Message board shows some of Council’s budget wish list

Although Tuesday’s City Council work session focused almost exclusively on gaps in the city’s Fiscal Year 2025 budget for services related to homelessness, Council members have highlighted a variety of needs in their message board posts.

Today, Council will once again talk about its proposed changes to the budget. Here is a selective list of some of the items proposed by Mayor Pro Tem Leslie Pool and Council members Natasha Harper-Madison and Alison Alter.

EMS overtime

Pool has proposed adding $142,000 in one-time funds from overtime for EMS to launch a pilot program for a demand unit at the Domain entertainment district.

“This pilot program would serve the needs of the Domain entertainment district in the North Burnet/Gateway area over the next year, ensuring timely response to the Domain area without drawing EMS resources away from the surrounding communities,” Pool wrote. “Under this program, EMS is able to deploy a weekend Demand Unit during FY25 to gauge whether an additional unit or full Command Unit is needed for response. This FY25 pilot is intended for potential implementation in FY26 based on the results of the pilot.”

Council members Zo Qadri and Alter indicated they would like to be shown as co-sponsors of the amendment.

“Sustaining Austin’s unique cultural fabric”

Harper-Madison wrote on the City Council Message Board: “As we navigate greater limits on resources than we’ve seen in recent times, it is still our hope to ensure that every investment we make fosters opportunities for greater self-sufficiency and agency for our community. For this budget cycle, I want to ensure we deliver efficient and effective services for all Austinites, while also supporting and sustaining Austin’s unique cultural fabric.”

Among her proposed amendments are funds for the Downtown Austin Community Court and support for the celebrating Juneteenth with fireworks, plus support for the African American Cultural Heritage District and the Texas Music Museum.

According to Harper-Madison’s post, the community court mobile program was very successful “and demonstrated the valuable and extensive role that the DACC has in our city’s response to the homelessness crisis in Austin. The Mobile Court’s success was centered around meeting community needs and meeting people where they are, with lower operational costs by avoiding the necessity of a permanent facility.”

The projected cost of this program is about $984,000. Her co-sponsors on this include Mayor Kirk Watson and Council members Paige Ellis, Mackenzie Kelly and Pool.

On the fireworks proposal, Harper-Madison wrote, “Juneteenth is a national holiday and one of the historic Austin legacies that define our city’s cultural identity, encourage community pride, and stimulate the local economy. It’s crucial that we solidify funding to continue our traditions, including the iconic Juneteenth fireworks display. Austin’s Juneteenth is for everyone, and we should work to sustain and enhance this amazing event for all Austinites to enjoy.” There was no dollar amount for this proposal.

Harper-Madison is also seeking an unspecified amount of funding for community-based organizations within the African American Cultural Heritage District. She wrote that “continued investment within our cultural districts is vital to sustain our vibrant music and arts atmosphere in Austin. This includes maintenance of our community spaces, such as the Texas Music Museum, for storage, preservation, and display of our arts and music culture. These organizations are a significant component of our unique identity, and we need to ensure we sustain quality spaces for our creative culture to thrive.”

Parks maintenance, climate research and more

Council members Ellis and Alter are both pushing for adding maintenance employees to the Parks and Recreation Department.

Alter is also sponsoring a $350,000 amendment that would continue the city’s partnership with the University of Texas the City Climate Co-Lab. She wrote that this funding will help produce “Austin-specific climate information, data products, tools, and assessments to inform municipal decision making on issues such as urban heat trends and securing our water supply. The partnership is mutually beneficial and helps drive innovation in research, policy, funding, and education with Austin at the center. UT is currently providing $550,000 in funding, with an additional similar amount invested from faculty generated research funds.”

Alter explained, “Our previous investment enabled the pursuit of grants for over $5 million to advance climate-related projects with $2,050,000 in grant funding already approved. Many departments stand to potentially benefit from this climate data / science infrastructure, with strong interest already evident from the Austin Fire Department, Austin Energy, Austin Water, Austin Public Health, the Office of Sustainability, Office of Resilience, Transportation & Public Works, and Watershed Protection. We thus propose funding this climate infrastructure investment from the Support Services budget.” Council Member Ryan Alter and Ellis are co-sponsoring this proposal.

Among her other proposals are an amendment to add 10 weeks of paid maternity leave for firefighters to be negotiated in an upcoming labor agreement. The co-sponsors on this proposal include Council members Vanessa Fuentes, Kelly, Ellis and Harper-Madison. The projected cost is about $75,000.

She is also proposing hiring a retired detective to work in the Austin Police Department’s domestic violence unit at an estimated cost of about $120,000 per year. The co-sponsors of this item include Harper-Madison and Council Member José Velásquez.

Mayor Kirk Watson and every Council member except Kelly has proposed some budget amendments that would raise the overall costs to taxpayers. Kelly has proposed some cuts and a budget that would not raise taxes. The Austin Monitor will report on other proposed budget amendments on Friday.

Photo made available through a Creative Commons license.

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