CITY & COUNTY
News from Austin & Travis County
COMPILED BY BEN THOMPSON
Austin City Council Meets Oct. 11 and 25 at 9 a.m. and Oct. 13 and 27 at 10 a.m. 301 W. Second St., Austin www.austintexas.gov Travis County Commissioners Court Meets Oct. 4, 11, 18 and 25 at 9 a.m. 700 Lavaca St., Austin www.traviscountytx.gov MEETINGS WE COVER the police oversight measure proposed by the political group Equity Action will be placed on the May 2023 election ballot. grocery cooperative. The new retail location will serve Austin’s Eastern Crescent, an area facing a lack of access to healthy foods and related health issues. TRAVIS COUNTY The Central Health board of managers approved its $300.75 million fiscal year 2022-23 budget Sept. 7. The budget increased more than $20 million from last year, funded in part by an increase in property tax revenue and tobacco litigation settlement, which together brought in $286.1 million. Central Health lowered its property tax rate to $0.09868 per $100 HIGHLIGHTS TRAVIS COUNTY Commissioners unanimously voted Aug. 30 to raise the minimum wage for Travis County employees from $15 to $20 an hour and implement a 5% salary increase across the board. The wage increases will take effect Oct. 1 with the start of fiscal year 2022-23. AUSTIN Officials signed off on an agreement with the east side community coalition Go Austin/ Vamos Austin on Sept. 1 to establish the city’s first community-managed valuation—down from $0.11181 in FY 2021-22. Travis County commissioners will approve the budget and tax rate by the start of the fiscal year Oct. 1. AUSTIN City Council voted against passing the Austin Police Oversight Act on Sept. 20. Instead,
Homeless shelter program seeing mixed results AUSTIN More than one year since its launch, Austin’s Housing-focused Encampment Assistance Link, or HEAL, program has brought hun- dreds of people off the streets and toward potential housing. HEAL has cleared 10 public encampments and relocated more than 360 people into temporary shelter for connection to housing ser- vices. Through late July, more than one-fourth had moved into housing. Homeless Strategy Officer Dianna Grey also said the program AUSTIN City Council’s recent discussion of how Austin handles its short-term rental market could point to further review of local regulations in the near future. A Sept. 6 briefing on short-term rentals, or STRs, covered issues including the widespread presence of unlicensed units in Austin and the challenges with related enforce- ment. Around 1,975 STRs operating in the city as of early September, including Airbnbs and Vrbos, were licensed, out of an estimated 9,000- 11,000 total, city staff said. Austin Code Department Director José Roig said complaints related to STRs are most often tied to City to review short- term rental policy
HEADING TOWARD HOUSING Austin has moved hundreds of people into shelter and housing since June 2021 through August 2022. 10 encampments decommissioned 361 people moved into shelter 182 people enrolled in housing services and 108 people moved into housing 118 returned to homelessness Average time from shelter entry to housing move-in: 173 DAYS
SOURCE: CITY OF AUSTIN/ COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
is reducing the amount of time its clients spend waiting for housing. Since HEAL began in June 2021, the average shelter-to-housing timeline was just under six months. Since last October only, the process averaged 3.5 months. Nearly half of those who have exited shelter ended up returning to
AUSTIN Police can once again use automated license plate readers following a 7-4 City Council vote. District 6 Council Member Mackenzie Kelly has pushed to bring back the police data tracking program for $114,775 after it was shut down in 2020. Kelly and several law enforce- ment groups said the program can help police respond to crimes such as kidnappings and auto thefts. Other residents and council members, most vocally District 4’s Chito Vela, opposed the program given concerns related to expanded police powers and potential privacy and civil liberties infringements. Council funds plate readers amid concerns homelessness while 44% moved on to housing. Grey said that trend was due in part to how long the program’s service and housing connections initially took, and that totals will likely shift in a more positive direction as clients in the city’s two shelters, which are at or near capacity, secure housing.
SHORT-TERM RENTAL ENFORCEMENT The city is considering revamping practices around homes on rental sites, such as Airbnb and Vrbo.
9,000 and 11,000 Between STRs advertised*
STRs licensed with the city* 1,975
*AS OF SEPTEMBER
SOURCE: CITY OF AUSTIN/ COMMUNITY IMPACT NEWSPAPER
unlicensed spaces, and that nailing down any penalties for those homes is often difficult due to “savvy” property owners and a lack of data from the larger companies. Council signaled in September that it hopes to review city policy to ensure compliance.
WHISPER VALLEY
Solar PV
Google Fiber
Future 600-acre park
Eco-Friendly, Connected, Revolutionary
Geothermal heating and cooling
Dog park
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NORTH CENTRAL AUSTIN EDITION • SEPTEMBER 2022
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