BG Reads | News You Need to Know (October 8, 2021)
[MEETING/HEARINGS]
[BINGHAM GROUP]
AWARDS // Associate LaRessa Quintana will be honored this month with the 2021 Rising Star Award by the Young Hispanic Professional Organization of Austin. She was selected because of her previous work to elevate and support the Austin Latino community, and her commitment to continue this important and necessary work. Congratulations, LaRessa!
EVENTS // Thursday, October 28 (6PM - 10PM0, A Night In Verde Presented by St. David’s Healthcare - benefiting the 4ATX Foundation (Austin FC’s non-profit arm).
Link-> https://seatgeek.com/a-night-in-verde-presented-by-st-davids-healthcare-tickets/mls/2021-10-28-7-pm/5497856?preview_token=5R39m8VbKk
***NEW*** BG Podcast Ep. 147: Redistricting, Austin's Mayoral Election, and a New Police Chief
[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]
Tesla says it's moving its headquarters to Austin (KUT)
The electric carmaker Tesla is moving its headquarters to Austin, CEO Elon Musk announced Thursday at a factory under construction in Southeastern Travis County.
"Our factory is like five minutes from the airport, 15 minutes from downtown, and we're going to create an ecological paradise here because we're out on the Colorado River," Musk said at an annual shareholder event. "It's going to be great."
The company displayed a Texas-themed logo immediately after Musk's announcement with a lone star emblazoned on a belt-buckle-shaped oval and the words, "Don't Mess With" under the company's T symbol.
Austin Mayor Steve Adler welcomed the move, saying Tesla "fits right in."
"It's a tech company that creates the clean manufacturing, middle-skill jobs Austin needs," he said in a statement.
Musk threatened last year to move the company out of Fremont, Calif., in part because of Alameda County's COVID restrictions. Despite the earlier threat to move all manufacturing to Texas or Nevada, Musk said Thursday that's not the company's intention.
"This is not a matter of Tesla leaving California," he said. "Our intention is actually to increase output from Fremont and from [Tesla's Nevada factory] by 50%."… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
After transforming Silicon Labs, Tyson Tuttle prepares for his next act (Austin Business Journal)
Tyson Tuttle does not sound like a man ready to ride off into the sunset.
The CEO of Silicon Laboratories Inc. (Nasdaq: SLAB) announced in July — mere months after spearheading the $2.75 billion sale of the company's legacy automotive and infrastructure business — that he would be stepping down from the company at the end of 2021.
Silicon Labs President Matt Johnson will take over as CEO of the fabless semiconductor company on Jan. 1.
“I’ve still got three months left at Silicon Labs. ... I’m doing my best to make sure we have a smooth transition," Tuttle said of his current focus. “To be able to turn over the reins successfully and have that thrive is really important to me. Always in my career, when you have somebody who’s ready to take over the ball and run with it, you give it to them.”
Still, don't be surprised if Tuttle's exit from the limelight is short lived. In a September phone interview, Tuttle was animated about leadership, governance and social issues, teasing a potential political run.
“That is one of the things that’s on the table. I don’t have anything specific to announce," he said. “I’ve been asked by a lot of people to run for mayor. This does give me a chance to sit back and think about the best ways I can do good.”
During 25 years as an executive at Silicon Labs, Tuttle spearheaded its transformation from a legacy semiconductor company to one on the cutting edge of connectivity, with a focus on the internet of things. The company's stock price in April 2012, when he took over as chief executive, was around $35. As of Oct. 1 shares were trading for about $140 apiece and the company had a market capitalization of roughly $6.3 billion.
Because of his tenure at Silicon Labs, as well as a long history of supporting the Austin tech community and local philanthropic efforts, Tuttle is the 2021 recipient of the Best CEO Legacy Award… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Homeless Strategy Office gears up to launch second phase of HEAL initiative (Austin Monitor)
Following the success of its pilot program this past summer, Austin’s Homeless Strategy Office is moving forward with its four-part plan to tackle the city’s homelessness crisis.
Homeless Strategy Officer Dianna Grey briefed the Public Health Committee last Wednesday on Project HEAL’s latest developments as it prepares to launch its second phase in November. Over the next month, the city will aim to evaluate which encampments it should target next.
The HEAL initiative, approved by City Council back in February, has seen preliminary success in relocating nearly 150 of the city’s homeless to temporary shelters in a program designed to offer a path toward permanent housing. Heading into its second phase, the Homeless Strategy Office seeks to expand its reach equitably with the help of more developed research methods.
The transient nature of homeless populations presents unique challenges in tracking the conditions of Austin’s many encampments. To power this effort, the division collaborates with 10 departments across the city to synthesize the data necessary to inform where to prioritize outreach.
“We talk a lot about how many departments at the city of Austin touch the issue of homelessness,” Grey said, emphasizing the interdepartmental approach to this challenge.
These departments, ranging from Austin Police to Watershed Protection, allow for “the leveraging of unique sets of tools and expertise,” said Grey, as each group interfaces with the city’s homeless population in its own context.
