ATX PULSE 9/20/24 (sponsored by No Scrubs): Dallas Police Chief Garcia Named ACM for Austin // Nearly 25k Sought Homeless Services in 2023, Up 60% from 2022 // UT Fires Unregistered Sex Offender // DA Garza Gives Bond to Murder Suspect After 4 Days in Jail // ABIA to Double in Size

FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 20, 2024

Compiled by Matt Mackowiak

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TODAY’S WEATHER

H: 99° / L: 75°. Same heat, different day. Latest forecast from Fox 7 Austin’s Scott Fisher here.

TOP NEWS

“Dallas police chief Eddie Garcia heading to Austin in City Hall position, officials confirm,” Austin American-Statesman’s Ella McCarthy, Tony Plohetski and Skye Seipp — “Dallas Police Chief Eddie García is retiring from the top law enforcement role in that city and will soon land at Austin City Hall as an assistant city manager overseeing public safety, the city of Austin confirmed to the American-Statesman.

García will replace Bruce Mills, who served in that capacity but retired in August. The surprise announcement of Garcia's departure was first reported by the Dallas ABC-TV affiliate WFAA, which cited City Hall sources.

His first day in Austin will be Nov. 4, according to a memo obtained by the Statesman sent by Austin City Manager T.C. Broadnax to the mayor and City Council on Thursday afternoon.

Broadnax said in a statement to the Statesman that he's "excited" to have García join his staff.

"His extensive experience and deep commitment to the communities he serves makes him the ideal leader to join my executive team," Broadnax said. "I am confident that under his leadership, our public safety efforts will continue to thrive and evolve to meet the needs of our growing city."

García is following Broadnax, who left as Dallas's top executive earlier this year to assume become Austin's city manager. García had been widely discussed as a possible police chief candidate for Austin this year, but he did not apply for the position.

After reports that officials in Austin and Houston were interested in hiring him as their police chief, the city of Dallas renegotiated his contract with a clause to keep him among the highest-paid police chiefs in Texas through at least mid-2027, The Dallas Morning News reported. His salary in Dallas is $306,440 with a $10,000 retention bonus paid to him every six months.

García will be paid an annual salary of $327,600 in Austin, according to a city of Austin spokesperson. Austin salary data from April obtained by the Statesman through the Texas Public Information Act shows Mills at that time had an annual salary of $298,493. Three other assistant city managers had an annual salary of $298,500, the data shows.

Austin's executive-level assistant city manager positions are responsible for overseeing different city departments and functions. The public safety assistant city manager is tasked with overseeing the Austin Fire Department, Austin Police Department, Austin/Travis County Emergency Medical Services, Downtown Austin Community Court, Forensic Science Department, and the Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Management.

"In Dallas he introduced a comprehensive Use of Force Dashboard providing transparency and accountability, brought in experts to study use of force, worked with criminologists to develop a Crime Plan and supported the formation of a Community Advisory Board to ensure ongoing dialogue with residents, city leaders, and police associations," Broadnax wrote in the Thursday memo to the City Council.

García's arrival comes shortly after Austin Police Chief Lisa Davis assumed the top cop position in Austin last week.” AAS ($)

“Over 24,300 people seek homelessness services in Austin in 2023, up 60% from 2022,” CBS Austin’s Tara Brolley — “Austin's homeless services helped over 3,000 people exit homelessness in 2023, a 50% increase from the previous year, according to a new report released by the Ending Community Homeless Coalition (ECHO).

"We have a large percentage of people experiencing homelessness as compared to other cities that are of similar size," said Research and Evaluation Director, Joseph Montano.

The 2024 Needs and Gaps Report for the Austin-Travis County area highlights both progress and ongoing challenges in addressing homelessness. Rapid rehousing move-ins increased by 50%, and the average time for someone to move into housing decreased from 428 days in 2022 to 308 days in 2023.

However, the report also notes a significant increase in demand for services. More than 24,300 individuals received resources from homelessness service agencies in 2023, a 60% increase from 2022. Nearly 8,400 people sought homeless services for the first time, representing a 72% jump from the previous year.

