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- Parks Board recommends vendor for Zilker Café, while voicing concerns about lack of local presence
- City leaders evaluate surprising ideas for water conservation
- Audit: Economic official granted arts, music funding against city code
- Office slowdown sparks new downtown housing ambitions
- Downtown Historic Resource Survey eyes seven new districts eligible for designation
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Environment
Commissions plan joint work group to address off-leash dogs
The Parks and Recreation Board and the Animal Advisory Commission are expected to form a work group to address the growing issue of off-leash dogs in Austin. Both bodies have received complaints from Austin residents about off-leash dogs and noncompliant…
Parks • By Sumaiya Malik, Reporting Texas • Mar 30, 2021
Proposed concrete plant at ACC upsets neighbors
When Cynthia Wilcox, president of the Oak Hill Association of Neighborhoods, heard the news that there would soon be a functioning concrete plant at the Austin Community College Pinnacle campus near her home she felt “completely blindsided.” Wilcox reached out…
Environment • By Jo Clifton • Mar 17, 2021
Trail Foundation safety and mobility study seeks improvements
Stretching 10 miles, the Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail is one of Austin’s most beloved features, receiving more than 4.5 million visits a year. Behind the trail’s natural beauty and serenity, however, are countless hours of planning and execution. The Trail…
Parks • By Sean Saldaña • Mar 12, 2021
‘We did the best we could’: Commissioners evaluate Austin Energy’s winter storm response
At a special called joint meeting Monday, commissioners from the Electric Utility and Resource Management commissions praised Austin Energy’s response to last month’s winter storm that left hundreds of thousands of people without power for days. Commissioners also offered ideas…
Energy • By Jonathan Lee • Mar 11, 2021
AE chief apologizes for hardships caused by storm
Austin Energy General Manager Jackie Sargent apologized to the community during Wednesday’s AE Utility Oversight Committee meeting for the suffering and hardships experienced during Winter Storm Uri as a result of electric system outages. Even though the outages were ordered…
Energy • By Jo Clifton • Mar 4, 2021
Austin Water responds to 'demoralizing' water outages
Austin Water gave a presentation to the Water Oversight Committee on Wednesday detailing the timeline of the water outages last month, preparation for future disasters and upcoming utility bill relief measures. City Council members demanded to know how a substantial…
Water • By Jonathan Lee • Mar 4, 2021
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PARD begins to reimagine public safety
Last summer, in the wake of protests against the police killings of Mike Ramos and George Floyd, Austin City Council announced its Reimagining Public Safety initiative. A timeline was released with the goal of reforming “public safety over the years, including conducting…
Parks • By Sean Saldaña • Mar 4, 2021
Austin utilities work to help those hit by storm
The wake of winter storm Uri brought recriminations, finger-pointing and at least one major utility bankruptcy, not to mention the sky-high prices charged to many Texas utility customers. Meanwhile, at Austin Energy, officials have been spending their time trying to…
Energy • By Jo Clifton • Mar 2, 2021
Parks board endorses push for more benches in city parks
On Feb. 23, Janee Briesemeister, who chairs the Commission on Seniors, sought the Parks and Recreation Board’s endorsement for a recommendation passed by the senior commission back in January. The recommendation advocates for “the placement of benches on trails and other…
Parks • By Sean Saldaña • Mar 2, 2021
PARD director estimates $1 million in weather-related damages
At last week’s Parks and Recreation Board meeting, Parks and Recreation Department Director Kimberly McNeeley presented the most recent director’s report for the department, highlighting PARD’s response to the historic winter storms and the power outages in the region. According to McNeeley,…
Parks • By Sean Saldaña • Mar 1, 2021
Conservation groups promote 'Lights Out' to protect migrating birds
A coalition of organizations is working to promote a program to protect migrating birds as they pass through Austin this spring. Travis Audubon, Texan by Nature, Defenders of Wildlife, the Austin Office of Sustainability, Balcones Canyonlands Preserve, Audubon Texas, and…
Environment • By Sumaiya Malik, Reporting Texas • Feb 26, 2021
Cold weather kills bats across Texas
Large numbers of dead or dying bats are being discovered under bridges and overpasses in Texas after last week’s winter storm. One Austin resident sent KUT a video of what she saw downtown under a bridge at Henderson and Ninth Street.…
