Compact & Connected - that's the key driver for what Imagine Austin plan calls for Austin to be. A city where things can be closer together, where sprawl isn't the dominant paradigm, and where car trips are shorter and happen less often. Is that what you want? If so, sign our petition right now now to tell City Council. Read on to learn what's happening now:

Well, at the midnight hour of this council term, some city council members and city bureaucrats want to "de-emphasize" that priority by striking the part of the plan that calls for Austin to develop code amendments to make that vision a reality. Why? Because these skeptics have said that a compact and connected city is getting too much emphasis in the CodeNEXT process, and that people are too focused on changing the city's code to allow more housing in central Austin.

We're already suffering from a city that's sprawling and stuck in traffic. The cost of rent is going up. The population in the center of the city is going down. Families of color and moderate means are being forced to leave town by rising costs. We have some of the fastest growing suburbs in the nation, filled with people waiting to get into traffic and come to their jobs in Austin. We have to DO something about it, not just accept the status quo and "de-emphasize" the need for change.

Why do we want a compact & connected city? The opposite of compact and connected is sprawled out and stuck in traffic. We want a city where sprawl isn't the default option, where people can share land and property tax burdens by living closer together, where we're more focused on housing people instead of storing cars. We want a city where there isn't an assumption that Thou Shalt Drive. Where people can afford to live, don't spend their free time stuck in traffic on a highway, and can raise a family.

In short: we want an Austin for everyone, not just an Austin for people that can afford it. We need to stay focused on the goal of compact and connected, and NOT "de-emphasize" it.

Austin City Council will consider the amendment to the Comprehensive Plan next week. Will you join us at City Council on December 11th, sign our petition, write an email to all council members telling them why YOU want a compact and connected city?

Will you join AURA in opposing changes to the compact and connected objective?