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Most Popular Stories
- Austin is increasing security at city parks and greenbelts following string of car break-ins
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Travis County
Travillion pushes for streamlined processes, services for the underserved
When Commissioner Jeff Travillion joined the Travis County Commissioners Court in 2017, he brought with him a rigorous attention to governmental process. “When I came here I said, ‘I don’t want to know that it runs; pull the hood up…
Travis County • By Ryan Thornton • Jan 3, 2019
Shea stays busy accepting what can’t be changed, fighting for what can
On June 24, 1988, this sentence appeared on the front page of The New York Times: “Higher temperatures can now be attributed to a long-expected global warming trend linked to pollution, a space agency scientist reported today.” The scientist was…
Travis County • By Ryan Thornton • Jan 3, 2019
Commissioner Daugherty still working to pave the road ahead
Travis County Commissioner Gerald Daugherty is not in the business of telling Travis County residents what they should want or need. Instead, both on the dais and in conversation, the Precinct 3 commissioner, businessman and longtime Austin resident resists the…
Travis County • By Ryan Thornton • Jan 3, 2019
County delays decision on criminal district attorney’s office
The Travis County Commissioners Court is considering a merger of the County and District Attorney’s offices into a criminal district attorney office that may considerably lower the number of jail bookings for misdemeanor offenses. County Attorney David Escamilla and District…
Travis County • By Ryan Thornton • Dec 13, 2018
Between storms and traffic, Travis County tries to stay afloat
A growing influx of vehicles to Travis County paired with the effects of the climate crisis has the county struggling to provide the infrastructure needed to simultaneously absorb the effects of both. At the same time, the recent Atlas 14…
Travis County • By Ryan Thornton • Dec 5, 2018
County finalizes Indigent Legal Services work group
On Oct. 16, the Texas Indigent Defense Commission presented a report to the Commissioners Court in which it recommended the creation of a public defender office in Travis County along with numerous specific suggestions concerning the ideal composition of the…
Travis County • By Ryan Thornton • Nov 28, 2018
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TCAD not giving taxpayers timely hearings
Faced with an unprecedented number of property tax protests, the Travis Central Appraisal District is scheduling formal hearings through the month of December – months after the appraisal roll was certified and tax bills set. Attorney Bill Aleshire told the…
Travis County • By Jo Clifton • Nov 16, 2018
Multifamily affordable housing breaks western Travis County development pattern
As the overwhelming support for Proposition A at last week’s election indicates, Austin-area residents want affordable housing as much as they need it. This fact is especially apparent following Travis County Commissioners Court’s support on Tuesday morning of a dense…
Travis County • By Ryan Thornton • Nov 15, 2018
Public defender office task force off to a slow start
Having decided to establish a public defender office in Travis County, the Commissioners Court now faces the task of organizing the preliminary steps to begin that process. After a recommendation to the court last Tuesday in a report from the…
Travis County • By Ryan Thornton • Oct 24, 2018
County looks at legal community for public defender office task force
Using data from the Planning and Budget Office and the Justice Planning Department, the Texas Indigent Defense Commission recently studied the feasibility and benefits of having a public defender office in Travis County. Geoff Burkhart, executive director of TIDC, presented…
Travis County • By Ryan Thornton • Oct 17, 2018
County faces a future of frequent, heavy storms
As anyone who has sat for hours in Austin traffic knows, city infrastructure is often built to meet the needs of the present, not the needs of 15 or even 10 years down the road. This is a problem when…
Travis County • By Ryan Thornton • Oct 10, 2018
County dedicates $3M to permanent supportive housing
The Travis County Commissioners Court voted Tuesday morning to dedicate $3 million to permanent supportive housing for repeat users of the criminal justice and health care systems. The county’s $3 million, comprising $600,000 annually over five years, is roughly a…
