Mayor Steve Adler’s campaign manager filed an ethics complaint Tuesday against Megaphone GPAC, a general purpose political action committee opposing the mayor’s re-election. But it seems likely that the complaint will be dismissed, according to attorneys familiar with election law. Adler’s campaign manager, Jim Wick, noted that the committee’s treasurer, Luke McAlpin, filed Megaphone’s appointment […]
Mayor Steve Adler
Mayor of the city of Austin, elected in November 2014
Posted inLocal Politics
PAC takes heat after using racist symbol Pepe the Frog in anti-Adler ad
One of Austin’s more prolific political action committees has apologized after releasing a video ad featuring Pepe the Frog, a cartoon frog used by anti-Semitic and alt-right groups. IndyAustin has collected thousands of dollars for several political goals, including opposing Mayor Steve Adler’s re-election and getting Proposition J on the ballot. An ad it released […]
Posted inElections
Here are the candidates running to be Austin’s next mayor
If you’re tired of hearing about the face-off between Sen. Ted Cruz and Congressman Beto O’Rourke, maybe it’s time to turn your attention to local elections, like the mayor’s race. Mayor Steve Adler is fighting to retain his seat against six challengers, most of whom are political newcomers with some wild ideas – including building […]
Posted inAustin
City bundling blockchain hacks for homelessness in Bloomberg challenge
Austin’s Innovation Office will spend most of the next three weeks compiling and assessing the solutions that teams of area programmers and digital creatives came up with to use blockchain technology to solve the city’s chronic homelessness issues. A total of 75 participants grouped into seven teams spent last weekend working on the Mayor’s Blockchain […]
Posted inLand Development Code
‘Something has gone horribly wrong’: Adler calls for a reset on CodeNEXT process
Mayor Steve Adler wants the city to scrap CodeNEXT and start over. In a post to the City Council Message Board Wednesday, Adler asked that the city manager come up with a new process for updating the city’s 34-year-old Land Development Code. The mayor bemoaned “misinformation” surrounding the yearslong discussion. “When a long-time resident says […]
Posted inMusic & Entertainment
SXSW economic impact grows north of $350M
The economic impact of the South by Southwest festival inched across the $350 million mark in the latest analysis by Greyhill Advisors of the spring festival’s effect on the community. The $350.6 million total for the 2018 festival represented growth of just over 0.5 percentage point from the 2017 impact of $348.6 million. With a […]
Posted inLand Development Code
Adler to developers: CodeNEXT must provide more housing
Mayor Steve Adler told members of Austin’s real estate industry Tuesday that the city is making it easier to build and that he hopes the potential overhaul of the city’s Land Development Code will allow for much greater density on the city’s transportation corridors. At a luncheon hosted by the Real Estate Council of Austin […]
Posted inReporters' Notebook
Reporter’s Notebook: Meet me at the cemetery gates (tough guy)
More like Smashbel… A downtown Austin implosion occurs almost as infrequently as a freelance writer wakes up before Helios puts the sun in Sunday. But yesterday saw the stars align and gifted us with the rare spectacle of early morning crowds watching Sunday morning coming down. Despite a few surly construction yobs trying to muscle […]
Posted inEnvironment
Adler picks out top two climate change priorities at SXSW
When it comes to climate change, Mayor Steve Adler believes that cities are fundamentally ill-equipped to face the challenge. “You really do need the innovation that comes from outside of government to really act and scale in a material way,” Adler told a modest audience that attended a Tuesday morning South by Southwest panel titled […]
Posted inAustin
In 2018 State of the City, Adler calls for political unity at local level
Has a foreign government infiltrated the CodeNEXT process? Well, no one’s saying that. But in his annual State of the City address on Tuesday, Mayor Steve Adler said the “alleged Russian infiltration” on our nation’s politics has inflamed divisions across the country – and highlighted rifts at the local level, as well. CodeNEXT, the city’s […]
Posted inAustin
Homelessness action report calls for doubling spending
If Austin wants to get serious about ending homelessness, it needs to spend about twice as much on the variety of programs that currently serve the more than 2,000 people living on the streets. That’s according to an action plan endorsed by the Membership Council of the Ending Community Homelessness Coalition, which is chaired by […]
Posted inElections
Former Council Member Laura Morrison to run against Adler for mayor
Austin Mayor Steve Adler has his first official challenger in the race for mayor in November. Former City Council Member Laura Morrison announced in an email Monday that she will run against Adler for the city’s top elected position. “I’m running for mayor to reset that path that Austin is on, so that our future […]