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TipSheet: Austin City Council, 6.1.23
City Council will once again convene for a meeting today. We’ve done our best to predict what might be of interest, based on the posted agenda. However, our best can vary, so anyone looking for the whole of possibility offered by today’s meeting might want to check out the agenda in full online.
Austin’s light-rail plans set to advance after narrowly dodging Texas-sized wrecking ball
Austin’s light-rail ambitions are barreling ahead after narrowly escaping the clutches of Texas lawmakers determined to rein in the multibillion-dollar transit expansion. But the voter-approved plan, known as Project Connect, must still navigate a tricky track laden with potential legal and political hazards. “For now, we are going to...
Austin music venues could receive $100K liquor tax rebates from new state incubator
Live music venues in Austin could receive up to $100,000 annually in state liquor tax rebates from a new program created to provide relief for the state’s live music industry. The Texas Music Incubator Rebate Program was passed by the state Legislature last week and signed into law this...
Christopher Taylor murder trial to be rescheduled after mistrial
The trial of the Austin police officer accused of murder in the 2020 shooting of Mike Ramos ended in a mistrial on Friday. Travis County Judge Dana Blazey is working with prosecutors and the defense team to determine the date for a new trial, which is expected to be announced this week.
Good news, bad news from Legislature for Austin
For the city of Austin, the just-ended 88th regular legislative session offered both good news and disappointments, as outlined in a lengthy memo from Brie Franco, the city’s intergovernmental relations officer. On Tuesday, as her team was getting ready to monitor the special session Gov. Greg Abbott called to deal with property taxes and border security, Franco noted six pieces of legislation that will likely have a negative impact on the city. Among those are:
‘There is no cure’: Austin urges people to keep dogs away from possibly toxic blue-green algae
Blue-green algae is back in Lady Bird Lake and Lake Austin, according to Austin’s Watershed Protection Department. The department says test results will be posted next month revealing whether the algae is toxic. In the meantime, the city recommends avoiding algae on waterways whenever possible. Ingesting toxic blue-green algae...
City set to prioritize Colony Park planned unit development application
The Colony Park Sustainable Community planned unit development application process is underway. On Tuesday, City Council’s Housing and Planning Committee unanimously recommended the full Council initiate a streamlined application and rezoning process. “Colony Park represents one of our greatest opportunities to leverage public land to develop affordable housing and...
Panelists eye affordability pains in music, EMS, hospitality sectors
Leaders from two of Austin’s most prominent economic sectors – housing and hospitality – see passage of a new Land Development Code and eliminating the tipped minimum wage for restaurant staff as two long-needed steps to address increasing affordability concerns across the city. Last week, the LBJ...
City to ban unsafe fence designs
The city will soon prohibit unsafe fence designs, like those with spiked or widely spaced pickets, to reduce the risk of serious injury and death in humans and animals. On Tuesday, the Planning Commission unanimously recommended City Council approve the new rules. This comes a year and a half after Council passed a resolution to initiate a process to put the rules into city code.
Zilker Park Vision Plan wins over Parks and Recreation Board, but the battle is far from over
Following a marathon of public testimony this past Monday, the Zilker Metropolitan Park Vision Plan has secured the blessing of Austin’s Parks and Recreation Board, though its opponents say the fight is far from over. The vision plan, an ambitious program of park updates including parking garages, road closures...
Downtown alliance suggests Wooldridge Sq. station, sunken roadways to improve rail plan
The Downtown Austin Alliance has suggested a number of adjustments to the light rail plan unveiled to the public earlier this week, while also showing support for the route that moves through the downtown core from its endpoints to the north, east and south. The DAA has issued its own...
As city ends remote and telework opportunities, county receives national recognition for its remote work initiative
The National Association of Counties honored Travis County for its remote work program this week, which aimed to make 75 percent of eligible jobs at the county remote. Travis County’s initiative launched at the beginning of the pandemic in May 2020, meaning it has received recognition from NACo just three years later.
Austin light rail gets first approval amid looming Texas legislative threat
Austin’s newest light-rail vision – a $5 billion map set to redefine 10 miles of streets – is traveling two parallel tracks this week. On one track, city decision-makers are flashing the go-ahead signal, setting the stage for the Austin Transit Partnership (ATP) to morph blueprints into steel and concrete.
Housing and Planning Committee grapples with how to prioritize code amendments
Members of City Council’s Housing and Planning Committee grappled during a Tuesday briefing with how to best approach moving forward on a set of amendments to the city’s Land Development Code. The discussion occurred at the committee’s May 23 special called meeting, during which it received a briefing...
Annual count shows small drop in Austin’s homeless population
Data from the city’s first point-in-time count of the local homeless population in three years show a slight decrease in the total number of people living without shelter, with laws against camping in public causing a sharp decrease in the number of unhoused people in the downtown core. Austin’s...
Planning Commission supports rezoning for mixed-use development on East 12th
A new mixed-use development is in the works on East 12th Street. The Planning Commission on Tuesday recommended approval of a rezoning that would allow taller and denser buildings on two properties at 3117 and 3121 E. 12th St. Developer Geyser Group hopes to add Vertical Mixed-Use (CS-MU-V-CO-NP) zoning on...
APD, DPS brief Public Safety Committee on suspended partnership
More than a week after the Austin Police Department announced its controversial partnership with the Texas Department of Public Safety had come to a close, law enforcement officials on Monday briefed the city’s Public Safety Committee on the now-defunct deployment and responded – again – to City Council members’ concerns about equity and transparency.
Vacancy rates in Travis County have declined overall since last year, per Compensation Office
Employee vacancy rates in key areas of Travis County are declining as a result of measures taken by county commissioners last year, such as increasing the minimum county wage from $15 per hour to $20 per hour, as well as increasing shift differentials, according to the county’s Compensation Office.
Balcones Canyonlands gets ready to welcome a new visitor center
The Balcones Canyonlands Conservation Plan (BCCP) Coordinating Committee heard an update from Travis County on May 12 about the plans for a new visitor center at the Balcones Canyonlands Preserve (BCP). Kimberlee Harvey, the committee’s secretary, delivered the update, which was initially created by Melinda Mallia, director of the county’s...
On-street light rail route selected as best option for city’s mass transit plan
Local transit leaders have selected an entirely on-street light rail line that runs through downtown and stretches mostly north and east with a spur that reaches somewhat into southern Austin as the route that will most likely be approved for construction. Austin Transit Partnership today announced that the two-train route...
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