BG Reads | News You Need to Know (September 30, 2021)
[MEETING/HEARINGS]
Regular Meeting of the Austin City Council (Today at 10AM) - AGENDA
[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]
Austin’s racial segregation continued over the last decade, new census data shows (KUT)
As the share of Austin’s residents who identify as Hispanic or Black decreased over the past decade, city staff and elected officials wondered this week what to make of this pattern.
“How much of this is displacement, where people are moving farther and farther east or out of the city altogether, and how much of this is an undercount?” Lila Valencia, the City of Austin's demographer, said during a City Council meeting Tuesday.
What Valencia could definitively say is that racial segregation has continued in Austin over the past decade. In a presentation of preliminary 2020 Census data to Austin’s council members, Valencia showed how residents, particularly Black and Hispanic residents, have continued to move east.
The population of Black residents grew on the outskirts of the city. This includes in Northeast Austin, on the edge of Pflugerville, and far East Austin.
At the same time, white residents are increasingly living in historically Black and Hispanic communities, like East Austin, while still maintaining a large share of the population of West Austin.
“There’s a continued geographic segregation among our city’s different racial communities,” Valencia said. “There also is a concurrent farther eastward movement of the population with increasingly higher shares of the non-Hispanic white population in the historically Black and brown neighborhoods.”
While Austin’s population grew by about 22% over the past decade, much of that was fueled by the growth of white residents. The reverse was true across Texas and the nation, where people of color drove much of the population increase.
In 2010, Hispanic Austinites made up 35.1% of the total population; in 2020, that portion fell to 32.5% of the population.
The same pattern occurred among Black Austinites, whose share of the population fell by about 1% in the past decade to 6.9%… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Parks board again rejects proposal to sell alcohol at Zilker Cafe (Austin Monitor)
The issue of alcohol sales at Zilker Cafe made its third and final appearance before the Parks and Recreation Board on Tuesday, with board members delivering a decisive 8-1 vote against recommending the proposal, given the cafe’s proximity – about 30 steps – to the entrance to Barton Springs Pool.
The sale of beer and wine at a city park requires a conditional use permit, which must first receive a recommendation from the parks board prior to consideration by the Planning Commission. And under the Law Department’s interpretation of city code, a recommendation from the parks board, a non-sovereign entity, doesn’t necessarily have to be favorable.
In the motion made by Board Member Sarah Faust, the board recommended that the Planning Commission deny the conditional use permit.
For some board members, the testimony from pool employees offered the most compelling reason to vote against recommending the proposal, even swaying Board Member Rich DePalma to change his vote and join the majority. Board Member Nina Rinaldi acknowledged the pool staffers’ concerns, but stood by her original argument that the sale of beer and wine at the cafe would enhance the experience of park users.
At the board’s June meeting, the 4-2 vote against recommending the conditional use permit was rendered moot because at least six votes were required to move the item to the Planning Commission. In August, the board voted to reconsider the proposal at its September meeting.
PARD anticipates the Planning Commission’s consideration of the zoning exception on either Oct. 12 or Oct. 26.
As with past meetings, Barton Springs Pool patrons and at least three pool staffers overwhelmingly expressed their opposition to alcohol sales at the cafe. However, several speakers also said they believed the City Council-approved vendor, SpringFed, would responsibly sell beer and wine. They also commended the vendor for its plan to offer healthy food options and fresh juices and smoothies. What they didn’t understand was why alcohol had to be included in the menu fare… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Travis County approves fiscal year 2021-22 budget (Community Impact)
Travis County commissioners unanimously voted Sept. 28 to approve a nearly $1.45 billion county budget for fiscal year 2021-22—up from last year's $1.29 billion budget.
"This budget brings historic investments in housing, mental and behavioral health, emergency services, and elections for Travis County," County Judge Andy Brown said in a series of tweets. "I'm thankful to each of the commissioners for their hard work to ensure that this budget addresses our community's needs and reflects its values."The budget is broken down into several funds, with the largest being the $1.07 billion general fund supporting county operations, including the court system, parks, social services, emergency response services, law enforcement and more. It also consists of a $26.6 million road and bridge fund, $142.6 million in debt service funds, $137.1 million in internal service funds, and $106.3 million in other funds.
