On Monday morning, City Council members Natasha Harper-Madison, Delia Garza, Greg Casar and Jimmy Flannigan, along with Mayor Steve Adler, held a press conference to discuss a group of resolutions aimed at reforming the Austin Police Department and dismantling systemic racism in the community. The resolutions will appear at Council’s Thursday meeting. Harper-Madison opened the […]
City Council
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City calls for help with redistricting
Just like Congress and the Texas Legislature, Austin City Council is required to draw new districts every 10 years to coincide with the U.S. Census. But unlike the Legislature and Congress, the city asks ordinary citizens to participate in the drawing of the districts. Austin’s current districts were drawn by the Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission […]
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Council’s APD grant vote: What happened
After listening to nearly seven hours of heartbreaking testimony from Austinites traumatized by police violence during protests the last week of May, City Council took a vote approving more funds for the Austin Police Department. On its surface, the $430,685 grant was not connected to the protests; the money will go toward funding an auto […]
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Austin Council members say they’ve lost faith in the police chief: Next week they vote on changes
A fractured skull. A severe chest wound. A broken jaw from where a lead-pellet bag lodged inside a person’s mouth. The injuries to protesters over the weekend could have been fatal, the Austin-Travis County EMS chief told City Council members Friday morning. The physical and psychological recovery could take years. And all of these injuries […]
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Austinites get chance to express pain, anger over police violence at emergency City Council hearing
More than 300 people have signed up to talk about what transpired during weekend protests against systemic racism and police killings, at an emergency Austin City Council session Thursday. Council members will reconvene the following morning to hear from Austin Police Chief Brian Manley. No immediate action is expected to be taken. According to Manley, […]
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Council boosts direct economic aid in spending plan for federal Covid-19 money
The city will move more of its federal aid for Covid-19 relief toward direct assistance for residents, with a total of $70 million now dedicated to rental relief, food aid and direct payments to individuals. City Council approved a resolution Thursday giving staff a broad outline for spending in three main categories – public health, […]
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Council opens public right-of-way for safe business with amended special events pilot
City Council approved a pilot program Thursday that will allow restaurants, bars and shops to use private and public parking spaces, sidewalks and streets to serve customers at a safe distance. The Shop the Block! pilot builds upon the city’s special events permitting process, cutting the application decision period to no more than 10 business […]
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Council members stake out priorities for federal Covid-19 aid ahead of vote next week
City Council will vote next week on the plan for spending federal money devoted to pandemic relief, anticipating significant changes from the initial outline presented by staff on Thursday. During a special meeting dedicated to allocating federal dollars – much of which will come from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act – […]
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Council OKs SOS amendment for Lantana tract
With the blessing of the Save Our Springs Alliance, City Council voted unanimously last week to approve a zoning change on the Lantana property at 7415 Southwest Parkway, allowing for the development of multifamily housing instead of the office complex that had previously been approved. In winning a positive recommendation from city staff and SOS, […]
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Council pushes for economic development body to lead purchase, preservation of venue spaces
City Council is pushing staff to act this summer to create an economic development corporation that could be used to preserve and acquire real estate properties to be used for cultural arts events and meeting space. That body, possibly in tandem with a proposed cultural trust that could also be created this summer, has been […]
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City to exit driver’s license hold contract with DPS
City Council voted unanimously Thursday to direct the city manager to discontinue the city’s participation in a state Department of Public Safety program that places holds on driver’s licenses when people fail to pay or miss payments on class C misdemeanors, such as speeding tickets or driving without insurance. Council took action after hearing from […]
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Council passes changes to consumer lending policies
On Thursday, City Council adopted changes to a city ordinance governing Registration of Credit Access Businesses to ensure that city regulations on consumer lending also apply to credit service organizations like payday and auto title lenders. The change, passed on the consent agenda, creates an offense and penalty and adds an application fee for those […]