Whispers

Last week, U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg announced that Austin would receive $10.5 million to go toward pedestrian safety improvements. The money, which comes via Safe Streets and Roads for All grant funding, will enable the city to install almost 50 crossings through the city and develop its Living Streets Program. According to a press […]

HousingWorks Austin has named Awais Azhar as its new executive director. Azhar will replace Nora Linares-Moeller, who is retiring after serving seven years in the role, but will remain on in an advisory position for the organization. In addition to his service on the Planning Commission for the past four terms, Azhar has been the […]

An update on the Austin Police Department’s reinstated Automated License Plate Reader program confirmed that all 40 cameras are installed and functioning. After a hiatus, the readers controversially returned after much public debate, and the new program went live at the end of March as a one-year pilot program. In July, then-Chief Joseph Chacon clarified […]

The city’s Homeless Strategy Office has announced $2.1 million in new funding opportunities. The money is split into two programs: $1.5 million has been allocated to a Housing Barrier Reduction program which “aims to launch a fund that reduces immediate barriers for individuals and households trying to obtain or maintain stable housing,” and $600,000 is […]

In addition to the multitude of City Council candidates looking for funds for their campaigns, there are now three local political action committees that will be raising and spending money to support various candidates. Leading the Vibrant Austin political action committee is Skyler Korgel, who told the Austin Monitor that his PAC is “pro housing.” […]

Two major leaks in the infrastructure of Barton Springs Pool are keeping the pool closed for several weeks. While they’re being repaired, the city will open Deep Eddy Pool at 6 a.m. daily. Holes in an abandoned skimmer pipe, estimated to be from the 1940s, were pulling water into an abandoned pipe below the pool’s […]

Plans are in place for where and when local folks can vote. Forty-one early-voting sites and 171 Election Day sites for the Nov. 5 election have been approved by Travis County Clerk Dyana Limon-Mercado, the Elections Division and the Commissioners Court. There will be a few changes to voting sites on the University of Texas […]

The city’s Ethics Commission and the League of Women Voters Austin Area will be hosting a forum for the seven candidates vying for the City Council seat currently held by Leslie Pool. Pool, who was initially elected in 2014, could run for reelection by gathering a sufficient number of signatures to place her name on […]

Austin Energy has launched its AI-driven wildfire detection system. According to a press release from AE, “The Pano AI system integrates 13 ultra-high-definition, 360-degree cameras, artificial intelligence and real-time data monitoring to swiftly detect and verify potential wildfires. Once a fire is identified, the system automatically alerts Austin Energy and local fire departments, providing precise […]

On Friday, the city’s parks department, Austin Water and the Watershed Protection Department convened to investigate a leak in Barton Springs’ infrastructure. They found that an old water bypass pipe has developed two holes, much like a similar incident in 2018. While the city’s plans to fix the issue will take the same tack as […]

Travis County will host a job fair Wednesday, Sept. 4, at 700 Lavaca St. in order to showcase the more than 100 open positions at the county. According to a press release about the fair, those jobs include “Application Developers, Paralegal, Investigators, Juvenile Probation Officers, Mechanics, Groundskeepers” as well as recently approved positions for the […]

City Council approved a plan to preserve flow during times of drought at Barton Springs during yesterday’s meeting. The Little Bear Recharge Enhancement Project directs water from Little Bear Creek to a former quarry during times of high flow. There, the water can recharge the Edwards Aquifer, improving its resiliency when water is scarce due […]