The Austin City Council has not voted on West Campus zoning updates meant to promote affordable housing nearly a year after it was scheduled to.
The University Neighborhood Overlay is a program that seeks to build pedestrian-friendly streets and taller, high-density buildings in West Campus in exchange for affordable housing, according to the UNO overview. The updates would have added tenant protections, increased building height limits and allowed more properties to participate in the program, according to a city draft resolution.
Austin City Council had originally planned to vote on the proposed amendments on June 5, 2025. The UNO updates were postponed to allow UT leadership to meet with city staff, according to a City of Austin memo released May 30, 2025. In 2025, a UT spokesperson said the University wanted to “get this right” and to “understand the potential impact” of the updates. The spokesperson declined to provide further updates for this piece.
Three days before the city council was set to vote on updates, Hudson Thomas, former UT Student Government president, and Thierry Chu, former SG vice president, sent Austin City Council a letter asking to delay the vote, according to records obtained by the Texan. The letter expresses concerns about safety, neighborhood character and displacement of Greek life. It also cautions that an “excess supply of luxury developments” could drive up costs in West Campus.
“(W)e write on behalf of 53,000+ students and respectfully urge the City to postpone the upcoming vote for the University Neighborhood Overlay (UNO) until the Fall,” Thomas and Chu wrote. “Because our constituents are asking various important questions about affordability, feasibility, and long-term neighborhood impact, we cannot make a valid judgment in full support or opposition of UNO.”
Thomas and Chu declined to comment further.
UNO has not been discussed at City Hall or at the Planning Commission since the delay in September, Alice Woods, chair of the Austin Planning Commission, wrote in an email. She also wrote that the commission has not heard from the University on the subject of UNO. The Planning Commission provides recommendations to the City Council on zoning updates.
Greg Anderson, former planning commissioner and assistant professor of instruction, said updating UNO to increase housing units can make West Campus more affordable for students. Anderson was a planning commission member when the updates to UNO were proposed.
“When you have a brand new tower, that’s going to (have) the nicest amenities,” Anderson said. “But then, it allows the towers (that are) now three years old to be a little bit less expensive, the tower that’s six years old to be less expensive.”
Luke Weber, vice president of Longhorn Urbanists, a student organization advocating for sustainable and affordable development in Austin, said he wishes UT were more transparent.
“It confuses me when UT is focused on connectivity, but then they’re not supporting key really successful city programs like the University Neighborhood Overlay, that also shares that concern for mobility and connectivity and safety,” Weber said.
