturday, 7/5) I went to walk my dogs and two young men were hanging out on Cinnamon Path. I left my house around 9:00 pm and walked behind, than past the two young men. They crossed Cinnamon Path and stood around the corner of Waterloo and Cinnamon. As I passed the men, one started to talk on a cell phone.  I was out for about 15 minutes and when I returned I found that two locked doors had been broken (doors by a security light!) and items missing in my house. The greatest loss was a teal Gilmour bike -a custom built bike that I was going to take to the Tour de France next week to ride with a group from the Pyrenees to Paris. Anyway, if the bike pops up in the neighborhood (e.g., tossed in a yard or in a field) - it would be great to get it back (jluft@mail.utexas.edu). And--more importantly, keep an eye out in the neighborhood for late night intruders.

If any one has any information- that would be great.

Thanks,

Julie Luft
1709 Cinnamon Path