Tag Archives: Austin City Council
'A big deal': Austin approves $15 million relief fund that includes cash assistance for residents
Austin City Council members have approved a $15 million relief fund to aid residents affected financially by the Covid-19 pandemic. “I think this is a big deal and I’m really proud of this council,” Mayor Pro Tem Delia Garza said…
City Council • By Audrey McGlinchy, KUT • Apr 10, 2020
City declares broad equity goals for pretrial services
In the middle of a pandemic that has led to a sharp decrease in the Travis County Jail population, Austin City Council plans to leverage its influence to keep the jail population low by reserving use of pretrial detention for…
Courts • By Ryan Thornton • Apr 10, 2020
City joins county with expanded sick leave pay
City employees will be eligible to receive 100 percent of their regular pay if they take emergency sick leave as a result of Covid-19, retroactive to March 15, under a resolution approved by City Council on Thursday. The resolution, similar…
City Hall • By Jo Clifton • Apr 10, 2020
Music Commission backs Council proposal to unlock $4.5M to aid artists, venues
The Music Commission has asked the city to protect and replenish the recently created Live Music Fund if any of it is used to help musicians and music venues impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic. At a special meeting called for…
Music & Entertainment • By Chad Swiatecki • Apr 9, 2020
Council to consider zoning for apartments near McKinney Falls
The lone zoning case City Council is likely to discuss today would allow a developer to build low-density apartments, as well as a small commercial development, on a 23-acre tract on Colton Bluff Springs Road in Southeast Austin near McKinney…
Zoning • By Jo Clifton • Apr 9, 2020
City financial forecast better than many
According to the city’s economic consultant, Jon Hockenyos, a quarter of a million workers in the Austin area will lose their jobs as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. “We’re just at the beginning of seeing the economic implications of…
City Council • By Jo Clifton • Apr 8, 2020
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Judicial Committee members call for efficient quick release process at county jail
On any given day, the majority of individuals held in the Travis County Jail have not yet had a trial or been convicted of the crime that landed them there, yet they cannot afford to pay the bondsman’s fee or…
City Council • By Ryan Thornton • Apr 8, 2020
Garza, Casar lead plan to use $15M in city reserves for Covid-19 relief programs
The city is expected to expand its contracts with social service organizations in order to begin deploying a portion of Austin’s budget reserves to residents facing financial peril due to the spread of Covid-19. Mayor Pro Tem Delia Garza and…
City Council • By Chad Swiatecki • Apr 3, 2020
No rest for contractors hauling city waste, recycling
Council gave the official nod of approval last week for short-term contracts for collection, processing and disposal of trash, as well as recycling services and disposal of brush and compostable materials, to Central Waste and Recycling and Texas Disposal Systems.…
City Council • By Jo Clifton • Apr 2, 2020
City works out logistics to allow boards and commissions to meet virtually
After nearly a month of meetings being on hold, City Council voted last Thursday to temporarily waive a local ordinance requiring a quorum of board or commission members to be physically present in order for a meeting to take place.…
City Hall • By Jessi Devenyns • Mar 31, 2020
Advocacy groups push for fast, centralized aid for musicians impacted by Covid-19 spread
More than a dozen local music nonprofits have signed on in support of City Council’s recent move to create aid programs to address the business impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic, with a letter sent last week calling for quick relief…
Austin • By Chad Swiatecki • Mar 30, 2020
Council adopts anti-eviction ordinance: Tenant advocates call it a 'Band-Aid solution'
City Council adopted a 60-day suspension on evictions Thursday that will buy tenants two months before a landlord can seek to evict them for missed rent payments. Many renters and local advocates, however, say the ordinance only kicks the can…
