US: Bouldin Village, a proposed 375-unit apartment development, is about to become a case study for Austin’s recently updated vertical mixed-use development regulations.
The new regulations, introduced late last year, allow developers to add extra height to a building in exchange for affordable housing provision.
Boulder Village is proposed for South Lamar Boulevard near the southern edge of the Austin’s Zilker neighbourhood.
Proposed by local real estate firm Narrow Road Group under the guidelines of the so-called VMU2 ordinance passed last year by City Council incentivising denser development on major streets, the mixed-use building will rise to a height of 87 feet, rather than the usual 60-foot limit, by providing approximately 12 per cent of its residences at rental rates affordable to individuals or families earning 60 per cent or less of the region’s median family income.
The building’s 45 affordable homes will remain income-restricted for a period of 40 years upon the project’s completion. The unit mix of the project includes 30 studios, 213 one-bedroom, and 127 two-bedroom residences.
Designed by Austin studio Urban Foundry Architecture, Bouldin Village also includes nearly 12,000 square feet of office space at ground level. The structure rises seven floors, only three feet short of the 90-foot limit imposed by the guidelines of the VMU2 program.
