BG Reads | News You Need to Know (March 10, 2020)
[BG BLOG]
What Super Tuesday meant for voter turnout and engagement (LINK TO BLOG)
[BG PODCAST]
Episode 77 - A Talk with Austin Brand Entrepreneur Doug Guller (LINK TO SHOW)
[AUSTIN METRO]
SXSW Lays Off A Third Of Its Full-Time Staff After Austin Cancels Festival (KUT)
South by Southwest laid off a third of its full-time staff Monday, a SXSW spokesperson said.
The layoffs come three days after the City of Austin canceled the festival due to concerns over COVID-19.
“Due to the City of Austin’s unprecedented and unexpected cancellation of SXSW 2020 events in March, SXSW has been rigorously reviewing our operations, and we are in the unimaginable position of reducing our workforce,” the spokesperson told KUT in a statement.
The annual event attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors to Austin each spring. Last year, the festival brought in about $356 million and saw more than 400,000 attendees from around the world.
“Those of us in the business of live events know the level of trust required to execute an event of SXSW’s scale, and we are deeply sad to let people go this soon,” the spokesperson wrote. “We are planning for the future, and this was a necessary, but heartbreaking step.” … (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Austin puts coronavirus conditions on large events (Austin American-Statesman)
After shuttering South by Southwest amid concerns over the potential spread of the new coronavirus, city officials said all events with more than 2,500 people are prohibited unless approved by health officials. Smaller events will continue as planned.
“I will tell you that we are not stopping all gatherings of people,” Mayor Steve Adler said Monday, adding that Rodeo Austin and the University of Texas sporting events will continue as usual.
“Neither of them are bringing in the same number of international travelers, the people coming from other cities (that were) having person-to-person (transmission),” he said. “Some of those activities are outside, some of those activities are sitting around bigger tables, they’re sitting in a theater setting.”
The announcement comes as the city weighs the impact that canceling the SXSW festival will have on local venues and businesses, and the risks of allowing large scale gatherings to continue as the virus spreads.
Though larger events are being evaluated independently for risk, Adler said health officials are working to draft a list of mitigation steps venues can take to enhance safety, and there will be no effort to shut them down.
As part of a local disaster declaration Adler issued last week, city officials have banned all events in Austin and Travis County with more than 2,500 people unless organizers can show Austin Public Health officials that plans to prevent the spread of COVID-19 are in place.
Most music events in Austin, sanctioned by SXSW or otherwise, wouldn’t hit the threshold of 2,500 to be canceled. For example, Emo’s has a capacity of 1,700. The Michael and Susan Dell Hall at the Long Center for the Performing Arts holds 2,442, and Stubb’s BBQ holds 1,800 outside and another 150 inside.
But other venues well exceed that threshold, including the Erwin Center, which holds more than 16,000, and the Germania Insurance Amphitheater, which holds 14,000. Circuit of the Americas, which hosts the Red Bull Grand Prix of the Americas and the Formula One United States Grand Prix, can hold 120,000. It is unclear whether large gatherings in such venues will go on.
The Travis County Commissioners Court on Tuesday will consider continuing the declaration of a local state of disaster, and possibly will make a decision on whether to allow Rodeo Austin and the Luck Reunion on Willie Nelson’s ranch, both of which fall in the county’s jurisdiction, to proceed… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Plan for light rail, underground tunnel, other public transit options in Austin to cost $9.6B (Community Impact)
A yearslong process to re-envision public transportation in Austin now has a cost figure associated with the project.
In fall 2019, city leaders learned that funding Project Connect—Capital Metro’s blueprint for the future of the city’s public transportation—would cost somewhere between $4.7 billion and $9.8 billion.
After Austin City Council members gave direction to the public transit agency to choose light rail in areas of downtown Austin rather than bus-rapid transit, Capital Metro and city staff came back March 9 with updated funding numbers. As expected, the new projections were near the high end of that initial range. As a whole, the project is anticipated to cost $9.6 billion, according to the presentation from city and Capital Metro staff March 9.
Federal funding is expected to cover 40% of those costs, and an additional $200 million would be involved in regional projects, leaving $5.56 billion to be locally funded.
