Funding gaps, underground parking price tag plague DAC project
The team behind the Dougherty Arts Center replacement project unveiled design plans for the Butler Shores facility to a room full of applause this past Monday. However, the mood following a parallel reveal at the Design Commission was not quite…
Planning • By Kali Bramble • Apr 29, 2022
Mixed-use project with affordable units coming near Mueller, pending rezoning
The Planning Commission Tuesday supported a rezoning request for a 143-unit, mixed-income, mixed-use development near the Mueller neighborhood. The rezoning concerns two tracts: a 1.2-acre property at 2015 E M. Franklin Ave., home to Blue Starlite Mini Urban Drive-In, and…
Zoning • By Jonathan Lee • Apr 29, 2022
New EMS chief outlines progress on collections
With a projected budget deficit by Fiscal Year 2027, any news about increasing collections from those who owe the city of Austin money, including the state of Texas, is good news for City Council. Robert Luckritz, who recently joined the…
EMS • By Jo Clifton • Apr 29, 2022
The value of your Travis County home has gone up a lot. That doesn’t mean your property taxes will.
People who own property in the Austin area recently received new valuations from the local appraisal district. This number, known as your appraised value, estimates what your property would currently sell for in Austin’s record-breaking housing market. The appraisals are…
Housing • By Audrey McGlinchy, KUT • Apr 28, 2022
Austin Energy’s proposed rate increase would hit lower-use residential customers hardest
Austin Energy recently launched a public input process to collect feedback on a proposal to increase its base rates by 7.6 percent. The city-owned utility says the price hike is necessary to balance a $48 million shortfall between its costs…
Energy • By Emma Freer • Apr 28, 2022
Airport Hilton rebounds from pandemic losses
The Hilton hotel at Austin’s airport has made a significant recovery from the dark days of the pandemic, airport executives Tracy Thompson and Rajeev Thomas explained to the City Council Audit & Finance Committee Wednesday. During 2021, the Hilton’s occupancy…
Austin • By Jo Clifton • Apr 28, 2022
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City's affordability crisis threatens to price out creative class
Leaders in the region’s entertainment and sports event industries see problems ahead if the city can’t address affordability problems that are forcing artists and working-class audiences to relocate to nearby suburbs. Pointing to the rising cost of living, transportation and…
Austin • By Chad Swiatecki • Apr 28, 2022
Student-led civics project comes to life with passage of food equity resolution
Students with the St. Edward’s University Civics Lab celebrated the fruits of their labor this past Wednesday, as City Council members geared up to pass a resolution that would connect public transportation infrastructure to food equity initiatives. The resolution, which…
City Council • By Kali Bramble • Apr 27, 2022
Travis County launched a program to provide lawyers at the county jail. It lasted nine days.
A pilot program to provide legal representation to people in custody at the Travis County Jail had to be put on hold after just nine days because of staffing shortages. The grant-funded program was part of a Texas A&M study to…
Travis County • By Andrew Weber, KUT • Apr 27, 2022
EDC waiting on TIRZ formation while moving ahead with cultural trust funding proposals
The city’s economic development corporation is moving ahead with evaluating proposals from creative groups vying for some of the $16.9 million in cultural trust funds for creative spaces, but its role in helping manage development south of Lady Bird Lake…
Austin • By Chad Swiatecki • Apr 27, 2022
Parks supervisor resigns during inquiry into ethics allegations
A Parks and Recreation Department supervisor has resigned after running afoul of two ethics regulations. The fact that his supervisor misinterpreted one of the regulations likely compounded the problem. According to an audit released by the Office of the City…
City Hall • By Jo Clifton • Apr 27, 2022
Economic rebound, spending efficiency point to rosier budget picture
The city’s immediate financial outlook is looking more optimistic due to a strong rebound in sales tax collections, increased development, and City Council and city management’s efforts to slow the growth of city cost drivers over the last three years,…
