Laurel Chesky

A draft report released late last month by Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) staff may revive wilted ambitions to absorb areas of southwestern Travis County and western Comal County into existing groundwater conservation districts (GCDs). The Barton Springs-Edwards Aquifer Conservation District (BSEACD) Board of Directors is scheduled to discuss the draft report at their […]

The state’s environmental agency is offering a proposal to protect the Barton Springs end of the Edwards Aquifer from damage caused by wastewater effluent, but those who proposed the rule in the first place say the draft regulation proposed by the Texas Commission for Environment Quality (TCEQ) is so diluted that it barely resembles the […]

The Barton Springs-Edwards Aquifer Conservation District is investigating the idea of letting two of its largest commercial permit holders replace water they’re drawing from the aquifer with treated wastewater.   Texas Lehigh Cement Company and Centex Materials, both located in Buda, have been talking with the Buda city officials about the possibility of using some […]

At a time when Central Texans are being asked to curtail their water use, the public has little stomach for those who keep the sprinklers on. An Aug. 17 Austin American-Statesman article revealing the city’s highest residential water users, including Rep. Michael McCaul (ranked at number seven), riled readers who have been watching their lawns […]

A group of real estate professionals painted a somewhat gloomy picture punctuated with a glimmer of hope for investors at a land development seminar on Friday.   The annual seminar, held at the downtown Omni Hotel by the Real Estate Law section of the Austin Bar Association, featured presentations on local transportation projects, affordable housing […]

What Austin Parks and Recreation Department staff viewed as a request for decisive action seemed to others as a bad case of déjà vu. “Are we really talking about cutting down trees at Barton Springs again?” asked one frustrated citizen.   At the joint committee meeting of the Austin Parks and Recreation and Environmental boards […]

Revisions to the Barton Springs-Edwards Aquifer Conservation District’s rules and bylaws will help the agency respond more effectively to drought conditions, district officials say. The rule changes were passed on a 4-1 vote by the district’s board of directors Thursday evening and became effective immediately.   The most significant change is a new “exceptional stage […]

The city’s One Stop Shop (OSS) office received a less-than-stellar report card from the city auditor. In a report presented to the City Council Audit and Finance Committee last week, auditors reported that the Austin OSS fell short in many areas, including customer service, communication, timeliness and ensuring compliance with the city’s land development code. […]

About 30 residents showed up at a public hearing last night to bark about plans to rescind Bull Creek District Park’s designation as an official off-leash dog park. The city of Austin Parks and Recreation and Environmental boards held a joint meeting Monday to garner input from citizens on a city staff proposal that would […]

Last December, when the City of Kyle filed an application to double its draw of water from the Barton Springs portion of the Edwards Aquifer, city officials may have been counting on the winter rains to dilute the inevitable opposition to their proposal. The rains never came, and now, with the aquifer in alarm stage […]

Local telecommunication service providers owe the City of Austin more than $283,000, according to a city audit report. That may not be enough to stave off property taxes and fee hikes, but its money the city sure could use.   On Tuesday, the city auditor’s office presented to the City Council Audit and Finance Committee […]