BG Reads | News You Need to Know (July 15, 2022)
[AUSTIN METRO]
City speeds up Live Music Fund for spring 2023 launch (Austin Monitor)
The city has refined its process for rolling out awards for the $3 million Live Music Fund, with city staff preparing to begin dispersing funds to local musicians next spring. That change shaves roughly three months off the timeline for the initial launch of the program that was approved by City Council in 2019, using Hotel Occupancy Tax funds to create more business opportunities for musicians throughout the city.
The Music Commission, which last month expressed frustration over an expected summer 2023 roll out of the awards, heard from Procurement Department staff at Monday’s meeting. Yolanda Miller, deputy procurement officer, shared details of how the department’s 25 staff members will work to conduct a less formal and speedier process to select a vendor instead of a standard request for proposals that would have required three extra months to complete.
The new timeline calls for a solicitation to be published July 25 with the city reaching out to companies and organizations that have conducted work similar to the administrative steps needed to promote the program, accept and evaluate applications, and then disperse the awards that will range from $5,000 to $10,000. The solicitation will close Aug. 16, with a recommendation for City Council action expected by September and Council approval expected by early November.
“This particular solicitation is a little different because it is a service we would not call routine and it is going to be a little more complex because of the importance of what they are going to do for you. We want to make sure we get that right, because if we don’t then we may have to go back to the drawing board, and that would delay it even more,” Miller said. “Because this is such a niche group of companies that can perform these services we are hoping that is going to save a little time and get us to the finish line a little quicker.”… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Solar roofing company that rivals Tesla eyes opening $100M, 450K-square-foot facility in Georgetown (Austin Business Journal)
A solar roofing company that has been billed as a competitor to Tesla Inc. has plans to open a 450,000-square-foot manufacturing, office and research and development facility in Georgetown that could create at least 265 jobs over five years.
Silicon Valley-based GAF Energy LLC, which last year moved its operations from South Korea to San Jose, California, on July 12 was unanimously approved by the Georgetown City Council for a trio of incentives agreements for the $100 million project generally located at the southeast corner of I-35 and SE Inner Loop.
While not too much is known about the project, public documents indicate the company plans to produce its nail-on roof shingles that produce solar energy at a facility being built by Portman Industrial, a subsidiary of Atlanta-based Portman Holdings. The facility is expected to be completed by June 2023 and GAF Energy is expected to begin a lease in 2024.
Public records show that an LLC tied to Portman Holdings began purchasing land for the project in December and now owns six parcels totaling at least 52 acres at the site. Back in May and June, a tax increment reinvestment zone was approved by the Georgetown Council with very limited information, although the location was able to connect the company to Portman Holdings.
The Georgetown City Council passed three incentives agreements for the project as part of the consent agenda. The first agreement provides a 10-year property tax abatement for 50% of the real property taxes and 75% of the business personal property to GAF Energy and Portman's Longhorn Junction Owner with an estimated value of about $2.3 million. GAF Energy was also approved to receive renewable energy credits that will enable it to retain a 100% renewable electric certification for its manufacturing process over five years, with an annual grant of $100,000 and not exceeding $500,000 in total value. They also were approved for a job grant for $1,500 per new job, not to exceed $395,000, over a five-year period… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Capital Metro budget talk raises concerns of a looming recession (Austin Monitor)
A potential recession has many industries feeling wary going into the 2023 financial year, which begins on Oct. 1.
At its finance committee meeting Wednesday, Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority executives discussed the agency’s budget for the upcoming financial year and concerns they have about a recession affecting sales tax revenue, which funds 69 percent of the budget, over the next few years.
“June inflation was released today (and) it was much higher than expected. We’re guarded in our sales tax, and sales tax is the majority of our revenue for the agency,” Kevin Conlan, deputy finance chief, said in his presentation.
Capital Metro’s funding comes from a few different pools. In addition to sales tax revenue, 25 percent comes from grants, like the American Rescue Plan, 17 percent from fares, and just under 7 percent from freight transportation, which is the contracted use of Capital Metro-owned rails.
But sales tax sometimes is not easy to predict as it is tied to economic conditions, which have been volatile due to the Covid-19 pandemic among other reasons. Capital Metro receives 1 percent of sales tax levied from the sale of taxable goods and services within the Capital Metro service area. It will rely on a steady 3.5 percent increase in sales tax revenue each year through 2032 to complete all of its projects, including Project Connect.
