ATX PULSE 11/15/24 (free) (sponsored by Bill.com): Watson Officially Avoids Runoff by 14 Votes // Police Chief Releases 100 Day Plan // Two Homicides in One Day // Work Group Focuses on County's Prop A Implementation // #3 Texas at Arkansas Sat at 11am

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FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 15, 2024

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TODAY’S WEATHER

H: °78 / L: 54°. Cooler weather continues. Latest forecast from Fox 7 Austin’s Scott Fisher here.

TOP NEWS

“Kirk Watson re-elected as Mayor of Austin,” via Fox 7 Austin — “Five candidates battled it out for the position of Austin mayor. The incumbent, Kirk Watson, has been re-elected to the seat. 

Watson was mayor of Austin from 1997 until 2001. He then spent 13 years working in the Texas Senate. 

On Thursday, Nov. 14, Watson announced on X he won by a margin of over 104,000 votes, and will not have to go into a runoff election.

He will serve a four-year term in the mayor's office.

In 2023, Watson returned to Austin City Hall to take his third term, but his term in office was cut short when the city voted to align the mayoral and presidential elections. He campaigned for reelection because he said work still needed to be done. 

The other contenders in the race were former City Council member Kathie Tovo; Executive Director of GAVA Carmen Llanes Pulido; former executive director of Central Texas Interfaith Doug Greco; and retired U.S. Air Force veteran and owner of a construction services company, Jeffery Bowen.” Fox 7 Austin

“Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis releases 100-day plan; wants community’s input,” Fox 7 Austin’s Meredith Aldis — “The new Austin Police Chief is releasing her first 100-day plan. Chief Lisa Davis said her goal is to build officer and community safety and trust.

"Crime is not just the police's problem, it's everybody's problem," Chief Davis said.

Chief Davis is encouraging Austin residents to express their concerns.

"And we start building plans from that. After hearing those things, we can say this is everybody's plan, you know, it's not just my plan," Chief Davis said.

Chief Davis’ first 100-day plan starts with what she calls a listening campaign and transitions into assessment and evaluation, learning the department’s strengths and weaknesses.

"I don't plan on coming in here and gutting the whole organization. It is a very good police department," Chief Davis said.

She said she wants more people to join it.

"When you get those numbers up, that does make a big difference in what you're trying to accomplish as an organization," Chief Davis said.

Currently, Austin police is down about 300 officers, but Chief Davis said a class of almost 55 just graduated, about 35 are currently going through the academy, and a class in January could possibly have 80 people.

"The numbers are coming," Chief Davis said.

She said some units that were previously dissolved may come back.

"I think the motorcycles are something that I would like to see downtown. I think that would be a good presence in the downtown area for the motorcycles to be and then to have the DUI enforcement and to have the enforcement out again that is truly something where officers can see where we save lives," Chief Davis said.” Fox 7 Austin

“Austin provides first look at capped I-35 ‘vision plan’,” KXAN’s Kelsey Thompson — “With construction underway on the Texas Department of Transportation’s Interstate 35 expansion near downtown Austin, city leaders are setting their sights on how to make a “capped” interstate a reality.

The Austin Mobility Committee discussed Austin’s Cap and Stitch Vision Plan on Thursday, more than 100 pages worth of feedback and analysis on how to add community spaces atop the soon-to-be-sunken I-35. Next week, Austin City Council will discuss at a work session possible funding mechanisms and implementation options for the effort.

Those funding opportunities could include an array of sources, such as public-private partnerships, philanthropic efforts, additional federal grants and the development of a Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone (TIRZ).

“Every option is on the table,” said Michelle Marx, a transportation officer with the city of Austin who led Thursday’s discussion.

Marx added this vision plan is intended to serve as a “blue print” for the project development, consolidating community feedback on how to best proceed with the project.

The Cap and Stitch process has been underway since 2020, when the Downtown Austin Alliance held an Urban Land Institute panel to design a “roadmap” for how to bring the capped highway initiative to life.

