Stories by Lina Fisher
Still-nascent police oversight commission pushes for transparent review of all complaints
Since the passage of the voter-approved Austin Police Oversight Act two years ago, the mission of the Community Police Review Commission has been continually thwarted and delayed. It wasn’t until in August 2024 a judge ruled that APD must make…
Police • By Lina Fisher • Jun 26, 2025
Travis County’s Mental Health Diversion Center takes another step
Last week, Travis County kicked off the design portion of its long-awaited mental health diversion center and central intake project. The lead architectural firms, Brinkley Sargent Wiginton Architects, Kirksey Architecture, and Pulitzer Bogard, will work with county staff and UT’s…
Public Health • By Lina Fisher • Jun 24, 2025
Travis County calls for ‘constitutional and humane’ treatment of immigrants
Last week, amid nationwide protests against the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown, Hays County passed a resolution affirming its support for the “constitutional and humane treatment of migrants.” Travis County followed suit in its meeting this week, passing a resolution that…
Public Safety • By Lina Fisher • Jun 17, 2025
This session saw legislative wins for child care providers and working parents
Each new Texas legislative session may introduce a new set of battles, but there are always some wins that keep us showing up to fight at the capitol every three years. This year, employers and working families alike saw the…
Texas State Legislature • By Lina Fisher • Jun 9, 2025
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A plan to end night swimming at Barton Springs is over before it ever began
The city’s parks department has backed away from a plan to close Barton Springs Pool an hour earlier this summer. The change would have eliminated the free daily night swims — full moon or not. “While the Parks and Recreation…
Parks • By Lina Fisher • May 28, 2025
Two Years after the Austin Police Oversight Act passed, Community Police Review Commission finally meets
The first meeting of Austin’s long-awaited Community Police Review Commission (CPRC) was marked by urgency and undergirded by a strong sense of duty to a community that has been expecting this meeting for years. The formation of a civilian body…
Police • By Lina Fisher • May 19, 2025
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New Data Center Planned for Lockhart in 2028
Only a few weeks after Austin City Council passed a resolution requiring various regulations on artificial intelligence operations, a new 2GW data center is coming to Lockhart. Tract, a Colorado-based developer, has secured 1,500 acres for a “megasite” in Caldwell…
Energy • By Lina Fisher • May 15, 2025
Austin Public Health urges Council to prioritize frontline jobs amid federal funding cuts
Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) continued slashing of federal funding for critical services is coinciding with and compounding an already dire budget crunch for Austin, which will force Council to make tough decisions on where to tighten the…
Public Health • By Lina Fisher • May 9, 2025
Scaled-down Violet Crown development near Bee Cave under consideration again
The embattled Violet Crown Amphitheater – a planned development including condos and offices off Highway 71 in Southwest Austin that was successfully beaten down in 2022 by angry neighbors – looks to be back, now under a new name: White…
Development • By Lina Fisher • Apr 15, 2025
New public defenders get pay bump but county struggles to retain experienced attorneys
At the beginning of the year, Travis County finally began offering a guaranteed lawyer to individuals who are arrested and can’t afford legal representation – a constitutional right known as counsel at first appearance, or CAFA. It took an ACLU…
Travis County • By Lina Fisher • Mar 31, 2025
Central Health opens long-awaited Del Valle Health Center
Last week, Central Health announced at a Travis County Commissioners Court meeting that it has finally opened its Del Valle Health Center, the long-awaited collaboration with CommUnityCare that will expand access to health care for low-income Eastern Travis County residents.…
Public Health • By Lina Fisher • Mar 20, 2025
Travis County sets aggressive goal to eliminate traffic fatalities by 2050
One of the policy areas that the county has most influence over is roadway safety. Past city limits, the Travis County Commissioners Court is responsible – along with the Texas Department of Transportation, the Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization and…
