City of Austin Council Message Board

Colleagues,

I would advise if we're asking staff to retool a bond package based on equitable investments across council districts, it would be more helpful to include all council districts rather than single out or target districts.

-Marc

Colleagues, I want to flag a concern over Item 86 where we’ve learned that AFD has serious concerns, where potential changes to fire suppression code standards will mean fires have a much greater chance of spreading to adjacent structures and neighborhoods. Our Chief Building Official believes the s...

Colleagues, I appreciate CM Alter bringing forward Item 98 which asks the city manager to investigate emissions and policy related to gas peaker units and I plan on offering a motion to amend to this item. In the spirit of the resolution's existing goals, the amendment asks for an analysis of how ne...

Colleagues, Let’s be real: the world has shifted since last year, when Council approved Cap & Stitch’s $104 million roadway elements as part of a $700 million dollar project. In response to last year’s budget deficit, voters overwhelmingly rejected a tax rate election and asked City Hall to reth...

Colleagues, I appreciate the opportunity to present and discuss this yesterday.

I had some requests to share yesterday's presentation, so I'm posting it here:
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1XFghKX ... sp=sharing

Colleagues, I have a lot of concerns not just around the substance of Item 26, an expansion and modification of the HOME ordinance, but the way this Item has been handled. I have tried to approach zoning and land use with the same even-handedness and data-informed approach as every other policy issu...

Thank you, Mayor Watson, for the updates here. While I have not tracked this issue as closely as you have, I appreciate the responsible approach you've laid out here. ATP occupies an unusual space as a public corporation overseen by a board of directors that manages hundreds of millions of taxpayer ...

Mayor, Thank you for your work on this important issue. I agree that this situation calls for a community solution and look forward to continuing the work. Safeguarding Eloise House and the services it provides is of utmost importance. I hope that the solution we're working towards can be a model an...

Colleagues,

I support and appreciate your efforts proposing a considerate and thorough renaming process.

-Marc

Thank you, CM Fuentes, and your staff, for your work on this resolution, and especially for working with us on some changes that reinforce the importance of listening to the impacted communities. Many of these conversations around how to best approach these land acquisitions and partnerships will be...

Colleagues, I have asked staff to help draft a motion to divide the question for Item 83, and split this into two motions: one to address billboard relocations, and one to address electronic kiosks and right of ways. Although these two items impact the same city code (Chapter 25-10), I believe discu...

Thank you, MPT Vela, for your thoughtful response and accommodating some of my concerns, especially the timeframes for both the ordinance and for reviewing all legacy technologies. I recognize and appreciate that you and others have put many hours of work into developing this policy. Part of my conc...

Colleagues, I’m grateful to MPT Vela and his subquorum for their work on Item 61, which relates to a comprehensive surveillance policy for the City. Current and future councils and staff will benefit from a clear framework for evaluating surveillance-related technology and tools, and I believe it pr...

Thank you Mayor, I appreciate your efforts to expedite this kind of work as an ordinance early next year. We know that other cities have successfully benefitted from this kind of efficiency process and it represents an opportunity we literally can't afford to ignore. I look forward to getting this w...

Colleagues, I appreciated our productive discussion during Tuesday’s work session, and I look forward to seeing how staff will incorporate council’s suggestions into a new iteration of the budget. In light of staff’s response yesterday regarding the best way to share priorities and funding opportuni...

Thank you, Mayor Watson and CM Vela, Alter, Laine, and Qadri for outlining this strategy. I support your strategy focusing on basic services, public safety, and the highest ROI impacts. My team has been exploring some priorities and opportunities for funding but right now agreeing on this structured...

Mayor, Thank you for laying out the timeline and priorities for the coming weeks regarding the budget and systemic evaluation. I also appreciated the manager's memo yesterday outlining the coming work they intend to do in this space as well, including shared services. I would like to support your ef...

Colleagues, I plan on making a motion tomorrow to postpone Item 17 regarding the navigation center property purchase for 30 days, per the request of several hundred community members whom we heard from over the last week. The surrounding neighborhoods have logistical and safety concerns that I’m con...

Mayor Watson,

I'm grateful both these individuals are willing to serve and would be happy to cosponsor the item. Also appreciate the background you provided on the TCAD BoD.

Thanks,

-Marc

Thank you, CM Vela, for your insightful questions and comments regarding the NOAH IFC and for jumpstarting what I though was a productive conversation at yesterday’s work session. I hope that Dr. Johnson’s testimony helped clarify the intention and potential of this council action as well has helped...

Thank you, MPT Fuentes, for sharing this. I am interested in serving on the Information Technology & Communications Committee.

-Marc

Colleagues: Last week I put forth a modest two-cent TRE proposal in an effort to reflect the constituent priorities my team and I gathered from a recent survey of District 10 residents. The vast majority of those residents strongly support funding for public safety, wildfire mitigation, and park mai...

Colleagues, Like the Mayor, I have tremendous concerns about affordability related to the budget and Tax Rate Election (TRE), especially with yesterday’s news that the County may pursue their own 8% rate increase amounting to an additional $200 tax. I have urged caution in this process for many reas...

CM Qadri, thank you for bringing this to the council and raising awareness about important work we need to combat hate in Austin. I will be bringing an amendment to pause the We All Belong campaign for 1 year, specifically to "Pause the We All Belong Campaign for one year to revise budget prior...

Colleagues, At our May 22nd meeting I shared a presentation from the Dallas Housing Opportunity Fund, a housing fund authorized in Dallas in 2021 that helps preserve older, low rent market-rate housing, or “naturally occurring affordable housing” (NOAH). This kind of fund has been successful across ...