Austin City Council on Thursday signed off on a fresh set of revisions to the long-planned overhaul of the 19-acre St. Johns site, nudging the project toward deeper affordability and more neighborhood-serving space. The update reshapes the master plan so chunks of the property can be spun into separate projects and paired with different funding sources. City officials say the overall site will still feature shared open areas and roughly 15,000 square feet of commercial space set aside for nonprofit and community uses.
As reported by KXAN, the council item lets the development team split the property into multiple pieces so it can chase layered public subsidies and financing that are tougher to land with one big, all-at-once build. The tweak is pitched as a way to cluster the deepest affordability in specific buildings while using other pieces of the project to pull in tax credits and grants.
Background and the master deal
City records show the site at 800 E. St. Johns Avenue, once home to a Home Depot and an auto dealership, is under a master development agreement with Greystar Development Central, LLC in partnership with the Housing Authority of the City of Austin (HACA). The city approved a sale to a public facilities corporation controlled by HACA and set up the project’s legal structure under Chapter 303, with negotiations and a site-plan application dating back to late 2023. City of Austin documents reviewed by Hoodline spell out the ground-lease and tax-exemption framework behind the deal.
How the affordability breaks down
The updated layout concentrates the deepest affordability in two southwest buildings, which will be 100% income restricted for households earning roughly between 80% and 50% of area median family income or below, while the remaining units will be offered at levels between 80% and 60% across the other buildings, according to KXAN. The plan also reserves about 15,000 square feet of commercial space for nonprofits and neighborhood services, and city materials say residents in all five buildings will share community amenities and open space.
Tax deal, timeline and financing
Under the council-backed structure, the PFC sale grants the project a Chapter 303 tax exemption set for an initial 60-year term, with options to renew or for the city to repurchase at the end of that period. City staff told council that the setup is meant to preserve long-term affordability while still drawing private investment. Records show a site-plan application was filed in December 2023 and that an earlier timeline projected some units could come online as soon as 2026, although phased financing could shift those dates. City of Austin documents outline the schedule and options presented to the council.
What neighbors can expect next
Developers are required to complete a Transportation Impact Analysis as part of the site-plan review and to continue outreach on park improvements and ways to commemorate St. Johns' history, according to city staff materials. Planning Commission backup lists neighborhood associations, nearby AISD schools, and civic groups that took part in the rezoning discussions and notes that ending an older restrictive covenant brings the site in line with current transportation review practices. Planning Commission materials include staff analysis and maps that will guide the next round of public hearings.
