Austin’s City Council voted in favor of development and inclusivity on Thursday when they approved the Equity-Based Preservation Plan, a new project that aims to preserve the city’s historic structures while paying close attention to diversity and cultural history. This plan, which aligns historic conservation with the values of fairness, inclusivity, and sustainability, is the city’s first revision to its preservation strategy in more than 40 years.
With 14 goals and an astounding 107 recommendations, the entire roadmap is extensive. In addition to honoring Austin’s diverse past, the Equity-Based Preservation Plan works to save cultural treasures like murals and historic businesses. Above all, it uses preservation as a tool to increase sustainability and fight relocation. These elements were described in a City of Austin statement, which also noted that the plan’s overarching objectives center on active community involvement in the cultural preservation process.
This plan was created during a three-year period by the Historic Landmark Commission’s Preservation Plan Working Group, which included 26 community members and was assisted by technical specialists and City employees. Cara Bertron, who oversaw the planning process, told the City of Austin that “it took a lot of trust on the part of the Historic Landmark Commission and City staff to ask a community working group to create a major new plan.” “It also involved considerable trust from the Working Group members, who committed years to creating the plan and seeing it through to this milestone.”
The plan’s goal of inclusively representing Austin’s many voices is reflected in the substantial community participation that went into it. In the spring of 2024, more than 2,500 locals provided feedback on the draft plan through events, polls, and meetings. According to the City of Austin, in order to expand their reach, the city’s planners collaborated with nine paid community ambassadors and awarded $5,000 mini-grants to groups including the Taiwanese American Professionals Austin chapter and Anderson CDC. Multilingual efforts were made to reflect the different demographics of Austin’s population.
According to the City’s Planning Director, Lauren Middleton-Pratt, “this plan represents the goals and priorities of every Austinite, particularly those whose history and heritage have too often been overlooked.” She expressed pride in the thorough participation process. In light of Austin’s past, the Equity-Based Preservation Plan examines the underlying causes of inequality and considers the possible advantages of historic preservation, ranging from environmental sustainability to affordable housing and neighborhood stabilization. Juan Raymond Rubio, a member of the Preservation Plan Working Group and the Historic Landmark Commission, stressed in his statement to the City of Austin that “preservation supports a sense of place, identity, and continuity for both residents and visitors.”
Leaders of neighborhood organizations are also endorsing the innovative approach. “Austin is one of the great cities that maintains its culture and history. In a statement, Preservation Austin Executive Director Lindsey Derrington said, “We are excited to support the Equity-Based Preservation Plan and look forward to realizing its goals with the City and other stakeholders.” The plan will be in effect for ten years, with a thorough update planned halfway through. The implementation phase will be led by the City’s Planning Department and is scheduled to start right away. A progress dashboard is anticipated to launch in January 2025.
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