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- Firefighters to seek firing of Chief Baker
- Office slowdown sparks new downtown housing ambitions
- City leaders evaluate surprising ideas for water conservation
- Audit: Economic official granted arts, music funding against city code
- Downtown Historic Resource Survey eyes seven new districts eligible for designation
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Environment
City begins blue-green algae mitigation at Red Bud Isle
Since 2019, dog-lovers in Austin have had to worry about cyanobacteria, more commonly known as blue-green algae, when stories came out of several dogs dying after swimming in Lady Bird Lake during the algae bloom. A particular area of concern…
Environment • By Sean Saldaña • Jun 24, 2021
Watershed report shines a light on racism in tank farm history
If awards were given out for annual reports, the Austin Watershed Protection Department’s recently released 2020 “State of Our Environment” would be a strong contender for its in-house production of a video documenting the East Austin community’s successful battle against…
Environment • By Amy Smith • Jun 22, 2021
TreeFolks’ carbon credit program taking root
When Tamara Stutz heard about a free tree-planting program at her neighbor’s house, she was sold. Coordinators from TreeFolks, an Austin-based nonprofit, had reached out to property owners in her neighborhood outside Manor offering to plant trees in an effort…
Environment • By Sumaiya Malik, Reporting Texas • Jun 18, 2021
Mitigation pilot set to tackle harmful algae in Lady Bird Lake
Most pet owners in Austin recall the fateful summer of 2019, when a spate of dog deaths was traced back to contact with toxic algae in Lady Bird Lake. Since that time the blue-green algae, or cyanobacteria, has been identified…
Environment • By Amy Smith • Jun 7, 2021
Austin Energy leader insists utility is resilient
While Sidney Jackson, Austin Energy’s deputy general manager and COO, told City Council the “system is resilient,” utility customers who went without power for three days might disagree. By Saturday night, power had been restored to 88 percent of the…
Energy • By Jo Clifton • Jun 2, 2021
Waterloo Greenway seeks alcohol permit before its August debut
A decade after closing for Waller Creek tunnel repairs, Waterloo Park, which once stretched along the shadows of state-owned parking garages, has morphed into the renovated and rebranded Waterloo Greenway, poised to reopen in August. The once no-frills park, home…
Parks • By Amy Smith • Jun 1, 2021
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Sparks fly over proposed plans for Williamson Creek
The Parks and Recreation Board had one of its most contentious – and longest – meetings in recent history Tuesday night with a heated debate about plans for a segment of Williamson Creek in South Austin. The dispute centered on…
Parks • By Amy Smith • May 27, 2021
City devising permanent solution to erosion threat in Guerrero Park
Southeast Austin’s Roy G. Guerrero Park is home to a disc-golf course and baseball fields and is a popular destination for birding. But according to the city, a growing threat poses a risk to the popular park: erosion. The 360-acre park…
Parks • By Sean Saldaña • May 25, 2021
Council OKs Pease Park public-private partnership
City Council on Thursday approved a public-private partnership between Pease Park Conservancy and the Parks and Recreation Department, making the conservancy the official private steward of the park. Initially, the conservancy will oversee event programming, capital improvements and maintenance to…
Parks • By Jonathan Lee • May 25, 2021
Council OKs site for new Dougherty Arts Center
City Council voted unanimously Thursday to approve a site for the Dougherty Arts Center, close to the current ZACH Theatre at Butler Shores Park. The site, called 1A, was not city staffers’ first choice, but it was clear that staffers’…
Parks • By Jo Clifton • May 21, 2021
Ambitious vision plan for Zilker Park seeks community input
Hosting more than 1.3 million visitors a year, Zilker Park is perhaps the most iconic and beloved public space in Austin. Founded in 1917 with a land donation from Andrew Jackson Zilker, Zilker is the city’s oldest metropolitan park. Eighty years…
Parks • By Sean Saldaña • May 21, 2021
Water conservation items move to Council, but not without debate
The City Council committee overseeing Water Forward, Austin’s long-range water resource plan, approved two resolutions last week containing code amendments that would both underscore and expedite the work required to conserve and reclaim water for reuse. One resolution, brought by…
