Austin’s Environmental Board is giving City Council a clear message: The State Highway 45 Southwest road project should not move forward. At the board’s regular meeting Wednesday, members passed a motion declaring that they “(did) not support the building of SH45 SW as currently proposed.” Among other directives, the motion recommends that Council ask the Texas […]
Courtney Griffin
Posted inWhispers
Watershed Department broadens testing
Brent Bellinger, senior environmental scientist for Austin’s Watershed Protection Department, updated the city’s Environmental Board on the ways his team is monitoring water quality in Lady Bird Lake and Lake Austin. At the board’s regular June 3 meeting, Bellinger said his team is using more data-centric methods and broadening the scope of material monitored in […]
Posted inAISD
AISD land purchase deemed reasonable
The Austin Independent School District board of trustees heard advice from a real estate expert Monday regarding future property purchases, including the potential purchase of land for a new south Austin high school. Board members vowed to make a decision by the end of August regarding whether to use $32 million allocated from a 2008 […]
Posted inTransit
CapMetro awards $256 million contract
The Capital Metro board of trustees decided at its regular meeting to swap service contractors for a portion of its bus routes Wednesday, despite employee concerns. Board members unanimously approved a $256 million contract with Dallas-based MV Transportation that could potentially stretch to nine years. Starting Sept. 31, the new company will oversee the operation […]
Posted inAustin
Affordable housing bans smoking, possibly truancy
Board commissioners with the Housing Authority of the City of Austin approved a motion Thursday that will change the leasing requirements for its public housing tenants. Now, if residents are caught smoking more than four times in non-designated areas, they will be subject to the eviction process, according to the commissioners’ unanimous decision at the regular […]
Posted inAISD
AISD educators ask for $24 million more
Employees from every area of the Austin Independent School District asked for higher wages Monday night. The most popular request came with a $24.5 million price tag. As in past meetings, Education Austin, an AISD teachers union, continued to advocate for an across-the-board 5 percent wage increase for all district employees. According to Nicole Conley, AISD’s chief financial officer, […]
Posted inAISD
AISD lunches lead to plea for information
A consent-agenda item to increase school lunch prices held larger implications Monday as the Austin Independent School District strained against projected budget shortfalls in the upcoming year. At their regular meeting, members of the AISD board of trustees agreed to postpone an increase in all student meal prices until they could examine all budget-related items […]
Posted inLocal Government, Water
Conservation District preps for annexation
With two major bills pending in Texas’ legislative session, officials with the Barton Springs/Edwards Aquifer Conservation District discussed a potentially rushed timeline at their regular meeting Thursday. In March, legislators put forward House Bill 3405 and Senate Bill 1440 to address Houston-based water supplier Electro Purification’s plans to pump 5 million gallons of water per […]
Posted inAISD
AISD remains hopeful about school finance bill
Austin Independent School District trustees received good news Monday: A state bill restructuring school finance, House Bill 1759, still has wind in its sails. In the hour-plus monthly meeting with staff, AISD Intergovernmental Relations Committee members heard updates on several key state legislative items that might affect the district if passed. Staff has tracked more than […]
Posted inWhispers
Eckhardt pitches AISD on property deal
Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt paid the Austin Independent School District board of trustees a visit Monday night. Eckhardt briefed the trustees on the county’s developing Civil and Family Courthouse at the board’s Dialogue meeting to see if AISD was interested in jointly occupying the space. The 520,000-square-foot courthouse is part of the Travis County […]
Posted inAISD, Budget, Education, Texas State Legislature
AISD, others ask state for $3 billion in new funding
Three members from the Austin Independent School District board stood with more than 20 other school districts at the State Capitol on Wednesday to ask legislators for $3 billion in additional statewide school funding. “For AISD, this figure is vital,” said District 2 Board Member Jayme Mathias. “AISD in the past month has slipped to […]
Posted inAISD
New AISD group to tackle Austin High traffic
This summer, a new interlocal group will propose a solution to address the traffic problems that are expected to slam Austin High School in coming years. At the Austin Independent School District’s Board Dialogue meeting, trustees directed administration to create a working group to address the school’s looming traffic issues. The working group will consist […]