How many complaints on an issue are sufficient to warrant a change in city code? This question cropped up continually at the April 4 meeting of the Environmental Commission as commissioners worked to pass a resolution regarding CodeNEXT drainage regulations. According to several of the commissioners, Austin residents have approached them repeatedly to express their […]
Jessi Devenyns
Posted inWhispers
Austin sewers supply more residents outside city limits
Recently, 30 homes in the Rolling Hills West neighborhood requested an extension of wastewater services to their homes. Although these residences are technically outside of Austin, they are located within the 2-mile extraterritorial jurisdiction that is on the edge of Austin’s full-service jurisdiction. On April 4, the Environmental Commission found it almost natural that city […]
Posted inWhispers
LifeWorks breaks ground for 29 new affordable housing units
On April 5, Mayor Steve Adler, Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo, and Council Member Ora Houston sat on a beautifully manicured lawn that will soon transform into an affordable housing development. City Council members attended the morning ceremony to inaugurate the expansion of LifeWorks’ affordable housing initiative to end youth homelessness, which aligns with the […]
Posted inWhispers
Charter Review Commission has a public hearing for one
Despite their sincere efforts to publicize their public hearings, at their second scheduled public hearing on April 3, the Charter Review Commission saw only one member of the citizenry in attendance in addition to three reporters and two members of city staff. Despite every commissioner making it to the hearing that was held at the Dove […]
Posted inParks
Artist Access Program development remains paused
Recently the city paused a program for artist venue space in response to complaints about how it would balance the residential groups’ cultural identities and the programming that would take place in the individual cultural centers. Since 2011, the city has sponsored an artist-in-residence program. Originally the Latino Arts Residency Program, the initiative was eventually […]
Posted inWhispers
PARD is seeking to expand its public-private partnerships
Following the examples of San Francisco and New York City, the Austin Parks and Recreation Department is working to establish partnerships with independent entities to help fund the upkeep of city parks. It is looking at partnerships with nonprofits, neighborhood and community groups, and businesses. Although the department is enthusiastic about this venture, at the March […]
Posted inWhispers
How can Austinites learn to leave no trace in city parks?
One of the biggest challenges that Austin is currently facing is the increased use of its parkland. Even with 300 parks, 227 miles of trails, 15 preserves and 16 greenbelts, the influx of residents and visitors can easily take a toll on the environment. In an effort to mitigate the potential catastrophic repercussions of misusing […]
Posted inWhispers
City libraries are determining their role on the front lines of Austin’s homelessness crisis
In many major metropolises, libraries and the shelter-seeking population are intertwined and social workers have been brought on staff to help bridge this gap. That is not the case yet in Austin. For a year, the Library Commission has been conducting a Homelessness Working Group Project in an effort to better define the role of […]
Posted inCity Hall
Will petitions be allowed on library property?
Since 2018 began, two individuals with IndyAustin who were gathering signatures for a CodeNEXT petition outside of Austin public libraries have been cited with criminal trespass warnings. Those citations have been rescinded as the city works to clarify their position on the matter. In response to the first citation, on Feb. 19, attorneys Bill Aleshire, Bill Bunch […]
Posted inEnergy
Commissioner rocks the boat with concerns about security of Austin Energy software contract
Several years ago, Austin Energy found itself “over a barrel” due to an underbid and underdelivered contract awarded to IBM to create new system software that would bridge Austin Energy’s meters and its billing system. Now one member of the Electric Utility Commission, who clearly remembers the ramifications of having poorly managed software involved with […]
Posted inCity Hall
Commission: Former police monitor did not violate city policy
On Wednesday night, the Ethics Review Commission found that former police monitor Margo Frasier was not in violation of any city policy and did not impose any sanctions against her. By clearing Frasier’s name in a 7-2 vote, the commission took a stance on future cases involving personal internet use on city-owned computers for all […]
Posted inEnvironment
Austin’s 100-year flood plain looks more like today’s 500-year flood plain
In Austin, flooding has been a concern for decades, but in the last several years, the urgency with which the city is conducting the conversation has escalated. In the last four years alone, Austin has experienced four federally declared flooding disasters, and the rain doesn’t seem to be letting up according to a new study […]