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Austin Monitor
Austin to offer city manager job to T.C. Broadnax, mayor says
City Council is recommending T.C. Broadnax as the next city manager. Mayor Kirk Watson said Tuesday that Council will finalize his hiring April 4. Broadnax resigned as city manager of Dallas last month after calls from a majority of that city’s council. He had had a tense relationship with the mayor and some council members for years, making it difficult for the city to get anything done.
Report finds mixed progress in APD’s work to implement police academy reforms
In assessing the latest analysis of the Austin Police Department’s Training Academy, members of City Council stressed the importance of a comprehensive audit system to ensure that years and money spent to improve the academy aren’t wasted. Concerns over the audits for the training process of each academy...
Some vulnerable residents can’t use Austin Energy’s program
Some Austin Energy customers who are categorized as medically vulnerable and need electricity to operate life-saving equipment have not been able to sign up for the utility’s program to assist them in emergency situations, according to an audit report from the Austin Office of the City Auditor. Members of City Council’s Audit and Finance Committee are scheduled to hear a report at this morning’s meeting on what auditors learned and what they recommend to resolve some problems with the program.
City manager candidates talk public safety, homelessness, transparency in town hall Q&A
The two candidates for Austin’s city manager position each made their case to the public Monday for why they should be chosen for the job. Sara Hensley, the current city manager of Denton, Texas, and T.C. Broadnax, current but soon departing city manager of Dallas, fielded questions for about 30 minutes each in an interview in front of a live audience moderated by journalist Judy Maggio.
Charter Review Commission sends its recommendations to Council
The Charter Review Commission has wrapped up its evaluation of possible charter revisions relating to petition requirements, among other items, and has submitted its final report to City Council with nine recommendations. Council will ultimately decide which items will be placed on the November ballot. In its 2023 resolution creating...
New report quantifies the state of Black Austin
On March 11, the community organization Austin Justice Coalition and data activism nonprofit Measure jointly released a report titled “The State of Black Lives in Austin.”. Drawing on Austin Justice Coalition’s deep community ties and Measure’s statistical expertise, the dossier’s 64 pages condemn the city of Austin for its failure to invest in and address Black communities in Austin – whose numbers have been declining since at least 2000 – and present a series of urgent needs elucidated by Measure’s comprehensive study.
Study finds city employees distrustful of city’s ethics conduct
City employees who responded to a survey on the city’s behavior with regard to ethics gave the city lower marks for trust and accountability as compared to how city management rated the city. Employees surveyed also showed a greater fear of retaliation for reporting ethics violations than management respondents did.
Environmental commissioners air concerns about waterfront district plan
A proposed framework for how the south shores of Lady Bird Lake will build out in future years received a lukewarm response from the Environmental Commission on Thursday. While only the Planning Commission and City Council are scheduled to vote on the draft regulating plan in April and May, the fact that several commissioners expressed concerns about the draft could be considered in Council’s deliberations of the South Central Waterfront Combining District & Density Bonus Program.
Downtown Commission reviews plan for equitable historic preservation
Members of the Downtown Commission debated and mostly praised the draft version of the city’s Equity-Based Preservation Plan, which is open for public feedback through the end of May. At last week’s meeting, the commission looked beyond the scope of the downtown core to express concerns and hopes related...
Travis County approves ambitious ‘Marshall Plan’ for northeast planning district
According to Travis County commissioners and staff, eastern Travis County has long been blighted. Lack of investment and economic opportunities along with displacement and systemic racism have left the area systemically impoverished. In 2024, after years of dilapidation in the area, Travis County and the city of Austin have set...
Austin will spend $87 million on property in Southeast Austin for affordable housing
City Council voted Thursday to spend $87 million to buy 107 acres of land in Southeast Austin for affordable housing. Tokyo Electron, which makes semiconductors and display production equipment, announced in February that it was moving from the site. The city plans to build 1,100 units – some of which will be affordable – on the property. It sits near a future light-rail line.
Council calls for more trees and green infrastructure
On Thursday, City Council approved a step forward for increasing the number of trees in the city as well as promoting pedestrian and bicycle access throughout Austin. The vote was unanimous on the resolution sponsored by Mayor Pro Tem Leslie Pool. After passage of the item on the consent agenda,...
Incentive package for music venues, arts spaces headed for May public hearing
The city is working to make incentives for creative spaces available to individual sites and properties as well as larger cultural districts that have been proposed in city planning documents in recent years. Monday’s Arts Commission meeting included a presentation from Donald Jackson, a business process consultant in the Economic...
Council tackles landscaping emissions with plan to reboot equipment trade-in program
People still clinging to battered old lawn equipment may soon see opportunity for an upgrade, as City Council looks to reboot a “cash for clunkers” exchange program to incentivize eco-friendly landscaping. The resolution, sponsored by Council Member Ryan Alter and passed March 7, directs staff to explore new...
Council members seek changes to food truck permitting
City Council Member José Velásquez knows what it’s like to work with food for a living. According to his website, “José went to work at age 11 in a local panaderia to help his mother with bills. That same year he wrote his first petition to help a classmate out of an unsafe environment. José has not quit working or serving his community since.” Velásquez is the lead author of a resolution on today’s agenda asking interim City Manager Jesús Garza to consider changes to city rules that require food trucks to prove they are mobile and operating up to code by reporting to a city inspection location on Rutherford Lane once a year.
City seeking $191M state loan to cover costs of caps and stitch for I-35
The city will turn to a state loan program as a major source of the funding for the more than $500 million cost of constructing caps and a stitch over Interstate 35 after it is buried and expanded over the course of the next decade. At today’s meeting, City Council...
TipSheet: Austin City Council, 3.21.24
Today, City Council will convene again for a regular meeting. We’ve taken a look at the reasonably sized agenda and picked a few things that might be of interest. As usual, the entire agenda is also online and can be read in its entirety here. A couple of high-dollar...
Council hears plan for another South Congress PUD
A proposed 6.0102-acre planned unit development would mean big changes for the southwest corner of South Congress Avenue and Riverside Drive, including the possibility of a tower more than 500 feet tall. City Council heard details about the plans at its work session Tuesday. Zoning Officer Joi Harden offered a...
Parks Dept. looks to move forward with new, scaled-back Dougherty Arts Center
The replacement for the deteriorating Dougherty Arts Center will move forward in a phased approach, without the underground parking called for previously by City Council, in an attempt to dramatically reduce the cost of the new facility. During the Tuesday work session, Council heard a presentation from Parks and Recreation...
A push for more affordable housing falls flat at Planning Commission
A new tower planned for downtown sparked debate about Austin’s density bonus program at the most recent meeting of the city’s Planning Commission. The density bonus program essentially trades increased development entitlements for a number of community benefits, including things like affordable housing, public space or green building. In this case, would-be developers of 506 West Ave. are seeking changes that would allow a 564-foot-tall building. In return, they propose paying about $1.8 million to the Affordable Housing Trust Fund and about $1.8 million to the Shoal Creek Conservancy for nearby infrastructure improvements.
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