September-December 2003 SLNA Scoop Archive

11/25/03--Solar Austin/Town Hall Meeting announcement
Hey folks. Here's info on a town hall meeting on clean energy December 2. It's free and we're all invited. We'll hear about the topics Amand Buehler of Solar Austin brought up in her presentation to SLNA, but with Austin Energy and other experts to add information. It should be good. -Kevin

Hello South Lamar NA,
Amanda Buehler here, I met with y'all a little while back about the Solar Austin campaign. I wanted to send an announcement about an upcoming Town Hall Meeting about energy issues: Tuesday, December 2 at 6:00 p.m. If y'all have an opportunity to include this in an announcement to your folks, I sure would appreciate it.

Many thanks,
Amanda

Austin Clean Energy Initiative is hosting a Clean Energy and Economic Opportunity Town Hall Meeting sponsored by Vinson & Elkins. Austin Energy will present their Energy Resource Plan, and community members and stakeholders will have an opportunity to communicate questions and ideas. A panel of clean energy and economic development experts will be on hand to answer questions.

WHEN: Tuesday, December 2, 2003
6:00 p.m. Refreshments
6:30 p.m. Town Hall Meeting convenes
(Please arrive on time if possible.)

WHERE: The UT's Clean Energy Incubator, MCC Auditorium
3925 West Braker Lane
Austin, Texas 78759

This event is our BIG opportunity to engage in a dialogue about the future of our community-owned utility. It is vitally important that we take advantage of this opportunity to ask questions and make comments. The program will be moderated and the panel will be asked to respond to the citizens' questions. Let's talk about keeping some of Austin Energy's $800million budget in our local economy!

Mark your calendars and attend this event!

DETAILS: Invited panelists include Council Member Brewster McCracken, Roger Duncan, Vice President of Austin Energy, Sue Edwards, Director of Economic Growth and Redevelopment with the City of Austin, Mark Kapner, Senior Strategic Planner with Austin Energy, Adan Martinez with the State Land Commissioner's office. Local clean energy companies and advocacy groups will be on hand with information.

Come prepared with questions for Austin Energy and the panel of experts.

If you have any questions, email abuehler@citizen.org or call Amanda at 477-1155. See you there!

11/25/03--Ditch Digging on Bluebonnet
Neighbors!!

The eyesore is about to get a makeover. I just got a call from Larry Wagner, Supervisor of the City's Drainage Utility crew that will be cleaning out and re-vegetating the ditches along Bluebonnet. They're starting work today (11/25), working a half day tomorrow, and then resume on Monday after the holiday weekend. It should be completed by mid-next week.

Their plan is to deepen the ditch along the south side (Trailer Park side) of Bluebonnet, to the extent that the underground utilities will allow. (They have also heard rumor there are cobblestones underneath there, from an old road surface -- anybody know anything about that??) They will also remove the excess brush, but they are not removing the concrete slabs, as that would cause more serious erosion problems. They will, however, cut off all the extruding rebar, to minimize risk of accidents for pedestrians. Next week, they will lay rolls of straw/grass seed matting, to control further erosion.

On the north side of Bluebonnet (used car lot & Mary Rouw's house), they will widen the ditches and clear roots/debris from the drainage pipes. I mentioned our ongoing concerns about the drainage/flooding problems that continue "downstream" from the storm sewer by Mary's driveway to del Curto, Iva and Kinney Rd. He will look at that while they are onsite, but those of you immediately affected by that flooding might want to talk to the Larry or the engineers while they are in the 'hood.

Please avoid Bluebonnet for the time being. Because the street is so narrow, and the trenching equipment is so huge, they'll have to completely shut down the big machine for every car that comes thru, seriously slowing down their progress.

If you have questions/issues/suggestions about this project, Larry said you can call him at 479-6361. If he doesn't have the answer, he will give you the name & number of someone that should.

Carol Gibbs
442-8060

PS This crew is not responsible for removing the piles of rubbish in and behind the trailer park. I understand that the City is contacting the residents and the owner of the trailer park about that issue.

10/11/03--Robbery in Zilker Area
Hey folks. From Zilker NA folks comes this notice of a disturbing robbery in the area. Please visit the link to the Austin Police website (below) for more information. Please do watch for suspicious behavior or a neighbor in trouble. The police are looking out but we have many more eyes than they do. -Kevin

South Austinites,
Please view the composite sketch of one of the suspects at:
http://www.cityofaustin.org/police/robberysuspect1_1003.htm
This robbery occurred in Zilker, but these guys are on the move. Travis Heights has reports of recent crime, too.
- Bobby

DETECTIVES SEEK INFORMATION ON ROBBERY SUSPECTS

In the event you have NOT yet heard, a robbery and assault occurred on Wednesday, September 17 at approximately 4:40 p.m. in the 2000 block of De Verne St. There was a story on the television news, but I have come to discover that many neighbors still have NOT heard of this brutal, daytime attack. We have a description for both of the two suspects and an artist's composite sketch of one of the attackers.

