Develop and maintain affordable housing throughout Austin.

Rising housing and related costs (e.g., transportation) are a major issue facing Austin as the economy expands and population grows.

The S.M.A.R.T.™ Housing Initiative has been the focus of the City’s efforts to counter these trends by increasing the supply of affordable housing. Building on this initiative, a comprehensive program encompassing policy, planning, regulation, investment, and public/private partnerships is needed to maintain the existing affordable housing supply, provide new affordable housing, and reduce related costs.

Learn more.

Continue to grow Austin's economy by investing in our workforce and education systems.

As the local economy continues to expand, so will the need for an educated and skilled workforce. 

To ensure our continued economic health we must develop a skilled workforce, recruit new businesses, retain and grow existing businesses, and tap into our entrepreneurial spirit to cultivate local opportunities.

Educational opportunities must be created to meet the workforce needs of current and emerging industries.  Although Austin attracts talented people from across the globe, there is and will be a growing need to develop a talented, homegrown workforce. 

Learn more.

Create a green infrastructure program to protect environmentally sensitive areas and integrate nature into the city.

A green infrastructure program builds on ongoing efforts by the City to create an interconnected network of parks, waterways, greenways, trails, streets that address stormwater in a more naturalistic fashion, natural areas, and other green features, such as a healthy urban forest. A primary goal of the program is to manage Austin’s urban and natural ecosystems in an integrated, sustainable manner.

A first step is preparation of an integrated green infrastructure plan that defines the parameters of the network and set targets for its components such as conserved land, new trails and bike paths, parks, and green streets. 

Learn more.

Create a program to sustainably manage our water resources.

The City of Austin has firm water commitments from the Lower Colorado River Authority through 2050. However, the ongoing drought, a changing climate, and increasing population are already straining our water system. Becoming more water resilient will mean engaging with and managing for long-term use all of our water resources—the Colorado River, our aquifers, and rainfall, as well as expanding water re-use. 

In coordination with the green infrastructure program, this program needs to build on ongoing water resource management efforts to establish an integrated strategy addressing the range of water resource issues such as supply, conservation, and environmental protection.

Learn more.

Grow and invest in Austin’s creative economy.

Learn more.

Invest in transportation and other improvements to create a compact and connected Austin.  

Creating a compact and walkable Austin will require investments in a more complete transportation system.  The recently opened MetroRail Red Line commuter rail; soon-to-open rapid bus routes; and the proposed urban rail, MetroRail Green Line to Elgin, and the Lone Star rail line between Austin and San Antonio provide an initial framework to realize a more compact and walkable city.

Creating the Austin envisioned by this plan requires increased mixed-use and residential densities around transit centers and along transit corridors to support a more extensive transit system, as well as better accommodations for walking and bicycling.

Learn more.

Change Austin’s development regulations & processes to promote a compact and connected city.

Austin’s City Charter requires that land development regulations be consistent with the comprehensive plan. Many Imagine Austin policies and actions envision new development and redevelopment that is compact and connected.  Creating this type of development will entail comprehensive revisions to the land development code, associated technical and criteria manuals, and administrative procedures. 

Once a new or revised code is in place, its application will need to be monitored and evaluated on an ongoing basis to ensure that it is produces compact and connected places.

Learn more.

Create a “Healthy Austin” program.

Making healthy choices should be affordable, available, and easier than making unhealthy ones. A “Healthy Austin” program will implement a range of policies and action ideas across all of the elements of the comprehensive plan.

The chronic diseases associated with tobacco use and obesity — some cancers, diabetes, heart disease, and asthma — are the underlying causes of most deaths in Travis County and affect everyone in the region. 

These preventable diseases increase healthcare costs, lower worker productivity, increase family stress, and diminish the overall quality of life.  This program would address the root causes of diseases caused by environmental and lifestyle factors.

Learn more.