BG Reads | News You Need to Know (May 6, 2021)
[MEETING/HEARINGS]
[THE 87TH TEXAS LEGISLATURE]
LINK TO FILED HOUSE BILLS (5,968)
LINK TO FILED SENATE BILLS (2,719)
[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]
Working-class housing fund eyes more acquisitions as demand, cost pressures grow (Austin Monitor)
An investment fund focused on preserving working-class housing in Austin is nearing its first property acquisition of 2021, and moving ahead with its reactivation after the slowdown in 2020 caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The Austin Housing Conservancy Fund is expected to close on the purchase of another multifamily property in June or July, with hopes to add 1,000 units of housing to its portfolio by the end of the year. That would double its current lineup of workforce housing options throughout the city, which currently stands at 1,000 units and 1,500 residents who fall between 80 and 120 percent of annual median family income.
That class of housing doesn’t qualify for affordable housing subsidies or other assistance programs and is in danger of becoming scarce for the area’s middle-income hourly workers, public employees or young professionals at risk of being priced out of the area by rent increases. The housing conservancy was created by the nonprofit Affordable Central Texas to buy and hold multifamily properties, keep rents affordable and deliver moderate single-digit return rates for investors.
In December, the fund acquired the Melrose Trail apartment complex in North Austin. Unlike a traditional purchase, with that acquisition the fund brought in new capital and additional partners to help the existing owner refinance the property.
David Steinwedell, CEO of Affordable Central Texas, said Austin made it through the pandemic and the accompanying recession with no dip in demand or performance on its properties. He hopes the data showing strong tenant retention and rent payments should help more banks and other institutional investors looking to grow the social impact portion of their investment pool, with a target of attracting $15 million from new investors by the end of the year.
“Before the pandemic a lot of people looking at the fund would ask us what would happen if there was a downturn in the market. One of the things we talked about was providing stable housing with affordable rents, and in a downturn people are more likely to stay and pay their rent because they want to keep that housing, especially when it is close to good schools,” he said. “We have very little volatility and risk in the investment, and when the pandemic hit we got to live that and prove out that all the properties in the portfolio did better than the market in terms of occupancy, tenant retention, rent collections and all the other relevant measures you would use to prove out that investment.”
The softness in multifamily housing that did hit the Austin market was mostly felt by downtown high-income properties, Steinwedell said, with even that bit of slack mostly gone now.
In addition to more acquisitions, the housing conservancy is working on its first ground-up development, with more recapitalization deals likely to help reach the goal of owning 5,000 workforce housing units by 2023… (LINK TO STORY)
Austin's camping ban returns Tuesday, but it's not clear when — or how — it will be enforced (Texas Tribune)
After Austin voters decided to force the city to end its policy of allowing encampments in some areas, it’s not clear when police will start issuing tickets against people experiencing homelessness or how quickly the city could remove tents in public areas — but they’re allowed to start doing both on Tuesday.
On Saturday, 57% of Austin voters decided to approve the proposition to reinstate the public camping ban, which city leaders reversed in July 2019. Proposition B, which was put on the ballot after the organization Save Austin Now gathered more than 24,000 signatures, also reinstated bans on sitting and lying in public areas as well as panhandling in specific locations during certain hours.
The responsibility for enforcing the ban on encampments will rest with the city manager, whose office is working with the Austin Police Department to create a strategy by May 11.
“Staff will be evaluating options for how to best implement the new ordinance. We will start with education and outreach, and will focus first on individuals living in situations that present higher health and safety risks,” city spokesperson Andy Tate said in an email. “Outreach will be ongoing as we continue to assess encampment sites and coordinate with our service providers.”
On Sunday, interim Austin Police Chief Joseph Chacon sent a letter to his department explaining that officers will be given training and guidance on how the ordinance will be enforced.
“This change will require a city-wide effort and APD is part of a cross-departmental team of City staff who are working together to look for ways to implement the changes in order to address the concerns of all residents in the least disruptive way possible and in line with our City’s mission,” Chacon said in the letter.
The uncertainty about how the new ban will be enforced concerns advocates for people experiencing homelessness… (LINK TO STORY)
Zekelman Industries, $2.8B force in construction sector, buys nearly 240 acres north of Tesla factory (Austin Business Journal)
A massive construction materials company has acquired hundreds of acres just a few miles from Tesla's gigafactory in eastern Travis County.
Chicago-based Zekelman Industries has in recent months purchased nearly 240 acres along State Highway 130, in the city of Austin's extraterritorial jurisdiction, right next to Lake Walter E. Long, according to public records.