The Project Connect plans include two light-rail lines—the Orange Line from North Austin to South Austin and the Blue Line connecting downtown to the airport—as well as an underground tunnel connecting the two rail lines downtown. Those changes are part of additional upgrades including MetroRail lines, MetroRapid bus routes, new neighborhood circulators and Park & Ride facilities… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[TEXAS]
State Senate hearings canceled amid coronavirus concerns (Austin American-Statesman)
Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick has canceled Senate committee hearings in the Capitol this month, citing concerns about the coronavirus. Patrick said he made the move after consulting with committee leaders.
“Public testimony is important — we want to hear the voice of every Texan and make sure they are comfortable traveling to committee hearings,” a Patrick spokesperson said in an email. “Lt. Gov. Patrick believes this step is the prudent thing to do at this time as Texas continues ongoing efforts to contain and mitigate the impact of COVID-19.” The Senate Select Committee on Mass Violence Prevention and Community Safety was scheduled to hold a hearing Tuesday, but an updated online notice said the public meeting would be postponed to a later date “out of an abundance of caution given the recent public health events occurring around the globe.”… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Cristina Tzintzún Ramirez endorses Royce West over MJ Hegar in Democratic primary runoff for U.S. Senate (Texas Tribune)
Cristina Tzintzún Ramirez has endorsed Royce West over MJ Hegar in the Democratic primary runoff to challenge U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, just under a week after Tzintzún Ramirez finished a close third in the crowded primary.
"On every single issue that I care about as a progressive, it is clear to me that he is the stronger choice, and I will do everything I can to help him get elected," she said during a news conference with West on Monday afternoon in Austin. She added that West is also the better choice to "build a multiracial coalition that speaks to the diversity of this state."
Tzintzún Ramirez narrowly missed the runoff Tuesday, getting 13.2% of the vote. West, the Dallas state senator, got 14.5% of the vote, and Hegar came in first with 22%.
West told reporters he also expected to win the support of two other former rivals, Chris Bell and Michael Cooper, in the coming days. Bell finished sixth Tuesday, with 8.5% of the vote, while Cooper came in eighth, with 5%.”… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[NATION]
Trump: Payroll Tax Cuts And Hourly Worker Relief Possible In Coronavirus Response (NPR)
President Trump said on Monday that the White House is planning on asking Congress to pass a payroll tax cut and relief for hourly wage earners in order to assist workers who may be feeling the financial pinch amid the coronavirus outbreak.
Trump said that top administration officials will be meeting with Republican members of the House and Senate on Tuesday to discuss the possible payroll tax cuts and help for hourly workers.
"Very substantial relief that's a big number," Trump said. "We're also going to be talking about hourly wage earners getting help so that they can be in a position so they are not going to ever miss a paycheck," he said.
Trump said the White House is also working with the Small Business Administration and industries including airlines, cruise ship businesses and hotel owners, which are all grappling with economic hardship as demand from consumers slumps and travelers cancel plans.
"We are going to take care of and have been taking care of the American public and the American economy," Trump said… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Bernie rushes to shore up black support — but it may be too late (Politico)
No Democrat has won the party’s presidential nomination in the last 30 years without the support of a majority of black voters. And Bernie Sanders won’t either unless he figures out how to win over voters like Travis Gilbert’s mom, Elaine.
The 20-year-old black man brought his mother to Sanders’ town hall in Flint on Saturday in hopes of winning her vote for Sanders before the March 10 primary. Sanders’ aides had said he was going to make the case for why black voters should support him over Joe Biden.
But Sanders scrapped the speech, and by the end of the night, failed to convince Elaine Gilbert that he could defeat President Donald Trump. “I go back and forth between Bernie and Biden,” said Elaine. “The socialism is probably the biggest thing for me.”
Just as in 2016, Sanders’ inability to secure the backing of most African-American voters — particularly those who are middle-aged and older — is suffocating his campaign.
The first sign of it came in Biden’s big South Carolina victory, where African-Americans cast the majority of ballots and gave his campaign a second life. On Super Tuesday, Biden defeated Sanders in the eight states with large black populations… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
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