Transit riders could pay less under new fare proposal by Cap Metro
Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority is planning to roll out a new fare system this fall that would limit how much people pay to ride the bus or train. Riders using a new smartphone app or fare card – branded as…
Transit • By Nathan Bernier, KUT • Mar 22, 2022
Downtown court relocation plans draw mounting criticism
Resistance appears to be growing to a slate of resolutions on the agenda for Thursday’s City Council meeting that would lead to the permanent relocation of the Downtown Austin Community Court to a circa-1800s municipal building on West Eighth Street.…
Austin • By Chad Swiatecki • Mar 22, 2022
Planning Commission weighs in on mobility plan updates
As the city works to update the Austin Strategic Mobility Plan, a 20-year transportation plan adopted in 2019, the Planning Commission was the latest body to comment on the proposed changes March 8. City staffers propose two sets of changes…
Planning • By Jonathan Lee • Mar 22, 2022
Activists remain wary of new jet fuel storage facility plans
Activists and homeowners are protesting the proposed location for a new jet-fuel storage facility at the airport on the northbound side of U.S. Highway 183. Construction is scheduled to begin this spring for the project, which will include two storage tanks,…
Environment • By Willow Higgins • Mar 21, 2022
Civil rights office could take over enforcement of city's ADA regulations
The city may fold enforcement of all concerns related to the Americans with Disabilities Act into the Office of Civil Rights, a change that would take those responsibilities away from human resources staff. A resolution was passed unanimously at this month’s…
City Hall • By Chad Swiatecki • Mar 21, 2022
Travis County Judge speaks out against Texas voting law
Last Thursday, Travis County Judge Andy Brown joined a U.S. House subcommittee, Committee on House Administration, to speak against Senate Bill 1, the new Republican voting legislation aimed at limiting the effectiveness of alternative voting methods like voting by mail.…
Elections • By Seth Smalley • Mar 21, 2022
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City loses Land Development Code lawsuit appeal
On Thursday, the Texas 14th Court of Appeals upheld a ruling by Travis County District Judge Jan Soifer invalidating two votes by Austin City Council rewriting the city’s Land Development code. Soifer ruled that the city had violated property owners’ procedural…
Land Development Code • By Jo Clifton • Mar 18, 2022
Resolutions push city to look toward future use of crypto, blockchain tech
Payments for city services via cryptocurrency could become a reality in the near future, as could storage and processing of paperwork using blockchain ledger technology. Those are two of the possible outcomes from a pair of resolutions set for consideration…
City Hall • By Chad Swiatecki • Mar 18, 2022
Construction will soon begin on Central Health's new clinics in eastern Travis County
Construction will soon start on two new health centers in eastern Travis County aimed at expanding access to underserved communities. Central Health, Travis County’s health care district, is constructing the health centers in Del Valle and Hornsby Bend. The centers,…
Public Health • By Marisa Charpentier, KUT • Mar 18, 2022
ZAP unable to mediate inter-church zoning dispute
The Zoning and Platting Commission couldn’t agree on a rezoning for an apartment project with up to 300 units, in part because of a disagreement between two churches about a restrictive covenant. After multiple failed motions on March 1, the commission…
Zoning • By Jonathan Lee • Mar 18, 2022
Council to consider equitable funding levels for minority chambers of commerce
The city appears to have struck a bargain with four niche chambers of commerce to more equitably distribute each of their annual funding allocations from the city budget. Discussions have been ongoing for years about how to “normalize” the city’s…
City Hall • By Chad Swiatecki • Mar 17, 2022
A rush of applications for housing help forces Travis County to close its program months early
Following what one official described as an “absolute deluge” of interest, Travis County says it has stopped taking applications for a program to help people make their rent and mortgage payments. The county had nearly $9.2 million in federal and…