The new access to resources is due to the fact that there are more service providers, like Austin Mutual Aid.

Austin Mutual Aid provides help for unhoused people; Sasha Rose is a lead organizer for the group and said getting people long-term housing is the biggest hurdle to jump.

"We've been seeing just incredible increases in rent and the housing crisis," said Rose, "There's data that correlates with the rising of homelessness, with the rising housing crisis."

The report cites increasing housing costs, stagnant low wages, and improved access to services as key factors driving these trends.” …

ECHO projects that over the next decade, Austin will need 5,000 new permanent supportive housing units, 1,700 new rapid rehousing spots, 600 new emergency shelter beds, and 1,750 short-term service spots to address the ongoing crisis.” CBS Austin

THE BLOTTER

“UT employee arrested, fired for failing to register as a sex offender in Texas,” Austin American-Statesman’s Lily Kepner — “University of Texas police arrested Nicholas Clisby, a McCombs School of Business human resources employee, for allegedly failing to register as a sex offender in Texas this month as required by law, according to a police report.

Upon learning of the arrest and sex offender status, UT terminated Clisby, university spokesperson Mike Rosen confirmed to the American-Statesman in a statement. Clisby had been employed by UT since June and resided in Texas since June 2023, The Daily Texan, which broke the news, reported.

The university does a background check on all employees, but did not find Clisby's status.

“That background check was performed and did not reveal an accurate prior history. This matter is now in the criminal justice system, and we have no further comment at this time,” Rosen added.

UT's criminal background check for employment includes a sex offender registry check, but only Level III sex offenders are publicly available in Oregon, where Clisby previously lived and was charged for the offense. According to The Texan, Clisby was classified as a Level II sex offender, which does not show up in a public search.” AAS ($)

“Austin murder suspect bonds out of jail 4 days after being arrested for 2021 deadly stabbing,” Fox 7 Austin’s Lauren Rangel — “A suspect in a 2021 cold case was arrested this week for the stabbing death of a 23-year-old in South Austin.

Just four days after being booked into jail, he's now out on bond, and there are now questions about why that happened.

Nikolas Martinez called 911 in July 2021, saying he had been stabbed.

He was playing video games with his nephew when he decided to hit pause and get laundry out of his apartment complex's communal facility.

With a stab wound to his neck, he drove himself to a nearby gas station for help, where he later died.

A murder suspect in a South Austin 2021 deadly stabbing has been arrested, U.S. Marshals said.

When FOX 7 Austin sat down with Nikolas Martinez's parents two years ago, it was the lack of closure about who killed Nikolas that made losing their son so much more grim.

"We know nothing's going to bring them back," said Martin Martinez, Nikolas’ father. "Nothing's gonna make it better, but just not knowing is just killing us."“ Fox 7 Austin

“Fake 911 gunfire call prompts Manor school lockdown,” via Fox 7 Austin — “A false 911 call about reported gunfire prompted the lockdown of a Manor charter school on Thursday morning.

Manor police were dispatched to respond to an unconfirmed report of gunfire at the Compass Rose Destiny School on FM 973 around 11:36 a.m. Sept. 19.

When officers arrived, they spoke with school officials who said they were unaware of any gunfire, but in response to the potential threat, the school initiated a lockdown.

Law enforcement from Manor police, Manor ISD police and the Travis County Sheriff's Office conducted a thorough search of the school and surrounding area. However, a comprehensive investigation uncovered no evidence of a shooting and no witnesses reported seeing or hearing any gunfire.

Police then determined the 911 call was based on false information, so the school was declared safe, and the lockdown was lifted.

Manor police say they are currently investigating the false 911 report.” Fox 7 Austin

“Austin police release video of suspect’s car in Cristian Rangel murder investigation,” CBS Austin’s Stephanie Becerra — “The Austin Police Department released Thursday new video footage related to the murder investigation of 24-year-old Cristian Rangel.

The video shows the suspect's car in the Wal-Mart parking lot located at 5017 W. US 290 in southwest Austin.

Police say on April 8, Rangel went to that Walmart on foot and never returned. He's seen on store surveillance video inside the Walmart.

