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Austin Monitor
Council will face tough budget decisions on parks, animal services and homelessness
City Council is anticipating a tight budget ahead and will have to balance funding for the Parks and Recreation Department as well as the Austin Animal Center, the Homeless Strategy Office and Human Resources. The Austin Animal Center is over capacity, with a shelter population of 123 percent of capacity...
Cap Metro stops shift to all-electric bus fleet
Capital Metro is slamming the brakes on an ambitious goal of transitioning to an all-electric bus fleet, citing problems with the range of battery-electric buses. Austin voters were promised a transit system with exclusively electric vehicles when they authorized a tax increase in 2020 to fund Project Connect, the largest transit expansion in the city’s history. Zero-emissions buses are quieter and don’t blast hot exhaust in the faces of people on the sidewalk.
Parks board to ask Council to explain why it bypassed public input on a Lady Bird Lake boat rental concession
Members of the Parks and Recreation Board said Monday they will ask City Council to reexamine a 2019 ordinance that circumvented public input to allow an adventure excursion company to operate a boating concession on Lady Bird Lake. The request for Council reconsideration may be futile, board members also acknowledged....
Audit committee wants to keep a close eye on upcoming bond packages
The City Council Audit and Finance Committee wants staff to deliver quarterly updates to all relevant City Council committees on all projects being considered for Austin’s next bond package – mainly related to climate change and the effects of severe weather. At Monday’s meeting, members of the committee...
Staff lays out public safety budget choices for City Council
Looking ahead to a tough budget year, City Council will have to choose between spending on firefighters, emergency medical services, parks maintenance, homeless outreach and improving animal services, among others. Wednesday’s budget presentation did nothing to alleviate budget concerns, with some explanations only highlighting the city’s need to spend money to continue basic services and improve conditions for city employees.
Council OKs bond money to preserve Museum of Human Achievement arts space
City Council has allocated $5.1 million of bond money to the Rally Austin economic development entity, which is expected to use some of the money to purchase and preserve the Museum of Human Achievement (MoHA) arts space in East Austin. Council approved the transfer of funds last week in a...
Downtown Austin safety team increases patrol in response to APD staffing shortage
Austin has been grappling with a serious police understaffing problem, making patrolling the downtown area harder. In an effort to fill that gap, the Downtown Austin Alliance created a new safety team to hit the streets. The DAA, a nonprofit organization that manages the Downtown Public Improvement District, began the...
The Austin area will see cooler temperatures this week. But it’s not as ‘crazy’ as you think.
Temperatures in Central Texas will trend below average with highs only in the 80s in most areas this week, according to the National Weather Service. Normally, high temperatures this time of year range in the high 90s. The cooler weather is not as “crazy” as this one Reddit user would...
At Council Member Alison Alter’s urging, city commission may have input on natural gas matters
Members of the city’s Resource Management Commission have been trying for months to find out how they can weigh in on the current rate case for Texas Gas Service. They have passed a number of resolutions seeking to have input – not only on the cost of natural gas to consumers, but also on prioritizing fixing methane leaks, which are hazardous to the environment. Members also wish to comment on the gas company’s energy conservation programs, which they find insufficient and not actually aimed at conservation.
Audit cites lack of progress on homelessness strategies issued five-plus years ago
A new report from the Office of the City Auditor has found the city is still working toward accomplishing five recommendations to address homelessness that were suggested at least five years ago. The report, which was issued earlier this month, is the latest follow-up on the results of four analyses...
Parks board recommends beefing up funding for city parks maintenance
With increasing challenges in maintaining grounds within Austin’s busy parks system, the Parks and Recreation Board voted Monday to recommend that City Council allocate an additional $2.62 million to the Parks and Recreation Department budget for the new fiscal year. Of that amount, the board requested that $2.24 million...
Regional EPA grant will go toward mitigating I-35 construction traffic and pollution
On Monday, the Environmental Protection Agency awarded a $47.9 million grant to a coalition of transportation organizations in the Austin region that could go toward mitigating the worst environmental effects of Interstate 35’s inevitable expansion. The city of Austin will lead implementation of this Climate Pollution Reduction Grant (CPRG), as both I-35 and Project Connect’s light-rail construction will majorly disrupt the city’s traffic over the next decade or so as people struggle to get around the construction, thus increasing air pollution. In an attempt to dampen that spike, the city has a three-pronged strategy: Improve regional transit service, invest in mobility infrastructure and “inspire behavior change,” as a city press release puts it.
Three ‘no’ votes end try for historic zoning in East Austin
Despite efforts from Preservation Austin and approval from two city commissions, the small historic house at 1100 East Second St. failed to get support from the nine City Council members needed for it to be designated historic and avoid demolition. Both the Historic Landmark Commission and the Planning Commission recommended historic designation for the Sinnigson house, which is in District 3.
Chamber group touts $1M small business loan program ahead of regional plan
Ahead of an in-progress comprehensive plan slated for completion later this year, Austin’s Diversity and Ethnic Chamber Alliance (DECA) has secured a commitment from two local banks to loan $1 million to member small businesses. The loans, which will be issued by Business & Community Lenders and Wells Fargo,...
Leveraging the diverse strength of our community
Ask any Austinite what the most frustrating thing about living here is, and you likely get a wide gamut of rapid-fire thoughtful, personal and fiery responses. There is no shortage of complex issues that inspire impassioned reactions from us locals. But, rather than write off the grousing as a symptom of a city riddled with problems and filled with disgruntled residents, our Austin Monitor team views this in a positive light for one simple, powerful reason: It shows that people care.
Council OKs 13 proposed charter amendments for November ballot
Voters will decide on 13 potential amendments to the city charter in November, with two of the most significant potential changes affecting the number of signatures needed to recall a City Council member, and requiring elections for citizen-led ballot initiatives and charter amendments to take place in large even-numbered election years.
Balancing conflicting public interests, Watershed Protection aims to promote native aquatic vegetation
Austin’s reservoirs do a lot of double duty. They’re known both as top-tier recreation spots for Central Texans and our source of dwindling drinking water. Subject to invasive species, drought and big rainfall events that bring in pollutants, they’re still doing remarkably well, all things considered, a reservoir ecologist told the Environmental Commission on Wednesday.
Officials update Animal Advisory Commission on strategic plan process
City officials updated the Animal Advisory Commission last week on the strategic plan for the Animal Services Office as the city works to improve the relationship between the Austin Animal Center and key stakeholders, including the commission. Assistant City Manager Stephanie Hayden-Howard said officials held a planning meeting on June...
Council votes to follow traditional process before calling a climate bond election
After one of the most robust deliberations City Council has had in recent history, a resolution on a comprehensive climate bond election moved forward Thursday, but without the immediacy that some Council members would have preferred. Nevertheless, those who favored holding a bond election this year – namely Council members...
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