Here is the press release from APD:
http://www.cityofaustin.org/police/release02_1003.htm

There also is a composite sketch of one of the suspects:
http://www.cityofaustin.org/police/robberysuspect1_1003.htm
Please share this news with your neighbors. I feel confident that by showing continued efforts in keeping ALL of our eyes and ears focused on the slightest suspicious behavior we CAN provide a formidable offense. By our letting all who enter 78704 know that you WILL be watched, together we CAN maintain the safe and powerful presence that is the true spirit of life in 78704.

Many thanks!

10/07/03--Walgreens Returns
Hey folks. An update on Walgreens' plans for trailer park:

David Darr, the developer who proposed a Walgreens store at South Lamar and Bluebonnet Lane, has told the SLNA he plans to bring out a revised design for the site. City Council voted July 17 to reject the original Walgreens plan, citing intrusion into the neighborhood and traffic and safety impact on Bluebonnet. The SLNA voiced unanimous neighborhood opposition. City regulations allow a developer to reapply on a rejected site if the zoning change request is less intense. Darr said if plans for the store were ready he would show them to residents soon, possibly in late October. Maria Corbalan of Maria's Taco Xpress has said the new proposal might include moving her business to a different part of the Village Trailer Park land. Details are not clear and not finalized, but it appears the plan includes Walgreens' driveway access to Bluebonnet Lane. We'll post notice on SLNA email list and at Taco Xpress when a meeting is planned with the developer. Please stay tuned.

Kevin

9/23/03--Exec Committee Vote on 1704 Fortview Position
Hey neighbors. The SLNA Executive Committee met last night with others interested in this rezoning case. Our vote was to not oppose the requested change to CS commercial, with a restriction allowing only car parking, or LO neighborhood office uses., I sent the below message to City Council in advance of their meeting Thursday.

-Kevin

Dear Mayor and Council Members,

Regarding rezoning 1704 Fortview, the South Lamar Neighborhood Association Executive Committee has voted not to oppose the requested zoning change. This position is conditional on two points:
1) having a conditional overlay restricting use to car parking as recommended by ZAP commission; other than parking no CS uses would be allowed, only LO uses
2) having a public restrictive covenant, which we believe the applicant has agreed to, that would roll back zoning to only LO uses if the lot is not used for car parking for 90 days.

We appreciate your attention to our interests.

Best regards,

Kevin Lewis
President
SLNA

9/19/03--Executive Committee to Discuss 1704 Fortview
Hello folks. A zoning case has been pending for a few months now that warrants our attention. I did not get it on the agenda in August as that meeting was crowded with other pressing matters. 1704 Fortview (just west of Clawson) is zoned SF-3 Single Family; the requested change is to CS Commercial. The house there burned down a couple of years ago and was not rebuilt. The lot is being used for parking cars awaiting repair at Terry Sayther Automotive, at the corner of Clawson and Fortview. This use does not meet its SF-3 zoning, thus the proposed change. Sayther is in the process of purchasing the lot. They say they plan only to store cars there, and that they would agree to a restriction disallowing any CS uses except car parking. The city requires CS for that use when the site is separate from their operations. (Contrast this with LO for Matt's El Rancho parking, which is contiguous with their restaurant.) Some neighbors have objected to this upzoning, noting that the lot is adjacent to SF-3 residential lots, some of which are occupied. They suggest a more moderate upzoning, such as LO, which would allow lighter commercial uses like offices, but not car parking or other uses incompatible with residential.

The SLNA Executive Committee will meet Monday Sept. 22 at 7:00pm to discuss this and vote whether to oppose this rezoning. Everyone is welcome to attend and comment. Location is tentatively Unity Church. If that is unavailable we'll start at 7:30 instead and put up a sign at Unity saying where, perhaps Maria's. It should be a 30-minute meeting. City Council is scheduled to vote next Thurs. Sept. 25. Terry and Debbie from Sayther will not be able to be there Monday, but say they would like to know what residents have to say. I encourage you to go look at the site and email or come to the meeting with your opinions.

Thanks for your attention.

Kevin Lewis