Mayor reports big campaign fundraising numbers, but his challengers push on

Monday is the deadline for all City Council candidates to turn in their campaign finance reports for the period that ended on June 30. Politics watchers expect Mayor Kirk Watson to raise far more than his opponents as he has…

Elections • By Jo Clifton • Jul 11, 2024

Justice advocates rebuke county plan for $300 million juvenile jail expansion

At its June 27 meeting, the Travis County Commissioners Court considered spending $250 million to $300 million to expand the county’s juvenile detention complex in South Austin. A united front of more than 50 justice advocates voiced unanimous opposition to…

Public Safety • By Lina Fisher • Jul 11, 2024

Gun violence report will help city leaders craft intervention and prevention strategies

For a city of its size, Austin has a low rate of homicides from gun violence, averaging four per 100,000 residents over a 15-year period. But an “alarming” spike in shooting incidents following the Covid-19 pandemic – from January 2021…

Public Safety • By Amy Smith • Jul 11, 2024

Disability committee asks Council to address group homes in land use code

Changes to city code that could affect the regulation of group homes for seniors and people with disabilities prompted a request for City Council to make further adjustments to the Land Development Code. The Mayor’s Committee for People With Disabilities…

Land Development Code • By Chad Swiatecki • Jul 11, 2024

For one city employee, Facebook posts lead to an impossible process

A city department head who disapproved of her employee’s social media posts about city management has filed a human resources complaint against him, an unusual move that gives her the power to validate her own complaint and field any appeal…

City Hall • By Elizabeth Pagano • Jul 10, 2024

Arts, music commissioners want new convention center to support Austin creatives

Members of the Music Commission and Arts Commission have assembled a list of 31 recommendations detailing how the reconstructed Austin Convention Center could best support the local creative community. The recommendations from the Urban Core Land Use Working Group, which…

Planning • By Chad Swiatecki • Jul 10, 2024

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Animal Advisory Commission wants pets allowed in cooling centers

The Animal Advisory Commission is urging the city to allow pets inside designated cooling centers as summer heats up.  The commission unanimously passed a recommendation that urges the city to identify “a number of cooling centers throughout the City of…

Austin • By Dylan Ebs • Jul 10, 2024

Downtown Commission wants updated downtown plan draft in six months; Council vote next summer

The Downtown Commission wants the city to approve an updated version of the Downtown Austin Plan by next summer, with a draft document expected early next year to allow the commission to make needed budget recommendations next spring. At a…

Planning • By Chad Swiatecki • Jul 9, 2024

City to consider selling its district cooling system

City Manager T.C. Broadnax has notified City Council that staff will be seeking approval during the July 18 meeting to hire J.P. Morgan Securities LLC to provide “strategic advice about the potential sale of Austin Energy’s district cooling system.” The…

Energy • By Jo Clifton • Jul 9, 2024

'Demand has just gone up and up': Food banks struggle to keep up post-pandemic

Drivers line up down the street to grab groceries from a small, white house in the Dunbar neighborhood of San Marcos. For some time, the renovated house worked fine for the Hays County Food Bank, but as more and more…

Public Health • By Maya Fawaz, KUT • Jul 8, 2024

Austin Water tees up to propose rate increases to Council

Austinites can prepare to add their water bill to the list of services getting increasingly more expensive, as a proposal for hikes in utility rates makes its way through City Council’s pipeline. The proposal, which Austin Water unveiled early last…

Water • By Kali Bramble • Jul 8, 2024

Developer expects to reach agreement for Crestview project this fall

The firm selected to lead in the redevelopment of a former utility yard in Crestview doesn’t expect the city’s recent changes to land use for transit-oriented developments to impact its plans for the site that has long been earmarked for…

Development • By Chad Swiatecki • Jul 8, 2024

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