City of Austin

$3M grant will create plan for sustainable community and include jobs, housing, transportation for Colony Park

Austin, TX – Mayor Lee Leffingwell joined U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) officials to announce a $3 million HUD Community Challenge grant awarded to the City of Austin to master-plan 208 acres of vacant publicly-owned land in East Austin’s Colony Park community.

“We have an incredible opportunity to design a model mixed-income community that is sustainable and can be replicated in other parts of Austin,” Mayor Lee Leffingwell said. “I am excited about the opportunity this presents for residents in Colony Park to envision a new neighborhood – and in a sense, a new quality of life where residential and commercial activities are combined with pedestrian-friendly amenities, parks, trails, jobs and new housing.”

HUD’s Office of Sustainable Housing Communities awarded the City of Austin with the Community Challenge grant to help improve economic development and increase economic competitiveness by connecting housing with transportation, job centers and quality schools in East Austin.

“We are celebrating a $3 million federal investment in Colony Park and in East Austin, but more than that we are celebrating the opening of doors for a better quality of life for thousands of people,” said U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett.

The grant will accelerate already existing private investments in the Colony Park area. The City of Austin’s ultimate goal is to improve the quality of life for Colony Park through a public-private partnership that creates a thriving neighborhood and offers affordable housing for mixed-income families, shopping amenities, and interconnectivity with viable transportation options.

Investments in the Colony Park area over the last decade include a new recreation center, widening and reconstruction of Loyola Lane, and increased animal-control efforts. The Community Challenge grant will fund a master plan for Colony Park resulting in Planned Unit Development (PUD) rezoning; engineering for subdivision and site planning; infrastructure construction plans; and architectural design guidelines for new residential and commercial development.

“This year’s demand for Sustainability Grants was very high and Austin was amongst the recipients because its application focused on economic development and bringing jobs to the community,” said Richard Lopez, Field Office Director of HUD’s San Antonio office. “Because of the existing private investment in the area, we are confident that the grant will be further leveraged by local funding and create a stronger public-private partnership.”

The development of the master plan will be led by the City’s Neighborhood Housing and Community Development Office, in partnership with the Austin Housing Finance Corp. (AHFC). AHFC will serve as the master developer of the site and as builder for a portion of the housing. AHFC also anticipates partnering with other entities to develop single-family and multi-family housing.

“We have a long list of partners; and we are adding to that list every week as we exchange ideas about the possibilities for Colony Park,” said Anthony Snipes, Chief of Staff for the City of Austin. “With this grant and our collective continued commitment to Colony Park, we will boost the area’s quality of life benefiting surrounding neighborhoods as well.”

Project partners include the Colony Park Neighborhood Association, the Community Development Commission, the Capital Area Texas Sustainability Consortium and Pecan Street Inc. Several City departments will also be key partners throughout the grant program including the Office of Sustainability, Austin Energy, Austin Resource Recovery, Austin Water Utility, the Economic Growth and Redevelopment Services Office, and the Austin/Travis County Health and Human Services Department.

HUD announced 27 communities and organizations as recipients of Community Challenge grants, and 29 regional areas will receive Regional Planning grants. View HUD’s announcement.

For a map of Colony Park and more information, visit the project website.