LDC Lawsuit a Stopgap to the Creation of Complete Communities
In the midst of a global crisis, thinking about the future seems unimaginable. We are just trying to make it through today. As we are coming together as a community to help our neighbors find food, employment, or sanity in these unprecedented times, we will need to do the same in the future if we want a city that represents and supports every person that calls Austin home. The conversation around the Land Development Code (LDC) was an opportunity to do just that — to think beyond ourselves, to understand the struggles others face, and to intentionally correct past actions that created our divided city.
The decision in the lawsuit against the city, Acuna vs The City of Austin, upholding protest rights for property owners in the city-wide comprehensive land development code rewrite process continues that divide. The past city plan denoted that a person was permitted to live in an area of town based on the color of their skin. Today, it is how much money you make. Discrimination by race and class are not mutually exclusive — they just pop up in various forms. The decisions made yesterday and today represent the same inherent intention — I don’t want those people living in my neighborhood.
When we talk about undoing the legacy of segregation for Austin, we don’t just mean the 1928 Master Plan. We mean correcting past injustices by allocating resources to neighborhoods that were left to pull themselves up by their bootstraps while others were provided public benefits. We mean that the value of a person or a community doesn’t change because of where you live or how you got there. The LDC is a key place to start to examine how the long history of racism and classism has shaped our communities. The lawsuit considered how the interest of property owners will fare with the revised code. Unfortunately the decision taken by the Travis County District Judge places homeowners at the center of local land-use policy, in a majority renter city. It is, in effect, a ruling in favor of the Austin status-quo, which continues to push working class families of color into the suburbs, endlessly recreating the conditions of segregation. We acknowledge that fear of being priced out is very real — as can be testified by those who have already been priced out. But the goal of the code should be to create thriving complete communities, with room for income diversity and a sustainable and racially just and balanced approach to density,allowing for growth and economic and cultural diversity and a better use of natural resources.
The power is in building community — with true inclusion and equity. Yet, we will maintain a zero-sum game because we continually play as if “I” am the only one that matters. “Complete communities” and “equity” aren’t just buzz words. They mean real people — real lives. It means every neighborhood should have access to healthy food, affordable housing — by type and by price, employment opportunities, and proper transit. It means every neighborhood should have schools with an administration that listens to the community and provides quality programs that challenge students and expand their horizons. It means every neighborhood should be equipped with climate resilient infrastructure and green spaces to mitigate flooding and urban heat and to live in healthy environments. The LDC can create a foundation to achieving a city that welcomes all people into all communities.
The Austin Justice Coalition continues to fight for communities of color to have their voices heard but also to have persons of color at the table. The revised process for the land development code — and for all city policy and programmatic processes — must center communities of color, working class residents, renters, and home-owners. We hope that the Mayor and City Council continue to work towards a Land Development Code that ensures “high opportunity” areas are not just limited shaded regions on a map, but a designation that can one day apply to the city as a whole. We will continue to insist on building a more equitable, just Austin.
