The new area for a soccer stadium in Austin could include affordable housing apartment units. AUSTIN — As Austinites gear up for the possibility of having a Major League Soccer stadium at McKalla Place in North Austin, they can also visualize an affordable housing complex in close proximity to the multi-million dollar venue. Tuesday, representatives with Precourt Sports Ventures and Foundation Communities, an Austin nonprofit focused on providing affordable housing to families with children, veterans, seniors and people with disabilities, released an updated site plan for the 25-acre McKalla Place that includes an area for 130 affordable housing units in a four-story building. Next to the apartments, the plan highlights an area for a 600-car parking structure that is also four levels. Precourt Sports Ventures' attorney Richard Suttle said their plan is to revitalize the area and ensure a benefit for the community because he said, "we know what an important issue [affordable housing] is in Austin." Other areas inside of the hypothetical McKalla Place stadium include about 1,000 parking spaces, open park space, a music/performance space, a bicycle valet, a service dock, a detention and biofiltration pond, and a rail station (optional) and crosswalk. The City Council is set to vote on a few items related to the stadium at its meeting Thursday and members discussed them at Tuesday's work session. Item 130 directs the city manager to analyze and start negotiations with Precourt Sports Ventures to put the stadium at McKalla Place. But Item 60 instructs him to solicit plans for development of the site. Council Member Leslie Pool, who is the sponsor for Item 60, said the two don't conflict. "Ultimately my hope is that both of these items pass. Both 60 and 130. We can continue this conversation with everything in front of us and have all our options on the table and make a really, really good and defensible decision for the long term benefit of the Austin community," she said. But other members disagreed, citing concerns with soliciting proposals, which can be a lengthy and costly process, with no clear direction on what the site should be used for. Some also raised issues with soliciting requests while negotiating to build a stadium in the same location. PHOTOS: Potential soccer stadium at McKalla Place 1/3 2/3 3/3 1 / 3<doc-sep>What was shaping up to be one of the more dramatic nights in the eight-month Crew SC relocation saga took an anticlimactic turn Thursday evening. Austin City Council geared up to discuss two agenda items related to McKalla Place, a city-owned 24-acre parcel eyed by Crew operator Precourt Sports Ventures as a stadium site since March and detailed in a 189-page stadium proposal in June. One item — No. 130, sponsored by Mayor Steve Adler, Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo and council members Delia Garza and Sabino “Pio” Renteria — would permit negotiations with PSV for a stadium at McKalla Place, with an update for the council at its next meeting, Aug. 9. Another resolution — No. 60, sponsored by council members Leslie Pool, Alison Alter, Ellen Troxclair and Ora Houston — would set up a process for other proposals to be presented at the same time. Hours before the vote was scheduled to take place late Thursday, both resolutions were considered likely to pass, with council members Ann Kitchen and Greg Casar, not listed as sponsors on either agenda item, indicating their support for both. So did Tovo. Adler, indicating that both items were likely to pass, allowed for a group of young soccer supporters to speak in front of the council dais and head home so they did not have to sit through a lengthy bond discussion that was taken up first. After public comment both for and against the possibility of a soccer stadium at McKalla and discussion that wrapped up just before 5 a.m. Eastern time Friday, the path forward in Austin has been cemented. Council passed item 130 unanimously, with Houston and Troxclair absent, and passed item 60 with eight votes for, a Renteria vote against, a Garza abstention and Troxclair off the dais. The council also unanimously passed item 117, which authorizes the negotiation of a contract with Greenberg Traurig, LLP for soccer stadium development legal services “in an amount not to exceed $200,000.” >>Join our Columbus Crew SC Fans Facebook group for the latest news, updates and to join in on the conversation. “Precourt Sports Ventures is pleased and grateful that Austin City Council has voted a unanimous 'yes' to enter into negotiations for a public-private partnership to develop a privately-funded stadium and soccer park at McKalla Place," PSV said in a statement. "We have heard from a large number of Austinites, across all districts and backgrounds that the community remains strongly in favor of bringing MLS to Austin. "We have acted as a collaborative partner with the city and remain optimistic on the prospects of negotiating a deal with the city on MLS2ATX. Our focus remains on creating a community asset that the vast majority of Austinites want." The relatively drama-free passage of the two resolutions came after changes were made to each in the last two days. A revised draft of the soccer resolution, No. 130, included language further outlining how the city manager in negotiations might scrutinize the financial soundness of PSV and minimize Austin’s liabilities and costs related to a potential stadium process. It also added an item that would require PSV to work with Capital Metro, the city’s transportation authority, to fully fund a Metro Rail station near the stadium site. PSV’s site plans have included a relocated Kramer station rail stop as optional. Capital Metro has estimated the price of the project at $13 million. An Austin city staff report published Thursday recommended that the process laid out in item 60 not be a competitive solicitation of bids but rather city collecting bids for the site through Aug. 3. PSV over the past two weeks has expressed opposition to item 60, indicating that the proposal calls for a longer process that would delay its stadium efforts. Pool updated the resolution’s language Thursday to follow the city staff’s language and indicate that the city intends to receive, not solicit bids. She also included specific mention of proposals being addressed at the Aug. 9 meeting. Crew investor-operator Anthony Precourt was on hand at City Hall, having made his first appearance of the day at a news conference in which several Austin chambers of commerce endorsed item 130. He returned prior to the McKalla discussion with PSV President Dave Greeley and lobbyist Richard Suttle to deliver rare public comments. “It’s been an honor to bring the vision of Major League Soccer to this great city of Austin, Texas, a city that I have enjoyed for many years,” Precourt said. “As one of the youngest investor-operators of an MLS franchise, the youthful energy, inclusiveness and the spirit of this community presents an incredible opportunity for this club