$2.5 Billion Villa Muse Takes Titanic Downturn after Critical Austin City Council Vote
DeeinAustin™
The Titanic-sized Villa Muse development is in trouble and sinking fast.The viability of the project in Austin took a controversial downturn after Austin City Council narrowly denied their request to release acreage in East Travis County.
As a result, News 8 Austin reported that developers are seeking bids from other cities.
You may recall that Villa Muse consists of a mixed-use arts and entertainment community and complex. The slated location is in East Travis County near Manor, just outside of Austin's jurisdiction.
Villa Muse is an extremely critical decision for Austin. The $2.5 billion project promises up to 110,000 jobs.
WHAT'S SO CONTROVERSIAL ABOUT VILLA MUSE?
Developers say their project is not
economically viable if they must follow Austin development guidelines
and pay taxes. The argument: they have to pay for full infrastructure of the target area.
Villa Muse asked Austin City Council to release almost 2000 acres to them. Developers could then bypass city regulations, environmental protection rules, and annexation for at least 40 YEARS. The proposal barely failed, with Mayor Will Wynn casting the deciding hammer.
State Representative Dwanna Dukes sent a scathing letter to Austin City Council, urging them to reconsider. She believes Villa Muse will create a dramatic shift in economics of Eastern Travis County.
THOUGHTS ABOUT THE CITY COUNCIL DECISION
In light of the recent public outcry around Domain subsidies and the Northcross Mall Walmart fiasco, city leaders must tread lightly. The promise of an economic gain should be backed by solid financials and some level of city oversight.
City leaders think Villa Muse needs Austin just as much as we need them. Austin is beautiful, artistic, ripe for the entertainment industry, and primed for mixed-use development.
It's not new for developers to pay for infrastructure of fringe cities without asking for 40 years of heads turned. Also, no offense, but outskirts of...Houston? Dallas? Maybe El Paso? Can other Texas cities really compare?
Bottom line, Austin City Council showed courage, whether you support them or not. They chose to take a longer look without rushing into a final proposal affects us for decades. If Villa Muse developers play nice by hearing Austin's counter-proposal, the community will support them.
LIKE THIS ARTICLE? READ MORE ABOUT THE VILLA MUSE BLOW UP...
- Background on Villa Muse including article archive.
- Details on 40-year non-annexation proposal by Villa Muse.
- KVUE's coverage of the proposal before Austin city council.
- Austin Statesman Editorrial supports City Council decision.
- News 8 Austin reports Dwanna Duke's response.
- Villa Muse developer paid for Dwanna Dukes travel expenses.
- Related: Northcross Mall outcry and the Domain.
So many times communities are left to deal with the aftermath of a poorly planned development. I think the Austin City council should be commended for not jumping on board with the project just because of the amount dollar bills and shiny signs that go with it. The bottom line is their making a decision that will affect their community for the next 40 years, they owe to them, as much as themselves, to take the time they need to get this issue right.
Posted by: Austin Real Estate Wrangler | Thursday, March 20, 2008 at 08:35 PM