Stories by Ryan Thornton
Red River agreement fails to answer mobility questions
The University of Texas has yet to articulate its plans to mitigate traffic issues while Red River Street is closed through campus for roughly two years to make way for replacement of the Frank Erwin Center. However, City Council demonstrated…
Roads • By Ryan Thornton • Sep 23, 2019
City awaits toilets for downtown public restroom project
Austin’s first permanent public restroom project downtown has been pushed back several months due to problems in the manufacturing process. Portland Loo, the company that makes the solar-powered restrooms, told staff earlier this month it has run into “parts and…
Planning • By Ryan Thornton • Sep 20, 2019
Red River realignment adds to concerns for campus bike safety
Since Jan. 28, the night Tony Diaz was killed while cycling through the University of Texas campus, university management has listened to and considered calls for safer bicycle facilities on San Jacinto Boulevard, a popular cycling route both for students…
Bicycles • By Ryan Thornton • Sep 19, 2019
Capital Metro updates ETA for journey-planning app
Recovering from a rocky start, the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority says its new and improved mobile transit application will soon be live and ready for mobile users to download. The agency launched its new application for Android users on Monday,…
Transit • By Ryan Thornton • Sep 18, 2019
City launches map to track bike network projects
The city is anticipating a major push for bicycle infrastructure over the next year. As part of that broader effort, the Austin Transportation Department launched an interactive tracking tool this week to help residents follow the progress of ongoing and…
Bicycles • By Ryan Thornton • Sep 17, 2019
Commission stresses need for better TOD planning along Green Line
The Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority is studying the potential for placing transit-oriented development districts along Project Connect’s rail commuter Green Line, but the Planning Commission says that effort may be somewhat futile without a concentrated push to create vibrant communities…
Transit • By Ryan Thornton • Sep 16, 2019
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Nearing October, code rewrite team admits difficulty with Council direction
Residents will soon be able to peruse the draft version of the new land use code, scheduled for public release in October, but the Land Development Code revision team says complications in the current code have made it difficult to…
Land Development Code • By Ryan Thornton • Sep 12, 2019
Council adopts $4.2 billion budget
For the second year in a row, City Council has adopted its fiscal year budget in a single meeting of discussing and adopting amendments. With the budget passing 10-1, Council Member Jimmy Flannigan said his vote against the budget came…
Budget • By Ryan Thornton • Sep 11, 2019
CAMPO adopts plan for transportation demand management
The Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization voted to adopt its regional transportation demand management plan on Monday despite concerns that the plan could end up favoring urban projects to the detriment of rural counties. The plan was created to streamline…
Transportation • By Ryan Thornton • Sep 10, 2019
Council tells staff: Get municipal court move done
So far, the process of reviewing plans and preparing for relocation of the Austin Municipal Court has been “very, very extensive,” according to Municipal Court Clerk Mary Jane Grubb. Impatient with the lagging timeline, City Council is pressing staffers to…
City Council • By Ryan Thornton • Sep 6, 2019
Council sets differing expectations for homeless strategy officer
While Lori Pampilo Harris, the city’s newly hired homeless strategy officer, packs her things and prepares for her journey from Orlando to Austin, City Council is making big plans for her first day on the job. The first order of…
Budget • By Ryan Thornton • Sep 5, 2019
Community leverages conundrum over hemp to advocate for marijuana decriminalization
Despite the technical difficulty of distinguishing marijuana from legal industrial hemp, the Austin Police Department told the City Council Judicial Committee on Tuesday that the city cannot afford to let the possession and sale of marijuana go unchecked. However, several…