to do its part to bring the city closer together.” He told council PSV is “committed to bringing Austin its first major professional soccer team.” “We are committing to working with you to develop an acceptable proposal for your consideration on Aug. 9,” he said. “It is important for us to bring this city a Major League Soccer team.” After Houston proposed an amendment suggesting council push discussions on McKalla to Aug. 23, Suttle hinted at time pressure faced by PSV, likely from MLS. “We actually have a deadline that we’re getting extended that is prior to Aug. 9,” Suttle said. “Aug. 9 is a very important date for us. We were disappointed that we couldn’t get this done before the summer break and pushing it to the 23rd is problematic for us while we’re trying to get into a new stadium here in March of 2021. It is problematic for us to keep pushing this.” Council ultimately did not include the amendments and will discuss proposals Aug. 9. Several council members indicated they view a Major League Soccer team as a strong community asset. Tovo said she can see it as something for the community to “rally around.” Garza called it a “great opportunity to unify this community.” That support, however, came with caveats. Multiple council members said they would not support a deal that does not include significant community benefits. Casar said a minimum of 130 affordable housing units is a requirement for his support. Others, like Renteria, made note that they want the city manager to ensure Austin is not left “holding the bag” financially with a bad deal. Alter was more direct with her concerns, looking directly at Precourt as she spoke. “Mr. Precourt, your first offer was not good enough for our community,” she said. “Whether or not you meet your Aug. 9 deadline is going to depend on how you approach this process. I invite you to approach this process as an investment in our community as a place that you want to stay over the long haul and bring all that soccer can bring to our community.” Council member Jimmy Flannigan said Thursday’s vote was merely a step as opposed to final approval for PSV. “I don’t want anyone to think in the community that the initial deal that was put out — that is initial but not final — is somehow being blessed as a final deal,” he said. “The decision that we make in August is not predetermined.” A Crew SC spokesman similarly noted that, to date, no final decisions have been made regarding the team's future. “As Precourt Sports Ventures continues to evaluate the best available options to secure the long-term sustainability of the Club, it is important to note that no final determinations have resulted from the June 28 session of Austin City Council," the spokesman said in a statement. "Normal business operations continue in Columbus for 2018, and Crew SC remains focused on winning an MLS Cup title.” It’s unclear how many private developers plan to step forward for Aug. 9 consideration, but two, Capella Capital Partners and a group led by Marcus Whitfield and John Chen, have expressed interest in building a mixed-use development at McKalla Place. Whitfield, whose group made an unsolicited $22.5 million offer earlier this month to buy McKalla Place, said this week that his group won’t have issues coming up with a “robust” proposal by Aug. 9. “We have a good team, a really good team of people that we’re working with, so I think we’re going to continue to hit this hard,” he said. “(Thursday) will be an indication of how we progress, but we’re still progressing at 100 percent.” The two early Friday votes set up another dramatic council meeting, one that’s now more than a month away. aerickson@dispatch.com @AEricksonCD<doc-sep>
The resolution directs the city manager to analyze a proposal to begin negotiations for an MLS soccer stadium in North Austin. AUSTIN -- The Austin City Council voted on Thursday to approve a resolution directing Austin City Manager Spencer Cronk to analyze a proposal from Precourt Sports Ventures to begin negotiations for a new Major League Soccer stadium at 10414 McKalla Place. The decision comes after months of debate and consideration for the new site of the first MLS facility in the City of Austin. On Tuesday, three of Austin's area chambers of commerce -- the Austin LGBT Chamber of Commerce, the Greater Austin Chamber of Commerce, and the Greater Austin Hispanic Chamber of Commerce -- announced their support for the council item sponsored by Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo, Mayor Steve Adler, Council Member Sabino "Pio" Renteria and Council Member Delia Garza. Ahead of the vote, Kathy Tovo, Mayor Pro Tem for the City of Austin, acknowledged the large crowd of community members, some even children, gathered at the meeting and how MLS in Austin could benefit the city's youth. "Being able to see major league soccer players here in Austin would give a visual goal for all those young people. I think major league soccer will be good for our community, I think it will give us a unifying and rallying cry, and I'm also really excited about the benefits that it will include and children who will benefit from seeing those players out on the field." On Friday morning, Precourt Sports Ventures, the company that wants to bring the Columbus Crew MLS from Ohio to Austin, released the following statement in response to the vote by Austin City Council members: "Precourt Sports Ventures is pleased and grateful that Austin City Council has voted a unanimous 'yes' to enter into negotiations for a public-private partnership to develop a privately-funded stadium and soccer park at McKalla Place. We have heard from a large number of Austinites, across all districts and backgrounds that the community remains strongly in favor of bringing MLS to Austin. We have acted as a collaborative partner with the city and remain optimistic on the prospects of negotiating a deal with the city on MLS2ATX. Our focus remains on creating a community asset that the vast majority of Austinites want." Our goal is to be in a position to enter into an agreement on a public-private partnership with the city by the next council meeting on August 9. We thank Mayor Adler, Mayor Pro Tem Tovo and all council members who voted to support this next step in the process. We also thank city staff, Austin soccer supporters, local soccer clubs and affiliated families, local businesses and chambers of commerce, and the countless volunteers that have worked tirelessly to give the community what it wants—Major League Soccer." The chambers of commerce spoke before the city council meeting: RELATED: The chambers also announced joint opposition against a separate item, Item 60, which starts a request-for-proposals process for McKalla Place. The delay could end Austin's chance to get an MLS team for the foreseeable future, the chambers said in a joint statement. Other community members tell KVUE they're disappointed in the council's decision to move forward with negotiations, and want the council to slow down the process.