Friends and family shared reminiscences of longtime labor leader and dedicated Democrat Walter Timberlake Monday. Timberlake, 89, passed away Sunday after a long struggle with various health problems, including diabetes. Timberlake was a major force in the Texas Democratic party for decades. A statement from the Travis County Democratic Party said the party “mourns the […]
Austin
Posted inAustin
Panelists examine impact of taxes, paid leave and school funding for Latinos
The importance of federal tax policies, family paid leave programs and the effects of the state’s school financing structure on affordability in Austin were among the issues discussed Thursday by a panel of state and federal policy analysts, with the goal off addressing matters important to Latinos. The panel, which was organized by the advocacy […]
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Austin cat advocates ask city to reevaluate shelter-neuter-release program
The stated goal of the Austin Animal Center is to place all adoptable animals in forever homes. However, even with this intention and a no-kill policy to back it up, not all animals are given the same chance to find a home. In 2011, the city’s shelter implemented a shelter-neuter-release (SNR) program in conjunction with […]
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Music commissioners want urgency, care in spending hotel tax money for industry
Members of the Music Commission and interest groups related to the city’s music industry are pushing for quick decisions on how to spend an initial pool of Hotel Occupancy Tax dollars that City Council allocated for the city’s commercial music industry. At last Monday’s meeting, representatives from the groups Music Moves Austin and Austin Texas […]
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Chamber forecast sees tight labor, housing markets as biggest threat to Austin economy
Austin’s economy continues to be one of the strongest in the nation and should stay that way for the foreseeable future, but a national economist said the city’s extremely tight labor market is likely acting as a drag on the area’s overall growth. That was one of the takeaways shared Thursday by Sarah House, senior […]
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Proposed partnership with ECHO would convert more motels to temporarily house Austin’s homeless
ECHO, the Ending Community Homelessness Coalition, says the addition of 200-300 short-term motel units would substantially impact the community of Austinites living without shelter. In a memo sent Tuesday to the mayor and City Council, city staff said they agree. Earlier this month, Council approved buying the Rodeway Inn in South Austin and converting the […]
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Gov. Abbott says he’ll use five acres of state-owned land to temporarily house homeless Austinites
Gov. Greg Abbott’s office said the state will use five acres of state land at U.S. Highway 183 and Montopolis Drive as a temporary campsite for homeless Austinites. The site would serve as a stopgap until a privately backed effort brings a temporary shelter online in the downtown area. John Wittman, the governor’s spokesman, confirmed […]
Posted inAustin, Water
Audit: City water employees misused positions
Two employees of Austin Water misused their positions to generate business for a plumbing business owned by one of the employees, according to an investigative report issued Thursday by the Office of the City Auditor. That business owner/city employee, Rodney King Jr., asked his co-workers to refer business to him, even though such referrals are […]
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Abbott says TxDOT will start cleaning up homeless camps under highways in Austin starting Monday
Gov. Greg Abbott’s office says it’s forging ahead with cleanups of homeless encampments under overpasses in Austin. Ahead of a Nov. 1 deadline for state intervention, Abbott’s spokesperson John Wittman confirmed that the Texas Department of Transportation will clear underpasses of encampments and direct campers to city and county resources for people experiencing homelessness. The […]
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As Austin rolls out its revised camping and resting bans, the future is uncertain
Everitt Walls is a company man. The 73-year-old veteran served in the Army in Vietnam. He follows rules and he follows chain of command. He also shares a camp across the street from the Austin Resource Center for the Homeless (ARCH) with a friend. He doesn’t camp on a sidewalk, or in front of a […]
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Gov. Abbott moves to clean up homeless camps under bridges in Austin
Gov. Greg Abbott’s office says the Austin City Council has taken a “meaningful step” to address homelessness after its vote last night to partially reinstate a camping ban, but that he intends to ask the Texas Department of Transportation to clean up camps under bridges. Spokesman John Wittman says the governor’s decision is meant to […]
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Council codifies no-kill practices in controversial ordinance
City Council approved a set of controversial amendments to city code Thursday, giving legal weight to certain no-kill practices that many community advocates consider harmful to people and pets alike. Ellen Jefferson, executive director of Austin Pets Alive!, defended the amendments from their detractors, claiming that each of them is reflective of current practice and […]