BG Reads | News You Need to Know (November 7, 2019)
[BG PODCAST]
NEW -> Episode 60: Opportunity Zones with Christine Maguire, Redevelopment Division Manager at City of Austin (LINK TO SHOW)
[AUSTIN METRO]
Surge of cold air, significant rain to sweep into Austin area Thursday (Austin American-Statesman)
If the beginning of the week had you doing double takes at the weather report, you’re not alone. It has been unseasonably warm, with temperatures reaching the 80s, leaving us wondering when that mild fall weather will finally kick in.
Fortunately for us, a storm system in the American Southwest will move into Central Texas, bringing up to an inch of rainfall and much cooler air by midday Thursday, National Weather Service meteorologists said.
The coming winter-like chill will be a departure from Tuesday, when temperatures reached 85 degrees at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport — that’s about 10 degrees above normal, according to the weather service… (LINK TO STORY)
Downtown mobility plan reaches next stage of development (Austin Monitor)
The Austin Transportation Department has kicked off the second and final phase of development for its Austin Core Transportation Plan, a document that will serve as a comprehensive guide for downtown right of way management into the future.
Leading up to next summer, the department will continue the data collection work of the first phase and will initiate a series of public engagement periods later this year to help develop the plan’s priorities and refine the existing project database.
While the plan will focus on downtown mobility, it will also address the impact of regional transportation patterns on the downtown grid. Specifically, Council Member Paige Ellis told transportation staffers Tuesday, the plan needs to consider tools, like park-and-rides and dedicated transit lanes, to relieve the urban core from regional car dependency…(LINK TO STORY)
How Wildfire Codes Could Protect Austin Homes At Risk (KUT)
Randy Jamieson lives in the River Place development in Northwest Austin – what developers call a “master-planned” community. About 4,000 people live there, and the city of Austin recently annexed it. With its location near Lake Travis, real estate agents pitch the area as desirable for homebuyers looking for “Hill Country” and “Lakeside” views. But Jamieson feels nervous about living there.
“My anxiety goes pretty sky high when it’s hot and dry; we’re in a tinderbox,” he says while sitting in a busy café in a strip mall near his home.
River Place and several communities nearby face some of the highest risk of catastrophic wildfires in the Austin area. And the city of Austin released an audit in late October indicating the city isn’t doing enough to prepare… (LINK TO STORY)
[TEXAS]
Half Of Registered Texas Voters Turned Out In 2018. Just 12% Turned Out This Year. (KUT)
Texas voters approved nine amendments to the state’s Constitution on Tuesday. Only 12% of registered voters actually cast ballots — a higher percentage from the 2017 election, but still overwhelmingly low overall.
Any changes to the Texas Constitution must be approved by a majority of Texas voters. Getting a proposed amendment on the ballot requires support from more than two-thirds of both chambers of the Legislature… (LINK TO STORY)
State to take over Houston ISD by replacing school board and superintendent (Texas Tribune)
In a move that is unprecedented in scope, Texas state officials announced Wednesday they plan on taking over the state’s largest school district, yanking power from Houston Independent School District’s elected school board members to “prevent imminent and substantial harm to the welfare of the district’s students.”
Texas Education Commissioner Mike Morath sent a letter to Houston ISD Interim Superintendent Grenita Lathan and Board President Diana Davila giving two principal reasons for the decision: the school board’s “failure of governance” and the repeated low academic performance of Wheatley High School, which received its seventh failing rating this year. In addition to appointing a board of governance to replace the elected school board, Morath will also appoint a superintendent to lead the district. The timeline of the takeover action is unclear… (LINK TO STORY)
[NATION]
First public impeachment hearings will take place next week (Politico)
The House will begin holding public impeachment hearings next week, Democrats announced Wednesday, a move that marks the end of the closed-door phase of their inquiry and brings lawmakers one step closer to impeaching President Donald Trump. House Intelligence Committee Chairman Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), whose panel is leading the impeachment inquiry, said the first hearing will take place on Nov. 13. It is expected to feature William Taylor, the top diplomat in Ukraine, and George Kent, a deputy assistant secretary of State — two key figures in the Ukraine scandal endangering Trump’s presidency… (LINK TO STORY)