In preparation for tomorrow’s decision, City Council members sat down with leaders from regional taxing entities Tuesday to discuss the pros and cons of challenging the Travis Central Appraisal District’s valuation of Austin commercial properties this year. Those in attendance included representatives and legal counsel for Round Rock, Cedar Park, Leander, Central Health, Austin Community […]
Austin City Council
The Austin City Council is the body with legislative purview over the City of Austin. It offers policy direction, while the office of the City Manager implements administrative actions based on those policies. Until 2015, the body contained seven members, including the city’s Mayor, all elected at-large. In 2012, City of Austin residents voted to change that system and as of 2015, 10 members of the Council are elected based on geographic districts. The Mayor continues to be elected at-large.
Posted inCity Hall
Snipes resigns
Yesterday, Assistant City Manager Anthony Snipes resigned. Snipes had arranged the March training event designed to help staff deal with the deluge of female City Council members. That training drew national ridicule to City Hall and sparked widespread outrage. In a memo to Mayor Steve Adler and Council, City Manager Marc Ott explained that he […]
Posted inCity Hall
Citing criticisms, Council delays new drainage fee
Despite a request from staff to adopt a new drainage charge by the end of the month, City Council is delaying action until the middle of June with the hope that its Public Utility Committee will be able to address major concerns with the proposal. Council voted to adopt an ordinance on first and second […]
Posted inCity Council
Council runs up against time-sensitive contracts
While City Council members requested more time to better understand two contracts with city departments Thursday, city staff argued that these agreements were time-sensitive and urged members to avoid further delays. The first item asked Council to approve a contract allowing Austin Energy to service its turbines at the city’s Sand Hill Energy Center in addition to […]
Posted inPremium Types
TickTock: Austin City Council Meeting 5.21.15
Tick Tock is the sortable-by-item-number transcript of Monitor publisher Mike Kanin’s Twitter feed from Council day. Simply click on the item number to scroll to the corresponding. Votes are color-coded: Green for yeas, red for nays, et cetera. It’s embedded below. ITEMS 2 3 4 8 12 15 16 19 22 23 25 29 39 […]
Posted inEnergy
Council extends large energy contracts
Following extensive deliberation, City Council voted Thursday to extend long-term contracts for Austin Energy’s two largest customers for six months and permanently revise the way the utility calculates rates for a third major customer. The move effectively keeps rates for Samsung and Freescale Semiconductor lower than they would be if the contracts were to expire […]
Posted inAustin
Council moves towards higher minimum wage
The city of Austin inched closer to a higher minimum wage for its employees Thursday. City Council members voted to direct City Manager Marc Ott to consider a minimum wage raise when he sits down to craft the coming year’s budget. But if Ott does follow Council’s direction, it’s not yet clear how far he will […]
Posted inAustin
Economic development proposals going to task force
Mayor Steve Adler pushed for and won more time to consider an economic development plan for East Austin on Thursday. The plan will go along with consideration of an agreement to create PGA-style golf courses at Walter E. Long Metropolitan Park. Decker Lake Golf LLC is seeking a 50-year license agreement in order to develop […]
Posted inAustin
Property tax system messed up; nobody happy
A property tax appraisal forum hosted by Travis County Commissioner Brigid Shea on Tuesday told two sides of the same story: No one is happy with the property tax system. The forum, Shea’s second, included a panel of city officials and tax experts: Mayor Steve Adler, Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo, Travis County Tax Collector-Assessor […]
Posted inResources
Council prepares for reworked drainage fee
In the wake of last year’s ruling that the city’s stormwater drainage charge is unfair to certain residents, City Council will hold a public hearing today to consider adopting a new fee structure that staff says would be more equitable overall. According to Watershed Protection Department Director Victoria Li, who unveiled the proposed structure in […]
Posted inAustin
Council may challenge “undervalued” appraisals
Following the release of a report stating that Austin commercial property in Travis County is “significantly undervalued,” City Council is considering an appraisal challenge that could reduce the burden on residential property taxpayers. Council discussed the potential move at a Tuesday work session, during which Budget Office and Law Department staff said the city would […]
Posted inDevelopment
Houston sees disparity in treatment of parks
Unless the item gets bogged down by a requirement that a master plan for Lamar Beach be completed first, City Council is likely to approve on Thursday a 50-year agreement with the West Austin Youth Association for renovations to three baseball fields and an additional youth sports field. The same cannot be said for a […]