Urban Design & Government Affairs
Meetings:
The Urban Design / Government Affairs Committee meets monthly, the Fourth Wednesday of the month at the Austin Center for Architecture located at 12th Street and West Avenue. The meeting times are usually 11:45 AM unless notified otherwise.
Mission:
Develop and promote public programs to raise public awareness of the value of architecture through Monthly meetings at the Design Center, Code workshop, Compatibility Discussion with guests from CNU, Comp plan education efforts.
Committee Chair: Paul Detke
Identify and Fill Visible Leadership Roles Architects can occupy to enrich the community and profession. Host Candidate Forum for City Council Candidates and begin quarterly dialog with aides and eventually council in coordination with advocacy committee.
Subcommittee captain- Bart Whatley.
Foster environments for idea sharing and development. Identify strengths and weaknesses of design standards. Coordinate with ASLA Austin Chapter, CNU Nodes & Corridors, RECA Government Affairs, Civil engineers, COTE, and others through happy hours. Approach City Council or other entities during future COA public input process.
Subcommittee captain- Paul Detke
Elevate Profile and Quality of Design. Transit and Public Art Design Competition, or other inquiry into the role of beauty and public art in a healthy transit system.
Subcommittee captain- Gonzalo Camacho
To learn more about what this committee is doing, click here.
It has been an outstanding, ambitious, and deeply rewarding year to be your Chair. I am honored to be associated with such a diverse, experienced, and passionate group of professionals. Let’s recap where we are relative to our goals: /
#1 “Identify and Fill Visible...
The Old Bakery and Park is an underutilized and often overlooked site at the premier civic, cultural, and transit intersection in Austin. October 8th at Congress Avenue and 11th, “What’s Rising at the Old Bakery” will imagine the possibilities of future amenities and activities for this...
What are some exciting place/destinations that provide connectivity to cultural infrastructure? At our June monthly meeting, our members introduced case studies showing multidisciplinary collaborations (architects, artists, etc).
Emily Layton presented Uplift Austin...
One of AIA Austin's core missions, in alignment with national AIA policies, is to promote exceptional,...
11:30am on Thursday, June 23rd at the AIA Austin Design Center
Please join us for a presentation and discussion of the current issues surrounding the City of Austin's Subchapter E: Commercial Design Standards. City Staff will be considering Phase II amendments to Subchapter E in the next few months. We have an opportunity to potentially shape this...Why would someone want to go THERE? What makes an amazing space? At our monthly meeting, we began workshopping our first Educational Building Block toward a Art/Space Design Competition that would "Elevate the Profile and Quality of Design" in our community.
We have been meeting with local cultural leaders (schools, universities, museums, artists) to try and...
Regarding our transit subcommittee and the efforts for a Design Competition that partners with an educational or cultural institution:
One of the concrete things that came out of the UDGA meeting Wednesday was to intersect a policy goal from the comprehensive plan with a specific site, nonprofit, or stakeholder. (several specifics were mentioned, but we have...
We had a packed room for presentations from our three subcommittees.
Bart Whatley has expanded our City Council Candidate Forum to partner with CNU, DAA, and DANA. Please join us Monday, 4 April, 5:30PM-7:30PM in Central Presbyterian Church on 200 E 8th street. Eight City Council candidates are confirmed so far. We will get to ask design and planning...
The UDGA group had a great discussion February 23rd on the upcoming AIA candidate forum. Thanks to all for the input and interest in helping with the event. Past candidate forums have been a solid success drawing approximately 60 people.
The election this year for council members is May 14. Candidates include Chris Riley, Josia Ingalls, Randi Shade, Kris Bailey, Chris Nielsen, Laura...
I really appreciate everyone's excitement and interest, and I am floored by the calls and emails from new folks inquiring about joining the committee. Yes, we absolutely do want you involved! In addition to some specific events, there seem to be a few themes that you want explored in 2011 //// We will discuss important advocacy...
Our September topic included future transportation options along the IH-35 corridor. Comparisons and alternatives included a sunken roadway section, a tunnel, and a boulevard. Particularly of note was the discussion on rail—on the surface, within a tunnel, or along other corridors altogether.
...A 28 July 2010 job posting at City of Austin Public Works for "City Architect" unintentionally launched an avalanche of emails within our Committee pondering what a "City Architect" should be: What would the impact be of a staff architect point person for design issues?
Within the context of the Comprehensive Planning process, it would appear that changes...
CNU Austin recently had a presentation by Andrew Burleson from Houston on How Urban Design Affects Property Values. The urban realm between specific buildings and transportation conduits were compared with each other and related to property values. Examples of Houston “patterns” and streetscapes were analyzed. Houses with shaded walks were shown to have more value than houses...