In 2020, Capital Metro received around $4 million less in funding from sales taxes than it budgeted for that year because of the pandemic. But this quickly turned around in subsequent years when vaccinations became available and because people were keen to spend money they had been accumulating during the shutdown.
Since 2020, the sum of sales tax funding has increased about 26 percent each year, Conlan said. This includes the 2022 financial year in which Capital Metro budgeted $297.3 million in revenue, but is now forecasting to receive $358.5 million by September.
“Austin has recovered strong. We’re still concerned, though, with a looming recession and other negative economic indicators as well,” Conlan said. “We need to be extremely prudent with our funds over the next few years as we embark on these large expenditures.”… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Project Connect to break ground on McKalla Station on July 18 (Community Impact)
State and local leaders are set to mark the official start of construction on the McKalla Station outside of Q2 stadium from 6 to 8 p.m. on Monday, July 18 in North Austin at 10414 McKalla Place.
The estimated $24 million station, which is expected to be completed in fall 2023, is a public-private partnership with Austin FC taking on $3.64 million of expenses over 15 years, according to previous Community Impact Newspaper reporting.
The design for the proposed station includes two passenger platforms, a passenger crossing, canopy coverings and other customer amenities, according to the presentation.
Additionally, the McKalla Station project includes installing double tracks from north of Braker Lane to the Capital Metro North Operations and Maintenance Facility near US 183, drainage infrastructure along the tracks and improvements at three railroad crossings, according to previous reports from Community Impact Newspaper… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
More housing may be heading toward Tesla Gigafactory (Austin Business Journal)
The future of a large tract east of Manor will remain cloudy for at least another week after the Manor Planning & Zoning Commission cast split votes to rezone it for future development.
Only four members of the Commission were on hand to vote at last night’s regular monthly meeting, and they split the vote to rezone a 63-acre tract two votes to two. The acreage is currently unzoned in Manor’s extraterritorial jurisdiction, and most of it would be zoned for townhomes while almost 10 acres will be zoned for medium commercial use, according to the meeting agenda. With the vote split, the issue of rezoning is expected to go before Manor City Council next week.
The land is just south of State Highway 290 and just east of Old Kimbro Road, according to the application. There, 53.42 acres will be designated for townhome development while the remaining 9.38 acres will be for the commercial side of development.
Kimley-Horn and Associates represent Boca Raton-based property owners Mill Creek Residential, and Amanda Couch Brown, senior development and land use planner at Kimley-Horn, submitted the application for rezoning.
“The purpose of the rezoning is to allow for a townhome development with associated commercial zoning to allow for a future, neighborhood-serving commercial development along the highway 290 corridor that will meet the needs of Manor’s growing population,” she wrote in the application… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[TEXAS]
Inflation, high energy prices mean the Texas Legislature will have unprecedented funds to allocate next year (Texas Tribune)
Record-high tax revenues over the last year will give Texas lawmakers an astounding extra $27 billion to spend in the 2023 legislative session, the state’s top accountant said Thursday.
In total, lawmakers will have $149.07 billion in general funds, Comptroller Glenn Hegar said. Going into the last regular legislative session in 2021, lawmakers had $112.5 billion at their disposal.
And that number could continue to grow. The extra $27 billion comes from more revenue coming in to the state than expected during the current biennium. Other factors could continue to push it up.
Lawmakers in the upcoming legislative session will also have $13.6 billion in their savings account, known as the rainy day fund — a $3.5 billion increase that is more than double the amount the savings account normally grows heading into a legislative year, Hegar said. The Texas Legislature convenes every other year.
“Oftentimes we start [legislative sessions] with a billion dollars, we start with $2 billion, we start with $5 billion,” Hegar told The Texas Tribune. “But starting with $27 billion, plus, oh by the way, we got a nest egg over here of $13.6 billion. That’s unprecedented.”… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Uvalde police officer criticized for checking his phone was waiting to hear from his dying wife (Texas Tribune)
After leaked surveillance of law enforcement responding to the Uvalde shooting was published earlier this week, angry snap judgments and criticisms of individual officers flooded the internet.
Media organizations and social media users were up in arms over an image pulled from the video posted by the Austin American-Statesman and KVUE-TV that showed a policeman glancing at his phone as the shooter, in two adjoining classrooms just down the hall, was killing children and teachers with a semiautomatic rifle.