City transportation experts define caps as longer than 300 feet and serve as a deck plaza on top of the highway, while stitches are essentially widened crossings running over the highway that are less than 300 feet long.

Where will these possible caps and stitches be located?

The city has identified more than 26 acres’ worth of potential caps and stitches at the following locations:

• Holly Street stitch: 0.96 acres

• Cesar Chavez Street stitch: 0.27 acres

• Cesar Chavez to Fourth Streets cap: 5.37 acres

• Fourth to Seventh Streets cap: 3.28 acres

• 11th to 12th Streets cap: 2.17 acres

• 38 1/2 to 41st Streets cap: 5.20 acres

• 41st Street to Red Line cap: 4.76 acres

• Red Line to Airport Boulevard cap: 4.24 acres

Vision Plan documents also note the University of Texas at Austin is pursuing its own capping proposal with TxDOT; that initiative is not being funded or constructed by the city of Austin.” KXAN

“Travis County grand jury indicts construction company, project head for employee death,” Fox 7 Austin’s Angela Shen — “A Travis County grand jury has indicted D Guerra Construction and project superintendent Carlos Alejandro Guerrero, 37, for criminal negligent homicide.

On Oct. 23, 2021, workers were in a trench installing a wastewater line when a trench collapsed, and Juan Jose Galvan Batalla, 24, was buried by soil and debris. He died from his injuries seven days later. 

His mother, Rosa Isela Batalla Morales, describes him as a happy person who took good care of his son and siblings.

"No mother deserves this pain that I'm going through, it's already been three years of crying and asking God," she said in Spanish.

In 2022, OSHA referred the case to the district attorney's office after citing the company for various violations. 

"All workers here in Travis County deserve to be safe at work so that they can return to their families at the end of the day. When employers engage in criminal conduct and expose their employees to hazardous working conditions, this office will hold them accountable," Travis County DA Jose Garza said.

OSHA says, despite a partial trench collapse earlier that day, the company sent Batalla and another worker back into the unprotected 13-foot-trench. The other worker sustained serious injuries.

Morales is hoping for justice. 

"They should pay for the errors because they should've taken care of my son. He never told them no, he was always willing to work," she said in Spanish. "I miss him a lot, he's missed by his family and his son."“ Fox 7 Austin

THE BLOTTER

“Man arrested for murder after stabbing victim to death in South Austin,” via Fox 7 Austin — “A man was arrested for murder after the deadly stabbing of another man in South Austin.

Austin police said on Nov. 13, around 4:17 p.m., officers responded to the C-Mart located at 7811 South 1st Street for reports of a stabbing. 

When officers arrived, they found a victim on the ground bleeding. The victim was taken to a local hospital, but later died from his injuries.

Police said the suspect, 32-year-old Luis Marroquin, knew the victim because they both worked as day laborers in the area.

Marroquin saw the victim earlier in the day at Home Depot while waiting for work. Marroquin was sitting next to the victim in the parking lot of the store and unprovokedly turned and stabbed the victim. 

Later, officers found Marroquin in the area.

He was arrested for murder and was booked into the Travis County Jail.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact the Austin Police Department at 512-974-TIPS. You may submit your tip anonymously through the Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program by visiting austincrimestoppers.org or by calling 512-472-8477. A reward up to $1,000 may be available for any information that leads to an arrest.” Fox 7 Austin

“One dead in apparent shooting at north Austin apartment complex,” CBS Austin’s Zak Zeh and Tara Brolley — “One person is dead after an apparent shooting at a north Austin apartment complex early Friday morning.

Officers responded to multiple 911 calls reporting gunshots at approximately 12:42 a.m. in the 8400 block of Goldfinch Court, where they found a deceased individual, according to the Austin Police Department.

Within minutes of arrival, police detained a person of interest. Multiple witnesses were transported to police headquarters for questioning by homicide detectives.

The identity of the victim and details about any relationship between the victim and the person of interest have not been released.

