Tag Archives: Economic Development Department
Staffing issues cause slow rollout of arts, historic preservation programs
The Economic Development Department plans to wait until fall to begin spinning up three programs for music, arts and historic preservation that are funded by proceeds from the city’s Hotel Occupancy Tax. Portions of those programs aren’t slated to become…
City Hall • By Chad Swiatecki • Jun 7, 2022
City staffing shortages to delay Live Music Fund deployment until mid-2023
Musicians, promoters and other creatives will have to wait another year to enter into a contract of $5,000-$10,000 from the city’s Live Music Fund. The delay is due to a staffing shortage in the city, including 20 positions in the Economic…
Austin • By Chad Swiatecki • May 10, 2022
Audit finds city slow to move on workforce development recommendations
An updated audit has found the city has yet to implement most of the recommendations made five years ago related to improving workforce development programs within the Economic Development Department and Austin Public Health. The 2022 audit, which was discussed…
City Hall • By Chad Swiatecki • Feb 25, 2022
Audit praises city's Covid assistance efforts, with rental payment results mixed
An audit found mixed results in the execution of some of the city’s programs created with federal money to provide assistance with the many impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic. A report last week from the Office of the City Auditor…
Austin • By Chad Swiatecki • Nov 15, 2021
Music Commission's oversight could further delay emergency funds for musicians
The Music Commission has asked city staff for more input and involvement in how a pair of financial assistance programs for Austin musicians will be carried out, with an emergency aid fund tied to Covid-19 possibly delayed three weeks as…
Music & Entertainment • By Chad Swiatecki • Sep 16, 2021
Shoal Creek/Third Street redesign aims to create greener, safer spaces downtown
The Urban Transportation Commission’s hefty meeting agenda on Sept. 7 included a proposal to significantly redesign the heavily trafficked area of downtown surrounding the intersection of Third Street and Shoal Creek Trail. The Cypress and Shoal Creek Public Space Strategy,…
Development • By Kali Bramble • Sep 14, 2021
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Bowie underpass project derailed
After two decades of planning, negotiations to construct the Bowie underpass have come to a halt. The project at Third and Bowie streets is part of the 2001 Seaholm District Master Plan. It would have provided a link between the…
Transportation • By Elizabeth Pagano • Aug 19, 2021
EDD provides a breakdown of federal funds under its purview
While the Covid-19 pandemic has posed a host of unprecedented challenges for the city, it’s also led to an influx of federal funds under the American Rescue Plan Act. A recent breakdown of these dollars shows how the portion of…
Austin • By Amy Smith • Aug 13, 2021
Greystar/HACA proposal recommended for redevelopment of Home Depot site
City staffers have recommended moving forward with a proposal from Greystar Development and the Housing Authority of the City of Austin for the redevelopment of the 19-acre East Austin site best known as the home of a long-closed and decaying…
Development • By Chad Swiatecki • Jul 22, 2021
City opens $2M grant program to assist creative sector nonprofits
The city has spun up another emergency relief program for arts organizations, with $2 million in federal aid available for nonprofit groups connected to local arts and cultural communities. The Arts & Culture Non-Profit Relief Grant will provide 100 grants…
Austin • By Chad Swiatecki • Jul 15, 2021
Local leaders see pandemic, winter storm as openings for economic opportunities
Local leaders say the past 15 months of Austin’s history have been a test for how the city can best serve the people and businesses that are most at risk as growth changes the economics and character of Central Texas.…
Austin • By Chad Swiatecki • Jun 11, 2021
City seeks input on post-Covid economic recovery plan
The city is taking feedback from residents on a wide-reaching plan to restructure how many departments operate, and how economic development is handled in the post-pandemic world. The Economic Recovery and Resiliency Framework is a list of 45 ways the…
