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Council OKs contract for new AI wildfire tool
City Council on Thursday approved negotiation and execution of a contract for what Austin Energy describes as a powerful new tool to aid the utility in wildfire detection and response. The utility says it will use Pano AI technology to provide Austin Energy crews and emergency first responders with up-to-the-minute information to quickly respond to wildfire threats while protecting lives, property and the environment.
Domestic violence task force reports milestones
Gathered to kick off its awareness month, the Austin/Travis County Domestic Violence Task Force reported important progress since the difficult days of 2020. After a record number of requests for protective orders during the pandemic – and a record number of cases pending – the court now has the fewest cases pending in recent history, County Attorney Delia Garza said.
There’s a new, 1,200-acre nature preserve north of Austin. Here’s how to visit.
Salado salamanders, golden-cheeked warblers and tricolored bats: These are just a few of the endangered species you will find at the Hill Country Conservancy’s new Pecan Springs Karst Preserve. The 1,205-acre nature preserve is located about 5 miles west of Jarrell in northern Williamson County. It sits within the...
Developer of parking-free downtown apartments surrenders building to lender
A parking-free, 30-unit apartment building that gained attention as one of the first attempts to bring “missing middle” housing downtown has been turned over to its lender after failing to generate enough occupancy to operate successfully. Weaver Buildings, the company that created the Capitol Quarters project on Nueces...
City continues to work on wildfire mitigation strategies
The public may not have noticed, but Austin-Travis County had 963 different brush and grass fire alarms in September, Assistant Fire Chief Andre de la Reza told members of the city’s Public Safety Commission on Monday. The department was able to handle those without requiring anyone to evacuate their homes, but the number demonstrates that fire has become an ever-present danger for Austinites.
TipSheet: Austin City Council, 10.5.23
Today’s regular City Council meeting promises to be a total snooze, with only 41 things on the agenda. We’ve done our best to highlight the most interesting of those things, though it’s pretty slim pickings, as illustrated by Tuesday’s work session cancellation due to the fact that there was nothing to work on.
Report finds widespread action needed to prepare city for future weather emergencies
The city has received dozens of steps for staff at all levels to take to reduce the impact of future weather emergencies. The full after-action report for the February 2023 winter storm evaluates problems experienced during the freeze that disrupted power and other city services for over a week in some areas.
Follow-up zoning case promises more housing for South Lamar
City Council on Thursday will consider two linked zoning cases that developers hope will result in tracts for multifamily uses under a unified zoning designation of MF-6, the highest density of multifamily zoning. Council approved the initial zoning for a 2.9-acre tract at 2700 S. Lamar Blvd. in 2021. This week, they will look at requests by Seamless LMA Ltd. to add two additional adjacent parcels, one on Lamar and one on Skyway Circle directly west of the previously zoned Lamar property.
City plans to remove Barton Springs tree ‘Flo’ this week
The city’s Parks and Recreation Department announced on Monday morning that they would be removing Flo, the nearly 100-year-old pecan tree that leans over Barton Springs Pool, before the pool opens on Thursday. In addition, the department invited members of the public to celebrate Flo’s life at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday at the pool. The fate of Flo has been a subject of controversy for several weeks since the department discovered the tree has brittle cinder fungus, which has no cure. Four arborists the city consulted said the tree’s risk rating was extreme or high, according to the parks department.
Mobility Committee airs financial, environmental concerns over I-35 expansion
City Council members expressed a variety of concerns about the Interstate 35 expansion through downtown Austin, including a desire that the state and Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization delay funding approvals on the $4.5 billion project until concerns over construction-related greenhouse gas emissions can be addressed. Last week, Council’s Mobility...
Airport unveils first-ever Environmental, Social and Governance Report
The Airport Advisory Commission heard a briefing on the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport’s first-ever Environmental, Social and Governance Report at its regular meeting Sept. 13. The report, which was published in May, is a review of the organization’s impact and performance with regard to environmental impacts, social responsibility and corporate...
APD’s 911 center seeing progress in filling dispatcher, call taker vacancies
Austin Police Department has made progress in filling vacancies and improving retention in its Emergency Communications Center over the past 12 months, with more new hires expected by the end of the year. A memo released last week from Robin Henderson, interim chief for Austin Police Department, informed City Council...
Austin’s Office of Sustainability lands EPA grant to tackle greenhouse gas emissions
The city of Austin will soon join cities across the nation in a federal initiative to curb greenhouse gas emissions, with a $1 million grant from the Environmental Protection Agency slated to kick off the planning process this October. The Climate Pollution Reduction Grant Program, issued via the Biden administration’s...
Austin interim city manager appoints head of police oversight without promised national search
Austin has named interim Director Gail McCant to run the Office of Police Oversight – one of the highest-profile offices in the city. And it has done so without public notice. Created in 2018, the office oversees police policy, conduct and discipline. Essentially, the department is tasked with holding...
TxDOT ignored I-35 expansion health concerns, county says
The Travis County Commissioners Court says the Texas Department of Transportation has ignored their concerns about the impact of Interstate 35 expansion on the health of Austin residents. “We specifically asked TxDOT to do a number of important studies – environmental and air-quality studies – affecting public health. And they...
Council members want action, updates to improve city animal shelter
Members of City Council want ongoing updates from the Animal Services Office about the conditions at the Austin Animal Center, which a recent audit found to be routinely overcrowded due to a variety of management issues. Council’s Audit and Finance Committee received a briefing on the audit Wednesday and told...
Ethics Review Commission dismisses complaint against former parks board member
The Ethics Review Commission dismissed a complaint against former Parks and Recreation Board Member Nina Rinaldi after a two-and-a-half-hour preliminary hearing on Wednesday. Commissioners voted 4-5 to move to a final hearing, which required majority support of the 11-member body. Scott Cobb, a city lifeguard, filed a complaint in June...
The city says shelter is coming for homeless Austinites. Nonprofits would like a word.
For years, Austin didn’t focus on finding shelter for people living outdoors. Instead, the city prioritized longer-term solutions, like getting people into apartments. That philosophy at City Hall has changed. Under Mayor Kirk Watson, the city opened a 300-bed shelter during the summer’s record-breaking heat, and it aims to...
Audit finds Austin Energy falling behind on tree-trimming schedule
The Office of the City Auditor has found Austin Energy is far behind on its seven-year schedule of trimming trees and vegetation around power lines, with the utility’s current pace likely requiring 14 years to complete all needed clearing. The audit, which was presented at Wednesday’s meeting of City...
New state law limits Austin’s Parkland Dedication Ordinance
The city’s Parks and Recreation Board on Monday learned about the impacts of Texas House Bill 1526 on Austin’s existing Parkland Dedication Ordinance and the future of Austin’s park system. The Parkland Dedication Ordinance, first established in 1985, orders new developments to provide a certain amount of...
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