Music venues around the city could have a dedicated source of funding in next year’s Live Music Fund program, which was created to help inject city money into the local music economy. During discussion on expected changes to the program in 2024, members of the Music Commission told city staff Monday that they’d like to […]
Chad Swiatecki
Chad Swiatecki is a 20-year journalist who relocated to Austin from his home state of Michigan in 2008. He most enjoys covering the intersection of arts, business and local/state politics. He has written for Rolling Stone, Spin, New York Daily News, Texas Monthly, Austin American-Statesman and many other regional and national outlets.
Posted inCity Council
Delay gives city a hard Dec. 14 deadline to end Seaholm special taxing district
City Council will have until its Dec. 14 meeting to close down a taxing district created to revitalize the Seaholm Power Plant property. That deadline comes because of a decision at last week’s meeting not to close down the tax increment reinvestment zone (TIRZ) that was created in 2008 to fund improvements to the Seaholm […]
Posted inDevelopment
Council eyes details of new maintenance facility included in Oracle land swap
City Council members are expected to bring some scrutiny today to the nearly completed land swap deal that will see tech giant Oracle America Inc. build a new central maintenance facility for the city in exchange for 9 acres of parkland. The finer points of the deal, which has taken years to assemble and manage, […]
Posted inWhispers
$3.5M in Live Music Fund grants awarded
The city has completed the payout of $3.5 million in grants to 368 recipients of the first round of the Live Music Fund. First established by City Council in 2019, the program uses a portion of Hotel Occupancy Tax revenue to provide grants of $5,000 and $10,000 to local musicians and event promoters to book […]
Posted inPublic Safety
Council hears of progress on resilience hubs, planning for winter weather emergencies
With the National Weather Service advising local leaders of the high likelihood of a significant ice event this winter, City Council received an extensive update on weather preparation efforts on Tuesday. The update from the Homeland Security and Emergency Management Department attempted to consolidate the city’s many steps to recover from winter weather disasters in […]
Posted inHousing
Demography map shows 90,000 new housing units wasn’t enough for Austin’s growth
A new interactive map released by the Planning Department shows some of the ways Austin’s housing supply has changed dramatically over the course of a decade in which the city has become one of the most popular destinations in the U.S. The city Demography Division’s Demography Story Map reflects how even though Austin added 90,000 […]
Posted inTransportation
Downtown Commission explores ways to improve safety of autonomous vehicles on city streets
Despite the Cruise autonomous vehicle company’s recent decision to pause service in all cities, including Austin, members of the Downtown Commission have concerns about the growing presence of the vehicles and the city’s inability to regulate them. Staff from the Transportation and Public Works Department began a presentation to the commission last week by covering […]
Posted inCity Hall
City splits homeless services into new, separate office
The city has created a dedicated office for homelessness services, in a move intended to let city staff address that area more quickly and decisively. Interim City Manager Jesús Garza informed City Council of the change in a memo released Tuesday. He signaled some of his plans for solving homelessness in June, when he assigned […]
Posted inAustin
Disability committee eyes new community census to identify service needs
Local disability advocates appear ready to ask the city to conduct a census or general accounting of the number of local residents with disabilities who may require city services beyond those currently offered locally. Earlier this month, the Mayor’s Committee for People with Disabilities discussed the need for data on disabled people living locally, with […]
Posted inPlanning
‘Little Luckenbach’ could link Sam’s Town Point to $270M South Austin entertainment district
The owner of Sam’s Town Point hopes that a forthcoming mix of “rural retail” – including a farmers market and possible hemp cultivation along with live music offerings on the 10 acres surrounding the popular music venue – could link up to a planned entertainment district south of Slaughter Lane along Menchaca Road. Ramsay Midwood, […]
Posted inDevelopment
As Austin grows, real estate leaders look at state of city’s character, reputation
There were no explicit Old Austin versus New Austin clashes during a recent discussion among local development leaders about the state of the city’s character, but issues such as diversity and equity, opportunities for area youth and struggles to manage growth took center stage. Wednesday’s Urban Land Institute panel discussion featured leaders from the local […]
Posted inAustin
SXSW’s $380M economic impact shows return to prepandemic heights
This year’s South by Southwest appears to have had a local economic impact on par with the years prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, which nearly wiped out the popular music, tech and film confab in 2020. An analysis from Greyhill Advisors found this year’s event generated $380.9 million in economic activity, a jump of $100 […]