East Austin residents who opposed plans to move the Downtown Austin Community Court into their neighborhood have gotten their wish, as the city has abandoned a proposal to lease 30,000 square feet of office space that would have housed the facility.
The decision to kill the deal came from staff members with the court and the city’s real estate office, who had been under political pressure from state Rep. Eddie Rodriguez and Council Member Pio Renteria to find a different location for the court, which provides services to people experiencing homelessness.
The two elected officials suggested last month that an increased presence of homeless people in the area would have impacted the quality of life for residents, in particular those who live at the Chalmers Courts residential community.
The City Council had planned to vote on leasing the property in mid November but rescheduled it for Thursday to allow for more time to think about it. But now the deal is gone for good, according to Alex Gale, interim officer for the real estate office.
“It’s no longer an option,” Gale said Tuesday. “We don’t plan on bringing that back.”
The real estate office revealed in October that it had explored several sites to move the court, which has outgrown its current digs on East Sixth Street and is currently operating out of a temporary location at the Terrazas branch of the Austin Public Library. The court has a case management program for individuals experiencing homelessness who have had criminal issues and are identified as high risk for mental health or substance abuse issues. It also handles Class C misdemeanors, such as public intoxication and disorderly conduct.
The top choice was an office building east of Interstate 35 at 1719 E. Second St that is owned by 3423 Holdings LLC. The price tag for the lease was $21.5 million over 10 years, with options for the city to extend the lease or to buy the facility outright. The plan was to build showers and a laundry facility to make it friendly to the homeless population. There would also be space for daytime programs. Capital Metro buses run directly in-front of the facility.
But last month, ahead of a planned vote on the property, Rodriguez wrote a letter to the City Council opposing the recommended location. Renteria likewise raised concerns that residents living in that area were not given a chance to comment on the proposal.
The death of the deal was met with mixed emotions at the City Council’s work session on Tuesday. Council Member Jimmy Flannigan said he was not opposed to the recommended location, but had concerns that it was not centrally located.
“I was never comfortable moving this far east,” he said.
Mayor Steve Adler said he had concerns about killing the plan but acknowledged that it was the right move to make. He also said the city needs to improve at “management of shared public spaces” and recommended implementing benchmarks that hold the city accountable for funding decisions as it relates to housing the homeless community.
The city’s real estate office says it now will explore alternative properties, including city-owned facilities that have already been vetted. Those include the Faulk library, which was deemed to be too small, as well as the old City Hall building on West Eighth Street, which has limited parking and lacks accessibility for people with disabilities.
Pete Valdez, the court’s administrator, says he does not anticipate the delay will impact the court’s operations.
“Exploring both temporary and long-term facility locations could bring more benefits such as a quicker move-in time, lower overall costs, and will provide time to look for what opportunities may exist for ownership as a possible alternative to a lease,” he said.
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