Austin’s public parks are institutions of expansive green space and outdoor recreation that would appear to be prime locations to abide by social distancing policies while offering the chance to get out and about. However, depending on the destination, enjoying these public facilities can breach city-enacted safety measures. This week, the city limited gatherings to […]
Jessi Devenyns
Posted inAustin
COVID-19 to impact local 2020 U.S. Census effort
This past week in Austin two big initiatives took place nearly simultaneously – the start of the 2020 U.S. Census and the indefinite extension of the emergency disaster declaration in response to COVID-19. Unsurprisingly, the pandemic is having an impact on the census count. Mariana Salazar, who is the Census 2020 project director at United […]
Posted inHousing
Commissioners Court to facilitate talks in disagreement between ABoR and TCAD
TCAD Chief Appraiser Marya Crigler told the Travis County Commissioners Court on March 10 that despite receiving a cease-and-desist order to stop collecting third-party sales data, her office is still working to acquire the necessary data to accurately appraise home values in Travis County. On Feb. 14, Crigler announced that the Travis Central Appraisal District […]
Posted inTravis County
Travis County Commissioners Court extends emergency disaster declaration
Following the local disaster declaration last Friday, the Travis County Commissioners Court unanimously extended the county’s disaster declaration in light of ongoing concerns about public health risks associated with COVID-19. This state of emergency will continue indefinitely or until the Commissioners Court rescinds it. The declaration announced March 6 is valid only for a week. […]
Posted inEnvironment
Watershed Protection Department debuts new pollution spills map
When the Watershed Protection Department went to renew the city’s permit to discharge under the Texas pollutant discharge elimination system this past year, it found new requirements. The Texas Commission on Environmental Quality recently changed its rules to require cities to keep a list of priority areas – hot spots that are high-potential areas for […]
Posted inEnvironment
Environmental Commission recommends city develop holistic resilience plan
In many respects, Austin city officials are striving to create an environmentally sustainable city. However, according to the Environmental Commission, the city is not as resilient as it needs to be. “Right now, we don’t have a resilience plan,” Commissioner Katie Coyne said at the March 4 meeting of the Environmental Commission. “I really just […]
Posted inBudget
Public safety departments present preliminary budget requests
Budget season at the city has already begun for the 2021 fiscal year. In preparation for its deep dive into budget requests from the public safety departments, the Public Safety Commission listened to preliminary budget forecasts at its March 2 meeting. Even with the looming budget caps imposed by the state Legislature, which limit the […]
Posted inPolice
Austin Police Department sees increase in violent crime
While the Austin Police Department is still finalizing crime numbers for 2019, the end of the last decade and the beginning of this one saw an uptick in violent crime, according to APD Chief of Staff Troy Gay. Gay told the Public Safety Commission at its March 2 meeting, “At the end of the year […]
Posted inPolice
Public Safety Commission previews APD’s critical incident video policy
Following Council’s request in February for a policy governing the automatic public release of videos in critical cases, Farah Muscadin, director of the Office of Police Oversight, presented a draft policy to the Public Safety Commission on March 2. Muscadin, who has been working on a policy to release footage associated with critical incidents to […]
Posted inWhispers
New checklist measures emissions impact of major developments
As Austin works toward its climate plan goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, the Office of Sustainability is focused on how to monitor the carbon and air quality impact of development on a more granular level. Phoebe Romero from the Office of Sustainability told the Environmental Commission at its Feb. 19 meeting that […]
Posted inDevelopment
Planning Commission recommends Austin Green PUD with a laundry list of amendments
The Austin Green planned unit development, which is located just east of the Austin city limits on Harold Green Road, has now received two unanimous commission votes recommending that the 2,122-acre former sand and gravel mine receive PUD rezoning. On Feb. 25, the Planning Commission offered its seal of approval for the project with the […]
Posted inEnergy
Council members discuss how Austin Energy’s billing system disproportionally affects vulnerable customers
Austin Energy makes its revenue from customers purchasing energy from the fourth and fifth tiers of its five-tiered residential billing structure. However, with more Austinites living in multifamily units and homes becoming more energy-efficient, 76 percent of residential energy consumption is being sold below the utility’s cost to serve. Those who are left to foot […]