Stories by Charles Boisseau
2012: A year of change
In 2012, Austin experienced a quiet revolution at the ballot box. Since 1973, Austin voters six times rejected plans to create some form of geographic representation for their City Council. But 2012 was different. Many voters who had never…
Uncategorized • By Charles Boisseau • Jan 2, 2013
Hike-and-bike trail projects under way
For six months, runners and walkers will take a detour on the north shore of Lady Bird Lake’s Ann and Roy Butler Hike and Bike Trail as workers try to keep a narrow stretch of the lake from washing away.…
Uncategorized • By Charles Boisseau • Dec 5, 2012
Task force members dig into hydrilla problem
Members of the Lake Austin Task Force on Monday delved into the murky waters of hydrilla, the invasive vegetation that has become a growing menace to boaters, residents and users of the lake. This July, shortly after Austin City…
Uncategorized • By Charles Boisseau • Nov 27, 2012
Austin voters in favor of 6 of 7 bond proposals
Austin voters approved all but one of seven city bond proposals Tuesday night. When all is said and done, the funds raised will fund everything from roads and parks to libraries and a new fire station. Prop. 15, which…
Uncategorized • By Charles Boisseau • Nov 7, 2012
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Dry ‘run’ at Formula 1 proves problematic, learning experience
It was billed as the first race on the Formula 1 track and the first chance for the public to see the new $400 million Circuit of the Americas facility. Instead, participants in a 3.4-mile fun run on Saturday…
Uncategorized • By Charles Boisseau • Nov 5, 2012
Questions remain about civil service charter amendment
On Aug. 2, members of the Austin City Council unanimously agreed to place a charter amendment on the Nov. 6 ballot that asks voters to decide whether to create a potentially costly civil service system to cover thousands of the…
Uncategorized • By Charles Boisseau • Aug 17, 2012
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Union seeks civil service status for city employees
The union representing 15 percent of the city’s workforce wants the city to grant civil service protections to all municipal workers – a proposal that could cost the city tens of millions a year and limit the city’s ability to…
Uncategorized • By Charles Boisseau • Jul 31, 2012
Austin Energy seeking $400,000 for firm to implement new rate system
Austin Energy is seeking authorization from the City Council to spend $400,000 to hire a company to rework the utility’s troublesome new billing software to implement its new rate structure. Austin Energy Larry Weis sent a memo to City…
Uncategorized • By Charles Boisseau • Jul 25, 2012
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Austin Energy’s first biomass power plant now in operation
The nation’s largest biomass power plant has begun operations near Nacogdoches in East Texas – the latest effort by the City of Austin to generate more than one-third of its electricity from renewable energy sources by 2020. Austin Energy,…
Uncategorized • By Charles Boisseau • Jul 18, 2012
Austin lifts ‘stage two’ restrictions, imposes new watering rules
The City of Austin on Thursday lifted its “stage two” watering restrictions but – in a response to last year’s historic drought – put in place new limits on the number of hours residents may water each week. The…
Uncategorized • By Charles Boisseau • Jul 13, 2012
Council shoots down plan for $5 million temporary airport terminal
Saying it would cost too much and benefit too few, Austin City Council members rejected a proposal to build a $5 million temporary airport terminal in time for this November’s inaugural Formula 1 United States Grand Prix. Council voted…
Uncategorized • By Charles Boisseau • Jun 29, 2012
Commission OKs building temporary airport terminal for F1
The Austin Airport Advisory Commission has endorsed a fast-track project to build a $5 million international terminal to accommodate the thousands of visitors expected to descend on Austin in mid-November for the Formula 1 United States Grand Prix. The…