While the street remains open, access to the apartment complex will be restricted during the investigation.

Police are asking the public to avoid the area and encourage anyone with information about the incident to contact the Austin Police homicide tip line at (512) 974-8477.” CBS Austin

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

“Travis County voters supported a tax rate increase to expand access to affordable child care. What happens now?” Austin Monitor’s Mina Shekarchi — “Last week, approximately 60 percent of Travis County voters approved Proposition A – a property tax increase that will expand access to affordable child care and after-school/summer programs for lower-income families. The tax increase ($0.025 per $100 valuation for a total ad valorem tax rate of 0.34 percent) will also support the development of child care-related workforce programs. However, child care advocates say there’s still more work to be done.

Earlier this year, the Travis County Commissioners Court unanimously voted to place Proposition A on the ballot, building off of a policy recommendation from the Austin cohort of the Children’s Funding Project Work Group. The Children’s Funding Project (CFP) is a national organization that aims to help communities fund access to high-quality child care. The Austin work group includes representatives from the city, Travis County, the Austin Early Childhood Council, United Way and other advocacy organizations, and it has studied the child care industry in Austin since 2022. The group shares many members with the Affordable Childcare Now coalition, which is managed by Cathy McHorse through United Way for Greater Austin, and includes local business leaders who support the economic benefits of access to child care.

The recent tax rate election is the latest in a series of initiatives to address the child care crisis in Austin and Travis County. Last year, City Council voted to make Austin the first Texas city to ensure a 100 percent property tax abatement for eligible child care providers and to expand zoning allowances for local child care facilities. And this week, the Employers for Childcare Task Force announced its priorities for the 2025 Texas legislative session, which center on making child care more accessible for working families statewide.

Now that Proposition A has passed, members of the work group and the coalition are focused on its implementation with the county.

“This is the first program of its scale in Texas, setting a precedent for meaningful support to working families and the economic health of our community,” Travis County Judge Andy Brown told the Austin Monitor. “We’re now working diligently to roll out services in phases starting in early 2025. Our county team is hiring dedicated staff, extending current contracts and designing and procuring expanded child care services for full countywide implementation expected in 2026.”

City Council Member Alison Alter provided additional context on next steps: “The county will now pivot to the implementation phase, which will include … partnering with local (child care) providers, establishing governance and oversight processes, and exploring the idea of a community advisory group comprised of parents and providers so they can provide feedback on how to best optimize the investments for potential iterations in the future.”

David Smith, CEO of United Way for Greater Austin, told the Monitor that he was grateful the community understands basic fairness. “With such a big margin of victory, the community showed that they understand how important it is that every child have the chance to start out at a level playing field.”

Smith said he believes the county is prepared to use the revenue effectively: “The county has the right talent and is fully equipped to ensure these funds are used for maximum impact: to expand the (child care) slots available for thousands of children, to build support for nontraditional hours so that someone who works early or late can have child care and (to) also build in support for high-quality child care.”

Advocates seem to agree that this programming is badly needed – with federal funds expiring, many communities are on the verge of a child care crisis. Alter, who authored the Council resolution to abate property taxes for eligible child care facilities last year, told the Monitor that Austin currently has 11 child care deserts.” Austin Monitor

BUSINESS NEWS

“Houston-based developed aims for up to $3B in projects in Austin’s suburbs,” Austin Business Journal’s Justin Sayers — “Dharma Rajah sees parallels between Austin's growth pattern and those of Dallas and Houston, but with one big exception — the Austin suburbs are relatively closer to the central city, and they're much less developed.

That's why his real estate company, Houston-based Epitome Development LLC, is focusing on them. The little-known firm has been quietly working on a dozen projects, everywhere from Leander to Hutto to Elgin to Lockhart. Its investments could eventually span several thousand acres, total between $2 billion and $3 billion and include 6,000 single-family homes, 1.5 million square feet of industrial space, 600 multifamily units, a hotel and more in the next several years.

