Austin Water Utility should cut back on its contributions to the city’s general fund during drought conditions, according to recommendations by a committee formed to find ways to keep the utility financially healthy. The Joint Committee on Austin Water Utility’s Financial Plan met Wednesday to finalize recommendations it will send to City Council on […]
Environment
Posted inResources
Climate change report prepared for Austin predicts weather extremes
The first indications of how climate change likely will affect Austin in the coming decades are beginning to emerge. A just-completed report by City of Austin staff sets out some sobering scenarios of potential future conditions. Extremes of heat, drought and floods that have occurred in the region in recent years are likely to become […]
Posted inResources
Austin Water Utility proposes ‘meaty’ cuts to balance FY2015 budget
A struggling Austin Water Utility moved forward with tough cuts at the latest meeting of the Joint Committee on AWU’s Financial Plan. Right now, AWU has several options on the table for next year’s budget. The utility’s latest proposal has $33 million in budget cuts, with $4.5 million of that already proposed. On Wednesday […]
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Austin Energy now backs full collection of line extension costs
Taking a cue from City Council members, Austin Energy has shifted its position and now supports recovering the full costs of extending power lines to new customers starting in October. Utility officials plan to take the new proposal to the Council Committee on Austin Energy for consideration next week. Austin Energy officials publicly announced the […]
Posted inResources
Task force hears water options, some likely unpalatable
With lake levels dropping and no end in sight for the current drought, Austin Water Utility officials are putting some creative strategies on the table designed to add to and maximize the city’s water supplies. It seems likely that the utility will have to utilize some of them, with cost being a major consideration. […]
Posted inDevelopment, Environment, Local Politics
Council members approve Lake Austin Overlay, shoreline rules
A new set of zoning regulations known as the Lake Austin Overlay got past its first City Council hurdle Thursday night. Council voted on first reading to adopt the regulations, with two more to go before the overlay is adopted. In general, they approved the recommendations backed by the Planning Commission. (See Austin Monitor, […]
Posted inDevelopment, Environment, Public Safety
Council OKs two measures to speed buyouts in flood-prone areas
More than six months have passed since Austin’s Halloween flood. At nearly 1 a.m. Friday, Onion Creek residents gathered at City Hall learned that relief may be in sight in the form of an expanded city buyout program. Two propositions were on the table. Mayor Pro Tem Sheryl Cole, Mayor Lee Leffingwell and Council […]
Posted inLocal Government, Resources
Despite hurdles, Hays County, Forestar move ahead with water deal
Hays County Commissioners are moving forward with a massive water supply contract, despite not clearing a legal hurdle called for by the water reservation and purchase agreement. Last October, Hays County officials entered into a contract with Austin-based Forestar Real Estate Group to secure the reservation and purchase of 45,000 acre-feet of water per year […]
Posted inDevelopment, Environment
Environmental Board backs Oak Hill PUD with affordable housing
The Environmental Board gave the go-ahead for changes to a 2007 Planned Unit Development west of Oak Hill Wednesday night. The changes would allow Foundation Communities to build affordable multifamily units on the site, which was originally planned for office uses. Though developers were asking for changes to the original agreement that amounted to […]
Posted inLocal Government, Resources
Western Travis still Wild West of groundwater with no district in sight
A decades-old plan to put an unprotected area of western Travis County into a groundwater conservation district, or GCD, appears to have been killed with the stroke of a pen recently by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. The most recent effort to create a district for the area or to merge it with […]
Posted inLocal Politics, Resources
Mayor criticizes use of Austin Water funds to pay for general fund expenses
The Austin Water Utility came under scrutiny at last week’s budget session, as City Council members took a closer look at rate increases proposed by the utility. In fact, Mayor Lee Leffingwell called for “truth in budgeting,” telling AWU officials that he thinks there are expenses they could cut to avoid raising rates. The […]
Posted inResources
Committee debates options for rate increase for water customers
Leaders at Austin Water Utility are pushing back on the recommendations of a committee tasked with finding alternatives to a water rate increase of more than 10 percent. The Joint Committee on Austin Water Utility’s Financial Plan met May 7 to discuss a possible rate increase for customers caused by the city’s drought. Water […]