About seven years ago, Lynn Meredith and her husband moved into a high-rise downtown. Meredith can see the state Capitol from her building, and over the years, she’s watched as new skyscrapers have sprung up around the Capitol, while some other construction plans have fallen through. “Since we are downtown residents and we are interested […]
Austin
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Soccer proponents abandon Butler Park, turn to alternate stadium sites
Owners of a Major League Soccer team hoping to move their club to Austin have turned their ambitions for a new stadium away from a controversial waterfront site. On Friday, Dave Greeley, president of Precourt Sports Ventures, issued a statement announcing the group was giving up its work related to Butler Shores Metropolitan Park following […]
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Science friction: Austin Democrats look at growing clash between politics and facts
Perhaps the key to fighting fake news claims and a growing resistance to scientific research in state and federal policy decisions comes down to teaching scientists and engineers how to tell jokes. The need for making scientific analysis accessible and relatable to everyday voters was one of the points discussed Wednesday at a panel of […]
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Tech community tapped in move to rid city of paper
Paper-driven processes through Austin’s city government are on the way out with the announcement of a new collaboration with the city’s tech community. The partnership, announced Thursday, will see the city pair up with the Austin Tech Alliance and members of the Capital Factory tech business incubator to identify ways to digitize operations at all […]
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Public toilet pilot program flush with users
The Downtown Commission learned on Wednesday evening that the city’s ongoing public toilet pilot program has served more than 8,000 users since its launch in late September. The official total through Jan. 2, according to city engineer David Magaña, is 8,355 users who have taken advantage of a mobile toilet that has been placed at […]
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This nonprofit will train you to run for City Council. And also make you compete to do so.
At 5 p.m. on a Friday at Native, a new bar and hostel in East Austin, half a dozen people occupied the blue velvet booths and dance-punk music blares overhead. Leigh Salinas, 31, walked in carrying a duffel bag. She was there to spend the weekend studying – sort of. “I was certainly impacted by […]
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Whellan joins Armbrust & Brown
Today, Armbrust & Brown PLLC announced that attorney Michael Whellan, who is a former president and shareholder of Graves Dougherty Hearon & Moody will be joining their firm on Jan. 15. It’s a big change for Whellan, who is well-known at City Hall, where he has represented an array of clients including, among many others, […]
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Poll shows support for paid sick leave ordinance
Most Austinites like the idea of requiring businesses to provide their employees with paid sick days, according to a poll released Thursday. The survey of 600 Austin voters, which was conducted by Public Policy Polling, a respected national polling firm that typically works with Democrats, was commissioned by the Workers Defense Project, a local workers’ […]
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Trump administration push for citizenship question on census alarms critics
Watchdog groups are alarmed by a Department of Justice request to add a question about citizenship to the 2020 census. The agency says the information is needed to enforce the Voting Rights Act, specifically a section that bans racial discrimination. “It’s just a ridiculous political statement and doesn’t hold water given the facts,” said Phil […]
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2017: A Monitor year in review
City Manager search Oh boy. City Council closed out the year by (finally) appointing new City Manager Spencer Cronk more than a year after former manager Marc Ott announced his departure. That is great news for a city that has been in a bit of a holding pattern as the position remained filled on an […]
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Affordability questions linger for businesses, residents in Austin economic forecast
Economists and business leaders expect Austin to see continued strong job growth and business activity in 2018, though more than a decade of rapid population growth may start to put downward pressure on hiring and new activity in the city’s core. That forecast came from Mark Vitner, an economist with Wells Fargo, who delivered the […]
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Environmental Commission moves Onion Creek buyout plan forward
Over four years after the 2013 Halloween floods racked the Onion Creek neighborhoods, the Environmental Commission voted unanimously at its Dec. 6 meeting to approve staff’s recommendation to move forward with 128 buyouts of houses at immediate risk of flooding come the next downpour. The Watershed Protection Department’s recommendation is a culmination of multiple years […]