Community Not Commodity calls for audit

Community Not Commodity is now calling for an independent audit of the CodeNEXT work done by Austin city staff, Opticos Design, and Fregonese Associates. A press release from the group notes that payments to consultants working on CodeNEXT are now at nearly $8.5 million. “Yesterday the City of Austin announced that the next CodeNEXT draft will be delayed by at least two-and-a-half months, a move which likely will lead to further cost overruns – and with no assurance of a better product,” states the press release. The group’s head, Fred Lewis, said, “It’s time to pause the CodeNEXT process so that taxpayers can take a close look at city staff, Opticos Design and Fregonese & Associates, their shared work, and their ties to special interests and influential land developers …. The affordability, livability, and safety of our neighborhoods are too important to be left to a broken process dominated by special interests. It is time for the Austin City Council to step up and do something about this train wreck.”