Stories by Jack Craver
Council struggles against displacement and segregation
“I believe that part of our role as a community and as a government is to provide protections against immoral market forces,” said Council Member Greg Casar, describing his efforts to increase affordable housing and fight economic segregation. If Casar…
Housing • By Jack Craver • Aug 4, 2017
Council wades nervously into pools plan
City Council delivered decidedly mixed reviews of the Parks and Recreation Department’s recently unveiled Aquatic Master Plan, with some Council members decrying what they fear is a plan to shut down neighborhood pools and others bemoaning the unequal distribution of…
Parks • By Jack Craver • Aug 2, 2017
Proposed bond includes big money for parks
The Austin parks system is looking to win big from a major bond that voters will likely be asked to approve in 2018. A citizen task force is currently in the process of drafting a general obligation bond to fund…
Bonds & Propositions • By Jack Craver • Aug 1, 2017
Clarksville meeting displays fear of CodeNEXT and density
On Wednesday night the pews at St. Luke United Methodist Church in Clarksville were packed with nearby residents who had come to hear about how their surroundings would be impacted by CodeNEXT, the proposed rewrite of the city’s Land Development…
Land Development Code • By Jack Craver • Jul 28, 2017
Austin pools face major problems
Austin pools are in big trouble. In a presentation to the Parks and Recreation Board Tuesday night, Acting Department Director Kimberly McNeeley described a system of aging pools that are on life-support due to a lack of investment in maintenance…
Parks • By Jack Craver • Jul 27, 2017
The many balancing acts in Austin's quest for affordable housing
When it comes to providing housing that is affordable to Austin’s poor and working-class residents, city leaders have very few tools at their disposal. The city is barred by state law from implementing the types of regulations that other major…
Land Development Code • By Jack Craver • Jul 25, 2017
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City looks to bond to protect water, reduce flooding
The city needs to do a lot more to protect its water supply from contamination and its residents from flooding, officials from the Watershed Protection Department told members of the Environmental Commission Wednesday. They believe that a bond package that…
Water • By Jack Craver • Jul 24, 2017
For whom is Austin a great 'bang for your buck'?
Austin and its city government are not perfect, but they both deserve some respect. That seems to be the gist of the 2016 Year in Review recently released by the city manager. “I often feel like the unforgiving pace of…
Austin • By Jack Craver • Jul 21, 2017
City continues to work on Zilker special event parking
The city transportation department is adamant: Nothing has been determined yet about parking for special events held in Zilker Park. Hence, the meeting at the Austin Energy headquarters on Barton Spring Road Thursday evening was an opportunity for Austinites to…
Austin • By Jack Craver • Jul 17, 2017
African-Americans spend more time in Travis County jail for same offenses as whites
Travis County has a long way to go before its criminal justice system matches its progressive reputation, according to a report released Thursday by a local advocacy group. African-Americans booked into the county jail spend more time behind bars than…
Public Safety • By Jack Craver • Jul 14, 2017
Can an expanded convention center solve the 'downtown puzzle'?
After months of research, city staff has come up with a few ways that City Council can find money to begin solving the so-called “downtown puzzle,” the expression used by Mayor Steve Adler to describe a host of potential downtown…
Austin • By Jack Craver • Jul 12, 2017
Abbott takes aim at Austin's tree protections
Austin leaders who watched with dismay as GOP lawmakers spent much of the recently concluded legislative session undermining city policies on immigration, ride-sharing and short-term rentals could at least take comfort in the fact that the state did not completely…
