Mayor Steve Adler on Monday sent out a message of welcome to survivors of Hurricane Harvey seeking shelter in Austin. During a news conference at the Delco Center, the mayor said the state has asked Austin to take in 7,000 survivors from the Gulf Coast and Houston. Adler said the city is doing an assessment […]
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Job declines linked to affordability, immigration policies in chamber report
When considering a recent decrease in the number of jobs available in the Austin area, a top official with the Austin Chamber of Commerce points to slow action at the city and state levels to keep Central Texas attractive for business. The chamber’s July job postings report notes a decrease of 3,300 available jobs in […]
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Council takes long view on convention center, with eye toward spring
A decision on whether City Council will opt to expand the Austin Convention Center likely won’t come until spring 2018, based on discussions at Tuesday’s Council work session. That time frame came from Mayor Steve Adler after more than two hours of presentation and discussion on the recommendations of the city’s Visitor Impact Task Force, […]
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Report shows compensation for nonprofit leaders
A report provided by city staff sheds light on how much top executives of Austin nonprofits get paid. The document was prepared in response to a budget question submitted by Council Member Ora Houston, who wanted to know how much the leaders of organizations that receive city funding earn per year. The salaries reported were […]
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Increased support outside ARCH to target crime, help homeless
Four months after city officials called on the Austin Police Department and other public safety departments to address a spike in drug use around the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless, the next phase of help is about to begin. Starting Aug. 15, a coalition of public safety and social services groups will begin a […]
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Council considers using city-owned buildings to ease overcrowding at homeless shelters
City Council is looking at using city-owned buildings as temporary homeless shelters. The idea comes from Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo, who says overcrowding at downtown shelters has led to harsh conditions for people experiencing homelessness. Speaking at City Hall on Tuesday, Tovo said it’s an issue that demands action as the city works to […]
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Imposing owls may soon nest near Butterfly Bridge
You may soon notice two pairs of orange, warm glowing orbs peeking over the new Butterfly Bridge downtown after it is complete, at least if the Arts Commission approves two gigantic owls to greet Austinites and tourists. The New American Public Art studio presented the two nocturnal art sculptures to the Art in Public Places […]
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Mayor Adler wants a task force on gentrification. We’ve had plenty of those.
For five weeks in 2001, Karen Paup spent her afternoons with other Austin residents talking about the city’s changing east side. The group included a pastor, a developer and a now-professor at New York University. “We shared anecdotes, we looked at data,” said Paup, who works for Texas Housers, a nonprofit focused on low-income housing. […]
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County still wants a piece of the ‘downtown puzzle’
Travis County got cut out of Mayor Steve Adler’s so-called “downtown puzzle” plan, and County Judge Sarah Eckhardt has let it be known that she eventually wants back in. On Wednesday, Eckhardt sent a letter to Adler and City Council conceding that Adler’s plans to fund an expansion of the Austin Convention Center with a […]
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Commission asks if curfew ordinance does any good
Austin and the United States at large share a history of law enforcement policy discriminating against non-white people, and Monday night Human Rights commissioners Sukyi McMahon and Kristian Caballero invited Texas Appleseed staff and community members to help them answer whether the city’s curfew ordinance was a step in the direction of fair and just […]
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Tech lobby aims at city politics with town halls
All political lenses might be pointed toward the state Capitol right now as the legislature works through a special session, but a local lobbying group is trying to turn the attention of Austin’s growing tech sector toward the happenings at City Hall. The Austin Tech Alliance, which began operating last year, will hold the first […]
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For whom is Austin a great ‘bang for your buck’?
Austin and its city government are not perfect, but they both deserve some respect. That seems to be the gist of the 2016 Year in Review recently released by the city manager. “I often feel like the unforgiving pace of ‘what’s next’ blurs our view of the vast list of achievements and progress we’ve made,” […]