The vote follows commissioners' approval of the FY 2021-22 property tax rate. At $0.357365 per $100 of valuation, county property taxes are expected to generate $47,295,468 more revenue than in fiscal year 2020-21, including $23,293,922 from new properties added to the county's tax roll… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Clarksville demolition cases reveal challenges faced by preservationists (Austin Monitor)
The Historic Landmark Commission grappled with its own limitations this past Monday as it oversaw the outcome of two Clarksville demolition cases with palpable disappointment.
The two homes, located at 1805 Waterston Ave. and 1104 Toyath St., are both contributing properties in the Clarksville National Register historic district whose owners seek to replace them with entirely new structures. Despite objections from the neighborhood, commissioners approved the demolition permit for the Waterston home, while it continues to butt heads over new plans for Toyath Street.
Clarksville, one of Austin’s oldest neighborhoods, has seen an increasing number of its homes torn down as the city’s real estate market booms. The neighborhood’s central location and historic charm have attracted an influx of property developers, each with varying willingness to work with preservation efforts.
Commissioners found themselves backed into a corner once again with the application to demolish 1805 Waterston Ave. The home was built in 1952 for Huston-Tillotson alumni Kelly and Johnnie Meador, who worked at the Texas State School for the Deaf and ran an electronics repair shop.
The demolition’s most vocal opponent was the Clarksville Community Development Corporation, which has repeatedly asked the landmark commission to delay its decision, citing concerns over the property developer’s transparency. CCDC President Mary Reed reported that the new owner, Nalle Custom Homes, has failed to deliver on promises to respect Clarksville design standards and communicate its plans with the surrounding community.
Unfortunately for concerned parties, the Historic Landmark Commission’s bylaws enforce a 180-day limit on postponing such cases, forcing the commission either to approve the permit or to begin the process of initiating historic zoning. Feeling that the property did not meet sufficient criteria for landmark designation, members voted 7-3 to approve the demolition permit, with commissioners Terri Myers, Blake Tollett, and Anissa Castillo in opposition… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Austin Proper Hotel finds new owner as hotel sector inches back toward normalcy (Austin Business Journal)
Austin Proper Hotel & Residents, a 32-story downtown hotel developed by California-based Kor Real Estate Partners LLC, has been purchased by Colorado-based McWhinney Real Estate Services Inc.
The Kor Group and McWhinney completed the deal Sept. 24. Financial terms were not disclosed.
Austin Proper opened in December 2019 at 600 W. Second St. The hotel — which has 244 rooms and suites, 98 residences and more than 14,000 square feet of meeting and event space — was designed by interior designer Kelly Wearstler.
Goldman Sachs Asset Management was also a partner on the development of Austin Proper, which is run by California-based Proper Hospitality.
It is the second downtown Austin hotel in McWhinney’s portfolio. The real estate development and investment company is also developing Hyatt Centric Austin at the corner of Eighth Street and Congress Avenue in a partnership with Chicago-based Hyatt Hotels Corp. and Austin-based Nelsen Partners Inc.
“For its next chapter, we are thrilled for this new partnership with McWhinney, who we think will be a phenomenal steward of the hospitality asset. Our goal is to create one-of-a-kind experiences that cater to guests, travelers and the local community and we are looking forward to working with McWhinney’s seasoned team to better serve our guests and community,” Brian De Lowe, co-founder and president of Proper Hospitality, said in a statement.
Austin Proper features four restaurants/bars: The Peacock Mediterranean Grill & Bar, The Mockingbird sidewalk cafe, poolside restaurant La Piscina and Goldie’s Sunken Bar, a 30-seat lounge… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[TEXAS NEWS]
Report alleges conflicts of interest among Texas oil and gas regulators (KUT)
Texas oil and gas regulators make big bucks from the industries they oversee and fail to recuse themselves when arbitrating conflicts or determining penalties for companies they’ve invested in, according to a new report. And it all may be perfectly legal. The report says conflicts of interest create a condition of “regulatory capture” at the Railroad Commission of Texas, the agency that regulates fossil fuel extraction and pipelines in the state. The report was written by money-in-politics watchdog group Texans For Public Justice, and Commission Shift, a group pushing for reform of the agency. The notion that Railroad commissioners are cozy with oil, gas and pipeline companies will not surprise many who closely follow commission business. Commissioners themselves, elected statewide by the Texas voters, speak openly and proudly about their close ties to industry and their desire to promote and protect it.
