Commercial Base Districts.

Austin City Code tit. 25, ch. 25-2, subch. A, art. 2, div. 3

in effect

Austin City Code § 25-2-91 PURPOSES OF COMMERCIAL DISTRICTS DESIGNATIONS.

§ 25-2-91 - PURPOSES OF COMMERCIAL DISTRICTS DESIGNATIONS. The purposes of the commercial district designations are to: (1) reserve areas for offices, retail stores, and service establishments that provide a broad range of goods and services to residents of Austin and the surrounding area; (2) promote the grouping of office and commercial uses that are convenient for the public and that benefit the uses in a district; (3) ensure adequate access and off-street loading for office and commercial uses and minimize traffic congestion and other adverse effects on nearby land uses; (4) encourage high standards of site planning, architecture, and landscape design for office and commercial development in the City; (5) facilitate the planning for and provision of infrastructure improvements to meet traffic, commercial, and public service needs generated by the residents of Austin; and (6) promote energy conservation. Source: Section 13-2-60; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11; Ord. No. 20231102-028, Pt. 2, 11-13-23.

Austin City Code § 25-2-92 COMMERCIAL DISTRICT DESIGNATIONS GENERALLY.

§ 25-2-92 - COMMERCIAL DISTRICT DESIGNATIONS GENERALLY. There are 13 commercial district designations. The designation established for a proposed commercial use is based on: (1) type of use; (2) customer base; (3) location; (4) surrounding uses; (5) traffic generation; and (6) other factors determined to be relevant by the council. Source: Sections 13-2-60 through 13-2-73; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-93 NEIGHBORHOOD OFFICE (NO) DISTRICT DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-93 - NEIGHBORHOOD OFFICE (NO) DISTRICT DESIGNATION. Neighborhood office (NO) district is the designation for a small office use that serves neighborhood or community needs, is located in or adjacent to a residential neighborhood and on a collector street that has a width of 40 feet or more, and does not unreasonably affect traffic. An office in an NO district may contain not more than one use. Site development regulations applicable to an NO district use are designed to preserve compatibility with existing neighborhoods through renovation and modernization of existing structures. Source: Section 13-2-61; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-94 LIMITED OFFICE (LO) DISTRICT DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-94 - LIMITED OFFICE (LO) DISTRICT DESIGNATION. Limited office (LO) district is the designation for an office use that serves neighborhood or community needs and that is located in or adjacent to residential neighborhoods. An office in an LO district may contain one or more different uses. Site development regulations and performance standards applicable to an LO district use are designed to ensure that the use is compatible and complementary in scale and appearance with the residential environment. Source: Section 13-2-62; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-95 GENERAL OFFICE (GO) DISTRICT DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-95 - GENERAL OFFICE (GO) DISTRICT DESIGNATION. General office (GO) district is the designation for an office or commercial use that serves community and city-wide needs. A building in a GO district may contain one or more different uses. Source: Section 13-2-63; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-96 COMMERCIAL RECREATION (CR) DISTRICT DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-96 - COMMERCIAL RECREATION (CR) DISTRICT DESIGNATION. Commercial recreation (CR) district is the designation for a commercial or recreation use that serves visitors to major recreational areas, including Lake Travis and Lake Austin. Site development regulations applicable to a CR district use are designed to minimize visual and environmental disruptions of scenic views. Source: Section 13-2-64; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-97 NEIGHBORHOOD COMMERCIAL (LR) DISTRICT DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-97 - NEIGHBORHOOD COMMERCIAL (LR) DISTRICT DESIGNATION. Neighborhood commercial (LR) district is the designation for a commercial use that provides business service and office facilities for the residents of a neighborhood. Site development regulations and performance standards applicable to a LR district use are designed to ensure that the use is compatible and complementary in scale and appearance with the residential environment. Source: Section 13-2-65; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-98 COMMUNITY COMMERCIAL (GR) DISTRICT DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-98 - COMMUNITY COMMERCIAL (GR) DISTRICT DESIGNATION. Community commercial (GR) district is the designation for an office or other commercial use that serves neighborhood and community needs and that generally is accessible from major traffic ways. Source: Section 13-2-66; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-99 LAKE COMMERCIAL (L) DISTRICT DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-99 - LAKE COMMERCIAL (L) DISTRICT DESIGNATION. Lake commercial (L) district is the designation for a use located near Town Lake. An L district designation may be applied to a development that includes any combination of office retail, commercial, and residential uses. Use and site development regulations applicable to an L district use are designed to