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Whispers
Friday, April 5, 2019 by Jessi Devenyns
Wildland-Urban Interface Code under development a year past original adoption date
As Austin tops lists for U.S. cities at risk of wildfire damage, having a code that accounts for everything from managing vegetation to fire-safe requirements for new development is crucial. However, after Council provided a plan and a timeline for adoption in November 2016, the Austin Fire Department’s Wildland-Urban Interface Code has still not been implemented. Originally, the WUI was to be adopted in January 2018, but KXAN reported that as early as summer 2017 there were delays in its implementation. The timeline has continued to be pushed back, and in an update to the Public Safety Commission on April 1, the Austin Fire Department’s Wildfire Division gave a revised timeline that said, “Due to extensive engagement with key partners … a reasonable target for Council adoption would be early summer of this year, May or June, with actual implementation as early as January 2020.” However, implementation will be contingent on approval of program and personnel funding, neither of which were listed in the fire department’s preliminary 2020 budget.
Thursday, April 4, 2019 by Jessi Devenyns
City searches for consultant to review APD sexual assault cases
After Council mandated an independent review of police handling of sexual assault cases, the city manager’s office has been busy laying the groundwork to engage a consultant to examine sexual assaults reported to Austin police over the past seven years. Joe Silva from the city manager’s office came to the April 1 meeting of the Public Safety Commission to inform the commissioners that city management expects to have the engagement process finalized in the next couple of weeks. On April 8, the department will release the solicitation for consultant which will be available for a month before the application is closed and the procurement process begins. Silva said that they anticipate coming before Council in August with a proposed contract. To better participate in the procurement process, Chair Rebecca Webber initiated the formation of a working group that will comprise herself; Rebecca Gonzales, an expert in contract procurement and consulting; and Rebecca Bernhardt, a subject matter expert in sexual assault victim advocacy. Silva also cleared up the confusion surrounding the age of victims and when an assault should be classified as statutory rape or rape; the age limit is 17 years old.
Thursday, April 4, 2019 by Tai Moses
A civil rights history maker comes to Kealing
Dr. Terrence Roberts, one of the famed Little Rock Nine, will be speaking with Kealing Middle School seventh-graders today, Thursday, as part of the students’ Civil Rights and Social Justice Seminar. The Little Rock Nine was a group of African-American teens who became the first black students ever to attend classes at Little Rock Central High School in Arkansas in 1957. Roberts was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal by President Bill Clinton in 1999. Roberts will speak with two groups of students, at 9:30-11:30 a.m. and 1- 2:30 p.m. at Kealing Middle School, 1607 Pennsylvania Ave.
Thursday, April 4, 2019 by Elizabeth Pagano
Coming soon: State of the City
Mayor Steve Adler will deliver this year’s State of the City at a familiar venue: Austin City Hall. Adler will deliver his speech on Wednesday, April 17, from 5-6 p.m. The event is free and open to the public, but those hoping to catch the action live should reserve a ticket. Those OK with watching from their couch can catch the event on the city’s television station, ATXN.
Wednesday, April 3, 2019 by Chad Swiatecki
RECA offers its help with land use code reboot
The Real Estate Council of Austin has weighed in on the future of the city’s land use code rewrite, and wants local leaders to take aggressive steps to add housing supply as an answer to the growing affordability crisis. Last week the group submitted a two-page memo responding to City Manager Spencer Cronk’s five policy questions for City Council members related to the now-idle CodeNEXT process. The memo advocates for a whole new land development code and zoning map, a goal of adding 287,000 new housing units, gradually expanding the variety of allowed housing types to address “missing middle” options to add density, relaxed compatibility standards especially along transportation corridors and transit-oriented developments, and reducing on-site parking requirements. In a letter to members, RECA explained its positions and offered information or other expertise to those leading the rewrite once it is rebooted in the coming months. The letter restated the group’s emphasis on policies that can address affordability by making it easier and less expensive to add new housing to the Austin market.
Wednesday, April 3, 2019 by Tai Moses
Monarch butterflies running out of time
Monarch butterflies started showing up last month on their annual flutter through town. According to local butterfly watchers, Austin is seeing the biggest spring migration in recent memory. Despite this, the fragile black-and-orange insects are under threat from many quarters, including pesticide use, habitat loss, illegal logging, and severe weather events caused by climate change. Their populations have crashed by 80 percent over the past 20 years and their long-term survival is in serious doubt. Yesterday, an alliance of 105 conservation organizations urged Congress to increase spending on monarch conservation programs by $100 million per year. The funds would pay for restoring a million acres of milkweed habitat a year (milkweed is the only plant the monarch caterpillar can eat). Said Stephanie Kurose, an endangered species policy specialist at the Center for Biological Diversity, in an announcement about the funding request, “These beautiful butterflies are running out of time. Congress needs to take effective action to save the monarch before it’s too late.”