Kamery Wooldridge, 31, was arrested and is accused of being involved in Rangel's death and the disposing of his body.

Anyone who might have witnessed or heard anything in the store parking lot that night is asked to contact Austin police at 512-974-8477.

Crime Stoppers is offering a reward of up to $1,000 for information that leads to an arrest. The family is offering an additional $9,000 for information in Cristian's case.” CBS Austin

“Austin woman loses thousands, FBI says elder fraud schemes on the rise,” KXAN’s Sarah Al-Shaikh — “An Austin woman said she was schemed out of thousands of dollars. It happened earlier this week after someone called her and said she had a warrant out for her arrest.

The woman, who asked us to hide her identity, said the man identified himself as someone with the sheriff’s department.

The FBI said last year alone, Texans over the age of 60 collectively lost more than $278 billion in elder fraud schemes.

The woman said the man on the phone told her she had a warrant out for her arrest because she allegedly didn’t go to jury duty.

She said he told her he needed to be on the phone with her until she got the money to pay.

The woman said she wasn’t thinking clearly at the time, because her husband has been in the hospital for weeks. So, she followed the man’s instructions and went to H-E-B to convert the money to Bitcoin.

“He wanted me to take the receipt and put it in a mailer and drop it at the post office,” she said.

Within about 45 minutes, she was out of thousands of dollars. But it didn’t stop there. The man on the other line wanted more money.

“He says, ‘Well, now there’s a problem.’ He says, ‘There are two warrants out for your arrest,’ ” she said.

Luckily, when the woman went to another bank, a manager told her this seems to be fraud and told the woman to block the number.” KXAN

LOCAL GOVERNMENT

“Travis County setting up protective detail amid criticism over DA Jose Garza security,” KVUE’s Tony Plohetski — “Travis County commissioners are setting up a new $1.8 million mini-law enforcement agency to protect elected and appointed officials and county employees they consider under threat.

The new office – earmarked in the upcoming county budget – will address which county officials get personal protection and when. It comes amid ongoing reporting by the KVUE Defenders about the county granting special security treatment to one particular elected official: District Attorney José Garza.

For seven months, Travis County constables have been providing overnight security to the home of Garza – after county commissioners secretly gave his office $115,000 this spring to help secure Garza’s house.

The unprecedented security came after Garza privately made a direct appeal to county commissioners, citing the posting of his address on social media. At the same time, judges and other elected officials also received an increase in threats, but no added protection.

The move raised questions from government watchdog and transparency groups, and led to a series of stories by the KVUE Defenders, about how the county evaluates threats – and decides who gets protection and when.

"It is always better to plan first before you start spending money. What they did before was a mistake...and just going out and throwing $115,000 at one elected official’s complaint,” said Bill Aleshire, a former Travis County judge and government transparency advocate.

Now, the county is adopting protocols to better evaluate future threats and concerning communications and to decide more equitably about how the county distributes armed security through a new five-person law enforcement agency.

"I would agree with that. We are creating a standard,” said Paul Hopingardner, Travis County’s executive for technology and operations said. "I think it is important because it gives you the opportunity to look at things objectively."" KVUE

“Austin airport proposes new plan to nearly double in size in largest expansion everve detail amid criticism over DA Jose Garza security,” Fox 7 Austin’s Tan Radford — “Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is rolling out a new multimillion dollar expansion plan, the largest expansion in its history.

AUS is poised to nearly double in size with the expansion, which is part of the Journey with AUS Project. 

AUS has seen an increase in passengers, with more than 20 million travelers walking through its doors every year since 2022, says the airport. The Journey with AUS project aims to accommodate those millions of flyers as the numbers increase.

"At the end of it, we will have double the airport in size and made room for more passengers, more airlines and, of course, our air service to offer to our passengers," said AUS public information officer specialist Lelsy Ramirez.

ABIA is in the beginning phase of creating a new arrivals and departures hall.

"The firms that have been selected for the design of the hall have been already posted for council approval, so September 26th is when it will be officially approved by council," said Ramirez.

According to AUS, the new addition will expand the ticketing area, check-in area, security checkpoints and add more space for concessions and baggage.

