CITY & COUNTY
News from Austin & Travis County
Austin City Council Will meet March 7 and 21 at 9 a.m. and March 9 and 23 at 10 a.m. 301 W. Second St., Austin www.austintexas.gov/ austin-city-council Travis County Commissioners Court Will meet March 7 and 21 at 9 a.m. 700 Lavaca St., Austin www.traviscountytx.gov/ commissioners-court MEETINGS WE COVER HIGHLIGHTS AUSTIN On Feb. 15, City Council voted to pursue negotiations over a new one-year contract with Austin’s police union, days after city and police leaders announced a tentative four-year plan. O cials voting for the new approach said a May election over police oversight measures should play out before a new contract is put in place. Austin Police Association leaders said the union will not work to negotiate a one-year deal before the existing contract expires March 31. Council planned to vote Feb. 23, after press deadline, on an extension of o cer bene ts and police oversight if the city defaults on its contract. AUSTIN On Jan. 26, City Council unanimously voted to begin a code update that could streamline the development of new and expanded child care centers as many parts of the city remain categorized as child care deserts. Proposed by District 2 Council Member Vanessa Fuentes, the changes are aimed at removing permitting requirements and zoning limits on new facilities. AUSTIN The rst regional point- in-time count of Austin and Travis County’s unhoused residents since 2020 was conducted Jan 28. The biennial survey is used for both federal tracking purposes and to give the community an idea of the makeup of the local homeless population on any given night. A full report on the 2023 count will be released in late spring.
County gets federal overdose funds
LOCAL DRUG OVERDOSE CRISIS Travis County Commissioners Court will receive $2 million for overdose prevention, as fatal overdoses have continuously increased throughout the county in recent years. The $2 million will be used to: Hire 9 peer support specialists
BY KATY MCAFEE
to last two years. Funding will go toward hiring at least nine peer support specialists with personal addiction experience and training for at least 250 residents on how to administer Narcan—an overdose reversal drug—and how to identify an overdose. Existing peer support contracts will be extended as well. Training will also be given to health providers to prevent cycles of dependency as addiction can stem from pain killers given at the hospi- tal. And aside from training, funds will support a dedicated education campaign to get information in the community.
TRAVIS COUNTY Area leaders announced securing $2 million in fed- eral support for overdose education, outreach and prevention programs Jan. 17, the rst long-term federal funds received for this purpose. Travis County leaders declared drug overdoses a public health crisis last May following a report showing drug toxicity was the top cause of accidental death in the county in 2021. Fatal overdoses have since increased, according medical examiner data. The $2 million will be given to Austin Public Health and is expected
Train 250 residents on how to administer Narcan
Create a public education campaign
SOURCE: TRAVIS COUNTY COMMUNITY IMPACT
Austin ordered to pay $90M to acquire ABIA South Terminal
Council appoints interim city manager
BY BEN THOMPSON
negotiations. Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison voted against his removal. Including salary and bene ts, Cronk’s severance totaled $463,001.50. Garza, who most recently managed a political committee supporting Mayor Kirk Watson’s election, will earn $350,000 plus other allowances and bene ts this year. “I knew the job that I signed up for when I came to Austin ve years ago, and it’s not uncommon for the council and manager to re-evaluate their working relationship, and today was a re ection of that,” Cronk told Community Impact after the vote.
AUSTIN City Council voted 10-1 to re City Manager Spencer Cronk on Feb. 15 and appoint former City Manager Jesús Garza as his interim replacement. Cronk’s tenure lasted just over ve years and ended after city o cials expressed discontent with the handling of the recent winter storm and police labor
BY ELLE BENT
AUSTIN A probate court ordered the city to pay $90 million to LoneStar Airport Holdings LLC, the operator of the South Terminal at the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, to acquire the facility. Austin is seeking to acquire the South Terminal as part of the airport’s 2040 Master Plan. Austin o ered LoneStar $1.95 million in April to end the remainder of its 40-year lease on the terminal that opened in 2017; LoneStar rejected that o er. The court order issued Feb. 6 assessed total damages payable to LoneStar are more than the city initially o ered.
Jesús Garza
Spencer Cronk
15
SOUTH CENTRAL AUSTIN EDITION • MARCH 2023
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