The City of Austin is working to update its 30-year Imagine Austin plan, the city announced in a June 13 press release.
The Imagine Austin plan maps out a vision of Austin as a sustainable, equitable and economically prosperous city. The update will have several phases and will last through 2026. The first phase of the update will begin this month as Planning Department staffers head around the city to talk with residents about Austin’s future.
“(Imagine Austin) is a collective vision for the benefit of all Austinites, including the tens of thousands of college students who play such an important role in influencing the culture and identity of our city,” a city spokesperson said in an email. “The plan has the potential to shape their living environment, future job opportunities and quality of life for decades to come.”
Last year, the Austin City Council approved the update as part of the city budget. Austin has experienced many changes since the plan’s approval in 2012, including a significant population increase, rising home prices and the City Council switching to a single-member district system.
Sustainability senior Olivia Navarro said she is excited about the update because striving toward progress means rethinking public systems.
“I feel hopeful and optimistic,” Navarro said. “I’m happy that the city is prioritizing sustainability in any regard, and honestly, I think we’re ahead of the curve compared to a lot of other places in Texas, so I’m happy to see that we’re making progress for it.”
Navarro works for UT’s microfarm, the University’s first student-run, organic urban farm. She said Austin has many food deserts, especially in East Austin, where residents lack access to fresh food. Food accessibility is something she would address in the Imagine Austin update if she had the opportunity to, she said.
“I think that food should be a universal human right, and so working at the UT microfarm is my way of giving back to the UT community and trying to do something productive,” Navarro said.
Luke Schweizer, a Plan II and sustainability studies junior, said this updated plan will make Austin a beacon of change for the state of Texas.
“(The city) is a hub for learning with schools like (UT) and St. Edward’s,” Schweizer said. “You have all these young minds coming into Austin, so having Austin be an example or template for all these young people to come and see would be incredibly impactful as they go out in the world and spread the seeds.”
Navarro said although sustainability can be disheartening and feel ineffective, putting together a plan like Imagine Austin can motivate others to participate.
“Societal change isn’t possible without social change,” Navarro said. “In our social circles, the changes that we can make and influence others to make could eventually lead to a cascading effect, where it can make everything better.”
