BG Reads | News You Need to Know (February 1, 2022)
"Never limit yourself because of others' limited imagination; never limit others because of your own limited imagination.” - Mae Jemison (first Black woman astronaut to travel into space in 1992).
[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]
Near 70 on Tuesday; Arctic front arrives Wednesday evening (KVUE)
Widespread fog will be possible through Tuesday morning. A foggy and gray Tuesday morning then gives way to afternoon clearing. It will be a warm afternoon with highs around 70 degrees.
An arctic front brings massive changes for the second half of the week, starting with widespread rain and even a few storms through Wednesday afternoon and evening. By Wednesday night, the front passes through and much colder air quickly surges into Central Texas… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Local developers hear call for creative space partnerships through cultural trust (Austin Monitor)
As the city’s recently activated Economic Development Corporation takes its first significant steps to preserve creative spaces, the local real estate and development community is starting to explore ways to partner and bring arts and music uses into new and existing projects.
While there were no specific details of the discussions taking place behind the scenes about how real estate leaders could become more involved in the effort to preserve arts space, January’s Urban Land Institute Austin breakfast panel looked closely at how the EDC plans to manage the city’s long-discussed cultural trust.
Anne Gatling-Haynes, the chief transaction officer for the EDC, said she’s been engaged in several informal talks with local developers interested in the trust. At the same time, she is moving ahead with the request for proposals from local arts organizations seeking preservation help. That process is expected to help identify some of the needs faced by the creative community that is being forced out of the city by rising real estate prices… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Plans unveiled for $2B Pearson Ranch mixed-use hub (Austin Business Journal)
An Austin-based developer has broken ground on a $2 billion-plus mixed-use project on 156 acres off the State Highway 45 toll road in Williamson County.
Backers imagine it as an entertainment and work hub anchoring a burgeoning technology corridor north of the capital city. Plans include a 48-acre corporate headquarters, although no tenants have been announced.
Inspire Real Estate Development LLC, along with Williamson County and city of Austin officials, on Jan. 28 held a private groundbreaking for the Pearson Ranch development, northeast of West Parmer Lane and SH 45. Parts of the property are located in Austin's extraterritorial jurisdiction.
Developers said in a Jan. 31 announcement they have begun work on the 41-acre first phase of the project, which includes approximately 600,000 square feet of office space, three upscale apartment communities and some lifestyle retail. Roadways and utilities are expected to be completed within six months… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[TEXAS NEWS]
Texas students, frustrated by limited COVID-19 protocols, turn to petition drives and walkouts (Texas Tribune)
For Texas high school students, keeping up with class work was hard enough before the pandemic.
But then the pandemic hit, and with it came debates over everything having to do with Texas schools. Masks or no masks? Will online classes be available?
Schools reopened last fall but are struggling to remain open in the midst of a coronavirus surge caused by the omicron variant. The semester has barely started, and so far, there have been 192,145 student COVID-19 cases and 61,142 staff cases, according to the Texas Education Agency. That appears to be the highest case level since the pandemic began in 2020, although the data collected by the state is often incomplete… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Exxon Mobil to move HQ to Houston area (Houston Business Journal)
Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) is finally making the Houston area its official headquarters.
The energy giant will move its headquarters from Irving in the Dallas-Fort Worth area to its 385-acre campus in City Place, the master-planned community formerly known as Springwoods Village. The move is expected to be complete by mid-2023, Exxon said Jan. 31.
“We greatly value our long history in Irving and appreciate the strong ties we have developed in the North Texas community,” said CEO Darren Woods. “Closer collaboration and the new streamlined business model will enable the company to grow shareholder value and position ExxonMobil for success through the energy transition.”
When the move is complete, Exxon will be the largest publicly traded company headquartered in the Houston area, ahead of Phillips 66 (NYSE: PSX). Exxon reported more than $178.57 billion in revenue in 2020, which was a rough year for oil and gas. Fourth-quarter and full-year 2021 results are scheduled to be announced Feb. 1… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[NATIONAL NEWS]
California single-payer healthcare plan shelved at last minute (Wall Street Journal)
A bill that would have established the first single-payer healthcare system in the U.S. was pulled from consideration hours before a planned vote in the California Assembly Monday after its author concluded there wasn’t enough support for it to pass.
The bill would have eliminated most private insurance in the nation’s most populous state in favor of a system called CalCare that would cover all residents, regardless of income or immigration status. A companion bill to fund the program, which now won’t be voted on, would have raised an estimated $163 billion from increased payroll taxes and income taxes on the wealthy, as well as a tax on gross receipts for certain businesses.
Leaders in the Democratic-dominated lower chamber of the California legislature were preparing to bring the bill to a vote Monday afternoon, the deadline for it to advance and potentially be passed into law later in the year. CalCare’s author, Assemblyman Ash Kalra, pulled it from consideration when it became clear it wouldn’t pass… (LINK TO FULL STORY)