Austin Adopts Big-Box Ordinance

On February 15th, the City Council in Austin, Texas, gave final approval to an ordinance that will give residents and elected officials the authority to review big-box development proposals before granting approval. The measure will take effect in two weeks.

"Area residents and businesses deserve a voice in major projects that will affect them," said Susan Moffat of Livable City, a civic group that spearheaded the ordinance. "New supercenters are over 100 times larger than traditional retail operations and have very different impacts than traditional stores, yet they can operate under the same zoning as a 2,000 square-foot mom-and-pop outfit."

Under the city's current policy, massive retail stores can be built without any public process whatsoever. Developers are only required to notify residents within 300 feet of the site — even though the economic, traffic and other impacts of big-box stores can extend over an area the size of several square miles.

The new law makes stores of 100,000 square feet or more a conditional use. This means that any proposal for a store of that size must undergo a public hearing and be approved by the City Council. It also requires developers to notify neighborhood organizations within one mile of the proposed site and to post a four-by-eight-foot sign on the property stating that an application for retail development has been filed with the city.

A broad spectrum of organizations, including the Austin Independent Business Alliance, Austin Central Labor Council, and Austin Neighborhoods Council, endorsed the ordinance.

Although Livable City and others had been pressing the city to adopt policies on big-box development for some time, the need for this ordinance became strikingly apparent late last year when residents and business owners near the former Northcross Mall were shocked to learn that the largest retail center in the county had been approved for their neighborhood without any public process whatsoever.

(Despite what seemed like a done deal, neighbors organized as Responsible Growth for Northcross are fighting the project, which is to be anchored by a Wal-Mart supercenter. On February 10th, they organized "Arms Around Northcross" to make visible public opposition to the development. The event drew nearly 3,000 people.)

Under the new law, the City Council may not approve a large retail project if it will adversely affect the surrounding area, traffic, or public welfare, or impede future redevelopment of the site.