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Austin Monitor
Austin’s neighbors lead the country in population growth (again)
Four of the top five fastest-growing cities in the U.S. are in Texas, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Georgetown tops the list, as it did last year, with Kyle and Leander in the No. 3 and 4 spots, respectively. Little Elm, north of Dallas, placed fifth on the annual list.
Public Safety Commission greenlights license-plate reader program amid police pushback
The Public Safety Commission voted unanimously on Monday that City Council approve a pilot program reinstating the Austin Police Department’s license-plate reader program – with caveats. Council is due to revisit a new contract for license-plate reader systems and related services with a third-party vendor at its Thursday...
Council to vote on payment for wrongful death
City Council is scheduled to vote today on paying the plaintiffs more than $3 million in a wrongful death case brought by the mother of a child whose father died while working a construction job in Austin. Jaime Membreno, a 26-year-old citizen of El Salvador, died in 2009 when he...
Updated: Airport Advisory Commission does not move approve working relationship with Environmental Commission
Though it won the votes of the majority of Airport Advisory Commissioners in attendance, due to vacancies the group did not approve a resolution establishing a working relationship with the city’s Environmental Commission with regard to the environmental impacts of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport expansion projects. At the commission’s May...
TipSheet: Austin City Council, 5.18.23
Once again, this Thursday, Council will convene for their regular meeting. The nitty-gritty of said meeting can be found online, as usual, but we’ve taken some time to read through and make somewhat-educated guesses about what might be interesting today. As discussed at their most recent Public Safety Committee...
Disability committee wants improved transportation to Austin’s major music venues
Improving transportation for the disabled to the Circuit of the Americas and the H-E-B Center at Cedar Park are two of the early goals for members of the city’s committee for the disabled who may opt to serve on an ongoing task force dedicated to improving accessibility at local music venues.
Creative Alliance pushes for new city department for cultural affairs
The Austin Creative Alliance has asked the city to create a new department focused on funding and support for the creative economy, and cites changes in how the Economic Development Department handles grant funding for arts groups as the latest shortcoming. In a letter sent to members earlier this month,...
City still needs more 911 operators
Although the city has stepped up recruiting efforts considerably for filling vacancies in its 911 call center, there are still 49 vacancies among the 104 positions, according to Maria Calagna, director of emergency communications for the Austin Police Department. Calagna told the Public Safety Commission Monday that the city also...
Travis Audubon gives update on sanctuary and potential environmental peril
Reports of celebration and concern were highlighted at the Balcones Canyonland Conservation Plan (BCCP) Coordinating Committee meeting last Friday. Nicole Netherton, executive director at Travis Audubon, began by giving a general overview of some of the county’s conservation advocacy efforts worth recognizing. “There is certainly a lot to celebrate...
Austin is opening a temporary homeless shelter in Southeast Austin
In light of a growing need for emergency shelter, Austin is repurposing a city-owned warehouse space in Southeast Austin to temporarily house 300 people experiencing homelessness. In a city memo out late last week, interim City Manager Jesús Garza said a portion of the warehouse near U.S. Highway 183 and...
County and city collaborate on robust mental health program ahead of diversion facility launch
With the wheels officially in motion for Travis County’s Mental Health Diversion Center, City Hall is doing its own work to scale up the mental health services that will be key to its success. In honor of Mental Health Awareness Month, City Council’s Public Health Committee spent last week’s...
Former city employee abused sick leave policy, audit says
A former employee of the city’s Animal Services Department misused city resources by claiming sick leave after getting a new job at Travis County, according to a report from the Office of the City Auditor. The audit says Luis Negrete, a former animal health technician, took time off from...
Manager, AFSCME at odds over mandates to return to offices
The Covid-19 public health emergency officially ended on Thursday and interim City Manager Jesús Garza wasted no time in telling city employees that they need to spend a lot more time in the office now – no less than three days a week for most and five days a week for executives.
Planning Commission reverses interpretation of environmental rules, allowing housing project to advance
The Planning Commission on Tuesday overruled an interpretation of environmental rules by city staffers, allowing a multifamily project to move forward at the intersection of Ben White and South Lamar boulevards. At issue was a disagreement over how a combination of city environmental protection rules apply to a site at...
State police suspend controversial patrol agreement with Austin
The Austin Police Department says the Texas Department of Public Safety is ending its partnership with the city of Austin to supplement police patrols. APD told KUT Saturday that troopers were being reassigned to the Texas border following the expiration of Title 42, a Trump-era restriction on migration. In a...
Why are parking garages a part of the Zilker Vision Plan?
City Council’s Mobility Committee learned more about the mobility aspects, in particular the proposed parking garages, of the Zilker Vision Plan at its meeting Thursday. The city released the draft of the vision plan in September. The document, which runs more than 200 pages, encompasses ecological restoration and uplift, park programming, education and outreach, and transportation and mobility. Certain mobility aspects, in particular an option in the plan that calls for an underground parking garage, have drawn public scrutiny.
Tourism Commission seeks answers on stalled hotel tax to fund homeless services
The Tourism Commission wants to take a hard look at the lack of progress on, and new considerations involved in, the long-discussed taxing district that could see large hotels contribute a new tax levy toward costs associated with homelessness. Next month, the commission will receive a presentation from Scott Joslove,...
Salvation Army’s downtown homeless shelter is being sold and redeveloped
The Salvation Army is selling the site of its shelter for homeless Austinites downtown. The shelter shut down abruptly last month. The national nonprofit retained the developer CBRE to sell the site, which is expected to fetch millions. Salvation Army Austin Commander Major Lewis Reckline said profits from the sale...
City’s animal commission OKs cat educator
The Animal Advisory Commission unanimously approved a motion for a second permanent position for community cat public health educator last Monday. The Community Cats program in Austin helps the thousands of free-roaming cats in the city remain healthy and safe in their natural homes – whether that is outdoors or in a house. The program provides resources like free spay/neuter services and non-urgent medical care, and relies on volunteers and other members of the community to keep neighboring cats and kittens from danger and disease.
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Five days a week, we bring you the news from Austin City Hall, Travis County Commissioners Court, and multiple other civic entities that make key decisions for central Texas. We stick to the facts. We aim to be fair. When we err, we correct it fast.
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