"That will essentially bump out the front of the terminal up to where the current Red Garage is right now so that Red Garage will be demolished in order for the arrivals and departures garage to be able to be built out," said Ramirez.

AUS says the short-term projects in the works are the West Infill and TSA Checkpoint 3 expansion, an outbound baggage handling system, and the West Gate terminal expansion, all set to be complete by 2026.

Long-term projects include a 20-gate Concourse B and a connector tunnel. A groundbreaking for the taxi ways connected to the concourse will happen this month. All of those will be complete by 2027.

"The current taxi ways sit where our concourse is going to go, so we need to build out new taxi ways to have other taxi ways to free up that space where the Concourse B is going to go," said Ramirez. "With that process of having to double our airport in size that will come with some changes which they have slowly started to see with these near-term projects."

The arrivals and departure hall is estimated to be complete by 2030 at the latest.” Fox 7 Austin

“Major upzoning in Zilker neighborhood draws opposition,” Austin Monitor’s Jo Clifton — “On Sept. 12, City Council approved a zoning change for a 0.42-acre property in the Zilker neighborhood that will allow the developer to build to 90 feet, falling under the Density Bonus 90 category. The property at 2130 Goodrich Ave., currently the site of a one-story office building, is about 100 feet from South Lamar Boulevard. While the rest of her colleagues voted in favor of the change, Council Member Alison Alter abstained.

Staff and the Planning Commission recommended the change, but representatives of the Zilker neighborhood opposed it. Council had approved a zoning change for the property under VMU 2 but they had to go back to the drawing board after a judge invalidated that ordinance.

Now, after the passage of a modified density bonus program, staff and Council are approving zoning changes under DB90 that proponents hope will bring about the development of more affordable housing. However, the changes have come as a shock to many neighborhoods.

“The applicant has indicated an intent to develop a mixed-use building with approximately 55 multifamily residential dwelling units and is not seeking a modification to the pedestrian-oriented commercial use requirement,” Zoning Officer Joi Harden told Council.

That applicant is Heartwood Real Estate Company. The Drenner Group represented the company but did not make a presentation. The staff report noted, “A building constructed under density bonus 90 (DB90) standards allows for a mix of residential uses and commercial uses, and the result is typically retail, restaurants and offices on the ground floor, and residential units on upper levels.”

Bill Bunch, speaking on behalf of the Zilker Neighborhood Association, told Council, “We’ve opposed this project in its various forms over the last few years as being completely inappropriate to this part of our neighborhood. And in this particular location, as you heard, this project is close to Lamar, but it’s not on Lamar. Its sole access is on Goodrich, which, if you go down a few blocks, turns into Garner and is a street through the heart of Zilker.

“At this location, the pavement is 30 feet wide,” Bunch said. “The transportation plan calls for it to be expanded to 58 feet, but that’s not going to happen. I can’t imagine that it would happen because you have a whole lot of both multifamily properties and single-family properties along this stretch of Goodrich that would have to be condemned to make that possible. I don’t see the city doing that.”” Austin Monitor

BUSINESS NEWS

“Mixed-use tower could be coming to site near former Statesman building,” Austin Business Journal’s Sean Hemmersmeier — “A new tower could be on tap for South Congress Avenue if a zoning change is approved Sept. 26 by the City Council. 

The tower — on a roughly 1-acre tract at 311-315 S. Congress Ave., which is just south of the old Austin American-Statesman building — would contain 488 residential units, 30,000 square feet of office space and 7,500 square feet for "ground floor pedestrian-oriented uses," according to city documents. 

The location is not within the planned unit development for the former Statesman site that is the subject of a lawsuit, although it is nearby.

The potential new zoning on the tract would allow for construction of a building up to 480 feet tall, or almost 50 stories. Currently, the site is the location of a Firestone Complete Auto Care and a small office and retail building. 

The owners of the property are listed as Wesley Pearson and Jerry Pearson. A representative of the owners didn’t respond to requests for comment. 

The potential tower marks a change from previous redevelopment plans for the tract. Since 2022, plans called for a 330-foot-tall, predominately office tower on the site with no residential component. At the time, New York-based Tishman Speyer Properties LP was “actively” exploring acquiring and redeveloping the property. Tishman Speyer declined to comment. 