“This really makes my blood boil,” Terrance Carroll, a former speaker of the Colorado House of Representatives, wrote in a tweet. “This officer is checking his phone while kids & teachers are literally dying a few doors down.”… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
Lina Hidalgo clinging to 1-point lead against GOP opponent in Harris County judge race, poll shows (Houston Chronicle)
Democrat Harris County Judge Lina Hidalgo holds a 1 percentage point lead over Republican opponent Alexandra del Moral Mealer in polling results released Thursday by the University of Houston. Hidalgo leads del Moral Mealer 48 percent to 47 percent among likely voters, with 5 percent undecided, putting the two candidates in a “statistical dead heat” in the Harris County 2022 county judge race, according to the report. Renée Cross, senior director of the Hobby School of Public Affairs at the University of Houston, said she expected to see a competitive race, but found the polling numbers somewhat surprising: “We have a popular incumbent that is actually only one point ahead of a relatively unknown challenger, particularly a Republican challenger in what I would arguably say is a Democratic county now.”
In the Texas 2022 gubernatorial race, Democrat Beto O’Rourke holds a 9 percent lead over Republican Greg Abbott, with O’Rourke leading Abbott 51 percent to 42 percent among Harris County likely voters. The online survey was conducted by the Hobby School of Public Affairs between June 27 and July 7, in English and Spanish, with 321 respondents who are registered to vote in Texas. The margin of error is plus- or minus 5.47 percent. Del Moral Mealer holds a 31-percentage point advantage over Hidalgo among white voters, while Hidalgo holds a 66-point advantage over del Moral Mealer among Black voters. Del Moral Mealer holds a 3-percentage point edge over Hidalgo among Latino voters. Hidalgo holds a 14-point lead over del Moral Mealer among women, while del Moral Mealer holds a 13-point edge among men. Del Moral Mealer’s lead among Latino voters is particularly notable, according to Cross. "I would have given the edge to Hidalgo, partly because she's better known and because, at least in the Harris County region, Latinos tend to vote for Democratic candidates," she said. Despite the tight poll numbers, Marc Campos, a longtime Democratic political consultant in Houston, said he believes Hidalgo is in good shape, adding that surveys often do not include older Latino voters… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
San Antonio Chamber looks to shrink board to grow influence (San Antonio Express-News)
The San Antonio Chamber of Commerce is overhauling its governance as it seeks to modernize while vying for influence and members. The organization is downsizing its sprawling board of more than 100 to a 15-member group focused on policy that will work with a larger board of investors providing feedback. Leading the initiative is Phil Green, who before becoming the board’s leader for 2021-22 had never attended a meeting, nor he was familiar with its structure. After Green took the reins as chair, however, he leaned into his experience as chairman and CEO of Cullen/Frost Bankers Inc., the publicly traded parent company of Frost Bank. “It made sense to me to take some of my experience and ask questions,” he said. “Is this an opportunity for us to improve ourselves, make ourselves more flexible, agile and more effective?”
A smaller board will make the organization nimbler and able to make decisions more quickly, said Green and chamber President and CEO Richard Perez, who will sit on the executive board. An example: When the chamber was preparing to fight a 2017 bill in the Texas Legislature that would have barred transgender people from using bathrooms corresponding to their gender identity in certain buildings, Perez had to call more than 50 board members to ensure the majority agreed on a course of action. “Now, we’ve got 14 folks to call,” Perez said. “Finding the majority of folks to explain what the issue is and understand what they think the direction should be is a heck of a lot easier.” Besides the chamber CEO, the newly structured board will include six people from companies investing $25,000 or more and four people from companies investing $10,000 or more. The remaining four board seats will be filled from the general membership through a nomination process with no dollar amount tied to them, Green said. The bigger investor board will consist of people from companies paying $10,000 or more, along with 27 people chosen through a nomination process. The only requirement for those 27 people is that their companies be chamber members. Under the previous structure, members paid $10,000 for a seat on the board now known as the board of investors… (LINK TO FULL STORY)
[BG PODCAST]
Episode 160: Talking Public Relations, Career advice, and Austin with Kristin Marcum, CEO of ECPR
Today's special weekend episode (160) features Kristin Marcum, owner and CEO of ECPR, Austin's preeminent public relations firm.
Kristin and Bingham Group CEO A.J. discuss her path into PR and her career leading to the C-suite and ownership of the firm.-> EPISODE LINK
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