The Lay of the Land: Mueller Reuse and Redevelopment Master Plan
Fri., June 30, 2000
The latest version of the RMMA Redevelopment and Reuse Master Plan's "Regulating Plan" -- the zoning map, in effect -- contains the same sorts of buildings as in past drafts, but in different proportions and orientations. Here's a guide to the key features of ROMA's plan, and some local and far flung examples of what they have in mind:
Town Center
This is the mixed-use heart of the village -- retail or commercial below, office or residential above, facing the street, three to five stories tall, parking in the back. The southernmost part of the town center -- adjacent to the lake -- is required to have "street-oriented" retail, so that it will be a pleasant place to walk, shop, hang out, and do other urban stuff.
La Jolla, Calif.'s answer to a Town Center
Urban Campus
This is the New Urbanist version of an office or industrial park -- the plazas and courtyards have to be publicly accessible and walkable from the Town Center. A job-training facility has already been proposed for this area. Having big employers up here in the corner -- with easy access to I-35 -- would do no good to traffic on 51st or the interstate, but it would keep thousands of people from driving around Mueller's narrow streets.
One example of an urban campus can be found at Levi Plaza in San Francisco.
Apartment Houses
The plan calls for the multifamily buildings -- again, three to five stories, or about 40 units/acre -- to have "townhouse treatment" along the street edge, so they won't look like apartment complexes.
The Gables on 38th Street is Representative of what designers have in mind for Mueller.
Shop House/Row House
These are real townhouses, though they may also be walk-up flats over stores or offices, or self-contained "live/work" units, where you could live over your own store or office, just like in the old days.
These row houses are in the Lion's Gate community in Seattle.
Yard Houses
These are single-family houses, but on lots with a maximum of 4,500 square feet, as opposed to the 5,750 feet typically required of a legal lot in Austin. They have detached garages, with apartments on top if you'd like, alleys and service lanes in the back, and are two stories.
An Austin example of yard houses can be found on West Ave., between 11th and 12th.
Amenities & Infrastructure
The plan also includes:
Got something to say on the subject? Send a letter to the editor.