That's a lot of balls in the airs — and a lot of different products. But Rajah said Epitome is different from many developers in that it tries to meet the market based on feedback heard in meetings with city leaders and economic development groups, even going so far as to fly to Korea to meet with suppliers of Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.

"For the last year, we've been just kind of trying to process that and plan our work around that, so instead of 'build it and they will come,' we're following more of a sort of relationship-based approach of understanding your customer," Rajah said, adding that the goal is to create affordable, walkable communities and job centers in Austin's outskirts.

That's evident as you look at the company's pipeline. Epitome has already started work on Leander Estates, a 174-home high-end residential subdivision that's a co-development with Houston-based McVaugh Group. It also recently won approval for updates to the two-phased $250 million Davis Tract project in Taylor — called Citadel Square — that will span 126 acres, with more than 300 lots, 151,000 square feet of commercial space, 396 multifamily units and a 100-room hotel, along with a site for a public school.

The newest addition to the portfolio is called Elgin Gateway. The Elgin City Council approved a slew of agreements on Nov. 12 for Epitome to build the $500 million, 242-acre mixed-use project that's slated to include 200,000 square feet of retail, 150,000 square feet industrial space, a 300 multifamily unit and roughly 770 single-family homes, along with site for a public school and public safety center.

Elgin was appealing to Epitome, Rajah said, because it was smack dab in the middle of hot manufacturing locations in Taylor with Samsung and in eastern Travis County with Tesla Inc. That created a hotspot for people who work there and want to be close to Austin, with an eye on affordability. That population boom — Elgin has grown to more than 12,300 people, with an 8.25% annual increase — is creating retail demand.

"I think it's very strategically located at the entrance into Austin. ... I think people living there have easy access to employment and jobs," Rajah said, adding that the company has received lot of interest from local businesses and convenience stores to occupy the retail space.” ABJ ($)

LOCAL SPORTS

TEXAS FOOTBALL: “Texas football vs Arkansas Razorbacks: Scouting report, prediction for Week 12,” Austin American-Statesman’s Thomas Jones — “Texas football enjoyed a big day last Saturday, both in and out of Royal-Memorial Stadium. The Longhorns took care of business against Florida while several losses elsewhere in the SEC cleared a path to the conference title game.   

Now slotted No. 3 in the College Football Playoff rankings, Texas will play for an SEC title if it wins all of its three remaining games. But the tricky closing stretch starts with a trip to Arkansas, an old foe that would love nothing more than to ruin the dreams of quarterback Quinn Ewers, middle linebacker Anthony Hill, Jr. and the other Texas players

Here's a full scouting report for the Texas Longhorns vs. the Arkansas Razorbacks.

No. 3 Texas (8-1, 4-1) vs. Arkansas (5-4, 3-3) 

When: 11 a.m. Saturday

Where: Reynolds Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, Arkansas

TV/radio: ABC, 1300, 98.1, 105.3 (Spanish)

Line: Texas is favored by 13 ½ points.

Weather: Pack a hoodie, and make it burnt orange if you’re feeling brave enough in the Ozarks. Temperatures will start in the 50s and climb into the mid 60s, with partly cloudy skies keeping things cool.

Know the foe: Arkansas

Last game: Lost to Ole Miss 63-31 Nov. 2.

Players to watch: Quarterback Taylen Green, a Boise State transfer from the Dallas suburb of Lewisville, gives Arkansas a massive dual threat at 6 feet, 6 inches and 240 pounds. He has thrown for 2,214 yards and 11 touchdowns on 62.7% passing with seven interceptions and has run for another 411 yards and five touchdowns while ranking third in the SEC with 291.7 yards of offense a game.

Sixth-year senior receiver Andrew Armstrong, a 6-4, 202-pounder from Dallas, is saving his best for his last collegiate season with 55 catches for 857 yards, which both rank second in the SEC.

