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Commission junks quick turnaround on department rule change
A proposed update to the city code that would change the way Austin Resource Recovery is run was definitively shot down by the Zero Waste Advisory Commission at its last meeting, but will be considered at this Thursday’s City Council meeting. The ordinance would change how the department modifies its administrative rules in order to make the process compliant with the city charter and in line with the council-manager form of government.
Austin Water sends conservation plan to City Council without support of key task force
Proposals to overhaul Austin’s drought response rules and update long-term conservation goals will go to City Council for a vote this week without the support of a city advisory panel charged with vetting water policy. When Austin Water released its new plans earlier this month, members of the city’s...
Music insiders see opportunity as Austinite takes over at Texas Music Office
The news that the next director of the Texas Music Office will be a longtime Austinite with decades of music industry experience is seen as a positive for advocates of the local music economy. Over the weekend, news broke that Brendon Anthony plans to step down from the director position next week after nearly a decade, with Chip Adams slated to take over the top job.
Did rejection of Parks Board appointee have a deeper meaning?
On April 3, the name Ted Eubanks was on the list of members of the public who were expected to be appointed to various boards and commissions at the following day’s City Council meeting. But on April 4, Eubanks’ name was not on the final version of the list. Council Member Mackenzie Kelly had nominated him for the Parks and Recreation Board, but for some reason she withdrew his name before the final list was released.
Last week’s State of the County speech points to a brighter future after historic challenges
Travis County Judge Andy Brown’s past three years of service have been a lesson in navigating disaster. In his State of the County speech last week, he recalled his term being host to a time when the Austin-Travis County area was hit with “a once-in-a-century pandemic, two historic winter storms, destructive wildfires and an increasingly restrictive and authoritarian state Legislature.”
Austin ISD plans to cut at least $30 million from its next budget
The Austin Independent School District is working on ways to cut its $60 million budget deficit in half during the next school year, while trying to limit the impact it will have on classrooms. Austin ISD is one of the many Central Texas districts facing tough choices because the state’s...
Community Foundation unveils $15M fund for affordable, permanent supportive housing
Developers of affordable housing and permanent supportive housing units for unhoused people could soon receive financial assistance from a new Austin Community Foundation fund intended to fill gaps in the financing for those subsidized projects. Last week, the foundation announced it had raised $15 million for its Housing Accelerator Loan...
Downtown Commission seeks funding for new anti-graffiti department
Sick of seeing your neighborhood sidewalks, street signs and parks defaced but unsure where to turn? Austin’s Downtown Commission is here to help, with plans to create a new Department of Nuisance Abatement to tackle the city’s graffiti problem. Laid out in a recommendation to City Council, the...
Ahead of May vote, Council hears staff feedback for revised South Central Waterfront plan
Planning Department staff explained to a portion of City Council members this week why they intend to move forward with only about half of the Planning Commission’s suggested changes to the South Central Waterfront Plan. At a combined meeting of the Mobility Committee and the Housing and Planning Committee,...
Legal showdown threatens to end Austin’s light-rail plans
Austin’s voter-backed transit expansion faced a critical legal test Wednesday inside a courtroom on Guadalupe Street. Seated in front of a marble wall and flanked by Texas and U.S. flags, Travis County Judge Eric Shepperd presided as attorneys in dark suits clashed over the intricacies of state law and public finance.
Austin’s Homeland Security and Emergency Management to get a communication tuneup, among other changes
An update from Ken Snipes, director of Austin’s Homeland Security and Emergency Management, to the Public Safety Committee showed a shifting approach in how the department is being run. Snipes told the committee that, due to “a multitude of threats and threat types,” his department would be shifting to...
Workforce leaders talk how to grow skilled trades pipeline to 10,000+ workers annually
In February 2021, when a deep winter freeze caused burst pipes in homes and businesses all over Austin, a city staffer looking for available plumbers called Tamara Atkinson, CEO of Workforce Solutions Capital Area and one of the local experts in training for skilled trades jobs. The news she had...
Central Health board focuses on equity as it expands access to specialty care
Following a 2018 performance review, Travis County hospital district Central Health analyzed the county health care system, searching for service gaps among its target safety-net population. The county queried its population’s access to eight lines of service, from primary to specialty and dental care. The report returned checkered in...
Amid worsening drought, Austin Water floats updates on conservation and drought contingency plan
As Austinites prepare for another round of scorching temperatures, stewards of their dwindling water supply are strategizing, with updates to the city’s Water Conservation and Drought Contingency Plan expected to hit City Council’s desk next week. The new plan, which outlines targets for per capita water usage and...
Travis County tests out program to provide lawyers for low-income defendants at its downtown jail
After years of back and forth, Travis County is taking a small step to provide lawyers for low-income people accused of crimes. A program known as “counsel at first appearance” started in a limited capacity Tuesday, with the county providing lawyers at the downtown court this week to defendants who can’t afford legal representation. The county said lawyers would be available at pretrial hearings from 2-10 p.m. on Tuesday and Thursday.
Design Commission hears how buildings can be safer for birds
No city in Texas has adopted bird-friendly building policies for new construction or retrofits, but the Travis Audubon Society hopes Austin, a designated “Bird City,” will lead the way. To advance this cause, the organization enlisted Heidi Trudell, a consultant and researcher on preventing bird collisions, to prepare...
Why is someone suing to get Travis County DA José Garza out of office – and what comes next?
A Travis County resident is trying to remove District Attorney José Garza from office. Betsy Dupuis filed a lawsuit Friday under House Bill 17, which allows anyone in a county to try to remove that county’s top prosecutor. Her complaint is similar to a previous one filed against the DA. Dupuis also told KXAN that Garza’s office mishandled a case after she accused someone of sexual assault.
Downtown Commission suggests tweaks to ‘agent of change’ noise requirements
The Downtown Commission wants the city to take a more proactive role in a proposed new measure that seeks to address friction over noise levels between new residential developments and existing music venues. Last week’s meeting included a presentation on a pending requirement that would force developers building within 600...
City budget writers outline some rate increases
For Austin, like most other Texas cities, property taxes are its single largest source of revenue for the General Fund. The second-biggest revenue source is sales taxes, as explained by Budget Officer Kerri Lang at Tuesday’s City Council work session. Overall, for homeowners paying fees in the typical range,...
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