Round Rock is expected to see 3,529 new residential developments this year, providing residents with more Housing options.

According to Brad Wiseman, the city’s director of planning and development, the new housing units will diversify the city’s housing market with more townhouses, senior homes and single-family condominiums.

Wiseman said there is a higher demand for more housing options than just apartments and single-family homes. He said prices in the rental market are allowing the city to create more housing options, such as townhouses or urban lofts with elevators and parking facilities, as in urban areas.

“(Round Rock housing) is changing and growing,” Wiseman said. “The types of housing products are diversifying and demand as well as supply is increasing to a very large extent.”

According to a city report, Round Rock’s population grew by more than 5,000 people from 2020 to 2022 and is projected to increase by almost 75,000 over the next 20 years.

More:Report: Round Rock’s population will grow by almost 75,000 in 20 years

The city will receive new apartments this year from more than 6,000 housing units approved by the city council in 2022, Wiseman said. Of the new developments, 2,068 of the new apartments will be multi-family, 710 seniors, 435 townhouses and 316 single-family apartments, according to a list of developments provided by Wiseman.

New residential buildings will appear in the city:

• Larkspur at 1355 Avery Nelson Parkway Avery Center
• Legacy Senior Residences II at 1551 N. Red Bud Lane
• Reserve for the university at 725 University Blvd.
• Intersection in Palm Valley at 2001 Vista Plateau Boulevard.
• Frontera Ridge Apartments at 2880 Frontera Dr.
• Aura Avery Center II at 3550 N. AW Grimes Blvd.
• Warner Ranch Apartments at 2670 S. AW Grimes Blvd.
• Lantana in Round Rock at 4600 N. Mays St.
• Stillwell at Avery Center at 1400 Avery Nelson Parkway.
• Homestead in Old Settlers Park Townhouses in 1850 Settlers Glen Dr.
• Depot, south of Baghdad Avenue from Mays Street to Burnet Street.
• Schultz Towns at 18909 Schultz Lane
• Townhouses in Gattis at 2600 Gattis School Road
• Sonoma Heights at 2500 Forest Creek
• Arrington Ridge II at 601 University Blvd.
• Quick Ranch at 3200 and 3201 College Park
• Chester Ranch PUD at 1477 N. County Road 122.
• PUD Chisholm Trail at 3000 Chisholm Trail Dr.

Round Rock’s housing vision, as part of the City of Round Rock’s 2030 comprehensive plan, is to “create a mix of housing types in the city to meet the needs and preferences of all residents at all stages of life.” The plan prioritizes small-scale multi-family developments and housing for the elderly.

Wiseman said the city has historically had single-family subdivisions and apartment complexes, but housing units have diversified over the years. The plan aims to help limit two- and three-story apartment buildings to 20% of the housing stock, to the extent possible, except when located in mixed-use and multi-use areas.

Wiseman said the city’s goal is to provide residents with more housing options.

“It’s very exciting to see this happening in Round Rock because it just opens up our community to all types of people who are looking for different housing options, as opposed to those who are only looking for single-family or three-story housing. apartments,” Wiseman said.

He said that the diversification of housing units is also good from an economic point of view. as it can help attract employers and business opportunities.

According to the comprehensive plan, between 2010 and 2018, the number of housing units increased by more than 8,500 units, or 24%. Of the 6,000 residential units approved in 2022, 4,834 are multi-unit buildings, 1,418 are townhouses, 225 are single-family home lots, and 65 are single-family condominiums, according to a list of residential projects published by Wiseman.

The comprehensive plan, which was approved in 2022, states that about 6,500 units are under development. Most of them are single-family houses. According to the plan, in 2020-2021, 1,569 single-family houses were under construction, and 2,118 units were in the planning stage. In 2020-21, 307 townhouses were in the planning stage, 1,210 apartment buildings were under construction, 654 were in the planning stage, 146 nursing homes were in the construction stage, and 557 were in the planning stage.

The city’s comprehensive plan is also focused on accessibility, Wiseman said. According to the plan, “nearly half of rental households spend more than 30% of their income on gross rent, a level that the US Department of Housing and Urban Development considers burdensome.”

Wiseman said that to meet the affordable housing component, the City Council is supporting tax relief projects and approving housing estates with higher density and higher heights. Wiseman said the lack of density and height restrictions could affect housing costs.

“So once (you) start allowing for more height, more density, smaller units, that really helps bring the price down and get it in a more affordable range for people,” Wiseman said.