Stories by Austin Monitor
Austin, Monitored: Sexual assault and high-profile gates
⚪️ Quote of the Day “We find that between 10 and 14 percent of reported cases have a nexus to a bar or nightclub… We are asking those bars to truly be guardians of their patrons.” — Deanna Lichter, commander of…
Newsletter • By Austin Monitor • Jul 11, 2025
Austin, Monitored: Downtown landmarks and narrower roads
⚪️ Quote of the Day “12 feet is wide enough that you start having very high speeds, but it’s not quite wide enough to have what we would call ‘forgiving infrastructure… So, they actually found that 12-foot lanes are the…
Newsletter • By Austin Monitor • Jul 10, 2025
Austin, Monitored: Musicians get straight, city officials defend fire chief
⚪️ Quote of the Day “Looking at the progress from 2024, things are pretty much on track and we are not going to run into this kind of a situation again. For the pilot year, we are talking about a…
Newsletter • By Austin Monitor • Jul 9, 2025
Austin, Monitored: Showdown in the Austin Fire Department
⚪️ Quote of the Day “The firefighters hope we have your support… It’s going to get ugly.” — Austin Firefighters Association President Bob Nicks, from Firefighters to seek firing of Chief Baker ⚪️ Firefighters to seek firing of Chief Baker From…
Newsletter • By Austin Monitor • Jul 8, 2025
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Austin, Monitored: How to assess a city's (bond) needs?
⚪️ Quote of the Day “(The plan) hasn’t been updated in almost 25 years and, as we all know, Austin has changed a lot in the last 25 years, so it’s long past due for an update.” — Watershed Protection Planning…
Newsletter • By Austin Monitor • Jul 7, 2025
Austin, Monitored: Office space sparks a new downtown puzzle
🎇 Save $30 on TribFest tickets during the Independence Day Sale! ⚪️ Quote of the Day “What we can say is that downtown most definitely needs an increase in residential population… If we are going to support a vibrant retail…
Newsletter • By Austin Monitor • Jul 3, 2025
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Austin, Monitored: Historic surveys and mending fences
🎇 Save $30 on TribFest tickets during the Independence Day Sale! ⚪️ Quote of the Day “I think it’s best to think of Historic Preservation as a planning tool that you have to weigh, along with many other things, whether…
Newsletter • By Austin Monitor • Jul 2, 2025
After years of dysfunction, Austin Police and the Travis County DA say they're trying to mend fences
The relationship between the Travis County District Attorney’s office and the Austin Police Department is fraught. It has been since José Garza was elected DA in 2020. Indictments, bungled prosecutions and miscommunication have all played a hand in the less-than-functional relationship between the two…
Public Safety • By Austin Monitor • Jul 1, 2025
Austin, Monitored: Water conservation and land trusts
⚪️ Quote of the Day “Austin is as little as 15 years and one bad drought away from dry lakes and a water crisis. This is not science fiction, and water efficiency is the best alternative we have.” — Commissioner Paul…
Newsletter • By Austin Monitor • Jul 1, 2025
Austin, Monitored: Art grant violations, park scores and police reviews
⚪️ Quote of the Day “I don’t want the fox to be telling the farmer what hours he should look at the coop… The expectation of the citizens of Austin is that we get to see every one and we…
Newsletter • By Austin Monitor • Jun 27, 2025
Austin, Monitored: Zilker Cafe and a potential new fee to help parks
⚪️ Quote of the Day “If we approve this vendor, which I’m more than happy to do, are we setting ourselves up for failure – to be having the same conversation and having to take this exact same vote one…
Newsletter • By Austin Monitor • Jun 26, 2025
Austin, Monitored: On that new mental health diversion center
⚪️ Quote of the Day “What is the perfect mental health diversion center for Travis County?” — County Judge Andy Brown, from Travis County’s Mental Health Diversion Center takes another step ⚪️ Travis County’s Mental Health Diversion Center takes another step…
