After multiple amendments and a considerable amount of haggling on the dais Thursday night, City Council unanimously approved directing staff to bring back an ordinance to tighten up environmental regulations. Speakers in favor of Council Member Kathie Tovo’s proposal to require that redevelopment projects meet full detention requirements, among other things, outnumbered those opposed. Luke […]
Jo Clifton
Jo Clifton is the Politics Editor for the Austin Monitor.
Posted inPlanning
Neighbors argue over East 11th and 12th street plan
After months of delay, City Council took the second of three steps needed to update the Urban Renewal Plan for the East 11th and 12th Street Neighborhood Conservation Combining District. The vote Thursday was unanimous, but Council members Kathie Tovo and Leslie Pool both expressed their disagreement with the part of the plan that would […]
Posted inWhispers
March for Our Lives marches – again
March for Our Lives, a national grassroots organization committed to ending gun violence, will be marching once again. According to a news release, Central Texas teenagers are coordinating March for Our Lives Austin, which is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday on the south steps of the Texas Capitol building. The group is […]
Posted inWhispers
Environmental groups sue FAA over fuel tanks
Two Austin environmental organizations have filed suit against the Federal Aviation Administration seeking to overturn its decision allowing new fuel tanks to be installed at the Austin airport. The groups are the new Southeast Austin Residents and Neighbors Organized for Environmental Justice, or SANAR, and the well-established People Organized in Defense of Earth and Her […]
Posted inBudget
City must raise wages to $22/hour, working group says
Members of the city’s living wage work group urged City Council Tuesday to raise the city’s living wage to $22 an hour for the upcoming fiscal year. They said the wage should apply to all regular and temporary city employees except employees of the summer youth program, regardless of position or number of hours worked. […]
Posted inAustin
Bird pays its bill
Although the city of Austin apparently enjoys a good working relationship with the scooter company Bird, the same could not be said for Travis County. Bird Rides Inc. appeared at No. 7 on Travis County Tax Assessor-Collector Bruce Elfant’s list of top 10 delinquent property owners. According to Elfant, as of Monday, the company owed Travis […]
Posted inWhispers
Guerrero running for District 9 seat
Linda Guerrero, 67, who has served on numerous city commissions and boards, has announced her candidacy for the District 9 City Council seat, joining a growing list of candidates for the job. Council Member Kathie Tovo, who currently represents District 9 and has served on Council since 2011, announced earlier this year that she would […]
Posted inCity Council
Vela plans resolution to prevent police from investigating abortion
In light of a likely U.S, Supreme Court decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, the landmark decision legalizing abortion, City Council Member Chito Vela is working on a resolution that tells Austin police they should not investigate or solicit information regarding women who get abortions or abortion providers. The resolution will be called the GRACE […]
Posted inWhispers
City must respond to voting rights suit
The Texas Supreme Court has requested the city of Austin to respond to a petition filed with the court that would require the city to hold elections in all City Council districts this November. Under the city charter, districts 1, 3, 5, 8 and 9 and the mayor’s office are scheduled for an election this […]
Posted inPreservation
No historic zoning for experimental air-cooled house
With no City Council member willing to make a motion for historic zoning that was sure to fail, the push to preserve the Chrysler Air-Temp house at 2502 Park View Drive died quietly at last Thursday’s Council meeting. Owner Hugh Corrigan opposed the historic designation that would have prevented him from demolishing the structure and […]
Posted inEnvironment
Council puts off fixing environmental rules for east side
At the urging of Mayor Steve Adler and Council Member Paige Ellis, City Council postponed voting on a resolution Thursday that would begin to equalize environmental regulations in Central and East Austin with protections that have long been standard in the Drinking Water Protection Zone of West Austin. The resolution is now scheduled to come […]
Posted inCourts
Judge rejects voting rights suit against city
In a brief letter Tuesday, Travis County District Court Judge Lora Livingston ruled in favor of the city of Austin and against plaintiffs who argued they were being denied their right to vote as a result of redistricting. The plaintiffs argued that, when they were moved into another district that isn’t voting this year, they […]