Senior Landon Jackson, a 6-7, 280-pound edge from Texarkana, Texas, who’s projected as a high NFL pick, has 14 career sacks among his 102 career tackles, including 4 ½ sacks and 35 tackles this season. His younger brother, Lance, is a five-star edge rusher committed to Texas as part of the 2025 recruiting class.

Central Texas connections: An all-state kicker and soccer player at Liberty Hill High School, graduate transfer Matthew Shipley spent four seasons at Hawaii before transferring to Arkansas, where he’s made six of eight field-goal attempts, including a career-long 55 yards against Ole Miss last week.” AAS ($)

TEXAS FOOTBALL: “‘That dude will be ready to play’: Texas coaches don’t need to worry about Anthony Hill, Jr.,” KXAN’s Billy Gates — “When linebacker Anthony Hill Jr. arrived at Texas last season as a true freshman, his talent and athleticism were undeniable, but he didn’t quite have an idea how to put those to use at the college level. He was great at football, he just wasn’t a great linebacker, Texas coaches told him.

It’s safe to say it hasn’t taken him long to become a great linebacker.

Leading the Longhorns in tackles per game at 7.33, 10th in the Southeastern Conference, Hill has improved physically, mentally and emotionally, head coach Steve Sarkisian said. He’s a “green dot” player, meaning he receives communication from coaches through speakers in the helmet, and he’s the lynchpin in the Longhorns defense that ranks No. 2 in total defense among FBS teams.

“Last season, he was just playing football. If he could run and hit something, it worked,” Sarkisian said. “We put a lot on him this year coming back, and what I’ve been impressed with him … is who he is as a person. The work he puts in, the way he represents this program, is as impressive to me as how he plays the game.”

His playmaking ability is evident — he’s tied for second in the SEC with three forced fumbles and ninth in sacks per game with 0.61. He has 5.5 total sacks and 11 tackles for loss to lead the Longhorns, and he’ll have his work cut out for him Friday trying to take down Arkansas’ dynamic duo of quarterback Taylen Green and running back Ja’Quinden Jackson.

Hill said Green is most dangerous when he’s improvising and moving outside of the pocket. He’s noticed that teams make a concerted effort to keep him bottled up between the tackles. He said especially in third down and short yardage situations, someone (he didn’t say who, but it might be obvious) will be a spy trying to mirror Green’s every move.

“We don’t want him running around, that’s not in our best interest,” Hill said about Green.” KXAN

TEXAS HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL PLAYOFFS: “Texas high school football playoff scores for Thursday, Nov. 14,” KXAN’s Billy Gates — “Pflugerville won big in the opening round of the Class 5A Division II playoffs 63-13 over San Antonio Burbank to lead a handful of successful Central Texas football teams on the first night of the postseason Thursday.

In the KBVO Game of the Week, Lexington had a little more firepower than Rice Consolidated in a 38-27 victory in Class 3A Division II while Wimberley rolled to a 69-0 win over Pearsall in 4A Division II.

Lampasas picked up a 53-14 win over Pecos in 4A Division I and Mason punched out Rosebud-Lott 69-14 in 2A Division I.

Check out the rest of the scores from around Texas below:

