Although Tuesday’s City Council work session focused almost exclusively on gaps in the city’s Fiscal Year 2025 budget for services related to homelessness, Council members have highlighted a variety of needs in their message board posts. Today, Council will once again talk about its proposed changes to the budget. Here is a selective list of […]
Jo Clifton
Jo Clifton is the Politics Editor for the Austin Monitor.
Posted inWhispers
Council pushing for more parks maintenance funds
City Council members Paige Ellis and Alison Alter are pushing for amendments to add staff to the Parks and Recreation Department for ongoing maintenance needs. Each of them have a number of other recommendations for budget amendments. Ellis wrote on her City Council Message Board post that she would like to add “$1.5M for 16 […]
Posted inBudget
Budget work session on homelessness spending shows gaps in funding
City Council Member Vanessa Fuentes requested a briefing to help her and other Council members understand the intricacies of funding shelter for Austin’s homeless population. She said it was clear from town hall meetings and budget hearings that Austinites are concerned about people without reliable places to stay and the city’s response to the problem. […]
Posted inElections
Ethics complaint alleges mayoral candidates received too much money from outside the city
A former member of the city’s Ethics Review Commission, Betsy Greenberg, has filed ethics complaints against Mayor Kirk Watson and one of his challengers, Doug Greco. In her complaints, Greenberg alleges that both candidates collected more money from outside the city of Austin than is allowed under the city charter. The Austin Bulldog reported on […]
Posted inBudget
Council will face tough budget decisions on parks, animal services and homelessness
City Council is anticipating a tight budget ahead and will have to balance funding for the Parks and Recreation Department as well as the Austin Animal Center, the Homeless Strategy Office and Human Resources. The Austin Animal Center is over capacity, with a shelter population of 123 percent of capacity for kittens and cats, 129 […]
Posted inBudget
Staff lays out public safety budget choices for City Council
Looking ahead to a tough budget year, City Council will have to choose between spending on firefighters, emergency medical services, parks maintenance, homeless outreach and improving animal services, among others. Wednesday’s budget presentation did nothing to alleviate budget concerns, with some explanations only highlighting the city’s need to spend money to continue basic services and […]
Posted inResources
At Council Member Alison Alter’s urging, city commission may have input on natural gas matters
Members of the city’s Resource Management Commission have been trying for months to find out how they can weigh in on the current rate case for Texas Gas Service. They have passed a number of resolutions seeking to have input – not only on the cost of natural gas to consumers, but also on prioritizing […]
Posted inPreservation
Three ‘no’ votes end try for historic zoning in East Austin
Despite efforts from Preservation Austin and approval from two city commissions, the small historic house at 1100 East Second St. failed to get support from the nine City Council members needed for it to be designated historic and avoid demolition. Both the Historic Landmark Commission and the Planning Commission recommended historic designation for the Sinnigson […]
Posted inFire
City honors AFD’s work training firefighters for wildland-urban fires
Throughout her time on the dais, District 10 City Council Member Alison Alter has stressed the need for the city to understand and prepare to fight wildfires in the wildland-urban interface, or WUI, which is the area between unoccupied land and human-made structures. On Thursday, she sponsored a proclamation praising the Fire Department for making […]
Posted inCity Council
Council seeks information on creating a public bank
City Council on Thursday approved a resolution by Council Member Zo Qadri directing the city manager to research the question of the city of Austin starting a “public bank.” Unlike commercial banks, public banks are required to operate in the public interest. The cities of Philadelphia, San Francisco and Los Angeles have filed legislation requesting […]
Posted inElections
Who’s raising money? Campaign finance reports show some surprises
Earlier this week, the Austin Monitor reported on campaign finance tallies for Mayor Kirk Watson, his opponents and candidates for District 7 and District 4. Now it’s time to look at the other races and the surprising fundraising by City Council members Zo Qadri and Ryan Alter, who are not up for reelection until 2026. […]
Posted inWhispers
Austin Energy withdraws agenda item to sell district cooling system
A City Council discussion on a proposal to sell Austin Energy’s district cooling system has been put on ice. Austin Energy General Manager Bob Kahn notified City Manager T.C. Broadnax and Council that the utility was asking to withdraw an item on Thursday’s agenda relating to a contract with J.P. Morgan “to assist in evaluating a potential […]