Austin Monitor

Austin Mayor Will Wynn is in New York today, joining dozens of other mayors from around the country for the Mayor’s ’08 Action Forum on Infrastructure. As part of the conference, hosted by New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Mayor Wynn will speak with campaign advisors to both Barack Obama and John McCain about energy infrastructure. […]

The Historic Landmark Commission on Monday cleared the way for the demolition of one property in the Rainey Street Neighborhood to make way for the new 21c Museum Hotel and gave the property owner two weeks to work on plans for moving an adjacent home that dates back to the mid-1880s.   Developers plan to […]

City Chief Information Officer Pete Collins, who has been on administrative leave since mid-June has submitted his resignation. Collins will receive nearly $66,000 from the city as the result of an agreement and release signed this afternoon.   That amount represents the value of three months base salary plus 366 hours of accrued vacation, according […]

The Austin City Council has postponed a vote on granting street closure permit for the Bat Fest until Aug. 21. Organizers of the festival want the Council to waive the rules requiring 90 percent of affected property owners to approve the closure of the Congress Avenue Bridge for their event August 30 and 31.   […]

Chair Betty Baker could find little recommend in the rezoning of a half-acre of property on Swansons Ranch Road from SF-2 to CS after neighborhood complaints at Tuesday night’s Zoning and Platting Commission meeting. The problem with the property, owned by T.J. Greaney, was as much the current state and condition of the buildings as […]

  The Austin City Council on Thursday will consider a resolution in support of a nationwide single-payer healthcare system. Council Members Lee Leffingwell, Mike Martinez, and Randi Shade are sponsoring the item in support of House Resolution 676, the “United States National Health Insurance Act.”   Democrat John Conyers of Michigan originally submitted the measure […]

16 After two decades of being flush with disposable cash, the Capital Metro Transit Authority has finally taken a hard look at its finances, and that means making unpalatable choices such as cutting traditional fare subsidies for the elderly and the disabled. Cap Metro’s Local Government Approval Committee, chaired by Judge Sam Biscoe, was on […]

16 Despite significant onsite demolition and objections from the owners, the Historic Landmark Commission recommended last week that the West Austin home of the founder of the state’s first registered architectural firm be zoned historic. Louis Southerland’s home is not simply historic but uber-historic according to criteria that have been set out by Austin City […]

10Austin residents may get two chances this week to give their opinion on Austin Energy’s plan to spend $2.3 billion over the next 20 years to buy power from a soon to be built biomass-powered electric generation plant near Nacogdoches in East Texas. Nacogdoches Power LLC will build and operate the 100 MW plant, which […]

Citing an adverse impact upon the poor, the non-profit group Texas Rio Grande Legal Aid plans to file a complaint with the Environmental Protection Agency over Capital Metro’s proposed bus fare hike. Under the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the EPA can punish local agencies that receive federal funds if they discriminate against minorities.  Capital […]

 We’re so sorry we can’t yet return to our regular format. The geeks are working on it and we hope you’ll soon be able to print out stories without having to interpret ‘ (an apostrophe) or “ (quotation marks). That’s life here in the 21st Century. It’s dangerous. But in the meantime, please enjoy the […]

The Urban Renewal Board discussed several possible amendments to restrictions for properties along East 12th Street at its meeting last week, but Chair Kevin Cole wanted to make certain that the process by which those proposed changes were heard was appropriate. His concerns arose after a property owner said he feared that his proposal would not […]