Buildings over 400 feet tall may soon be rising around Q2 Stadium in north central Austin.
The Austin City Council approved a change to zoning regulations that will allow buildings up to 420 feet in height — about 40 stories – on some properties in the booming North Burnet neighborhood around the home field of Austin FC and the Domain master-planned community nearby. The council approve the new zoning for the area at its regular meeting Thursday, Oct 27.
Council Member Leslie Pool, who represents the district, initiated the zoning change, saying it was needed to “meet the needs of the economic boom that is ongoing for this regional destination,” she said in a statement.
The height increase applies to buildings within the Commercial Mixed-Use (CMU) Gateway Zone subdistrict of the North Burnet Gateway Regulating Plan. Maximum allowable height in the zoning district was bumped up from its previous 308 feet. Allowable density was also increased, with floor area ratio bumped up from 8:1 to 12:1.
The construction and 2021 opening of Q2 Stadium, as well as the Domain's seemingly permanent expansion mode, has created a busy development environment in the area in recent years. The planned Red Line light rail route, a major component of Austin transportation plan Project Connect, has also attracted developers — especially around rail stations planned for the future Uptown ATX mixed-use project and for the stadium.
Despite the recent flurry of development in the neighborhood around Q2, Los Angeles' Kilroy Real Estate put its planned Stadium Tower office development on hold in October, citing "market conditions" as the reason. It's possible that the increased entitlements now available could prompt reconsideration of that decision.
