The Austin Monitor thanks its sponsors. Become one.
City Council candidates attended a distinctly downtown-centric forum last night, hosted by the Downtown Austin Neighborhood Association, among others, which focused on topics such as urban rail, permanent supportive housing and the relationship between the city’s ongoing comprehensive plan and…
Bob Gedert, the director of the City of Austin’s Solid Waste Services Department, has told members of the Austin City Council that the overall costs of its residential single stream recycling program “will not be completely offset by the revenue…
Texas Disposal Systems continues to challenge the validity of the City of Austin’s conclusions about the costs of two potential versions of a contract to handle the city’s single stream residential recycling. The firm’s latest concerns stem from the commodities…
If all goes according to plan, next week the Historic Landmark Commission will at long last vote on changes to the city’s historic landmark ordinance. Those changes, which were originally supposed to be ready at the beginning of the year,…
Addressing the state-wide education budget crisis, speakers at Thursday’s Austin Chamber of Commerce annual Education Progress Report Luncheon spoke in favor of strict accountability standards, greater empowerment for superintendents and school board trustees, reduced budget cuts and reduced operational mandates…
Austin Police, along with other local and federal agencies, announced the arrest of some 30 suspected gang members Thursday following a yearlong investigation into their activities in Central Texas. Many of them are suspected to have links to drug gangs…
Representatives from the Watershed Protection Department expressed concern last week that further delays on much-needed repairs to the bypass tunnel at Barton Springs Pool could mean a lengthier closure of the pool. In an update to the Parks and…
Austin Police Monitor Margo Frasier thinks that the Austin Police Department could do a better job of identifying problematic behavior in its officers. The head of the police officers’ union agrees. In the closing section of her department’s most…
Without discussion Monday night, the Board of Commissioners of the city’s Urban Renewal Agency opted to extend an interim Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the agency and the city of Austin for six more months, until September 20, 2011. The…
The private firm that manages mental health care for Medicaid patients in seven Dallas-area counties may be looking to expand to Travis County—without the county’s approval. The move would come as an amendment to the Texas House version of the…
City Council made its first move toward creating new policy related to open government issues yesterday. By a 6-0 vote, Council directed city staff to come up with a rough draft of a resolution that would establish how Council members…
The Austin Independent School District’s board of trustees finalized its decision last night to eliminate 1,153 positions from its employee ranks. The board declared financial exigency at the end of February. Since then, the district has been working to…
