The city of Austin announced on Aug. 22 a new 208-acre land development for the Colony Park neighborhood in northeast Austin, creating more affordable housing and potential job opportunities. 

The Colony Park Sustainable Community Development Agreement, headed by Catellus Development Corporation, is set to begin construction in 2026. The development will include up to 3,000 residential units — including single-family homes and multi-family apartments, — 130,000 square feet of retail space and 42 acres of new recreational park and pool space, the city said in an email statement. 

“Colony Park represents a great opportunity for the city of Austin to … invest in a great development anchored in East Austin, to connect with the rest of the community, provide housing options affordable to multiple income levels and continue adding to the livability of Austin as a whole,” said Jeremy Martin, president and CEO of the Austin Chamber of Commerce. 

The city and Catellus have worked together previously on the redevelopment of the Mueller community, which includes the Mueller Affordable Homes Program. The Mueller program reserves 25% of housing units in the community for households that earn 80% or less than the median family income, according to its website. 

Colony Park will have a similar program, where 20% of housing units will be reserved for low-income families, said Jessica Reynolds, vice president of marketing for Catellus. 

The city said affordable housing units and as many as 1,200 permanent jobs will be available for University students looking to move to another part of Austin.   

“The size, density and diverse configurations of housing available in this walkable, bikeable community with access to nearby recreation and transit facilities should appeal to students and young professionals,” the city said. 

The development will include Central Health’s East Austin Health and Wellness Center, which the city said will provide professional opportunities to health students entering the workforce. 

Premed chemistry senior Sebastian Martinez Chacon said he thinks the health and wellness center will be beneficial not only for the people in the community but also for UT students looking for health careers. He said the center will help create more opportunities for the overabundance of students searching for careers. 

“(There are) so many people coming here that it’s usually hard to find a job or a program,” Martinez Chacon said. “So if there’s somewhere that (jobs are) offered for students or for UT or for the community, I think that’d be great.” 

Ebonie Trice, Colony Park resident and founder of the Mission Accomplished nonprofit organization, said she hopes this development will be similar to the one in Mueller. However, she said that sometimes Colony Park residents are notified about new developments that never come to fruition because the area is an underserved community. 

“We get our hopes up high, and then we have a letdown,” Trice said. “Those are the challenges sometimes, but the great thing is we have a lot of advocates in the area, individuals that know what’s happening and want to know what’s happening.”