Josh Rosenblatt

Two weeks after members of the Zoning and Platting Commission turned consideration of two homes in West Austin into a heated discussion about the pros and cons of historic zoning in the city, the City Council voted unanimously Thursday to approve those two houses for historic landmark status. But they didn’t do so without first […]

Capital Metro staff addressed the always-delicate issue of MetroAccess at a presentation before a joint meeting of the Operations/Planning and Finance/Audit committees yesterday. Attempting to juggle community needs, federal requirements, and cold fiscal reality, board members heard information they will need to consider paratransit policies going forward concerning service area, service levels, and eligibility.   […]

On a vote of 6-1, Council approved rezoning to allow for greater height at 835 West Sixth Street, known as the East Block property, on first reading last Thursday. Council Member Laura Morrison offered the only vote against the change.   The applicant, Schlosser Development, is seeking rezoning from downtown mixed use (DMU) to downtown […]

Continuing its efforts to put the Austin public transit authority’s financial house back in order, Capital Metro’s board voted Monday on new payment arrangements for a second agreement with the City of Austin.   The vote was a carry-over item from last week’s meeting, when the board approved an amendment to an interlocal agreement with […]

The Capital Metro Board of Directors approved a plan Thursday to begin reimbursing the city $51.1 million it owes in back payments. Board members approved an amendment to an interlocal agreement with Austin to repay the balance of a one-quarter-cent sales tax commitment initially made in 2001.   The agreement was made after Capital Metro […]

With two weeks of full, pay-to-ride commuter rail service under its belt, the Capital Metro Rail committee met yesterday to discuss what has gone right with Metro Rail, what needs to be fixed, and what the future looks like.   According to Todd Hemingson, the transit agency’s vice president of strategic planning and development, preliminary […]

The City Council took on the hot-button issue of family planning yesterday, resulting in a new ordinance that will require all limited service pregnancy centers in the city to post signs disclosing that they do not provide or refer for abortions or comprehensive birth control services.   According to the language of the ordinance, “limited […]

Two items on last week’s Council agenda conspired to create confusion among Council members as they tried to parse out the subtleties of mixed use (MU) and vertical mixed use (VMU) in the Rosewood section of East Austin.   At issue were 18 tracts in the Rosewood Neighborhood Planning Area whose owners were applying for […]

On Thursday, the City Council approved the construction of a long-awaited substation to distribute power to the Mueller development and surrounding neighborhoods. Under the terms of the resolution Austin Energy will use approximately 5.87 acres of the Morris Williams Golf Course on Manor Road for an electric substation, electric transmission lines, distribution lines, and a […]

Since South Austin resident Vince Hannemann started assembling his Cathedral of Junk in 1988, the now-60-ton, multi-tiered edifice made of donated cast-offs and brick-a-brack has become something of an Austin institution and tourist destination. Discarded bed frames, cans, car parts, wires, televisions, laundry baskets, etc., are molded into an edifice that shoots some three stories […]

Austin’s brand-new commuter train, MetroRail officially opened yesterday and with it came the first report from Capital Metro staff on the status and progress of the line.   At yesterday’s meeting of the Cap Metro board of directors, Project Manager Kenneth Cartwright (sitting in for an injured Elaine Timbes, Cap Metro’s executive vice president) announced […]

Council members voted on March 11 to modify a previously approved permit to allow for a compromise between a University of Texas area bar and its neighbors. The move will allow Little Woodrow’s bar the opportunity to have live music on a limited basis.   The Council considered an appeal by the North University Neighborhood […]