Zekelman is a steel pipe and tube manufacturer, although with seven divisions it is involved in other activities including modular construction. Forbes recently reported that Zekelman has annual revenue of $2.8 billion, and it works with companies in sectors such as transportation, defense and commercial and industrial construction, according to its website.
What Zekelman plans for the site is unclear. Officials declined to comment for this article.
The SH 130 corridor has been a magnet for industrial development, and land in this particular area of Austin has been in high demand since Tesla's arrival last year. Experts have said the far East Austin area could transform into a hub of businesses that are part of, or want to break into, the electric vehicle manufacturer's supply chain.
One of Zekelman’s subsidiaries already has a presence in Central Texas. Hayes Modular Group, which installs large-scale modular construction projects, was founded in 1986 and is based in Austin, near the recently purchased land. Zekelman acquired Hayes Modular Group in 2018.
Another division, Z Modular, had three job postings on the company's website for the Austin area by publication time that sought a site superintendent (which was also posted for Killeen, Texas), mateline superintendent and a Revit drafter. It wasn't clear if those jobs were tied to the recent land purchases, and the Zekelman website did not list an Austin location for the company… (LINK TO STORY)
PARD requests budget increase for security, staffing and program expansion (Austin Monitor)
Last week, the Parks and Recreation Board unanimously voted to approve recommendations for budget increases for the 2021-22 fiscal year.
According to the recommendation, Austin’s parks system has experienced an increase in off-leash dog violations, illegal parking, notifications of homeless encampments, alcohol in parks and “inappropriate behavior in greenbelts.”
Because of these issues, along with the loss of fee revenue over the past year due to the pandemic, PARD has requested more money from the city to serve its “under-resourced needs” in the upcoming city budget. The money would be used to fund a number of projects ranging from increasing summer camp capacity to investing in training.
One of these requests is for $147,000 for addressing the security needs at different pool facilities around the city.
In response to “multiple incidents of volatile conflicts and misuse of facilities,” Stacy Pool employs an off-duty APD officer to provide security – a service that comes at a high price. In an email to the Austin Monitor, PARD spokesperson Kanya Lyons revealed that Stacy Pool frequently deals with “inappropriate and illegal behaviors in the showers/bathroom facilities” and off-duty officers are able to help staffers and remove patrons when needed… (LINK TO STORY)
Release of video from deadly Austin police shooting in February delayed until June, APD says (Austin American-Statesman)
The release of Austin police video footage from a February shooting, in which an officer fatally shot a 21-year-old Jordan Walton in East Austin, will be delayed until June 4, authorities said Tuesday.
Austin police said they had to push back the release date because of delays related to releasing video from a different police shooting on Jan. 5, when 27-year-old Alexander Gonzales was fatally shot in Southeast Austin next to his car, with his girlfriend and infant child close by.
With four police shootings this year — three in just the first two months — Austin police face a backlog in the release of police video footage from the incidents, leading the department to repeatedly fail to meet its self-imposed 60-day deadline.
Last May, former Austin Police Chief Brian Manley signed a policy that ordered police to release video from shootings involving officers within 60 days of the incident.
The policy does allow "instances in which the chief of police determines that release of video must be delayed."
"In such situations, the department will post a statement summarizing the reasons for that decision within 45 days of the incident along with an explanation as to whether video may be released in the future," the policy says.
The process of releasing footage to the community involves collaboration between Austin police and city officials, the Office of Police Oversight, the Travis County district attorney's office and ATXN, the city's video production office… (LINK TO STORY)
[TEXAS NEWS]
Texas House advances bill that would ban homeless encampments in public (Texas Tribune)
The Texas House on Wednesday moved to advance a bill that would ban homeless encampments in public places statewide, a move that comes less than a week after voters in Austin reinstated a similar ban that was removed two years ago.
Critics say that removing the ban in Austin triggered the proliferation of tent cities there, sparking a fierce and divisive debate over how to handle homelessness in the state capital, where some 10,000 people are estimated to have experienced homelessness in the last year.
The bill initially passed by the House on Wednesday would make camping in an unapproved public place a Class C misdemeanor, punishable by a fine of up to $500. It still needs final approval by the House — usually a formality after it's passed in the first vote — and then will head to the Senate.
The statewide ban was approved by a vote of 85-56, with most of the opposition to it coming from Democrats, although the legislation has sponsors from both parties.
