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Austin Energy General Manager Bob Kahn retiring

Bob Kahn, who has served as general manager of Austin Energy for nearly two years, is officially retiring at the end of June, but he will be leaving his post on April 30. City Manager T.C. Broadnax has announced that…

City Hall • By Jo Clifton • Apr 25, 2025

TipSheet: Austin City Council 4.24.25

The Austin City Council will convene today for their regular Thursday meeting. We’ll be watching and, after reading over the full agenda, here are a few things that we’ll be watching closely. The Council will consider its second artificial intelligence…

TipSheets • By Elizabeth Pagano • Apr 24, 2025

Council committee briefed on proposed LDC amendments for wastewater treatment plant expansion

Austin City Council’s environmental committee received an update Wednesday on the $1 billion expansion of the Walnut Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant, which will require several site-specific variances or amendments to the Land Development Code. The Council last month directed staff…

Planning • By Amy Smith • Apr 24, 2025

Panelists look at the airport's future of 'perpetual' construction

Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is expected to remain in a near-perpetual state of construction for the next several decades, as city officials and regional leaders prepare for sustained, long-term growth in air travel demand and economic activity across the Central Texas…

Planning • By Chad Swiatecki • Apr 24, 2025

Resource Management Commission continues to explore potential audit of Austin Energy district cooling system

Austin Energy may soon be on the hook to set the record straight on its District Energy & Cooling System, as a proposal to conduct an audit on its finances gathers momentum at the Resource Management Commission. The resolution, brought…

Energy • By Kali Bramble • Apr 24, 2025

Rite of spring: Dog-killing algae makes an early appearance in Austin waterways

Scientists with Austin’s Watershed Protection Department have spotted clumps of blue-green algae near Red Bud Isle on Lady Bird Lake. This year marks one of the earliest seasonal reports of the algae, also known as cyanobacteria, which can be toxic…

Environment • By Mose Buchele, KUT • Apr 23, 2025

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Council looks to expand AI policies, examine energy and water needs for data centers

Later this week, City Council will consider a substantial expansion of the city’s artificial intelligence oversight, incorporating detailed guidance on workforce protections, public transparency, and the environmental impacts of growing AI infrastructure. The resolution on Thursday’s agenda builds on a…

City Council • By Chad Swiatecki • Apr 23, 2025

Animal Center gets interim leaders to help with five-year improvement plan

The city is moving forward with new leadership at Austin Animal Center, following a memo from city manager T.C. Broadnax announcing the appointment of an interim leadership team. As of last week, Rolando Fernandez took over as interim chief animal…

City Hall • By Chad Swiatecki • Apr 23, 2025

Firefighters, city reach agreement on retirement fund

Negotiators for the city and Austin firefighters have finally reached agreement on how to deal with the Austin Firefighter Retirement Fund so that it complies with state law and can promise retirement benefits to current and future retirees. This has…

Fire • By Jo Clifton • Apr 22, 2025

City touts ongoing success in one-year update on micromobility program tweaks

Last April, Austin made changes to its micromobility program, cutting the number of scooters on the street by 2,000 and reducing speed limits among other things. In a one-year update, city staff say those changes have worked out as well…

Transportation • By Miles Wall • Apr 22, 2025

Planning staff spells out steps for preservation and coordination in 78702 and beyond

The city is preparing to move forward with a long-term planning effort that would coordinate public and cultural investments in a portion of East Austin seen as under threat of gentrification and other growth pressures. A new memo from the…

Planning • By Chad Swiatecki • Apr 21, 2025

UT Austin professors fear Trump administration's funding cuts will derail life-saving research

Andrea Gore, a professor of pharmacology and toxicology at UT Austin, knew from a young age that she wanted to be a scientist. She said she always loved watching birds and bugs. “Even as a kid, I would watch the…

Public Health • By Becky Fogel, KUT • Apr 21, 2025

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