In a bid to bolster enrollment that has slipped since the Covid-19 pandemic, Concordia University will reduce its published tuition cost by 40 percent beginning next school year, to $23,500. The change is a reduction as well as an acknowledgement of the standard cost paid by most students once financial aid and assistance are factored […]
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 inWhispers
Workforce job fairs on the horizon
Workforce Solutions Capital Area is hosting two upcoming job fairs. The Manufacturing, Mobility and Skilled Trades Showcase is scheduled for 9 a.m. to noon tomorrow, Nov. 2, at Workforce Solutions’ headquarters on North Interstate 35. More than two dozen companies and agencies seeking employees in manufacturing-related jobs will be in attendance. Those interested can register […]
Posted inTransportation
Mobility Committee laments state law curtailing city’s power over driverless car companies
City Council members heard last week about the ongoing public safety concerns that the emerging autonomous vehicle industry has created in Austin. Last week’s Mobility Committee meeting saw a presentation from staff from the Transportation and Public Works Department as well as public safety departments that updated committee members on their attempts to improve safety […]
Posted inDevelopment
Downtown church seeks community partners, not developers, in reimagining prime real estate
First Baptist Church of Austin has so far turned down tens of millions of dollars from developers looking to capitalize on the nearly 2 acres of downtown real estate it owns. Rather than cashing out and moving to the suburbs, church leaders are looking to partner with other houses of worship – possibly including non-Christian […]
Posted inParks
Following ACL Fest, parks board calls for close look at Zilker Park health
Amid concerns over the impact on Zilker Park from this year’s Austin City Limits Music Festival, city parks staff said they have conducted the annual review of the festival and are beginning the work needed to replenish the park. The cost for aerating the soil and other restorative measures will be paid for by concert […]
Posted inCity Hall
Artists decry delay in city grant payments, putting some projects and events at risk
Arts commissioners have joined local artists in criticizing the city for the prolonged rollout of one of its newer grant programs, which has left some recipients without funding ahead of events they’d organized with expectations of using the city funds. Last week’s Arts Commission meeting in some ways resembled this month’s Music Commission meeting, where […]
Posted inPublic Safety
Public, private measures seen as key to increasing resilience against extreme weather, natural disasters
Local developers and planning leaders learned recently about the impacts that increasingly severe weather and natural disasters will have on their projects, and how public and private efforts can work together to reduce the damage. Among the areas of focus at the October panel discussion from Urban Land Institute Austin was the aid available from […]
Posted inCity Hall
Tourism Commission wants more transparency on hotel tax funding decisions for arts groups
Members of the Tourism Commission have signaled they want more transparency from the Economic Development Department regarding how Hotel Occupancy Tax dollars allocated for music, cultural arts and historic preservation programs are used. At its most recent meeting, the commission pushed EDD staff to provide an annual report of how all hotel tax revenue for […]
Posted inRoads
Council pushes for pause on I-35 expansion, citing air quality concerns
Citing concerns over possible environmental and air quality impacts, City Council wants to delay the start of the reconstruction of Interstate 35. By a 7-3 vote, Council approved a resolution Thursday that asked the Texas Department of Transportation and Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization to hold off on any funding for the $4.5 billion project […]
Posted inMusic & Entertainment
Citing construction concerns, city indefinitely extends moratorium on new street events
The city has indefinitely extended a long-standing moratorium on street events in response to the large number of private development and infrastructure projects slated for downtown and beyond in the coming years. A memo released last week by José Roig, director of the Development Services Department, and Richard Mendoza, interim director of the Transportation and […]
Posted inWhispers
Project Connect seeks community advisers
Residents interested in advising local leaders on matters involving anti-displacement and equity related to Project Connect are invited to apply for a position on the new Community Advisory Committee. The CAC will advise the city, Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority and the Austin Transit Partnership on those and other related issues. Applications are open until Nov. […]
Posted inWhispers
Get ready (for disaster)
ReadyCentralTexas.org is the new home of the emergency preparedness hub for the Austin area. The city’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management was created to educate visitors on how to be ready in the face of flash floods, wildfires, extreme weather or other emergencies that take place in the Austin area. The hub offers […]