This past month, Project HEAL asked each of the 10 departments for feedback in establishing a short list of contending encampments for phase two of the initiative.
“Acknowledging that each of them were bringing their own perspective and missions … what we saw is that there’s certainly a lot of overlap,” Grey said, of the sites identified by the partnering departments.
Next, the division plans to apply an extensive criteria of public health and safety hazards to evaluate which encampments to prioritize. In order to bolster the program, it has begun hiring more staff with newly allotted funding from the city’s 2022 budget. The division aims to finalize the list and begin launching relocation efforts by Nov. 1… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Uchi Is Bringing its Casual Japanese Spin-Off Uchiba to Austin (Eater Austin)
Austin-based high-end Japanese restaurant mini-chain Uchi is opening a second location of its more casual spin-off Uchiba in the city. It’s set to open at 601 West Second Street in downtown Austin in the fall of 2022.
Like the original Dallas restaurant and bar, the Austin Uchiba will serve yakitori, and other smaller bites, which presumably could include bao, dumplings, desserts, and, yes, sushi. The drinks menu will include cocktails, Japanese whisky, as well as sake, beer, and wine. It’s also fair to expect good happy hour specials.
Uchiba Austin’s future home will be in the forthcoming Block 185 building in downtown Austin. The high-rise curved office structure currently under construction is also known as Google Tower, as the web company leased the entire building. The new space will be designed by architecture firm Sanders and interior designer Sarita Posada, along with Hai’s in-house studio.
In Dallas, parent company Hai Hospitality (then known as Uchi Restaurant Group) turned its casual restaurant Top Knot above Uchi into Uchiba in 2018… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[TEXAS NEWS]
University of Texas marries donors to athletes (AXIOS)
With student-athletes now able to make money off their name and image, University of Texas officials have built a directory to connect boosters and students for hopeful sponsorship deals, per documents obtained by Axios. Why it matters: Known as the Leverage Lineup, the directory positions UT to compete with other big sports universities to recruit athletes — and helps satisfy donors eager to help their beloved alma mater. Revenue regularly tops $200 million at UT, and profits from the football program are worth tens of millions of dollars. UT athletes, with their visibility and thousands of social media followings, are a natural spokesmen and women. A state law effective July 1 allows student-athletes at Texas universities to earn money for use of their name, image and likeness.
What they're saying: "In this new era of collegiate athletics with Name, Image and Likeness opportunities for our student-athletes, many of you have asked about ways to partner with them on NIL deals," athletic director Chris Del Conte wrote Longhorn Foundation donors in August. Leverage Lineup, which includes contact information for more than 200 students across 15 sports programs, is "a hub for finding and contacting Texas student-athletes who may be interested in a partnership with you or your brand," Del Conte continued. "We're excited about these amazing new opportunities for our student-athletes and look forward to continuing to watch them build their personal brands while representing the University of Texas at the highest level." Del Conte wrote that the arrangement had been vetted by university lawyers. Under state rules, UT cannot be involved in actually providing compensation or arranging for a student-athlete to receive compensation for NIL activities. UT has also set up educational sessions on personal brand development, business formation and entrepreneurship, career opportunity management and financial literacy. Of note: Don't bother trying to pay UT quarterback Casey Thompson to promote your casino… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Texas' near-total abortion ban is temporarily blocked by a federal judge, spurring the state to quickly appeal (Texas Tribune)
A federal judge temporarily blocked Texas’ near-total abortion ban Wednesday as part of a lawsuit the Biden administration launched against the state over its new law that bars abortions as early as six weeks of pregnancy.
But it’s unclear how U.S. District Judge Robert Pitman’s order may affect access to abortions in the state — or if it will at all. The state of Texas quickly filed a notice of appeal and will almost definitely seek an emergency stay of Pitman's order in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, which is known as perhaps the nation’s most conservative appellate court.
In a press release, the ACLU of Texas pointed to the uncertainty on how Wednesday's order and the state's appeal will affect procedures in the state… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[NATIONAL NEWS]
The Postal Service is slowing the mail to save money. Critics say it's a death spiral (NPR)
Maybe you've noticed the birthday card that arrived belatedly or the check in the mail that didn't pay your credit card quite on time. It's not your imagination. The mail has definitely gotten less speedy.
The U.S. Postal Service began slowing deliveries of first-class mail nationwide on Oct. 1.
The price of a stamp went up in August — from 55 cents to 58 cents — and additional, temporary holiday price increases for packages and other mail are now in effect.
It all spells trouble for the agency, says Porter McConnell, co-founder of the Save the Post Office Coalition, an organization of progressive political and consumer groups.
"Every postal expert in the country and across the globe really knows that you don't slow down service and raise prices at the same time and expect customers to stick around," McConnell tells NPR. "People will use the Postal Service less, revenue will decline and then they'll need to make more cuts. So essentially, you're sending the post office into a death spiral."… (LINK TO FULL STORY)