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Debate over convention center, hotel tax funds spreads to Music Commission

A recently created music activism group has been thrown into the fray of the debate – largely playing out in meetings of the new Tourism Commission – over how to spend money the city generates through its roughly $100 million…

City taps UT incubator to meet 2040 zero waste goal

The city and the Austin Technology Incubator at the University of Texas are turning to startup companies to help find a solution to dramatically reduce waste headed to landfills from Austin. ATI’s new Circular Economy Incubator, which launched last month,…

Austin-Bergstrom International Airport plans expansion as air traffic soars

Take all the people who live in New York City. Multiply that by two, and you’ll get the number of passengers who are expected to travel through Austin’s airport this year: 16 million. That’s a lot. By 2040, Austin-Bergstrom International…

Anti-displacement recommendations take broad approach to combat gentrification

The task force convened late last year by City Council to study strategies for reversing Austin’s growing affordability and displacement problem has released its initial set of recommendations. Those recommendations include a mix of taxing mechanisms, social services and bond…

Here’s what to expect when eight floodgates open on the Mansfield Dam

It’s never happened before, but the Lower Colorado River Authority will likely open eight floodgates on the Mansfield Dam above Lake Austin by noon Thursday. So, what can you expect if you live in Austin? Flooding On Some Streets When…

More homes, services on the way for homeless with Community First! expansion

A Northeast Austin community constructed in recent years to provide permanent housing to Austin’s chronically homeless has announced its plans for a second phase that will nearly double its physical footprint to 51 acres and, when complete, serve nearly 800…

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Convention center fate looms as Tourism Commission scrutinizes Visit Austin budgets

The most recent meeting of the city’s still-new Tourism Commission followed what could become a regular dynamic for the group: detailed “in the weeds” parsing of budgets and policies related to Austin’s tourism industry, with the proposed expansion of the…

homeless

Homeless services would get a boost from recommended budget earmarks

A budget amendment expected to go before City Council later this month would seek to direct up to $1 million in new money toward improvements to Austin’s downtown homeless shelter and provide other resources to move people out of homelessness.…

Downtown restroom contract OK'd

On Thursday City Council directed staff to execute a contract with Blue Chem Inc. for waste removal services at a city-owned portable toilet downtown. The initial two-year contract is for $330,000, but if the contract is extended to five years…

Small progress, but Austin still lags in enabling 5G adoption

A pair of efforts to bring 5G telecommunication technology to portions of Austin is welcome news to proponents of the smart city capabilities available with widespread use. But the city still lags far behind other Texas cities in installation of…

American flag

Veterans center 'needs assessment' coming

In response to a resolution from the city’s Commission on Veterans Affairs and City Council, the Human Resources Department is moving forward with an assessment of how to proceed with setting up a Veterans Resource Center. HR has already allocated…

Austin reconsiders homelessness ordinances as Houston laws are challenged in court

It’s a new fiscal year for the city of Austin, and one of the myriad items on City Council agendas over the next year will be an overhaul of ordinances relating to homelessness. That won’t be easy, as federal courts…

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