Texas law curtails NIMBY power, clears path for affordable housing in Austin

A dwindling church in South Austin agreed to sell its Travis Heights property to developer O-SDA for a 64-unit, fully income-restricted housing project called Rowen Vale, which will also feature an on-site preschool. Local homeowners submitted a petition claiming the development was too tall, would increase traffic and could depress property values, a move that previously would have forced the city council to achieve a supermajority vote.

House Bill 24, enacted last year, eliminated that hurdle, allowing the council to approve the project with a simple majority; the council voted unanimously. Pro-housing officials credit the law for defanging NIMBY resistance, while some argue the current council would have approved it regardless. The development targets households earning up to 50 % of the area median income, addressing Texas’s broader housing shortage. The church expects to finalize the sale by the end of the year, though the opening date remains uncertain.