Frank Wick remembers the first time he drove through the underpass on Lamar and saw the blue panels on the walls. “It felt like it was art; I wasn’t sure. It was a nice moment,” said Wick, a collection manager for the city’s Art in Public Places program. “No pun intended.” It is art – […]
Austin
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City Council takes steps toward relief for live music venues and ‘legacy’ businesses
Austin’s struggling live music venues, restaurants, bars and longtime businesses are a step closer to getting some Covid-19-related relief from the city, but some are still holding out hope for quicker relief. City Council approved Thursday the guidelines for two grant programs that total $10 million set aside for ailing businesses under the Save Austin’s […]
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City to replace five more names dedicated to Confederate history and white supremacy
In line with a resolution that called for the renaming of city assets whose names were associated with white supremacy and Confederate history, the city is moving forward with five more name changes. A Dec. 2 memo from Chief Equity Officer Brion Oaks to City Council identified the five assets as Metz Park, Metz Pool, […]
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New SAVES programs face uncertain funding
The city has started nine programs in nine months to help local Austin businesses survive the pandemic. On Thursday, City Council will consider final program guidelines for three more programs providing relief for child care providers, local music venues and restaurants. The city has allocated $5 million to each of these sectors: child care providers, […]
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Human Rights Commission passes recommendation for domestic violence survivors
Late last month, the city’s Human Rights Commission unanimously passed a recommendation to continue providing hotel shelter for survivors of domestic violence, sexual assault and human trafficking during the Covid-19 pandemic. Courtney Santana, a Human Rights commissioner and the CEO of the foundation Survive 2 Thrive, told the Austin Monitor that means struggling Austin-area shelters […]
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For child care providers in Austin, city relief couldn’t come soon enough
Patsy Harnage doesn’t get a lot of holidays. For the last decade, she’s grown accustomed to working herself to the bone. Operating a child care center is hard work, built on razor-thin margins. That’s part of the job; it’s an unsung vocation. The margins over the last half-year have been even thinner, and her business, […]
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City leaders and Cap Metro get to work crafting Project Connect anti-displacement plan
In November, Austin voters approved a tax increase to support Project Connect and the expansion of public transportation throughout the city. Now, local leaders need to figure out precisely where and how to spend some of that money, including $300 million allocated for anti-displacement strategies. On Nov. 11, City Council and the Capital Metropolitan Transportation […]
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Austin music venues won’t get Covid relief money until next year. They say they’re running out of time.
Jeannette Gregor was shaking, her voice quivering. “I am not a public speaker. This is actually kind of a nightmare for me – especially after about five months of isolation and no social contact,” she said back in September. “So if I don’t act right, sorry about it.” She’d never held a press conference, let […]
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Black coalition says Austin should pay out millions in restitution for long-ignored systemic racism
Black residents are calling on Austin to address decades of racism, inequity and displacement, demanding the city move to potentially provide as much as half a billion dollars in restitution for the Black community. Roughly 50 Black Austinites of all ages gathered at 12th and Chicon streets Saturday to announce a proposal that would dole […]
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City revives a New Deal program to put people back to work
Lee esta historia en español. The city of Austin is putting up to $2 million toward a new employment program that helps organizations hire people financially affected by the Covid-19 pandemic. The Austin Civilian Conservation Corps is modeled after a New Deal program of the same name. The idea is the same as it was […]
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The pitfalls of being an Austin service industry worker during Covid-19
Gina Dvorak has been working since she was 16 – she’s never not had a job. So when she was furloughed from the serving job she’s held for over 10 years at an Austin Japanese restaurant, she fell into a state of depression and uncertainty. Dvorak joined the droves of other service industry workers who […]
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New collective continues the fight to dismantle systemic racism
Mayor Steve Adler and a coalition of community activists launched a new nonprofit organization earlier this month, creating an entity to succeed the Mayor’s Task Force on Institutional Racism and Systemic Inequities and bring many of its 278 recommendations to fruition. Kazique Prince, who was a project manager for the task force, will serve as […]