Tuesday, April 2, 2019 by Elizabeth Pagano
2020 census effort launched
Yesterday, the city of Austin and Travis County launched a campaign to ensure an accurate 2020 census. A press conference about the effort noted that undercounting Texas residents by 1 percent could result in at least $300 million in lost federal funding determined by the census. A press release explained, “This year campaigners are concerned about a potential addition of a citizenship question added to the Census. This decision is pending and awaiting response from the U.S. Supreme Court. Additionally, the underfunding of the Census Bureau and changing demographics in the State could add up to a significant undercount for Texas.” To combat that, the city, county and the Austin-Travis County Complete Count Committee will work over the next year to raise awareness and increase participation in the census. Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt said, “Because the 2020 census is a year away, the hard work to make certain we have an accurate count must begin today. Whether it is protecting our voting rights during redistricting or the allocation of federal funds to local communities, census data plays a critical role in all our lives.”
Tuesday, April 2, 2019 by Jessi Devenyns
Public Safety Commission gets a new chair
It was the end of an era at the April 1 meeting of the Public Safety Commission. After serving four and a half years as chair, Rebecca Webber yielded the post to Ed Scruggs, the District 8 representative on the commission. Webber, whose term extends until 2021, will continue to serve as vice chair and parliamentarian simultaneously. With nine years of experience on the commission, Webber was the first woman to be appointed to the post back before Austin had a 10-1 Council and there were seven commission members. After a long career steering the ship, she noted that it was time to step down. After nominating Scruggs to take the position of chair, she sang the commissioner’s praises, saying that the commission would be in good hands going forward. The Public Safety Commission voted unanimously to appoint him. Scruggs reciprocated the niceties, saying that the advisory body had “come a long way” since Webber was appointed as chair. When no one volunteered to perform the role of parliamentarian, Webber volunteered for the task. In keeping with her ethos of smoothing waves and operating in a straightforward manner, she noted that it would take a bit of study on her part to be sure she could keep the commissioners in line with Robert’s Rules of Order when the occasion arises.
Tuesday, April 2, 2019 by Chad Swiatecki
Austin Community Foundation joins effort to preserve affordable housing
Austin Community Foundation has joined as an investor in the Austin Housing Conservancy Fund, a recently created investment vehicle that is intended to preserve middle-class multifamily housing developments throughout the city. The foundation has invested $250,000 in the fund, which so far has purchased three apartment communities with nearly 1,000 total units and will keep rents affordable to families earning between $34,000 and $68,000 per year. The investment funds from Austin Community Foundation came from its FundATX program, which was created to help investors find opportunities that would let them put their dollars toward initiatives that improve the economic security of Central Texans. Since January, FundATX has raised approximately $500,000 and has committed $2.5 million to local organizations.
Tuesday, April 2, 2019 by Tai Moses
Putting an end to distracted driving
We’ve all done it – glanced at a text, unwrapped a muffin or fiddled with the radio station while we’re driving. We may have been lucky so far, but no matter the reason or duration, distracted driving can be deadly. Since April is Distracted Driving Awareness Month, the Austin Transportation Department, Police Department and Capital Metro are partnering to educate the community that simple changes in behavior behind the wheel can save lives. Said Austin Transportation Director Robert Spillar in an announcement about the campaign, “As we work to end traffic deaths and serious injuries on our roadways, we’re asking everyone to pitch in. That means everyone should stay focused on the road and point out distracted driving behavior when they see it.” Austin Police Chief Brian Manley didn’t mince words: “There is no excuse for distracted driving,” he says. “Put your phone down and pay attention to the roads when you are driving.” Distracted driving, speeding, drunken driving and failure to yield are the “fatal four” behaviors that collectively contribute to more than half of all serious injury and fatal crashes in Austin. The distracted driving awareness campaign will be rolling out a series of educational materials in an effort to raise awareness around these critical topics. And throughout the month of April, APD will be focusing special attention on areas where vehicle accident data show a high frequency of distracted driving.
Monday, April 1, 2019 by Tai Moses
Stand up and be counted in the 2020 census
The 2020 census may be a year away, but the city of Austin and Travis County are launching a campaign now to make sure everyone gets counted in the once-every-decade national survey. Participation in the census is critical because the information gathered guides the allocation of more than $800 billion in federal funding. Funding for family and community programs such as Medicaid, Medicare, State Children’s Health Insurance, Section 8 Housing, Head Start, the National School Lunch Program, Special Education Grants and highway planning and construction all rely on accurate census numbers. For the first time, people will be able to respond online, by phone or by mail. Austin Mayor Steve Adler and Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt will be holding a press conference to announce the Austin-Travis County Census 2020 Complete Count Committee today at 10 a.m. at City Hall, 301 W. Second St.
Monday, April 1, 2019 by Chad Swiatecki
Austin’s tallest tower spawns tension
Discontent is growing with the appearance of the tallest tower on the Austin skyline. A new online petition is calling for the developers of The Independent – popularly known as the “Jenga tower” – to make improvements to the top of the residential building that “looks unfinished and is a stunning disappointment.” As of Sunday, the petition from the group known as Fix The Crown had gathered more than 700 signatures, though the campaign can’t exactly cause any local authorities to compel the building’s owners to make any improvements. Austin Business Journal reports that last year the building’s managers explained that the top of the tower would “consist of a box of glimmering steel mesh hanging over a 50,000-gallon water tank at the top that prevents the building from swaying in the wind.”