A rezoning case for an out-of-compliance doggy daycare in South Austin’s Sweetbriar neighborhood earned the recommendation of Austin’s Planning Commission (and the scorn of some of neighbors) last week. Planning commissioners heard the case for the second time during their June 10 meeting and voted to recommend the rezoning to City Council. The change from […]
District 2
Posted inCity Council
After a busy 2024, Fuentes looks to take on more leadership roles
With her first term and a smooth reelection behind her, Vanessa Fuentes returns to the dais in January with a fresh to-do list and aspirations of becoming the next mayor pro tem – a symbolic yet highly sought-after position. Taking stock of her work in 2024, the District 2 City Council member reflected on a […]
Posted inDevelopment
ZAP postpones decision on Panda Express permit as commission fails to approve drive-through
The Zoning and Platting Commission delayed a decision on a conditional use permit for a drive-through at a proposed Panda Express off William Cannon Drive, after commissioners failed to approve the drive-through proposal. The proposed Panda Express would be located at 7200 Springfield Drive, off of East William Cannon Drive, on a property zoned for […]
Posted inHousing
Austin opens new affordable housing development in Southeast Austin
Lee esta historia en español Just days before Thanksgiving, some older residents have another thing to be thankful for: a safe, affordable place to live. Tucked away in a corner of Southeast Austin sits the city’s newest affordable housing project, Ekos City Heights. The Austin Housing Finance Corporation and McDowell Housing Partners opened the new […]
Posted inElections
Vela and Fuentes hold on to City Council seats
Two of the least-competitive City Council races played out exactly as most people anticipated they would, with Council members Vanessa Fuentes and Chito Vela easily holding on to their City Council seats Tuesday. Vela, who squared off against four challengers, won 58.5 percent of the vote in District 4, avoiding a runoff. His campaign centered […]
Posted inTransportation
Report highlights need for future airport audits
The city’s Aviation Department faces a variety of risks, particularly related to insufficient staffing, according to a report from the Office of the City Auditor. Auditor-in-charge Kathie Harrison told the Council Audit & Finance Committee on Wednesday that the three top risk areas facing Aviation include contract and vendor management, asset management and maintenance and […]
Posted inElections
Incumbent Fuentes has just one challenger for the Council D2 seat
Austin voters living in District 2 will get to cast their ballots for Vanessa Fuentes or challenger Robert Reynolds in the upcoming City Council race. District 2 encompasses the neighborhoods of Dove Springs, Del Valle, Pleasant Hill, Dittmar, Easton Park and Goodnight Ranch. Additionally, it includes the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, Circuit of the Americas racing […]
Posted inPublic Health
A health clinic for low-income residents was supposed to open in Del Valle last year. Where is it?
Nearly four years ago, the Del Valle community was promised a health center that would offer dentistry, primary care, mental health services and a pharmacy. This clinic, a collaboration between Central Health and CommUnityCare, would expand access to health care and serve low-income residents in Eastern Travis County. Construction workers broke ground on the Del Valle Health […]
Posted inTransportation
Austin’s airport is getting a new concourse and 20 more gates but not until the 2030s
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (ABIA) is gearing up to add at least 20 new gates, expanding capacity at the overcrowded airport as it struggles to serve millions more passengers each year than it was designed to handle. The planned gates will be located inside a newly constructed building – temporarily dubbed Concourse B – linked to […]
Posted inEducation
Austin-area school board president abruptly resigns and leaves meeting
Del Valle ISD’s board meeting kicked off with a major announcement on Tuesday: Board President Rebecca Birch said she was resigning, effective immediately. She had served on the board for nearly 12 years and spent more than half of that tenure as president. Birch’s decision came the same night the Del Valle school board swore […]
Posted inPublic Health
An Austin-area food bank wants students to get healthy meals, so it opened a food pantry at a school
The Central Texas Food Bank is launching a new program to establish food pantries in schools and opened its first location on Wednesday at Creedmoor Elementary, a Del Valle Independent School District campus. “We are super excited to be a flagship and be leading the way on this front because it is such an important program, especially […]
Posted inCity Council
Fuentes spent 2023 on program implementation
City Council Member Vanessa Fuentes continued her focus on working families and delivering community-focused policies in 2023, bringing forward 19 items and co-sponsoring another 80 resolutions. “We’ve been very active and collaborative with my colleagues on the dais,” Fuentes told the Austin Monitor. She is most proud of the measure she sponsored directing the city […]