If the rezoning is approved, it’s unclear when the current buildings would be torn down and construction would start.

When or if that happens, it will be part of a wave of redevelopment coming to area.” ABJ ($)

2024

“Council District 4 rematch finds candidates still split on Housing Policy,” Austin Chronicle’s Austin Sanders — “It’s a rematch in Northeast Austin, as Monica Guzmán once again challenges incumbent Chito Vela for the District 4 City Council seat.

Vela won the seat in a crowded special election in 2022 to replace Greg Casar, Council’s inaugural D4 representative who had just stepped down to run for the U.S. House of Representatives. Vela pulled off an impressive feat in that January election – drawing nearly 60% of the vote in a race with six challengers. With 14% of the vote, Guzmán finished second in that race – although just narrowly. Jade Lovera, who appointed a campaign treasurer to run again this time but never launched a real effort, finished with 11% of the votes.

Given the lopsided result in 2022, and the fact that Vela is in a head-to-head matchup against an opponent he bested by such a wide margin, the incumbent stands a strong chance of reelection. Beyond that, in the special election, Vela ran on a platform championing the “Yes in My Backyard” approach to addressing the city’s housing crisis – that is, an emphasis on enabling the private market to produce more housing by reducing zoning restrictions, reducing red tape that slows down housing development, and enabling builders to build smaller-scale housing on smaller lots.

It appears that was a winning message with D4 voters in 2022. In the two years since being elected, Vela has delivered. By any reasonable measure, the 2022 Council has made significant progress on reforming Austin housing policy. Parking minimums have been eliminated, lot sizes have been reduced, and compatibility restrictions have been weakened – together, these are three of the policy challenges most sought-after by pro-housing policymakers locally and across the nation.

Vela tells the Chronicle he has thoughts on other housing-related policies to work on – improvements to the city’s subdivision process, for example, so that property owners of middle and lower incomes can better take advantage of the small-lot reforms Council passed with the Home Options for Mobility and Equity (HOME) package. But, by and large, Council may spend the foreseeable future monitoring the policies they’ve already enacted and fine-tuning them.

“We correctly identified the barriers to housing in Austin and have attacked those barriers,” Vela said. “Now we need to let them simmer and watch them to understand the outcomes and move from there.”

In 2022, Guzmán ran a campaign urging caution around changing the city’s housing policies, and she’s continuing to do that in 2024. Pointing to some of the changes described above, Guzmán says Council has done too much too quickly, and the voters she’s talking with are not comfortable with it. If elected, she would move to insert “guardrails to minimize speculation” stemming from HOME changes (one of the fears of HOME opponents was that wealthy buyers might snatch up lots with one home on them, demolish the house and replace it with more expensive multifamily housing).

Guzmán said some of the guardrails she would pursue include withholding developer incentives unless they agree to provide higher levels of income-restricted housing, or requiring builders to rezone a parcel to access more development entitlements. She said zoning hearings offer residents an opportunity to provide input on a proposed development. More generally, Guzmán said, she would focus on engaging community members – especially those at risk of displacement – on proposed changes. “Taking the time to engage with the community and raising guardrails to protect against real estate speculation does not equate to stopping progress,” Guzmán said. “Maybe it’s slowing [progress] down, but that’s how you slow down gentrification. You need an inclusive process.”

Though the two candidates diverge greatly on housing policy, they are more aligned when it comes to efforts at improving policing in Austin. Vela has not been a champion of the criminal justice reform movement in the way that his predecessor was, but he has been a vocal proponent of the Austin Police Oversight Act and pushed back against an automated license plate reader program sought by the Austin Police Department that opponents warn could lead to privacy violations.” Austin Chronicle

SPORTS

~ HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL: “Texas high school football scores for Thursday, Sept. 19,” KXAN’s Billy Gates — “It was a night of blowouts Thursday around Central Texas.

Pflugerville thumped Navarro 78-0 while Bastrop ran away with a 69-6 win over Crockett in the KBVO Game of the Week.