Scores from around Central Texas

Andrews 35, Burnet 21

Lampasas 53, Pecos 14

Lexington 38, Rice Consolidated 27

Pflugerville 63, SA Burbank 13

Mason 69, Rosebud-Lott 14

SA Davenport 91, Manor New Tech 18

Van Vleck 48, Blanco 41

Wimberley 69, Pearsall 0

Scores from around Texas compiled by the Associated Press and KXAN

Class 6A Division I

Region I Bi-District

Midland Legacy 56, EP Franklin 14

Region III Bi-District

Cypress Falls 52, Houston Bellaire 0

Fort Bend Ridge Point 49, Pasadena Dobie 16

Galena Park North Shore 56, Deer Park 13

Region IV Bi-District

SA Johnson 49, SA Northside Taft 7

Class 6A Division II

Region I Bi-District

Lewisville Hebron 48, Prosper Rock Hill 16

Region II Bi-District

De Soto 63, Killeen Shoemaker 6

Klein Collins 32, Cypress Woods 29

Region III Bi-District

Fort Bend Elkins 31, Alvin Shadow Creek 28

Jordan 22, Richmond Foster 14

Manvel 23, Fort Bend Hightower 15

Region IV Bi-District

Cibolo Steele 56, Laredo Alexander 14

New Braunfels Canyon 31, Castroville Medina Valley 14

PSJA 55, Harlingen 28

San Antonio Harlan 41, SA Northside Clark 23

Class 5A Division I

Region I Bi-District

Abilene 84, EP Parkland 0

Amarillo Tascosa 30, EP Americas 9

Denton Ryan 77, FW Paschal 14

Lubbock Monterey 63, EP Bel Air 0

Region II Bi-District

Frisco Lone Star 59, Dallas White 7

Class 5A Division II

Region I Bi-District

EP Del Valle 63, Abilene Cooper 35

Lubbock Cooper 38, Canutillo 14

Region II Bi-District

Dallas South Oak Cliff 52, Terrell 14

Midlothian Heritage 65, Seagoville 0

Region III Bi-District

Fort Bend Marshall 52, Waco University 14

Region IV Bi-District

Boerne 39, CC Carroll 21

Class 4A Division I

Region I Bi-District

Andrews 35, Burnet 21

Canyon Randall 71, EP Ysleta 27

West Plains 42, Clint 8

Region II Bi-District

Aubrey 35, Dallas Kimball 33

Celina 75, Wilmer-Hutchins 0

Region IV Bi-District

Bay City 86, Hidalgo 0

Class 4A Division II

Region I Bi-District

Glen Rose 48, Eagle Mountain 6

Graham 60, FW Dunbar 0

Seminole 70, Levelland 32

Region II Bi-District

Carthage 49, Longview Spring Hill 0

Sunnyvale 52, Caddo Mills 27

Region III Bi-District

Bellville 35, Waco Connally 0

Hamshire-Fannett 49, La Marque 14

West Orange-Stark 41, Sweeny 14

Region IV Bi-District

Sinton 84, Rio Grande City La Grulla 0

Class 3A Division I

Region I Bi-District

Amarillo River Road 23, Lamesa 21

Bushland 70, Kermit 6

Peaster 33, Comanche 30, OT

Region II Bi-District

Grandview 54, Whitesboro 17

Jefferson 54, Mineola 27

Malakoff 62, Tatum 13

Maypearl 45, Pottsboro 37

Palmer 41, Whitney 32

Pilot Point 36, Mexia 32

Region III Bi-District

Diboll 28, East Chambers 21

Region IV Bi-District

Edna 63, Lyford 0

Marion 46, Jourdanton 14

Class 3A Division II

Region I Bi-District

Canadian 53, Muleshoe 6

Crane 42, San Angelo Grape Creek 26

Idalou 55, Tulia 6

Stanton 49, Alpine 28

Region II Bi-District

Bells 44, Blooming Grove 0

Gunter 48, Cedar Hill Trinity 0

Region III Bi-District

Daingerfield 35, Big Sandy Harmony (Gilmer) 14

Region IV Bi-District

Cotulla 50, Santa Rosa 7

Class 2A Division I

Region I Bi-District

Cisco 34, Big Lake Reagan County 16

Stamford 45, Sonora 8

Sunray 41, Olton 0

Region II Bi-District

Axtell 24, Cayuga 10

Coleman 40, Wolfe City 35

Region III Bi-District

Garrison 56, Corrigan-Camden 13

Joaquin 38, Centerville 28

Waskom 67, Omaha Pewitt 20

Region IV Bi-District