But the details outlined in the report suggest commissioners may have financial as well as political motivations for taking the actions they take while in office. “We think it's time to get money out of decisions that are made at the state agency,” Virginia Palacios, executive director of Commission Shift, said. “Oklahoma has a pretty simple, clear-cut rule that their oil and gas commissioners can't have any interest in the businesses that they're making decisions about.”
The report looks specifically at the record of Railroad Commission Chair Christi Craddick. Two further reports will review the financial holdings of the two other commissioners. Among other things it found that Craddick "cast a deciding vote" in favor of a pipeline company that she owned thousands of dollars of stock in and received $22,500 in campaign contributions from the company. It also says she failed to recuse herself from ruling in a dispute between two companies despite owning shares in both. Palacios said she thinks Craddick’s failure to recuse in these instances may have broken the agency’s own rules. Andrew Wheat, a research director for Texans For Public Justice, is unsure. “The fact is that the vast majority of this — if not all of it — is legal and the reason is that we have extremely lax laws and rules in Texas governing conflicts of interests,” he said… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Donald Trump adds fresh pressure to Gov. Greg Abbott over demand for a forensic election audit (Texas Tribune)
Gov. Greg Abbott is failing to appease some inside his party — including former President Donald Trump — with the “forensic election audit” that the state announced Thursday.
Trump released a letter to Abbott on Thursday urging him to add audit legislation, which could allow a review of mail-in and in-person ballots across the state, to the agenda for the current special session agenda. Instead, the secretary of state’s office announced later that day that it was already starting to audit the 2020 election results in four of the state’s biggest counties.
In a new statement to The Texas Tribune on Wednesday, Trump said it is "a big mistake for Texas" not to pass the audit legislation, House Bill 16 by Rep. Steve Toth, R-The Woodlands… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[NATIONAL NEWS]
YouTube is banning all content that spreads vaccine misinformation (NPR)
YouTube is cracking down on the spread of misinformation by banning misleading and inaccurate content about vaccines.
The platform announced the change in a blog post Wednesday, explaining that its current community guidelines, which already prohibit the sharing of medical misinformation, have been extended to cover "currently administered" vaccines that have been proven safe by the World Health Organization and other health officials.
The site had previously banned content containing false claims about COVID-19 vaccines under its COVID-19 misinformation policy. The change extends that policy to a far wider number of vaccines.
"We've steadily seen false claims about the coronavirus vaccines spill over into misinformation about vaccines in general, and we're now at a point where it's more important than ever to expand the work we started with COVID-19 to other vaccines," the company said… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
House appears poised to pull infrastructure vote amid stubborn stalemate (The Hill)
House Democrats appear poised to miss a second vote on a bipartisan infrastructure bill this week, highlighting the stubborn stalemate over the larger social benefits package at the core of President Biden's agenda.
Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) has scheduled the infrastructure vote for Thursday, reflecting a promise she’s made to centrist Democrats eager to notch a bipartisan win on an issue that’s eluded Congress for decades. An initial infrastructure vote, scheduled for Monday, had been postponed, and moderates in the House are threatening to revolt if it happens twice.
“Obviously, our group will have a lot of trouble with that,” said centrist Rep. Vicente Gonzalez (D-Texas). “And it will be catastrophic.” Yet liberals are lining up to sink the infrastructure proposal, demanding that Democrats in the House, Senate and White House first reach an agreement on the broader “family” benefits package Biden is pushing as part of his two-pronged domestic agenda. Only then, they say, will they back the Senate-passed public works bill.
“We already put out our vision, and we're going to stick to that vision,” said Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), head of the influential Congressional Progressive Caucus, which is leading the charge against a standalone vote on the infrastructure bill.
The liberal threat has left Pelosi and Democratic leaders confronting two unpleasant scenarios heading into Thursday’s vote: either stick with the plan to bring the infrastructure bill to the floor, where liberals are likely to kill it, or delay it again, and infuriate the moderates.
“If she brings it up, it won’t pass,” said one liberal Democrat, who is supporting the infrastructure bill.
Only seven House Republicans have publicly indicated they will back the bipartisan bill, according to The Hill’s whip list. That puts the onus on Democrats to overcome their internal divisions or else delay the vote again… (LINK TO FULL STORY)