TRUDY'S TEXAS STAR, INC. v. City of Austin

OPINION

BOB PEMBERTON, Justice.

This case requires us to consider circumstances in which a municipality’s regulatory discretion can be limited by estoppel or contract. Trudy’s Texas Star, Inc. d/b/a South Congress Café (Trudy’s) appeals a final summary judgment granting the City of Austin declaratory and injunctive relief requiring Trudy’s to tear down an outdoor deck and other improvements it had constructed behind an existing restaurant building. There is no dispute that Trudy’s constructed the improvements without obtaining advance approvals and permits from the City, as the City Code…