JAM
Dec 28, 2006, 4:50 PM
A news release from Mayor Will Wynn and some Austin City Council Members Media Release
http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/theticker/index.html
Ongoing efforts to create a vibrant downtown got a shot in the arm Thursday with the announcement of a tool to draw new retail and help retain existing businesses that enhance Austin’s unique urban fabric along Congress Avenue.
Austin Mayor Will Wynn, Mayor Pro Tem Betty Dunkerly and Councilmember Mike Martinez announced plans to create the Congress Avenue Retail Retention and Enhancement Fund.
The fund will complement the Downtown Austin Retail Development Strategy – a partnership between the City and the Downtown Austin Alliance begun in 2005 to strengthen existing retail and bring new development downtown.
Phase I of the initiative established a framework for promoting downtown retail. Phase II provides recommendations for Congress Avenue specifically and also involved hiring a Retail Coordinator to begin recruiting new retailers to Congress.
The Congress Avenue Retail Retention and Enhancement Fund will complement Phase II by generating revenue for targeted programs and incentives to ensure a diverse, sustainable mix of retail along Austin’s signature corridor.
“The remarkable success we’ve had on 2nd Street is due to the fact that we developed a strategy, funded it and stuck to it. Now it’s time for us to make judicious, strategic investments in Congress Avenue,” Wynn said.
“The inspiration for this program is, of course, the situation regarding the proposed Marriott development on the 200 block of Congress and the desire to preserve Las Manitas, a mainstay of Congress Avenue,” Wynn said.
The program will be funded by designating a portion of certain developer fees paid to the City from new projects along Congress Avenue for things such as temporary use of parking lanes, alley vacations and air rights. Recent Congress Avenue projects had barricade fees alone of more than $500,000.
“These fees are compensation to the City for use of its resources, but the associated activities don’t actually cost anything in terms of general fund expenses,” Dunkerly said. “So, by utilizing these fees we can enhance our tax base and create an exceptional downtown without any additional cost to the tax payer.”
Grants from the fund will be administered based on scored criteria and will be approved by the Council before being disbursed. Wynn, Dunkerly and Martinez will sponsor a City Council resolution in January directing the City Manager to develop program details.
“The announcement of this program ties together the economic development and preservation efforts we’ve been working toward for years,” Martinez said. “This new policy direction sends a message that Austin welcomes growth downtown while maintaining a commitment to preserving the diversity and character of Austin along Congress Avenue. I look forward to finding avenues that incorporate minority and women-owned businesses as a strategic part of this program as well, while growing the retail presence along Congress Avenue.”
http://www.statesman.com/blogs/content/shared-gen/blogs/austin/theticker/index.html
Ongoing efforts to create a vibrant downtown got a shot in the arm Thursday with the announcement of a tool to draw new retail and help retain existing businesses that enhance Austin’s unique urban fabric along Congress Avenue.
Austin Mayor Will Wynn, Mayor Pro Tem Betty Dunkerly and Councilmember Mike Martinez announced plans to create the Congress Avenue Retail Retention and Enhancement Fund.
The fund will complement the Downtown Austin Retail Development Strategy – a partnership between the City and the Downtown Austin Alliance begun in 2005 to strengthen existing retail and bring new development downtown.
Phase I of the initiative established a framework for promoting downtown retail. Phase II provides recommendations for Congress Avenue specifically and also involved hiring a Retail Coordinator to begin recruiting new retailers to Congress.
The Congress Avenue Retail Retention and Enhancement Fund will complement Phase II by generating revenue for targeted programs and incentives to ensure a diverse, sustainable mix of retail along Austin’s signature corridor.
“The remarkable success we’ve had on 2nd Street is due to the fact that we developed a strategy, funded it and stuck to it. Now it’s time for us to make judicious, strategic investments in Congress Avenue,” Wynn said.
“The inspiration for this program is, of course, the situation regarding the proposed Marriott development on the 200 block of Congress and the desire to preserve Las Manitas, a mainstay of Congress Avenue,” Wynn said.
The program will be funded by designating a portion of certain developer fees paid to the City from new projects along Congress Avenue for things such as temporary use of parking lanes, alley vacations and air rights. Recent Congress Avenue projects had barricade fees alone of more than $500,000.
“These fees are compensation to the City for use of its resources, but the associated activities don’t actually cost anything in terms of general fund expenses,” Dunkerly said. “So, by utilizing these fees we can enhance our tax base and create an exceptional downtown without any additional cost to the tax payer.”
Grants from the fund will be administered based on scored criteria and will be approved by the Council before being disbursed. Wynn, Dunkerly and Martinez will sponsor a City Council resolution in January directing the City Manager to develop program details.
“The announcement of this program ties together the economic development and preservation efforts we’ve been working toward for years,” Martinez said. “This new policy direction sends a message that Austin welcomes growth downtown while maintaining a commitment to preserving the diversity and character of Austin along Congress Avenue. I look forward to finding avenues that incorporate minority and women-owned businesses as a strategic part of this program as well, while growing the retail presence along Congress Avenue.”