'Dog's Head' in Austin: Developer gives inside look at controversial project

AUSTIN, Texas - We're getting an inside look from the developer of a controversial project in an area called "Dog's Head." 

What is ‘Dog’s Head'?

The backstory:

Last month, there was lots of pushback when Austin City Council approved the development to move forward on land recently annexed by the city. 

The area will be a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ), which means, as property values and taxes in the area rise in increments, that goes into a fund to pay for the cost of building infrastructure. The developer takes on the risk, not the city or tenants. 

Dog's Head is an area of 2,614 acres surrounded by the Colorado River and U.S. Highway 183 that's shaped like a dog's head. It used to be a sand and gravel mining site. 

An inside look of ‘Dog’s Head'

Dig deeper:

Andy Pastor, managing principal with Endeavor Real Estate Group, gave FOX 7 a tour of the site. A lot of it is in the reclamation process, which is restoring land that's been mined. 

Developers will preserve the area around the river and create 6.5 miles of hike-and-bike trails along it. A body of water called Bailey Hole will be a recreational area. 

"An important part of the project is to provide public access to the river that has never been available," Pastor said. 

Dog's Head will have residences, businesses, plus office space. Right now, concrete is being recycled to be turned into a road base. Rebar will be reused as construction material. 

There has been pushback from people worried about environmental effects, possible displacement, level of outreach, and only benefiting large companies. Amazon, if they close the deal, will be a tenant. 

FOX 7 asked Pastor if anyone would lose their homes or be displaced. 

"No one is losing their homes. We have 2,600 acres here. It's a lot to develop, and it's a big opportunity, but also a big responsibility to make sure it's done right, and we take it seriously," he said. 

FOX 7 also asked, "There's also been a lot of criticism about Amazon. A lot of residents think this is just going to benefit billionaires. What's your response to that?"

"In order to develop the area, and in order to create jobs for the community, we're going to need to bring businesses in. Amazon is, if they come here, they're actually coming in a unique fashion. They're not asking for any incentives from the county, the city, or the state," he said. 

FOX 7 asked Pastor, "a lot of the residents were saying they felt this was done under the table, they weren't informed of how they could speak out when this was being discussed. What would you say to them?"

"The annexation process is distinctly different from a PUD or a zoning process. That goes through all the different boards and commissions. The annexation does not," Pastor said. "We're in the process of community outreach. We are meeting with neighbors, stakeholders that want to learn about the project."

The other side:

PODER, an environmental justice group, is part of the Dog's Head Coalition, a group concerned about development. 

"We can't really believe what the developers are saying because we saw that in the 45-year contract agreement that they're exempt from a lot of the regulations that everyday commercial and residential people have to adhere to," Susana Almanza, director of PODER, said. 

She doesn't think there was enough outreach done. 

"We have an 89 percent Latino population in that area and, so when you talk about community engagement or community outreach, the Latino population does not know what's about to happen in that area, so there really hasn't been community engagement with everyone," Almanza said. "We're actually looking at the regulating plans. We're also looking at possible legal action on the whole contract and the TIRZ that was passed, so we're not sitting still, because we really believe in protecting those 2,614 acres that are in Dog's Head."

What's next:

The regulating plan will have to go through the Planning Commission and City Council. Financial plans for the TIRZ will go before Council next year.

Endeavor has created a website with more information, FAQs, and to submit questions.