Mark Richardson

Several East Austin businesses were defaced overnight Tuesday with racially offensive stickers. The stickers, designed to look like something official from the City of Austin, asserted that the establishments were for white people only and that “colored” patrons were not welcome in the various stores. The stickers also said “Maximum of 5 colored customers” and […]

City of Austin officials remain busy trying to keep things running smoothly during this year’s South by Southwest festival. As of Wednesday evening, the Public Assembly Code Enforcement Team has shut down seven venues or facilities for unsanctioned events and issued 32 citations for a variety of other violations. The team, which has been responding […]

The Austin Parks and Recreation Department is evaluating possible improvements at Battle Bend Neighborhood Park and holding a pair of meetings to gather ideas and input from the public to help shape, prioritize and implement the improvements with the funding currently available. PARD is proposing to renovate the children’s outdated play area and explore opportunities […]

The City of Austin Public Assembly Code Enforcement Team has responded to numerous calls related to downtown activities since the start of the South by Southwest Conference and spring break. The majority of citations and warnings issued have been at venues hosting unofficial SXSW activities. Code Enforcement numbers as of 2:30 p.m. Tuesday were: Venue/Facilities […]

The Conversation Corps program has scheduled its first 12 discussions offering citizens the opportunity to engage with local government. These conversations are a joint effort among the City of Austin, Austin Independent School District, Capital Metro and Leadership Austin. This will be an ongoing program that will provide regular opportunities for citizens to have hosted […]

District 10 City Council Member Sheri Gallo is inviting residents to a town-hall meeting Saturday. It will focus on “Your Neighborhood Park: Learning how to partner with City departments and other organizations.” The meeting will include representatives from the Parks and Recreation Department, the Public Works Department and Alison Alter, chair of the Ramsey Park […]

The city has activated a temporary hotline for media inquiries related to city operations during the South by Southwest festival and additional events, at (512) 974-9280. News media are encouraged to call this number with any questions regarding special event permitting and compliance, general public safety and other city-related issues. City public information staff will […]

The City of Austin will host its second Open Government Symposium on April 9, featuring legal experts discussing open government issues including legislation, litigation, trends and the role of an ethics and compliance program in supporting government transparency. The event will take place from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at City Hall, 301 W. Second St. […]

It’s not exactly in our usual sphere of coverage, and there are not any politics involved. But we just couldn’t resist telling you about the National Corn Dog Day celebration going on in San Marcos this Saturday. The event, sponsored by the San Marcos Main Street Program to coincide with the March Madness basketball tournament, […]

The city’s Small Business Development Program is planning a panel discussion on Entrepreneurship: Freelancing and Consulting. Ron Oliveira of Oliveira Public Communications will moderate the event. Scheduled panelists are Jim Comer of Comer Communications, Ilene Haddad of Ilene Haddad Graphic Design, and Kandi Cook of KC Couture Styles. They will discuss sales, production/service, billing and customer […]

The operators of Austin B-cycle are planning for a bigger year at 2015’s South by Southwest. In 2014, Austin B-cycle recorded over 17,000 customer trips during SXSW and set a national bike-share record for the most checkouts per bike in a single day. This year, the group will be the official SXcycles program sponsored by Paramount’s […]

It will either be a late celebration of New Year’s Eve or an early celebration of the arrival of spring — take your pick. The city was forced to cancel its annual New Year’s festival because of bad weather, so officials are planning a three-day series of alcohol-free, family-friendly events to celebrate the change of […]