Akins topped Northeast 53-8 and Lake Travis finished its non-district schedule with a 62-13 win over San Marcos.

Check the rest of the high school football scores from around Texas below:

Scores from around Central Texas

Akins 53, Northeast 8

Bastrop 69, Crockett 6

Blanco 35, Ingram Moore 0

Lake Travis 62, San Marcos 13

Pflugerville 78, Navarro 0” KXAN

~ AUSTIN FC: “Austin FC keeps playoff hopes alive with draw vs. LAFC,” Austin Chronicle’s Eric Goodman — “Austin FC injected some life into its late-season push for the MLS Cup Playoffs with a quality 1-1 draw away against a star-studded LAFC squad.

Solid ATX defending held Olivier Giroud, Denis Bouanga, and the Black and Gold to just six shots on goal and 1.4 expected goals, while the Verde and Black capitalized on a chance late in the first half to take the lead in the match, only to see that lead erased after the hour mark.

For Austin, the match was the first to feature all three of Rodolfo Borrell’s international midseason signings as Osman Bukari, Mikkel Desler, and – for the first time – Oleksandr Svatok were all included in Josh Wolff’s starting XI.

Desler and Bukari were both instrumental in Austin’s opening goal, which came in the second minute of first-half stoppage time. Delser fed Bukari into the attacking third with a nifty pass, which allowed the Ghanaian DP to free from his defender and dribble into the penalty box, where he found Jáder Obrian open in front of goal. Obrian calmly deposited his shot under the left arm of legendary goalkeeper Hugo Lloris to give Austin a surprising halftime lead at BMO Stadium.

Things turned sour for Austin at the 60 minute mark, when Wolff was forced to reorganize his defense due to an ankle injury to Desler, and Leo Väisänen entered as a third center back. Not even two minutes later, with ATXFC still fighting to get reorganized, LAFC took advantage with pinpoint passing and build-up to equalize by way of David Martínez.

Austin held firm in the final half hour to secure the 1-1 finish and earn a valuable point on the road. But with three points seemingly there for the taking, Verde fans may remember the match for what might have been.

It was a good night for the Verde and Black elsewhere, as FC Dallas and Minnesota United – the other two contenders for the final Western Conference playoff spot – both suffered losses. With five matches to go, Austin now trails Minnesota by four points for ninth place and leads FC Dallas by a point.

Austin FC’s focus now shifts to a virtual must-win match at home against the Houston Dynamo Saturday night, followed by another home match the following Saturday against Real Salt Lake. The ATX players know that any run to the postseason has to start with taking care of business points at home.

“Two wins in a row and you flip this thing. We’ve managed to win consecutive games plenty of times this season. And, you know, another big game at home, two back to back, Houston-RSL, that we'll be looking to try [to] get six points and close that gap,” utility man Jon Gallagher said. “100%, yep, I believe [that we can still make the playoffs].”” Austin Chronicle

~ TEXAS FOOTBALL: “Arch Manning will get first career start Saturday for Longhorns vs. Louisiana-Monroe,” KXAN’s Billy Gates — “Longhorns head football coach Steve Sarkisian confirmed Thursday that redshirt freshman quarterback Arch Manning will start Saturday against Louisiana-Monroe in place of the injured Quinn Ewers.

Ewers suffered an abdominal strain in the second quarter of the Longhorns’ 56-7 win over UTSA last week, and Manning dazzled in relief, accounting for five touchdowns including a 67-yard scoring run. It was the longest touchdown run by a Texas quarterback since Vince Young scored from 80 yards in 2005. It will be Manning’s first career start.

Sarkisian said Ewers “has made great strides” in his recovery. Still, Sarkisian wants to give his starting signal caller another week to heal for the Southeastern Conference opener against Mississippi State on Sept. 28.” KXAN

~ TEXAS BASEBALL: “Texas baseball adds 3 to 2026 recruiting class, including Trenton Maybin,” Austin American-Statesman’s Danny Davis — “The Texas baseball team received commitments from three recruits on Thursday as James Jorgensen, Trenton Maybin and Phinn Waters took to social media to announce that they'll become Longhorns.

