Design Principles

After analyzing the site, the Cooper, Robertson & Partners team developed design principles to guide the planning and implementation process over time. These principles will ensure the intent of the gift and in longer term the integrity and vision of the plans.


Legacy

Honor the intent of Colonel Brackenridge’s gift that the land be used “in trust for the University of Texas” at Austin for the “purpose of advancing and promoting University education” and preserve opportunities for future University uses on the Tract.

Context and Compatibility

Recognize and respond to the Tract’s context within the City of Austin as a part of the City’s waterfront and to the context of the West Austin neighborhood by respecting the character of its edges with appropriate land uses, building scale, landscape, and traffic mitigation.

Place Making and Public Realm

Conceive the Tract as a distinct and Integrated whole, greater than the sum of its parts, organized as a collection of walkable neighborhoods with an integrated system of streets, trails, and freely accessible, usable open space, collectively known as the public realm.

Compact Development

Employ compact development strategies that maximize open space, embody a hierarchy of experiences, and encourage mixed-use, pedestrian friendly and vibrant areas that will characterize the Tract within the region, the city, and the vicinity.

Ecology and Environment

Celebrate the lakefront and other significant natural features of the Tract, such as its creek and mature trees, by organizing a larger open space system about these elements, while embracing the best methods and practices to ensure their preservation and to support the regional ecology.

Mobility and Connectivity

Recognize that transportation solutions are achieved at a city-wide scale, but design to minimize neighborhood traffic impacts by providing additional connections that reduce the dependence upon Enfield Road and Exposition, by mixing uses to capture otherwise off-site trips, and by planning for future transit options. Incorporate a hike and bike system that is interconnected to upland pathways.

Sustainability

Plan the future of the Tract based on a holistic approach to sustainability which considers social and economic, as well as natural, systems and resources, building upon the strengths of the past and what exists today while preserving options for future generations.

Feasibility, Flexibility, and Economic Viability

Develop an economically feasible plan that can be phased over time, be flexible to changing markets and conditions, and generate income from the Tract, using sound planning principles, to support the educational mission of the University while contributing positively to the community.