Stories by Mina Shekarchi

Public Safety Commission hears updates on APD staffing, wildfire readiness and EMS simulation lab

On Monday, the Public Safety Commission heard a quarterly report from the Austin Police Department, an update on wildfire readiness from the Austin Fire Department, a briefing on the Austin-Travis County EMS Simulation Lab, plus an update on the 2026…

Public Safety • By Mina Shekarchi • Apr 9, 2025

Austin’s redemption arc: The embarrassing recent failures and hard-fought reforms in our city’s response to sexual assault

April is Sexual Assault Awareness and Prevention Month. The city of Austin has garnered national attention for its prior failures to investigate cases and support survivors in their healing and, more recently, for its survivor-led reforms. The Austin Monitor took…

Public Safety • By Mina Shekarchi • Apr 7, 2025

City Council expected to implement requirements for residential air conditioning

The city is revising its technical building codes. As part of this process, City Council is slated to adopt changes to Austin’s version of the International Property Maintenance Code on April 10. Most notably, these changes will include a requirement…

City Council • By Mina Shekarchi • Apr 4, 2025

APD publishes first annual sexual assault case review

The Austin Police Department has released its first annual review of cases investigated by the Sex Crimes Unit. The annual case review is one of several commitments APD has made as part of an ongoing, survivor-led effort to reform Austin’s…

Police • By Mina Shekarchi • Mar 21, 2025

City Council approves phase two of 'site plan lite'

City Council has passed phase two of “site plan lite” – an ordinance amending development regulations for residential re-subdivisions and multifamily residential site developments of five to 16 units. The final version of the ordinance was passed with five amendments…

Land Development Code • By Mina Shekarchi • Mar 13, 2025

Public Safety Commission 'concerned and excited' about progress from Office of Police Oversight

On Monday, the Public Safety Commission heard an update on the Office of Police Oversight’s implementation of the Police Oversight Act, as well as its vacancies and hiring processes. The OPO operates separately from the Austin Police Department, and its…

Police • By Mina Shekarchi • Mar 5, 2025

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Updates to erosion protections coming to Council

During the inaugural meeting of City Council’s newly formed Climate, Water, Environment, and Parks Committee on Feb. 26, members heard a briefing on a proposed ordinance from the Watershed Protection Department (WPD) to increase erosion protections along the Colorado River.…

Environment • By Mina Shekarchi • Feb 28, 2025

December Parks and Recreation Department report identifies needs for senior and recreation facilities

Last week, Jesús Aguirre, the new director of Austin Parks and Recreation Department (PARD), sent a memo summarizing the findings of the department’s Recreation and Senior Center Facility Assessment and Gap Analysis Report. The report, released in December, identified priority…

Austin • By Mina Shekarchi • Feb 21, 2025

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Evaluation will resume this month on proposal to consolidate and eliminate some boards and commissions

Discussions about a proposal from Council Member Ryan Alter to revamp the city’s citizen advisory boards are set to continue. In a City Council Message Board post on Wednesday, Alter provided an update on his December resolution (which Council unanimously…

City Hall • By Mina Shekarchi • Feb 14, 2025

Public Safety Commission discusses and recommends improvements to data transparency on sex crimes

During the Public Safety Commission meeting on Monday, members took several small but hard-fought steps to improve Austin’s response to sexual assault. The commission discussed data related to sexual assault with presentations from the Austin Police Department, the SAFE Alliance…

Public Safety • By Mina Shekarchi • Feb 6, 2025

Council to consider a resolution to examine response to mental health-related 911 and 311 calls

One item on the hefty agenda for the first regular City Council meeting of 2025 will explore how the city responds to mental health-related incidents. This resolution, authored by Council Member Chito Vela, directs the city manager to prepare a…

Public Safety • By Mina Shekarchi • Jan 30, 2025

Paige Ellis is feeling energized for Council collaboration on parks, climate and mobility in 2025

If Paige Ellis had to sum up City Council’s work this year in one word, she said she would choose “momentum.” Ellis, who represents Southwest Austin’s District 8, has served on Council through a series of challenges that were truly…

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