City begins reopening library, pool facilities

City libraries and pools are reopening for the summer beginning this week. Beginning today, Austin Public Library begins its phased reopening of library branches across the city. In phase two, which started today, book drops at branches are open. Books…

Residents of North Austin mobile home park now own the land they live on

A parade of cars, horns honking, rolled slowly through a mobile home park in North Austin Saturday evening. The drivers, the majority of whom live in the neighborhood, had written words and phrases in Spanish on their windows: “Felicidades, “Sí…

Garza suggests color-coded speed zones to slow car traffic

At least in the short term, the Austin Transportation Department is hanging its hopes of reducing traffic fatalities and serious injuries on a proposal that would drop most downtown and residential streets to a 25 mph speed limit while coordinating…

Council members stake out priorities for federal Covid-19 aid ahead of vote next week

City Council will vote next week on the plan for spending federal money devoted to pandemic relief, anticipating significant changes from the initial outline presented by staff on Thursday. During a special meeting dedicated to allocating federal dollars – much…

Austin leaders encourage peer pressure to get folks to wear face masks and avoid crowding spaces

Austin and Travis County officials are urging people to wear face coverings and to avoid large gatherings as the city and the state reopen for business. If that refrain sounds familiar, it’s because you’ve heard the song and it bears…

Travis County considers direct financial allocations to smaller cities

Twenty-one municipalities in Travis County did not receive direct allocations of financial assistance either from the state or the federal government to help temper the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic. To help fund relief efforts for their residents, those…

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Council OKs rule changes for old Motorola site

Last week City Council gave preliminary approval for a number of changes to an existing land development agreement at the site of the old Motorola chip fabrication facility at 3443 Ed Bluestein Blvd., giving area residents hope for much-needed jobs…

Financial commitment for I-35 continues to divide CAMPO

After weeks of running projects through updated scoring criteria, the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization is still not approaching consensus on a list of projects to defer from its 2021-2024 Transportation Improvement Program, in order to free up $633 million…

APD community engagement audit finds some improvement but data lacking

Although the Austin Police Department has put considerable effort into improving its community policing efforts over the past four years and there have been some positive impacts, an audit by the Office of the City Auditor concluded there was insufficient…

Travis County to fund Las Lomitas pipeline

Las Lomitas, a subdivision of 30 homes in southeastern Travis County, has functioned for decades without access to water or wastewater service. Now Travis County, in partnership with Creedmoor-Maha Water Supply Company, a private water utility, is working to change…

Planning Commission declines to rescind Simon-Caskey Tract plan

After a lengthy discussion at Tuesday night’s meeting, the Planning Commission ultimately voted to uphold its April 28 vote on the Simon-Caskey Tract Preliminary Plan in City Council District 8. The preliminary plan, approved April 28, calls for the development…

Capital Metro proposes incorporating Austin B-cycle as extension of public transit network

By late fall, public transit and bike-share users may be able to access both services with the purchase of a local bus day pass. Under a proposed partnership with the city, the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority is looking to expand…