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Stories by Jessi Devenyns

Board of Adjustment does not approve variance to 'preserve neighborhood character'

The desire to build a house is not a sufficient reason to receive a variance, in the eyes of the Board of Adjustment. After having his case postponed at the February meeting of the Board of Adjustment, Joshua Inscoe, who…

BoA grants boat dock variance, swayed by trees

After being denied a variance to reconstruct an existing dock to 44 feet instead of the code-compliant 30 feet, the case of 1515 Manana St. returned before the Board of Adjustment at its March 11 meeting. Based on a “substantial”…

BoA OKs wellness project on third try

While the Board of Adjustment has twice denied variance requests required to construct an integrated acupuncture clinic and multifamily residence at 1800 E. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, members approved variances for the third iteration of the project at their…

Neighbor takes out grievances over ADU at the Board of Adjustment

Although the Board of Adjustment prefers not to take neighborhood disputes into account when members consider variance requests, sometimes these conflicts can be difficult to ignore. Before hearing any cases at its March 11 meeting, the Board of Adjustment warned…

Ethics violation raises questions about city laptop policies

DeShawn Scott, a temporary administrative specialist in the Public Works Department, left his position in December after the Office of the City Auditor opened an investigation into Scott’s use of his city computer for purposes related to his two outside…

Catholic school cites safety concerns for fence; BoA thinks fence will cause more

Most people would agree that when it comes to schools, safety is sacrosanct. In today’s climate, parents, educators and the community alike may consider a campus that is wide open to public access to be, at the least, worrisome. Under…

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Ethics Commission looks into omission of PAC donation

How does one forget to report $10,000? That was the question of the evening for the Ethics Review Commission at its March 13 convocation. In a complaint filed by Fred Lewis last November, he accused the No on J political…

BoA ponders historically zoned multifamily

For the owner of 608 Elmwood Place in the Hancock neighborhood, perhaps the third time in front of the Board of Adjustment will be the charm. After being postponed last month to allow for more discussion with the neighborhood about…

CTM’s Office of Design and Delivery: Corporate workshops should not be awful

As Austin grows and city officials begin to question how their jobs are evolving to meet the demands of the tens of thousands of new residents every year, it stands to reason that the city of Austin would ask for…

APD investigates causes of traffic fatalities

As busy and congested as Austin streets have become, drivers have managed to keep the number of traffic fatalities from rising over the last few years. “We’re on a four-year downward trend,” Ron MacKay, Austin Police Department’s crime analysis division…

Bowie High School development plan nullified by new survey

Technological advancements are generally welcomed with open arms thanks to their potential to save time, money and recalculations. Unfortunately, applying these new capabilities to work done almost three decades ago can reveal errors that throw carefully negotiated plans out the…

APD racial profiling statistics hold steady despite dip in traffic stops

Each year, the Austin Police Department releases a report to the Texas Commission on Law Enforcement detailing the number of traffic stops and searches it makes and categorizing them by race. Recently released statistics show that while the Austin Police Department…

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