All three prospects belong to the 2026 recruiting cycle.

Jorgensen is currently a junior at Dallas Jesuit High who can pitch and play the infield. According to the high school, Jorgensen led the Rangers with a .444 batting average in 2024. He also struck out 26 over just 11⅔ innings on the mound.

An outfielder out of North Carolina, Maybin was once committed to Duke. His father, Cameron, played 15 seasons in the major leagues.

Waters is a left-handed pitcher from Tennessee. This past season, he earned a second-team nod on the Memphis Commercial Appeal's all-metro team.

In their announcements, the recruits all thanked a coaching staff led by new coach Jim Schlossnagle. Assistant coaches Nolan Cain and Troy Tulowitzki were also given shoutouts.” AAS ($)

QUICK LINKS

~ Social media company X cites Bastrop address as its official headquarters - KXAN

~ National Hurricane Center is tracking 3 tropical systems. What to know if you're in Texas - Austin American-Statesman

~ Travis County files counter lawsuit against state over recent voter registration outreach - Community Impact

~ The Learning Experience to offer child care services in far Northwest Austin - Community Impact | News

~ TxDOT looks to pass off management of TxTag toll and customer services - KUT

~ LGBTQ activists spam state agency over driver’s license policy affecting transgender Texans - KUT

~ 'This has to stop' | Hays CISD makes more arrests after threats made at schools - KVUE

~ Spiders may be hiding in your car during Texas mating season. How to get rid of them - Austin American-Statesman

~ 10 best Tex-Mex restaurants to try in Texas, according to Eater - Austin American-Statesman

~ Former Georgetown middle school teacher burned in fire that killed his dogs, relative says - Austin American-Statesman

~ ‘Unsafe’ abandoned building getting demolished in central Austin - KXAN

~ Georgetown median home sales prices decline about 6% year over year in August - Community Impact

~ First-ever carless community broke ground this summer in Austin - Community Impact

~ TxDOT: Lanes reopened after ‘law enforcement activity’ on I-35 near Round Rock - KXAN

~ Q&A: Meet Austin's 2024 mayoral candidates - Community Impact

~ Republic Tint opens second location in Liberty Hill - Community Impact

~ City clears up concerns about strange structure near busy Austin bridge - KXAN

~ Great Springs Project proposes to partner alongside local government with equity in mind - Austin Monitor

~ Bastrop ISD sets new student success goals for STAAR - Community Impact

AUSTIN CULTURE

~ DINING: ”The 21 best brunch spots in Austin” Eater Austin

~ BOOKS: ”Texas Book Festival announces 2024 lineup featuring Matthew McConaughey” Culture Map Austin

~ COMEDY: ”Cap City Comedy Club Anoints 2024 Funniest Person in Austin” Austin Chronicle

WHAT TO DO THIS WEEKEND

~ THIS WEEKEND: ”Here are the top 7 things to do in Austin this weekend” Culture Map Austin

Fri

~ LIVE MUSIC: Cigarettes After Sex. Moody Center. Doors 7pm, show 8pm. Tix $39 and up here.

~ LIVE MUSIC: The Avett Brothers with Jamestown Revival. Whitewater Amphitheater (New Braunfels). Doors 6:30pm, show 8pm. Limited tix $100 and up here.

Sat

~ LIVE MUSIC: The Avett Brothers with Jamestown Revival. Whitewater Amphitheater (New Braunfels). Doors 6:30pm, show 8pm. Limited tix $100 and up here.

~ LIVE MUSIC: Mark Chesnutt. Haute Spot (Cedar Park). Doors 6pm. Sold out.

~ TEXAS FOOTBALL: Louisiana-Monroe at #1 Texas. 7pm. (Game is NOT on TV). Tix on Stubhub here.

~ AUSTIN FC: Austin FC vs. Houston at 7:30pm. Tix available on SeatGeek here.

Sun

~ LIVE MUSIC: Vertical Horizon with Happy Until. Doors 6pm, show 7pm. Tix $19.50 and up here.

COOL JOB ALERT

~ Lead Policy Manual: Bumble. Salary: $145k-$210k. Info / apply here.