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| Note 11-11 edit to show that the giant house would be called a "Duplex" on the permit application |
The code was released on October 4th, and the first City Council vote on it is set for December 7th. We're in a huge rush to approve a code that at best a handful of people have even begun to understand. Gina and I have dropped everything to study the code and try to figure out what it allows, and we're only now seeing what it can really do. We haven't even started to look at the commercial zones, and we've probably only discovered a tiny fraction of the consequences/collateral damage that are designed into the code.
Today's example is on a corner lot in Rosedale. The property has a "quaint" 1940's garage apartment that counts as a Dwelling that's more than 30 years old, allowing the "Preservation Incentive" to come in to play, offering Unlimited FAR.
This lot happens to have R4 zoning that gives it a 5% bump in impervious cover, but you could do a house that's just a bit smaller on an R2A or R2B lot in any neighborhood in Austin. This is not limited to just the "Transition Zones".
The result is an 8,000 s.f. mega-house with 3 full floors and a rooftop deck with an amazing view of downtown. It would sell for over $3m.
The tiny garage apartment that has been one of Rosedale's most affordable rentals for decades would not need to be rented ever again- it would more likely become a guest suite, STR or home office.
The code was designed to create endless opportunities for massive new housing for the wealthy, under the guise of providing Affordable Housing for All.
If we had an ounce of sense, Gina and I would quit fighting and start buying up houses with old garage apartments.
[Note- 11-11: Single Family is not a permitted use in R4 district. This house would need to use the duplex loophole previously described in this blog- meaning it would have a guest suite or similar room with a bathroom and wet bar and an exterior door so the mega-house could be called a "Duplex" on the permit application. Staff confirmed this loophole last week]
For context, here's what that street looks like right now. The subject site is on the far right:
