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New EV station will not charge forward in East Austin

Plans for an electric-vehicle charging lot spanning Pleasant Valley Road were thwarted by Planning Commission members who objected to its auto-centric nature at their last meeting. The project would have created two electric-vehicle charging parking lots flanking Pleasant Valley at…

City to tally public assets in 78702 with goal of preservation and activation

The city will inventory all of the culturally and economically significant publicly owned real estate just east of downtown in a move intended to preserve and enhance locations central to the area’s longtime Black and Latino communities. A resolution passed…

Council approves initiative to conduct inventory of public trees

On Thursday, City Council elevated the significance of Austin’s trees by initiating a comprehensive inventory of the city’s trees alongside a detailed tree planting and maintenance strategy. The measure follows Council’s approval last month of a direction for more street…

Travis County DA faces removal attempt under Texas law targeting 'rogue' prosecutors

A Travis County resident is seeking to remove progressive District Attorney José Garza from office using a 2023 Texas law aimed at limiting the discretion of locally elected prosecutors. A state district judge in Comal County on Friday appointed an attorney to…

Austin outlaws the construction of windowless bedrooms

Developers in Austin will have to provide some form of natural light in bedrooms after City Council members voted Thursday to amend the city’s building code. For the most part, Austin will accomplish this change by simply replacing one word…

Extra security, extra stress, new rules at Council meeting

Each speaker at a City Council meeting now has three minutes – instead of two – to speak on each item they signed up to address because of a temporary restraining order granted Wednesday by Travis County District Judge Madeleine…

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Arts commissioners signal support for city funds for The Contemporary art museum

Members of the Arts Commission appear ready to advocate for The Contemporary Austin fine art museum and sculpture park to receive consistent city funding beyond Hotel Occupancy Tax dollars. This week’s commission meeting featured a presentation from Sharon Maidenberg, executive…

New report showcases Travis County's sustainability efforts

Issued annually ahead of Earth Day, Travis County’s report on its own sustainability efforts highlights a host of victories this year – including expanding recycling services, improving energy consumption and facilities practices, implementing staff programming and trainings, and enhancing sustainable…

Photo courtesy of city of Austin.

Marshalling Yard shelter could get $1M extension and stay open through March 2025

The city’s Marshalling Yard congregate shelter, which currently serves up to 300 people at a time, could receive an extension from City Council to stay open until next March. An item on today’s agenda would provide an additional $1 million…

Planning Commission endorses 'plot twist' for South Central Waterfront Plan

Though the future of Austin’s south shore has been shaken by a court ruling against the proposed tax increment reinvestment zone, members of the Planning Commission last week took their turn tackling the South Central Waterfront Plan in a sprawling…

New rules in the works for electric vehicle charging stations

In addition to changes to major portions of the city’s land use regulations, City Council heard at last week’s meeting about proposed changes to rules governing where public electric vehicle charging stations can be located in the future. Because of…

TipSheet: Austin City Council, 4.18.24

City Council will once again honor us with a Thursday meeting, and we’ve done the work of looking through the agenda for you and picking out what strikes us as interesting from said agenda. There’s a whole bunch of interesting…