Sections

About Us

 
Make a Donation
Local • Independent • Essential News
 

The Austin Monitor thanks its sponsors. Become one.

City Hall

Council eyes September for EDC creation, with S. Congress and music venues as priorities

City Council is expected to vote next month to approve the legal documents that would create an economic development corporation, or EDC, that many members see as a remedy for threatened arts spaces, housing for the homeless and other real…

Austin to become a better 'laboratory' for UT research under interlocal agreement

While City Council members and city departments have long sought help from the University of Texas to research challenges facing the city like gentrification or the “downtown puzzle,” there has never been a formal process to coordinate those efforts –…

Central Health proposes raising taxes to fund budget

Central Health has been a critical resource for many during the course of the pandemic; now, the public health authority is looking to accomplish more for its patients in the upcoming year. To provide additional health care options for a…

Buses will take Hurricane Laura evacuees back home Friday, Austin says

Some Hurricane Laura evacuees who came to the Austin area can return home, Central Texas officials said just after 4 p.m. Thursday. Many evacuees in the area came from Galveston, which is no longer under a mandatory evacuation order. Evacuation…

Human Rights Commission calls for democratically elected police chief

On Monday, the Human Rights Commission agreed that City Council should change city ordinance to allow Austin to democratically elect its police chief. Under the proposal, which was put together by commissioners Nathan White, Kristian Caballero and Alicia Weigel, Austin…

City opens process for using $12M approved to preserve creative spaces

The city has launched the process of finding properties and organizations that could be matched in the next 12 months for public-private partnerships focused on preserving creative spaces around the city. The newly released request for information is the first step…

Subscribe to our newsletter

Community Development Commission to study new uses for police funding

The Community Development Commission has formed a working group to recommend how City Council should make reductions to the Austin Police Department budget, and may move to sign to recent resolutions from three other commissions in support of the budget…

Audit outlines challenges for Millennium Youth Complex

The Office of the City Auditor has found numerous problems at the Millennium Youth Entertainment Complex in East Austin, starting with the city’s failure to effectively manage and monitor its agreements with the Austin Rosewood Community Development Corporation. The duties…

Ethics commission discusses transparency in unbroadcast meeting

As Covid-19 has pushed city meetings online, questions about public participation have taken center stage, with community members and commissioners alike struggling with cumbersome web platforms and long waiting times on phone lines. The topic came before the Ethics Review Commission…

Study weighs market impact of convention center expansion, predicts rebound from Covid-19

A new market analysis finds that the proposed expansion of the Austin Convention Center would bring more than 1,700 jobs to the city and add $306 million in annual economic impact from the local events and tourism industry. The market viability study…

Audit highlights inefficiencies at cultural centers

Inefficient operations and a lack of strategic direction have threatened the city’s ability to provide for an increase in cultural opportunities for city residents, according to an extensive audit unveiled by the Office of the City Auditor during the City…

Gov. Abbott proposes freezing property tax revenue in cities that cut police funding

In the hopes of discouraging cities from reducing money spent on police, Gov. Greg Abbott said Tuesday he and other state leaders support the passage of a bill halting a property tax revenue increase for any Texas city that cuts…

Back to Top