Tag Archives: Top Stories
Wednesday, May 10, 2017 by Chad Swiatecki
Entertainment & Events
Music venue owners see holes in ‘imperfect’ proposals to protect them
Music venue operators from many parts of Austin have reservations about a pair of proposals created to address friction between increasing residential development and entertainment-oriented businesses. At a summit for local music venues on Monday, operators from venues in East…
Tuesday, May 9, 2017 by Andrew Weber
Texas State Legislature
Texas sues Austin, Travis County over ‘sanctuary city’ law
Texas is preemptively suing the city of Austin, Travis County and the Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund to enforce the state’s newly minted “sanctuary city” law, Senate Bill 4. The suit, filed on Monday, asks a federal court…
Monday, May 8, 2017 by Caleb Pritchard
Transit
Renewed Project Connect closes in on milestone
The brain trust behind Project Connect will reveal which specific corridors have made the cut to advance to the next round of high-capacity transit planning on Friday. Last Wednesday, Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority Long Range Planning Director Javier Arguello told…
Friday, May 5, 2017 by Jo Clifton
Development
Developer accuses BoA’s King of ethics violations
The city’s Ethics Review Commission will hold a preliminary hearing next Wednesday to determine whether there are “reasonable grounds” to consider an ethics complaint filed against Board of Adjustment member Bryan King. Ross Wilson of PSW Real Estate, which is…
Thursday, May 4, 2017 by Chad Swiatecki
Entertainment & Events
All ears on Red River as noise curfew pilot program kicks off
Today marks the official start of a six-month program that will bring later hours for live music to one of the city’s most well-regarded cultural centers. Known in city channels as the Red River pilot program, the change in city…
Wednesday, May 3, 2017 by Jo Clifton
Texas State Legislature
Bills threaten Austin’s land use plans
Brie Franco, the city of Austin’s chief legislative strategist, gave City Council a brief update at Tuesday’s work session before rushing off to do some last minute lobbying. The city is facing a number of legislative attempts to curb its…
Monday, May 1, 2017 by Caleb Pritchard
Transit
For Capital Metro, UT shuttles ground what could be high-flying ridership numbers
The Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s latest systemwide ridership statistics would be trending upward were it not for an unlikely population: college students. According to recently posted data, the agency gave fewer rides in March than it did over the same…
Monday, May 1, 2017 by Jo Clifton
Austin
Judge rejects city’s payday lender rules
Austin Municipal Court Judge Ferdinand Clervi struck down a section of Austin’s payday lending ordinance in March, ruling that the ordinance’s limits on frequency and amount of installment payments are preempted by state law. That ruling affected two separate cases…
Friday, April 21, 2017 by Chad Swiatecki
Entertainment & Events
Study: Red River music venues face ‘11th hour’ endangerment
A key piece of Austin’s live music scene is at a crisis point and at risk of disappearing in the coming years if dramatic action isn’t taken soon. Those are the findings included in a nearly complete report by the…
Thursday, April 20, 2017 by Chad Swiatecki
Transit
Traffic, affordability plague Austin in latest Zandan Poll
Traffic and transit woes continue to be the bane of most Austinites’ existence, but the latest edition of a long-running community survey suggests those frustrations are easing, at least a little bit. The newest Zandan Poll – started 30 years…
Thursday, April 20, 2017 by Caleb Pritchard
Texas State Legislature
House sets the table for Uber and Lyft’s return to Austin
Uber and Lyft’s self-imposed exile from Austin could be nearing the beginning of the end. On Wednesday, the Texas House of Representatives voted to approve House Bill 100 on a crucial second reading. The bill would create a statewide regulatory…
Wednesday, April 19, 2017 by Jack Craver
Land Development Code
CodeNEXT maps unveiled
The consultants hired to craft a new land-use code for the city of Austin have finally unveiled maps showing what their proposed new system of zoning would look like. But as City Council begins its examination of the proposed CodeNEXT…
Monday, April 17, 2017 by Joseph Caterine
Planning
Convention center skybridge postponed by Planning Commission
A request seeking permission to construct a pedestrian skybridge connecting the Austin Convention Center and the Hilton Austin hotel downtown was postponed by the Planning Commission last week. The case, which the commission came close to denying altogether, will now…
Monday, April 17, 2017 by Sommer Brugal
Environment
Barton Springs redevelopment changes hit a wall at the Environmental Commission
The Watershed Protection Department proposed a number of amendments to the Watershed Protection Ordinance at the Environmental Commission’s April 5 meeting. Andrea Bates, the environmental program coordinator at the Watershed Protection Department, said most of the amendments presented were cleanup…
Friday, April 14, 2017 by Jack Craver
Zoning
At last, City Council approves Austin Oaks PUD
After just over two hours of debate Thursday night, City Council gave its final approval for Austin Oaks, the controversial planned unit development on 31 acres of land at the corner of MoPac and Spicewood Springs Rd. The development was…
Wednesday, April 12, 2017 by Joseph Caterine
AISD
AISD trustee reveals reasons behind resignation
In a sit-down interview with the Austin Monitor, Austin Independent School District Trustee Paul Saldaña opened up about the reasons behind his departure from the board, disclosing his fears of becoming bogged down in bureaucracy and describing a school district…
Tuesday, April 11, 2017 by Chad Swiatecki
Austin
New UT arena slated for downtown, but questions linger
A big piece of downtown Austin’s future fell into place on Friday with the announcement that the arena that will replace the Frank Erwin Center will be located close to the current arena on the University of Texas’ eastern border…
Monday, April 10, 2017 by Syeda Hasan
Planning
Austin launches initiative to redesign Congress Avenue
For Austin visitors, it’s hard to beat the iconic view of the Texas Capitol from Congress Avenue. But for those who live and work along the corridor, the streetscape could use some improvements. On a Friday afternoon, about a dozen…
Monday, April 10, 2017 by Jack Craver
Housing
Travis tax appraisers tout new techniques for assessing property values
The Travis Central Appraisal District is figuring out the values of properties faster and more accurately, all while fighting off a record number of protests and lawsuits from taxpayers challenging their appraisals, agency leaders told the Travis County Commissioners Court…
Friday, April 7, 2017 by Joseph Caterine
AISD
AISD magnet school policy in turmoil
Emotions ran high as Austin Independent School District trustees, school alums and parents weighed in on the district’s magnet school policy at the board’s special called meeting April 3. The board deliberated for several hours before it voted to adopt…