“There’s still no one, literally no one, that believes that people living outside without shelters is right. This is a humanitarian issue, plain and simple.” said state Rep. Giovanni Capriglione, R-Southlake, the author of House Bill 1925. “This bill helps individuals, families and business owners across the state who are unduly subjected to violent or hazardous activity linked to the rise in public camping."… (LINK TO STORY)
Texas continues to lead US in raw population growth, Census Bureau estimates (Houston Chronicle)
Texas continues to lead the United States in raw population growth, according to Census estimates released Tuesday. The U.S. Census Bureau projects that the Lone Star State had 373,965 more residents in 2020 than in 2019, a bigger increase in raw numbers than in any other state. Texas was followed by Florida, Arizona, North Carolina and Georgia. The spike — the largest for Texas since 2017 — is believed to have pushed the state’s population to 29.36 million. In terms of a percentage increase, though, Texas’ 1.29 percent rise trailed Idaho, Arizona, Nevada and Utah.
The population estimates are released yearly and are not the results of the 2020 Census, the decennial count overseen by the federal government. The Census Bureau did announce last week that that count found the resident population of the U.S. was 331,449,281 as of April 1, 2020. Texas has gained the most residents numerically since 2010, entitling the state to two new seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. The estimates released Tuesday, meanwhile, identified more growth in metro areas and Texas suburbs. The Census Bureau said Collin and Denton counties were on track to have larger population increases than Harris County, with Fort Bend County recording the sixth-largest population rise in the country. Much of the expansion is driven by migration, with Texas once again serving as the top destination for relocating Americans. It’s expected to remain second to Florida in the number of arriving international migrants… (LINK TO STORY)
Permitless carry of a handgun in Texas nearly law, after Senate OKs bill (Texas Tribune)
The Republican-led effort to allow Texans to carry handguns without any kind of license cleared what is likely its biggest remaining hurdle in the Capitol on Wednesday, when the Texas Senate moved in a nail-biter vote to bring the measure to the floor and then passed it.
The measure – already passed by the Texas House – heads to a conference committee for the two chambers to hash out their differences, unless the House accepts the Senate amendments. Then, the bill heads to Gov. Greg Abbott, who said last week he would sign the permitless carry bill into law.
House Bill 1927 would nix the requirement for Texas residents to obtain a license to carry handguns if they’re not prohibited by state or federal law from possessing a gun. The Senate approved the bill in a 18-13 vote along party lines, less than a week after it sailed out of a committee created to specifically to tackle the legislation.
Proponents of what Republicans call “constitutional carry” argue that Texas should follow the lead of at least 20 other states with similar laws on the books. Meanwhile, gun control advocates are sounding the alarm about making it easier to carry firearms after repeated instances of gun violence — including 2019’s massacres in El Paso and Midland-Odessa.
Under current state law, Texans must generally be licensed to carry handguns openly or concealed. Applicants must submit fingerprints, complete four to six hours of training and pass a written exam and a shooting proficiency test. Texas does not require a license to openly carry a rifle in public.
“This bill, to me, is a restoration of the belief in and trust of our citizens,” said state Sen. Charles Schwertner, R-Georgetown, who is carrying the legislation in the upper chamber. “We cannot allow another session to come and go where we pay lip service for the Second Amendment by failing to fully restore and protect the rights of citizens granted by the Constitution.”… (LINK TO STORY)
Snubbed by Greater Houston Partnership, 175 business leaders raise alarm about Texas voting bills (Houston Chronicle)
A group of 175 business leaders sent a letter to House Speaker Dade Phelan on Tuesday morning opposing several key provisions of the voting bills being debated in the Texas Legislature, which they said would add unacceptable barriers for Houston residents to cast a ballot. They included 10 members of the Greater Houston Partnership board, whose efforts to push the region’s largest chamber of commerce to condemn the bills were rebuffed by the group’s president. With the partnership silent on legislation Harris County leaders say will make voting more difficult for everyone and discriminate against people of color, the members said they could not stomach sitting on the sidelines. “When you have an organization that is supposed to reflect the diversity and inclusion, and has taken steps on its website to discuss racial equality but does not have the spine to bring forth to a vote an issue that is as important as this, we felt we had no choice but to bring it in a public forum,” said Gerald Smith, who also sits on the partnership’s executive committee.
The letter takes Phelan up on the speaker’s invitation last month for business leaders to flag provisions in the bills, including House Bill 6 and Senate Bill 7, that could add obstacles to voting. It raises alarm over provisions that would move polling sites away from Houston’s urban core, limit voting hours, ban drive-thru voting, remove restrictions on poll watchers, streamline voter roll purges and add a host of criminal penalties for poll workers and local election officials found in violation of the Texas Election Code. “These provisions, among others, will inevitably damage our competitiveness in attracting businesses and workers to Houston,” the letter states.