ensure that the use is compatible and complementary with the Town Lake environment. Source: Section 13-2-67; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-100 CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT (CBD) DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-100 - CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT (CBD) DESIGNATION. (A) Central business district (CBD) is the designation for an office, commercial, residential, or civic use located in the downtown area. (B) Site development regulations applicable to a CBD district use are designed to: (1) ensure that a CBD use is compatible with the commercial, cultural, historical, and governmental significance of downtown and preserves selected views of the Capitol; (2) promote the downtown area as a vital commercial retail area; (3) create a network of pleasant public spaces and pedestrian amenities in the downtown area; (4) enhance existing structures, historic features, and circulation patterns in the downtown area; and (5) consider significant natural features and topography in the downtown area. Source: Section 13-2-68; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-101 DOWNTOWN MIXED USE (DMU) DISTRICT DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-101 - DOWNTOWN MIXED USE (DMU) DISTRICT DESIGNATION. Downtown mixed use (DMU) district is the designation for a use located on the periphery of an area that has a CBD designation. A DMU district designation may be applied to a development that includes any combination of office retail, commercial, and residential uses and that is compatible with the downtown area. A DMU district use with an intermediate density may be used as a transition between the downtown area and surrounding districts. A DMU district is suitable for an area to which the central business district may expand. Source: Section 13-2-69; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-102 WAREHOUSE/LIMITED OFFICE (W/LO) DISTRICT DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-102 - WAREHOUSE/LIMITED OFFICE (W/LO) DISTRICT DESIGNATION. Warehouse/limited office (W/LO) district is the designation for an office or warehouse use for a building trade or other business that does not require a highly visible location or generate substantial volumes of heavy truck traffic, that generates low or moderate vehicular trips, and that requires less access than a retail use. A W/LO district use may require special measures to be compatible with adjacent uses. A W/LO district use may be located on a site that is adjacent to or near an arterial or major nonresidential collector street, adjacent to a rail line, or near existing or proposed employment uses. A W/LO district use may also be located on a site that functions as a transition between commercial and industrial uses. A W/LO district use may be located adjacent to a residential use only if the density of the residential development is higher than a typical single-family density or if the physical conditions of the site allow for buffering and project design to mitigate potential adverse effects. Source: Section 13-2-70; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-103 GENERAL COMMERCIAL SERVICES (CS) DISTRICT DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-103 - GENERAL COMMERCIAL SERVICES (CS) DISTRICT DESIGNATION. General commercial services (CS) district is the designation for a commercial or industrial use of a service nature that has operating characteristics or traffic service requirements that are incompatible with residential environments. Source: Section 13-2-71; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-104 COMMERCIAL-LIQUOR SALES (CS-1) DISTRICT DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-104 - COMMERCIAL-LIQUOR SALES (CS-1) DISTRICT DESIGNATION. Commercial-liquor sales (CS-1) district is the designation for a commercial or industrial use of a service nature that has operating characteristics or traffic service requirements that are incompatible with residential environments. Liquor sales is one of the permitted uses in a CS-1 district. Source: Section 13-2-72; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Austin City Code § 25-2-105 COMMERCIAL HIGHWAY SERVICES (CH) DISTRICT DESIGNATION.

§ 25-2-105 - COMMERCIAL HIGHWAY SERVICES (CH) DISTRICT DESIGNATION. (A) Commercial highway services (CH) district is the designation for a use that has operating and traffic generation characteristics that require that the use be located at the intersection of state maintained highways other than scenic arterial roadways. A CH district designation may be applied to a single major mixed use development of a service nature that includes any combination of office, retail, commercial, and residential uses. A CH district may include a high density residential use. Site development regulations and performance standards applicable to a CH district are designed to ensure adequate access to and from all uses. (B) A CH district may be located along the following highway corridors: (1) IH-35; (2) US-183; (3) US-290 (including Ben White Boulevard); (4) SH-71; (5) FM-1325 north of US-183; and (6) Loop 1, at least 400 feet north of the northernmost right-of-way line of US 183. Source: Section 13-2-73; Ord. 990225-70; Ord. 031211-11.

Source: City of Austin, City Code and City Charter (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/tx/austin/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=TIT25LADE_CH25-2ZO_SUBCHAPTER_AZOUSDIMADIDE_ART2ZODI_DIV3COBADIFetched: 10/27/2026