Following the success of Proposition 2 at the state ballot box, City Council has sprung to action enacting property tax relief for child care facilities across the city. The proposition, which saw 76 percent approval among Travis County voters, amends the state constitution to allow for between 50 percent and 100 percent property tax exemptions […]
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Posted inAustin
Idle lands: Austin joins cities looking to put real estate assets to best use
By next spring, the city is expected to have a detailed plan for how to turn its underutilized real estate assets into money-producers, in an attempt to add General Fund revenue and counteract state limits on property tax increases. Austin was recently announced as a participant with three other cities – Evanston, Illinois; Mt. Vernon, […]
Posted inCity Council
Council approves $15M purchase of the Salvation Army shelter property
The former Salvation Army Downtown Shelter will continue to serve people without homes for years to come, following City Council’s decision to purchase the property for $15 million. The purchase includes the 130-bed shelter on Eighth Street and a retail storefront and parking lot on the 700 block of Red River Street. The purchase removes […]
Posted inTipSheets
TipSheet: Austin City Council, 11.9.23
Greetings and welcome to another round of Austin City Council. As usual, we’ve rounded up the most-likely-to-be-interesting parts of today’s agenda, but the whole thing is online for those who would prefer to make up their own minds. Among other things, Council will consider the purchase of the downtown Salvation Army property. The building was […]
Posted inTipSheets
TipSheet: Austin City Council, 11.2.23
Anyone who watched this Tuesday’s work session is probably already prepared for what looks to be a smooth meeting today. Though there are a number of items on the agenda that caught our attention, it’s telling that none warranted further discussion on Tuesday. We’re guessing that might lead to a (now typical) meeting that will […]
Posted inCity Council
Council has its eyes set on preparing for 2024 total solar eclipse
With Austin in the direct path of a rare solar eclipse that will take place April 8, 2024, city departments will soon begin preparing for many thousands of astronomy tourists who are expected to travel to Central Texas to get the best view possible. With the eclipse not expected to reoccur in the area for […]
Posted inAustin
Students voice solidarity, outrage as conflict in Palestine escalates
As the sun set in Texas last Thursday, a somber crowd gathered beneath the university’s clock tower to mourn casualties of the escalating conflict between Israel and Palestine. The vigil, led by the University of Texas at Austin’s Palestinian Solidarity Committee, was the second since Hamas’ breaching of Israel’s southern border in a deadly attack […]
Posted inAustin
East Austin factory would feature world’s largest rooftop solar array
Tesla’s factory in East Austin would be the largest rooftop solar installation in the world when complete, company officials say. “We finished phase 1, so we can pull roughly 10 megawatts. When it’s all said and done, it will be 30 megawatts, which will be the largest rooftop solar I think in the world,” Logan […]
Posted inCity Hall
City auditor unveils new online tracking system for audits
The Office of the City Auditor is advertising a new tool to let any member of the public see how different departments are doing in response to audit findings. That tool is a new online dashboard that tracks recommendations from audits and how departments are carrying out tasks outlined in those recommendations. Deputy city auditor […]
Posted inCity Hall
Artists decry delay in city grant payments, putting some projects and events at risk
Arts commissioners have joined local artists in criticizing the city for the prolonged rollout of one of its newer grant programs, which has left some recipients without funding ahead of events they’d organized with expectations of using the city funds. Last week’s Arts Commission meeting in some ways resembled this month’s Music Commission meeting, where […]
Posted inCity Hall
Tourism Commission wants more transparency on hotel tax funding decisions for arts groups
Members of the Tourism Commission have signaled they want more transparency from the Economic Development Department regarding how Hotel Occupancy Tax dollars allocated for music, cultural arts and historic preservation programs are used. At its most recent meeting, the commission pushed EDD staff to provide an annual report of how all hotel tax revenue for […]
Posted inCity Council
Council approves convention center expansion contracts
On Thursday, City Council voted to award the contract for construction and pre-construction of a refurbished and enlarged Austin Convention Center to two firms, JE Dunn Construction and Turner Construction, for up to $1.2 billion. They also directed staff to negotiate a $65 million contract with architects LMN and Page Southerland Page, called LMN/Page, for […]