The City of Austin has kicked off an update to the City’s comprehensive plan known as Imagine Austin 

Project Overview 

What is a Comprehensive Plan? 

A comprehensive plan is the long-range plan for a city. Developed with the community, it sets a unified vision for a city's growth and development over a 20-to-50-year time period. 

What is Imagine Austin? Why does it exist? 

We want Austin to be the most livable city in the country. The Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan is a 30-year growth and development plan created with our community. It guides the City's decision-making to help make sure Austin is well-positioned to be a beacon of sustainability, equity, and economic opportunity.

Imagine Austin provides a roadmap that establishes goals and policies across seven Priority Program areas so we can become a city of complete communities.

Why are we updating Imagine Austin now? 

Adopted in 2012, the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan is more than a decade old. A lot has happened since that time. For example, we've:

  • Adopted several long-range supporting plans,
  • Added more than 11,000 affordable housing units and 230 permanent supportive housing (PSH) units with thousands more in the pipeline,
  • Increased safety on our roadways and connectivity among hike and bike trails,
  • Passed a voter-approved Project Connect transit program, and
  • Changed the City's code to allow more housing options at all income levels, making the city more compact and connected.
  • Experienced intense climate change with extreme weather conditions, stressing the need to plan for and protect our most vulnerable community members.

It's time to check in, incorporate our accomplishments, and conduct an equity, sustainability, and resilience assessment to make sure that we are considering everyone's future.

Project Timeline

complete
complete
Pre-Planning

September 2023 - May 2024

The project team analyzed Imagine Austin to indentify potential opportunities for an update to the plan. Additionally, the team worked with consultants to determine an equitable approach for engaging with the community throughout the update. 

live
live
Phase I of Community Outreach

June - December 2024

Community outreach activities begin. During this phase, the project team will attend community events to share information and speak with Austinites about updating the comprehensive plan. 

Please click on our Events & Outreach tab to see where we'll be!

planned
planned
Phase 2 of Community Engagement

January - Late Winter 2025

planned
planned
Draft Review

Spring - Fall 2026

planned
planned
Plan Adoption

Fall 2026