“Especially as we aim to attract major conferences and sporting events, including the FIFA World Cup, voter suppression is a stain on our reputation that could cost our region millions of dollars.” The Republican lawmakers who wrote the legislation say the bills are needed to make elections more secure, though voter fraud in Texas elections is extremely rare. Several of the proposals take aim at rolling back efforts Harris County made in 2020 to make voting easier. Carrin Patman, whose father served as a state senator, said any reasonable person who reads the text of either SB7 or HB6 would conclude the bills have little to do with improving election integrity, as proponents including Gov. Greg Abbott claim… (LINK TO STORY)
Fetal “heartbeat” bill, that could ban abortions at six weeks, nears passage in the Legislature (Texas Tribune)
Texas lawmakers are poised to enact sweeping restrictions on access to abortions, prohibiting the procedure before many women know they are pregnant, and opening the door for a potential flood of lawsuits against abortion providers.
The House on Wednesday gave initial approval to a priority “heartbeat” bill passed by the Senate earlier this spring, which was authored or sponsored by nearly every Republican senator and more than 60 members of the House. The legislation must still get another vote in the lower chamber before it’s sent to the governor, who has signaled that he is looking forward to signing it into law.
Abortion rights advocates say the legislation is among the most “extreme” measures nationwide and does not exempt people pregnant because of rape or incest. Beyond the limitations on abortion access, the bill would let nearly anyone — including people with no connection to the doctor or the woman — sue abortion providers, and those who help others get an abortion in violation of the proposed law. People who support abortion funds and clinics could also be hit with lawsuits, and lawyers warn those sued would not be able to recover some of the money they spent on their legal defense… (LINK TO STORY)
[NATIONAL NEWS]
Trumpland thought he’d get back on Facebook. Now, they’re anxious and scrambling. (Politico)
Republicans on Wednesday expressed outrage over news that Donald Trump’s Facebook suspension would remain in place for the time being. Privately, many of them, including some close to the former president, were panicked.
The ruling by the Facebook oversight board meant that Trump would remain off the platform for the foreseeable future and, perhaps, well beyond should the company make the ban permanent. In practical terms, the main driver of Republican Party enthusiasm would be less omnipresent in voters’ lives — a reality that sparked fear for some GOP operatives. As for Trump, he would remain without one of the great money-raising spigots in all of politics as his political operation geared up for a possible 2024 run.
“This is a huge decision, makes it infinitely harder for him to raise money,” conceded a person close to the Trump operation. “Facebook was the main way he raised money. He’s now going to have to spend far more in the future to find other ways to raise money … It was the main way he found donors.”
Trump’s official line in response to the ruling showed no concern over the financial ramifications of it, though some anxiety about how it could impact his ability to communicate with his hordes of followers. He accused Facebook, Twitter, and Google of taking away his free speech, called them “corrupt” and demanded that they “pay a political price.”
But it was clear that money matters were on his team’s mind. Shortly after the official statement was released, the Trump operation blasted out a text message to its list calling the Facebook ban “NONSENSE” but also asking for money. “I want a list of all donors sent to my office,” the text read… (LINK TO STORY)
In abrupt reversal, Peloton agrees to safety recall of treadmills (NPR)
Fitness company Peloton Interactive Inc. agreed to a voluntary recall of its Tread and Tread+ treadmills over safety concerns Wednesday, following at least 72 safety incidents involving people, pets and objects being pulled underneath the machine, one of which resulted in the death of a 6-year-old.Peloton initially refused to accede to the federal government's push for a recall. A Peloton spokesperson told NPR last month that the Tread machines are "safe when operated as directed" and that "a recall has never been warranted."
Now, the company's CEO, John Foley, said that resistance was a mistake.
"The decision to recall both products was the right thing to do for Peloton's Members and their families," Foley wrote in a statement accompanying the recall. "Peloton made a mistake in our initial response to the Consumer Product Safety Commission's request that we recall the Tread+. We should have engaged more productively with them from the outset."
The recall agreement, accepted Wednesday morning in a vote by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, requires Peloton to halt sales of the Tread+ and Tread machines and fully refund consumers who wish to return their equipment… (LINK TO STORY)
[BINGHAM GROUP]
BG Podcast EP. 139: Q1 20201 Review: COVID-19's Impact on the Built Environment with Michael Hsu
On today’s episode we speak with return guest, Austin-based Michael Hsu, Principal and Founder of Michael Hsu Office of Architecture.
He and Bingham Group CEO A.J. catch up from their June 2020 show, updating on impacts to the design/built environment sector through Q1 2021.
You can listen to all episodes on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and SoundCloud. New content every Wednesday. Please like, link, comment and subscribe!