Ganado 75, Skidmore-Tynan 22

Refugio 65, Kenedy 6

Weimar 56, Santa Maria 13

Class 2A Division II

Region I Bi-District

Stratford 69, Crosbyton 8

Region II Bi-District

Albany 46, Era 0

Archer City 51, Shamrock 14

Collinsville 52, Roscoe 0

Muenster 70, Hamlin 0

Wellington 36, Petrolia 0

Wheeler 44, Electra 14

Windthorst 62, Quanah 14

Region III Bi-District

Overton 68, Evadale 0

Region IV Bi-District

Falls City 42, Agua Dulce 6

La Villa 42, Louise 20

Class 1A Division I

Region III Bi-District

Abbott 64, Chester 14

Region IV Bi-District

Jonesboro 64, Baird 16

Class 1A Division II

Region I Bi-District

Follett 64, Paducah 22

Lamesa Klondike 68, Amherst 22

Region II Bi-District

Blackwell 56, Balmorhea 30

Jayton 54, Crowell 6

Region III Bi-District

Strawn 76, Ladonia Fannindel 6

Region IV Bi-District

Zephyr 46, Evant 0

TAPPS 11-Man Div II

Area

Fort Bend Christian 79, SA St. Anthony’s 7

TAPPS Six-Man Div III

Area

Lubbock Kingdom Prep 52, Cedar Park Summit 0” KXAN

QUICK LINKS

~ “Austinite who kayaked 86 miles with one arm has Texas Book Fest debut” Culture Map Austin

~ Austin-area student may have first case of measles in Texas this year - KUT

~ Here's why a billion-dollar software company is running a 379-acre farm in Austin - ABJ

~ Ten Seconds Noodle House now serving Chinese cuisine in north Austin - Community Impact Austin

~ Planning Commission postpones East Austin rezoning decision after clerical error - Austin Monitor

~ County renews opioid overdose crisis declaration, funds more harm reduction - Austin Monitor

~ Two Austin apartment properties part of $260M refinancing - ABJ

~ New homebuilder joins Whisper Valley neighborhood - ABJ

~ Travis County launches pilot gun violence intervention program - Community Impact Austin

~ 6 Central Texas kids find forever homes during Austin Adoption Day - KVUE

~ New bar, coffee concept Stargazer takes over previous Austin Eastciders Collab space - Community Impact

~ 9th Poco Loco Supermercado could be on the horizon for Kyle - Community Impact Austin

~ Watching the sun rise on private capital in Austin - ABJ

~ Bastrop County property tax bills hit mailboxes; owners urged to pay before Feb. 1 deadline - Community Impact

~ Thai Q food truck opens at The Outskirts Eatery in Buda - Community Impact

~ Deadly northwest Austin police shooting began with traffic stop in Bee Cave - KXAN

~ Austin Free Week returning in 2025; organizers credit city council financial support - KXAN

AUSTIN CULTURE

~ DINING: The Austin American Statesman’s best restaurants in Austin guide for 2024 AAS ($)

~ HOUSE MUSIC: “Grab a pashmina and a glow stick! Seismic Dance Event is this weekend at Concourse Project” AAS ($)

WHAT TO DO THIS WEEKEND

Fri

~ TEXAS WOMEN’S SOCCER: NCAA Soccer Playoffs: First Round Texas vs. Boston. Game at 6pm. Mike Myers Stadium. Tickets start at $5 here.

~ LIVE MUSIC: Creed (with 3 Doors Down and Mammoth UVH). Moody Center. Doors 5:30pm, show 7pm. Tix $91.75 and up here.

Sat

~ TEXAS FOOTBALL: #3 Texas at Arkansas. 11am kick. Airing on ABC.

~ TEXAS MEN’S BASKETBALL: Texas hosts Mississippi Valley State. Moody Center. 4pm. Tix here. Also airing on SEC Network.

Sun

~ LIVE MUSIC: Mariah Carey (with DJ Suss One). Moody Center. Doors 6:30pm, show 7:30pm. Tix $39 and up here.

~ COMEDY: Chelsea Handler. ACL Live. 7pm. Tix $29 and up here.

COOL JOB ALERT

~ Chief of Staff. Central Health. No salary info. Info / apply here.