The Austin City Council is set to vote on a proposed zoning amendment this May that would allow West Campus developments to rise higher than the UT Tower and potentially elicit more affordable housing in the area.
If adopted by the City Council, the amendments will update City Code Title 25, which governs Austin’s zoning regulations, to modify University Neighborhood Overlay, a city initiative that supports dense, affordable growth in West Campus. The amendments aim to expand the boundaries of West Campus, allow for more development and foster a more transit-friendly environment, said Alan Pani, a principal planner with the Planning Department for the city of Austin.
“One of the primary goals is we want to be able to keep students near campus with access to campus and transit,” Pani said.
Before high-rise apartments flooded West Campus, its landscape was mainly comprised of single-family homes. For decades, The Castilian reigned as the tallest student residence and Orange Tree Condos became the neighborhood’s inaugural condominium in 1977.
Since then, West Campus’ population has grown significantly. Between 2000 and 2015, the population increased at a rate of 77%, calling for new regulations to govern the growing and demanding housing market.
The current proposed amendments would permit buildings ranging up to 600 feet in a new “Inner-Transit” district, addressing high demands and a lack of affordable units, Pani said.
These changes build on a series of zoning amendments since 1984 that have shaped West Campus’ housing landscape.
To understand the proposed zoning laws that the council will vote on, the Texan took a look at the history and complexity behind West Campus’s unique zoning regulations.
The University Neighborhood Overlay
Austin’s current set of zoning laws is governed under the Land Development Code, City Code Title 25. Adopted in 1984, the code presents a collection of land use policies that govern city zoning, building heights and spacing.
Under a previous comprehensive plan, Austin Tomorrow, the City Council adopted the University Neighborhood Overlay, or UNO. The program, now governed under a subsection of Imagine Austin, was passed in 2004 to address restrictive zoning codes that inhibited development, according to a city 2024 case study.
Since its adoption, UNO has served as the driving incentive behind West Campus’ current high-rise landscape. Participation in the program allows developers to build taller and more compactly in exchange for reserving a portion of units at affordable rates.
The program established four boundaries in West Campus — Inner, Outer, Dobie and Guadalupe — allowing for the tallest buildings in the Inner district. Its initial regulations enabled developers to build up to 175-feet-tall under the condition that they reserved 10% of units for income-restricted residents, defined as earning below 80% of the median family income, around $60,000 in 2004.
According to a January 2023 analysis, the program is one of the city’s most widely used density bonus programs. Since its inception, it has provided 572 income-restricted units and 911 beds, according to the 2023 Austin Database Portal.
A key to the program’s success is West Campus’ demanding housing market, said Jake Wegmann, an associate professor and graduate advisor for the Community and Regional Planning program. Landlords ultimately profit from spending more to build larger projects, Wegmann said.
“Austin has a patchwork of density bonus programs around town,” Wegmann said. “Most of them are pretty ineffectual, but the one in West Campus has been fairly effective, and the reason is that UNO was such a giant increase in what developers were allowed to build that it was worth it for them to participate in this incentive.”
Although average rent in West Campus is higher than the Austin metro area, it is increasing at a slower rate. According to the case study, rent in the Austin metro area increased by an average of 27% between 2020 and 2022, whereas rent in West Campus increased by 15% over the same period.
Compared to the 2023 market price of $1,275 per month, a resident earning below 60% of Austin’s median family income, or MFI, may rent a unit in a three-bedroom apartment for $1,095, according to the case study. Despite the overlay’s success in reducing rent, Wegmann said he believes the city could do more to reduce rent among affordable units, such as putting more tax money toward new developments.
The city has adopted two major amendments to improve affordability under the overlay after “UNO’s initial affordability requirement was not substantial enough to meaningfully increase lower-income students’ access to housing,” according to the case study.
The future of West Campus living
The overlay program has spurred a population growth of over 28,000 residents in West Campus, significantly altering West Campus’ housing experience.
Long gone are single-family houses. High-rise living brought in large-scale developers such as American Campus and MDL Developments (Icon Housing) that dominate the market, putting up apartments loaded with rooftop lounges, yoga studios and basketball courts.
The current proposed amendments target community-expressed concerns regarding affordability and unsuitable living conditions in West Campus. In addition to preventing windowless bedrooms and increasing housing, the amendments for the overlay program aim to lower the qualifications for affordable housing and increase access to public transit.
Justin Lanier, policy director for University Tenants Union, which advocates for improved housing conditions in West Campus, pointed to a lack of units to accommodate high demands. Around 24,000 students currently receive financial aid, and they are all competing for the 572 affordable units. Around 53,000 students attend UT, and West Campus is not equipped to house all of them, Lanier said. Lanier said this fosters a competitive market where landlords aren’t held to high standards.
Lanier said he believes increasing easy access to affordable housing for everyone is vital to students’ community and success.
“You kind of have this ‘A Tale of Two Cities’ thing happening with UT, where students of means are able to live really close to campus (and others) are living much further away,” Lanier said.
Pani said they aim to prioritize density along Project Connect’s planned light rail route, making it easier for students to access crucial resources such as grocery stores.
“We are not really anticipating or striving for students to live further out,” Pani said. “We’re trying to have more housing for students near campus and near transit, so students can have that access to both campus and the transit to get around throughout the (year).”
Although the majority of West Campus is already developed, Pani said they are looking toward developing underutilized properties such as parking lots, older buildings and empty lots for additional growth.
Wegmann said he believes the proposed expansion of boundaries may be more impactful than solely building up to increase housing capacities.
“Usually, when you’re turning the dial up that high, no one’s going to build anything,” Wegmann said. “Developers do not have an unlimited desire to build unlimitedly tall buildings. There is a point at which it’s no longer worth it (financially).”
West Campus’ housing market consistently faces change and new approaches to accommodate its growing market. Lanier said the desired improvements to West Campus housing will only be possible if residents stand up for their needs.
“I think especially with UT in mind, it’s so important that students are vocal about what they want,” Lanier said. “We have an opportunity to make a big change, but it’s going to take a lot of people making a lot of noise.”
Originally published April 24, 2025, in The Daily Texan
By Laura Baker
Photo by Joyati Modak
