Stories by Joseph Caterine
Commission asks if curfew ordinance does any good
Austin and the United States at large share a history of law enforcement policy discriminating against non-white people, and Monday night Human Rights commissioners Sukyi McMahon and Kristian Caballero invited Texas Appleseed staff and community members to help them answer…
Austin • By Joseph Caterine • Jul 27, 2017
CodeNEXT divides commission, spurs review of recommendation process
No city commission has been as prolific in its criticism of CodeNEXT than the Zoning and Platting Commission, and the commission fired off another letter of recommendation at its July 18 meeting in an effort to get feedback in before…
Land Development Code • By Joseph Caterine • Jul 25, 2017
Signs fail to point the way at Planning Commission
Though it hasn’t gotten a lot of attention, local sign regulations could drastically change with the implementation of CodeNEXT. While that is still a ways away, that didn’t stop the image of Austin’s homey neighborhoods being overrun by digital billboards…
The Code • By Joseph Caterine • Jul 19, 2017
Commission decides mistake made in East Austin plan
Cold case zoning files may not have the same morbid allure as the cold case murders unearthed on late night television, but for the neighborhood and stakeholders involved in these mysteries, justice is still on the line. Last week, the…
Zoning • By Joseph Caterine • Jul 18, 2017
Commission talks reversing institutional racism
Cast out of its usual place in the shadows, racism was put front and center as a topic of discussion during a briefing at the Planning Commission Tuesday night. Eric Tang and Jane Rivera, co-chairs of the Real Estate and…
Austin • By Joseph Caterine • Jul 17, 2017
Recent study reveals benefits of Austin's historic neighborhoods
Longtime Austin residents and historic preservation advocates have new data to back up their defense of neighborhood character thanks to a report that has made its way into local CodeNEXT discussions. Last week, Council Member Leslie Pool shared a link…
Land Development Code • By Joseph Caterine • Jul 7, 2017
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Commission fights for seat at CodeNEXT table
The Zoning and Platting Commission has been perceived by some as the proverbial “stick in the mud” since the CodeNEXT drafting process began earlier this year, but a resolution passed at City Council’s most recent meeting reiterates the commission’s inability…
Land Development Code • By Joseph Caterine • Jul 3, 2017
School board calls for biggest bond in its history
Unprecedented in cost, the $1.05 billion bond package the Austin Independent School District Board of Trustees officially approved at its last meeting before summer break is its most ambitious yet. Unlike the 2013 bond election where the package was divided…
AISD • By Joseph Caterine • Jun 28, 2017
Bond doubles down on segregation, trustee says
At last week’s Austin Independent School District Board of Trustees meeting, only one trustee voted against the adoption of the list of projects to be included in this year’s bond election: District 1 representative Edmund Gordon. In a sit-down interview…
AISD • By Joseph Caterine • Jun 26, 2017
School board wary of tax rate increase in bond election
Read their lips: no tax increase. With the exception of District 1 Trustee Edmund Gordon, the Austin Independent School District Board of Trustees was united in its stance against raising the tax rate with the 2017 Bond Package as it…
AISD • By Joseph Caterine • Jun 21, 2017
Garage placement tool ignites political blowback from Bouldin Creek
Light shone through the cracks in the contact team model for neighborhood planning during deliberation over a neighborhood plan amendment at the most recent meeting of the Planning Commission. The Bouldin Creek Neighborhood Plan, adopted in 2002, includes voluntary design…
Land Development Code • By Joseph Caterine • Jun 20, 2017
Commission pushes for more affordable large apartments to increase school enrollment
Problems are rarely solved by doing what’s typical. That was the motto steering the Planning Commission at its most recent meeting, when members chose not to accept a proposal for a multifamily development with the usual shortage of three-bedroom apartments.…
