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Most Popular Stories
- Parks Board recommends vendor for Zilker Café, while voicing concerns about lack of local presence
- City leaders evaluate surprising ideas for water conservation
- Office slowdown sparks new downtown housing ambitions
- Audit: Economic official granted arts, music funding against city code
- Downtown Historic Resource Survey eyes seven new districts eligible for designation
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Resources
Water bills to get increased scrutiny after audit
The City Auditor’s Office has found that the customer billing system that generates the City of Austin’s combined utility bills does not routinely scrutinize the readings on the majority of water bills, leading to the possibility of overcharges. for nine…
Resources • By Jo Clifton • Oct 2, 2014
City Council studies potential solar power deal
Austin Energy staff is set to present City Council members with a new potential 25-year community solar contract Thursday that would produce as much as 3.2 megawatts of “local” solar power for the utility. If approved, the deal would cost…
Resources • By Michael Kanin • Oct 1, 2014
Whispers Roundup: Keeping secrets badly
Whispers Roundup is a weekly column of items from our reporters’ notebooks. “We won’t say a thing to anyone – we swear!” . . . Despite a handful of speeches at Wednesday’s Austin Neighborhoods Council forum imploring the candidates to…
Development • By Austin Monitor • Sep 26, 2014
AE offers new generation mix proposal
Austin Energy officials presented City Council members Tuesday with a new proposal for a generation mix that would approach the renewable energy numbers suggested by a July task force report. Though no solid generation plan has been presented — let…
Resources • By Michael Kanin • Sep 25, 2014
Adler releases plan to solve Austin water crisis
Austin mayoral candidate Steve Adler, who has already issued extensive position papers on affordability and education, got his feet wet Wednesday with a new plan to deal with Austin’s water crisis. He issued an “agenda paper” that primarily opposes buying…
Local Politics • By Mark Richardson • Sep 25, 2014
Monitor Radio, show 17: Michael Osborne and Tom "Smitty" Smith
Michael Osborne and Tom “Smitty” Smith of the recent Austin Energy generation task force join Monitor publisher Mike Kanin to talk solar power and the future of AE generation.
Resources • By Michael Kanin • Sep 24, 2014
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Water Task Force chair urges innovation for utility
The chair of a task force charged with examining the City of Austin’s position relative to its water resources urged City Council members Tuesday to angle toward “decentralization” of water supply management philosophy and innovation. The switch was suggested to…
Local Politics • By Michael Kanin • Sep 24, 2014
HHS panel wants more information from agencies
Members of the Council Health and Human Services committee heard from more than a dozen representatives of social service agencies Monday during a called meeting that was a continuation of the panel’s regular meeting last week. A number of social…
Resources • By Mark Richardson • Sep 23, 2014
LCRA approves Water Plan changes and reservoir
The Lower Colorado River Authority’s board members unanimously voted to accept several key amendments to their its 2012 Water Management Plan Wednesday. The board also voted to build the LCRA’s first new reservoir since the 1940s. The vote was the…
Environment • By Alex Dropkin • Sep 18, 2014
County seeks public input on development plan
Counties in Texas have few powers to regulate development in their jurisdictions, but that is not stopping Travis County from trying to make the best use of what tools they have. County officials are seeking public input on a Land,…
Development • By Mark Richardson • Sep 18, 2014
Social service contract process causes ruckus
Once again, the awarding of social service contracts by the city is shaping up to be a contentious issue. Though the scoring of contracts has been modified, the changes have not kept some big names from being left out. “We…
Local Politics • By Elizabeth Pagano • Sep 17, 2014
Commissioner calls water rate increase misleading
As if there weren’t enough questions swirling around the tenuous adoption of new water rates for the city, one member of the Water and Wastewater Commission has struck out against what she calls a “years-long pattern of obscuring utility rate…
