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This is the last regular Austin, Monitored newsletter as we gear up for the launch of our Austin Current newsroom. You’ll have two more (slightly different) messages from us on Monday and Tuesday about what’s next. Don’t worry, we’ll be back in your inboxes on Nov. 10 with the first Austin Current newsletter. If you need to reach us, just send an email to community@austincurrent.org. We can’t wait to bring you great journalism for Austin.
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City document reveals new details on $25 million boardwalk on Lady Bird Lake
From Nathan Bernier, KUT News:
Austin’s most famous trail is on track to get a $25 million upgrade. A new boardwalk is planned for the south shore of Lady Bird Lake, replacing a cramped section of the Ann and Roy Butler Hike and Bike Trail between South First Street and Congress Avenue.
The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is paying for the boardwalk as compensation for taking several slices of parkland around Lady Bird Lake to make space for the expansion of I-35 through Central Austin.
Report shows pedestrian crash deaths in Austin have not decreased
From Jo Clifton:
Although Austin has fewer overall automobile crashes than other major Texas cities, the percentage of crashes involving serious injury or death of a pedestrian is still at the same rate — 27.9 percent– as other large Texas cities. That is one conclusion of the special report from the Austin City Auditor’s Office. Council members Zo Qadri and Paige Ellis requested the report to try to understand how Austin police officers respond to crashes, especially those involving pedestrians and enforcement of the Lisa Torry Smith Act.
Between September 2021 and July 2025, auditors reported that there were more than 52,000 crash reports in Austin. Although pedestrians were involved in only about 3 percent of those crashes, about 28 percent of those that involved pedestrians resulted in serious injury or death.
A message from today’s sponsor, Austin Energy:
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City Council approves downtown height caps, for now
Council also approved an ordinance creating a temporary 350-foot height limit for projects in the Central Business District, a move meant to preserve Austin’s downtown affordability and design programs following changes to state law.
The action responds to Senate Bill 840, which since Sept. 1 has barred cities from using floor-area ratio limits for mixed-use or multifamily projects in commercial zones. Since the city’s downtwon zoning relied on an 8:1 floor-to-area ratio instead of a height cap, the state law would have effectively removed height limits for new residential towers. Planning staff recommended a 350-foot cap that was seen as in keeping with recent downtown building patterns to keep development within predictable parameters. That change also allows continued developer participation in the Downtown Density Bonus Program, which funds affordable housing and streetscape improvements.
Speakers during public comment on the change were divided. Some urged Council to lower the cap to roughly 210 feet, saying a higher limit would reduce housing-fee revenues and exempt more projects from Great Streets requirements. Others opposed any cap because of the view that height restrictions discourage housing supply and economic activity.
Council Member Chito Vela successfully introduced an amendment making the new rule interim, directing staff to return by May 2026 with an updated program after public engagement.
— Chad Swiatecki
Convention Center construction continues
City Council on Thursday approved four items tied to the in-process reconstruction of the Austin Convention Center, authorizing new financial authorizations, contract expansions, and communications funding for the project.
A pair of ordinances authorize issuing and refunding Hotel Occupancy Tax revenue bonds totaling roughly $695 million to refinance older debt and provide new funding for the project. Another vote amended the construction-manager-at-risk contract with JE Dunn/Turner, adding $450 million and bringing total contract authority to $1.65 billion. A separate item added $540,000 to the city’s outreach contract with Eis Design to sustain public-information work through 2028.
In agenda documents staff said the combined actions keep the project within the previously approved $1.66 billion overall budget and align construction schedules with related downtown infrastructure work, including an Austin Energy district-cooling plant and street-safety upgrades.
Public speakers criticized the amendment as rushed and insufficiently transparent, citing what they described as unclear accounting of total costs and financing terms. Others argued that the city should pause the project or subject it to an independent audit before proceeding.
Hotel and tourism industry representatives countered that the Convention Center rebuild is essential to maintaining Austin’s competitiveness for major events and sustaining hotel-tax revenues that fund cultural and visitor-promotion programs.
Separately, opponents of the new Convention Center have submitted a petition seeking to place a referendum on halting or downsizing the project on the May 2026 ballot. The City Clerk is reviewing the filing.
— Chad Swiatecki
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ELSEWHERE IN THE NEWS
The Austin Chronicle reports on the troubling news about health care costs that is just around the corner.
The free weekly also sits down with Rep Gina Hinojosa to talk about her campaign to be Texas’ next governor.
It’s not quite a Louvre heist, but a multitude of fancy watches were stolen during F1.
Business owners near Lake Austin are pushing back against a proposal to draw down the lake next year.
And the Austin American-Statesman takes a minute to celebrate the Armadillo Man
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