Tag Archives: Austin City Council
Monday, March 18, 2019 by Jack Craver
Land Development Code
City manager presents options for a new land development code
City Manager Spencer Cronk released a memo on Friday proposing the first steps of a new process to rewrite the land development code. The memo comes seven months after City Council voted unanimously to suspend its last land use code rewrite…
Tuesday, March 12, 2019 by Jo Clifton
Courts
Council rules unlikely to change despite opinion
Despite a ruling by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals dismantling a provision of the Texas Open Meetings Act that prevents local government officials from meeting in small groups in what is known as a “walking quorum,” it seems unlikely…
Monday, March 11, 2019 by Chad Swiatecki
Bonds & Propositions
Council OKs full $12M for creative space preservation, creation
The city’s creative leaders will have a full $12 million in bond money as their conceptual modeling clay later this month when the community begins to consider how best to protect Austin’s shrinking stock of arts spaces and music venues.City…
Monday, March 11, 2019 by Elizabeth Pagano
Radio
Austin Monitor Radio: CM Greg Casar
This week, Council Member Greg Casar stops by KOOP to talk to Austin Monitor reporter Jack Craver about District 4, City Council and his ongoing battles with the Texas state Legislature. Tune in below!Austin Monitor Radio is produced in partnership…
Friday, March 8, 2019 by Jack Craver
Zoning
Council signals support for row houses over staff objection
City Council signaled support for a project that will bring five row houses to the Blackland neighborhood in East Austin, over the objections of city staff and a vocal contingent of neighborhood residents.Council approved “on first reading” rezoning the property…
Friday, March 8, 2019 by Jo Clifton
City Council
Flood plain variance a conundrum for Council
After hearing from the city’s flood plain expert, Council voted 6-5 Thursday to grant a variance to allow a property owner to replace an older, smaller home in the flood plain of Waller Creek at 4515 Avenue D with a…
Thursday, March 7, 2019 by Jo Clifton
City Council
Alter worried about cost of city leases
Council Member Alison Alter is worried about how much money the city is spending on renting space for city offices as compared to purchasing or building those offices.At Tuesday’s work session, Alter grilled Alex Gale, the city’s interim real estate…
Wednesday, March 6, 2019 by Jack Craver
Bonds & Propositions
City begins process of spending $925 million in bonds
Spending money is not always easy. Four months after voters approved $925 million in bonds to fund housing, parks, transportation, fire stations and a wide assortment of other municipal priorities, city staff and City Council are beginning the process of…
Tuesday, March 5, 2019 by Jack Craver
Transit
Can Austin get dedicated transit lanes without losing car lanes?
Mayor Steve Adler and Capital Metro Transportation Authority leaders say it is critical that Austin put in place a high-capacity public transit system that runs in a dedicated right-of-way, but that the new system does not have to come at…
Monday, February 25, 2019 by Austin Monitor
Reporters' Notebook
Reporter’s Notebook: Chinese Democracy
The press release is made of cheese… How best to follow up a City Council meeting that saw unanimous action to ease the development of affordable housing? If you’ve got the big office on the second floor at City Hall,…
Friday, February 22, 2019 by Chad Swiatecki
City Council
Petition drive to stall stadium will likely head to voters, after construction start
The petition drive started last year in an attempt to stall or prevent the construction of a soccer stadium on city property could go before voters in November, roughly two months after construction of the 20,000-seat facility is expected to…
Friday, February 22, 2019 by Jack Craver
Housing
Council passes resolution to ease regulations on affordable housing projects
City Council unanimously approved a resolution Thursday aimed at producing more affordable housing units in the city by easing regulations on subsidized developments.The resolution, authored by Council Member Greg Casar, instructs city staff to draft an ordinance that will exempt…
Wednesday, February 20, 2019 by Jack Craver
City Council
Casar makes small changes to affordable housing resolution
City Council appears poised to approve a resolution aimed at easing regulations on affordable housing developers.At a Tuesday work session, Council members offered suggestions, but not significant criticism, of the measure drafted by Council Member Greg Casar. The proposal, which…
Wednesday, February 20, 2019 by Jo Clifton
Austin
City survey: Austinites’ satisfaction up
Austinites have expressed a very high level of satisfaction with city services, with overall satisfaction 21 percent higher than the national average for cities with a population of more than 500,000, Chief Performance Officer Kimberly Olivares told Council at Tuesday’s…
Tuesday, February 19, 2019 by Jack Craver
Transportation
Council members agree: Cars are not the solution
If the Thursday meeting was any indication, every member of City Council believes that the key to fixing Austin’s transportation problems is reducing the population’s reliance on automobiles.Council members peppered city transportation staff with questions and critiques in response to…
Tuesday, February 12, 2019 by Chad Swiatecki
Politics
Certified petition brings more questions on soccer stadium
The city of Austin has certified the petition circulated by residents opposed to a planned soccer stadium that would be built on city-owned property.The petition drive began last year and was pushed by a group known as Friends of McKalla…
Monday, February 11, 2019 by Jack Craver
Planning
Council weighs mixed messages from staff on car dealership
City Council approved a request Thursday to provide water and wastewater service to a car dealership in northwest Travis County over the objections of the city’s Watershed Protection Department.The car lot, 620 Volvo Dealership, is going to be built whether…
Monday, February 11, 2019 by Austin Monitor
Reporters' Notebook
Reporter’s Notebook: Clarifications
The devil (or the donut) is in the details… When it comes to zoning and platting, make no mistake that the commissioners who sit on ZAP pay attention to the details of each and every case. In fact, this was…
Friday, February 8, 2019 by Jo Clifton
Austin
City, UT to work together on moving Red River
City Council unanimously agreed Thursday to enter into an agreement with the University of Texas to facilitate the relocation of Red River Street between East 12th Street and East 32nd Street in order to develop a new arena to replace…
Friday, February 8, 2019 by Jack Craver
Courts
City Council approves settlement with Austin Country Club
City Council endorsed a settlement Thursday aimed at ending litigation between the city and the Austin Country Club.At issue is whether the club – which is expanding its clubhouse and adding a new dining facility, and likely plans to develop…
