Austin to remember Kent Butler at memorial service this Thursday

Kent Butler, considered by many to be one of the pioneers of conservation and the environmental movement in the Austin area, died in a hiking accident on May 13. There will be a service to honor his memory this Thursday…

Uncategorized • By Josh Rosenblatt • May 24, 2011

Shade files second complaint against Tovo, seeks to block campaign funds

Council Member Randi Shade has tried another avenue to prevent her opponent, Kathie Tovo, from receiving $64,000 under the terms of Tovo’s contract with the City of Austin. Shade alleged in a letter to City Clerk Shirley Gentry on Monday…

Uncategorized • By Austin Monitor • May 24, 2011

ZAP approves variances for townhome project despite objections

The first test of the redevelopment exception in the Barton Springs Zone had a difficult time at the Zoning and Platting Commission Tuesday night, despite claims that it went well beyond the requirements of the exemption.   “This is a…

Uncategorized • By Elizabeth Pagano • May 23, 2011

Ethics commission rules it has no jurisdiction over Shade complaint

The Ethics Review Commission’s hearing last Friday on a complaint filed by Council Member Randi Shade against Place 3 challenger Kathie Tovo ended badly for Shade but may have ended worse for the commissioners. The commission’s decision to dismiss the…

Uncategorized • By Josh Rosenblatt • May 23, 2011

AFD must retest 2,400 firefighter candidates after test questions leaked

The Austin Fire Department will be retesting some 2,400 applicants for its firefighter academy after learning that the questions and scoring grid of the structured oral interview portion of the process had been leaked. At a hastily arranged news conference…

Uncategorized • By Josh Rosenblatt • May 20, 2011

Defiant Shade draws distinctions, affirms place in runoff election

If anyone was entertaining thoughts that Council Member Randi Shade would be drifting quietly off the Austin political stage following her disappointing showing on Election Day, the incumbent put those notions to bed Thursday at City Hall. Speaking to a…

Uncategorized • By Josh Rosenblatt • May 20, 2011

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Senate to reconsider bill that takes aim at Austin’s tree ordinance

After passing a bill with an amendment that few apparently understood on Wednesday, the Texas Senate is set to reconsider a bill today that could have a serious effect on the city’s efforts to regulate water quality in Austin’s extra-territorial…

Uncategorized • By Kimberly Reeves • May 20, 2011

City medical staffers refute claims of toxic water fluoridation

Against all odds, the debate over water fluoridation is still raging at City Hall. Yesterday the City Council’s Health and Human Services Committee convened a discussion about the controversial practice that resulted in dire warnings about how unsafe it is…

Uncategorized • By Josh Rosenblatt • May 19, 2011

County panel on tax abatements gets extension, additional tasks

Travis County Commissioners, who were slated to make a decision on tax exemptions for historic properties on Tuesday, instead postponed the vote until early July and added a new varied list of tasks to for the Local Tax Working Group…

Uncategorized • By Kimberly Reeves • May 19, 2011

Travis County Commissioners balk on courthouse funding vote

Hopes for a brand-new civil and family courthouse in downtown Austin hit yet another bureaucratic snag yesterday. Faced with a request from the county’s purchasing officer to hire a consultant to assess the feasibility of entering into a public-private partnership…

Uncategorized • By Josh Rosenblatt • May 18, 2011

Shade stays in the race, files ethics complaint against Tovo

Council Member Randi Shade has filed an ethics complaint against her Place 3 challenger Kathie Tovo, alleging that Tovo violated the city’s Fair Campaign Ordinance. The city’s Ethics Review Commission has called a special meeting for Friday afternoon to consider…

Uncategorized • By Jo Clifton • May 18, 2011

Engineering report: Barton Springs Dam urgently needs repairs

A structural condition assessment of Barton Springs Dam released last week shows large cracks in the lower dam that need to be repaired “as soon as possible.”   The Parks and Recreation Board and Environmental Board Joint Committee heard a…

Uncategorized • By Elizabeth Pagano • May 17, 2011

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