Some political leaders and activists in Austin believe the city would be better off if elections for City Council did not coincide with higher-profile campaigns for president, governor and Congress. At a meeting of the Charter Review Commission on Nov. 13, Commissioner Matt Hersh floated the idea of changing the city charter so that Council […]
Charter Review Commission
Posted inReporters' Notebook
Reporter’s Notebook: Controversy
Out of order… It’s no secret – thanks to our reporting – that Capital Metro’s Customer Satisfaction Advisory Committee isn’t the most influential government-appointed group of citizens in town. But on Wednesday, the committee’s staff liaison let the Capital Metro board of directors know exactly how the committee felt about the largest reorganization of Austin’s […]
Posted inCity Hall
Is it time for Austin to have a ‘strong mayor’?
It’s a common refrain in city political debates: Austin is a big city and it’s time it started acting like one, whether that means building mass transit, allowing taller buildings or adopting single-member City Council districts. For Roger Borgelt, a member of the Charter Review Commission, it means ditching Austin’s longtime council-manager form of government. […]