BG Reads 10.22.2024

🗞️ Bingham Group Reads - October 22, 2024

October 22, 2024

Bingham Group Reads

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www.binghamgp.com

October 22, 2024

➡️ Today's BG Reads include:

🟪 Early voting runs today until Friday, November 1st.

🟪 Travis County breaks early voting records with historic turnout (CBS Austin)

🟪 New city zoning program that uses density as carrot to encourage affordable housing proving popular so far (Austin Business Journal)

🟪 Ambitious proposal for Congress Avenue includes pedestrian plazas, bike lanes (Austin Monitor)

🟪 SEC fines UT Austin $250K after fans throw debris on football field (KUT)

Read On!

🗳️ Early voting begins today until Friday, November 1st. To find voting locations and sample ballots, visit:

  • Item Highlight, #47: Discussion and possible action to ratify a proposed five-year Meet and Confer Agreement with the Austin Police Association relating to wages, hours, and terms and conditions of employment for police officers of the Austin Police Department.

[CITY OF AUSTIN]

🟪 TODAY 9AM - Austin City Council Work Session (Agenda)

🟪 The Austin Council has four (4) regular meetings left in 2024

📺 City Council Candidate Forum: District 2 - Video (9.26.2024)

📺 City Council Candidate Forum: District 4 - Video (9.19.2024)

📺 City Council Candidate Forum: Mayor - Video (10.3.2024)

[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]

➡️ Travis County breaks early voting records with historic turnout (CBS Austin)

Early voting turnout broke records in Travis County is no different, with the county clerk reporting more than 46,600 people showed up for the first day of early voting.

Travis County Clerk Dyana Limon-Mercado says Monday's historic numbers surpass day one of early voting in the last three general elections.

600,000 voters are expected to vote in Travis County through November 5th, with 200,000 expected to vote on Election Day alone. So for those looking to avoid those long lines, county officials say now is the time to vote... 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

➡️ Where do Austin's mayoral candidates stand on public safety issues? (KUT)

Austin has seen meteoric growth over the past decade and a half, and its police department has found itself rethinking its priorities to address public safety amid the influx of newcomers.

So, we asked the five candidates for Austin mayor where they stand on the following issues and how they would broadly address public safety during a potential term in office… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

➡️ New city zoning program that uses density as carrot to encourage affordable housing proving popular so far (Austin Business Journal)

It will take time and it won't help everywhere, but a new zoning designation should boost the supply of housing in Austin.

That's the view of a number of developers when it comes to the so-called Density Bonus 90, or DB90, zoning program approved by the City Council in February. Residential buildings on properties with the new zoning can be up to 90 feet high — 30 feet higher than otherwise allowed — and have ground floor commercial uses, provided certain percentages of the residential units are priced at levels deemed affordable.

“It's unlocking additional properties that couldn't previously achieve the necessary density,” said Chris Affinito a managing partner at Notional Development Partners, a firm that focuses on developing Class A workforce housing in urban cores. “And two, it's taking some of those properties and incentivizing development of mixed-use over just pure commercial use.”

Under DB90, 12% of units must be affordable for households earning 80% or less of median family income if the units are owned, or a fee must be paid instead. For rental properties, 12% of units must be affordable for households earning 60% MFI, or 10% must be affordable for households earning 50% MFI. The DB90 designation replaced a previous city effort to encourage vertical mixed-use density, called VMU2, that was struck down in court… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

➡️ Ambitious proposal for Congress Avenue includes pedestrian plazas, bike lanes (Austin Monitor)

At its meeting last week, City Council’s Mobility Committee learned the details of a proposed ambitious redesign and reconstruction plan for Congress Avenue, which would convert the avenue into a more pedestrian-focused area over a number of possible phases.

The project could fully transform Congress Avenue from Riverside Drive to 11th Street, creating pedestrian plazas, upgrading bike lanes and enhancing public spaces along the thoroughfare. The full plan is projected to cost $130 million, with the city only having $22 million allocated in the 2020 mobility bond available to start.

The “full build scenario” includes extensive upgrades aimed at rebalancing the street to prioritize pedestrian and cyclist traffic while maintaining car accessibility. Laura Dierenfield, active transportation and street design division manager for the Transportation and Public Works Department, said the plan involves the creation of pedestrian plazas on the northern blocks of Congress, particularly around cultural landmarks like the Paramount and State theaters... 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

➡️ SEC fines UT Austin $250K after fans throw debris on football field (KUT)

The Southeastern Conference is fining UT Austin $250,000 because fans threw trash on the field during Saturday’s football game against the University of Georgia.

The incident occurred in the second half of the game after referees made a call against Texas. The call was later reversed, after a delay to calm the crowd and pick up water bottles and other trash.

“The throwing of debris and resulting interruption of play that took place Saturday night cannot be part of any SEC event,” SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said in a statement.

The SEC is also requiring UT Austin to use video footage and “all available resources” to identify people who threw objects onto the field. Anyone identified will be prohibited from attending Texas Athletics events for the rest of the 2024-25 academic and athletic year. UT Austin must also report back to the SEC on its efforts to find individuals who threw things onto the field and the steps the university is taking to prevent such incidents in the future.

While the SEC is assessing several penalties, it is holding off on banning alcohol sales at games.

“The Conference is not suspending alcohol sales privileges for the University of Texas at this time but reserves the right to do so if other requirements outlined above are not met,” the SEC said in its statement… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

[TEXAS NEWS]

➡️ San Antonio business leaders rally in support of Prop C, which would eliminate caps on city manager (Texas Public Radio)

A group of San Antonio business leaders held a press conference in support of Proposition C on Monday morning. The charter amendment, which is on the ballot this fall, would remove salary and tenure caps San Antonio residents voted to place on the San Antonio city manager in 2018.

The city manager can only serve for eight years under current restrictions, and their salary cannot exceed 10 times the lowest-paid salaried city employee. That’s currently about $370,000. City Manager Erik Walsh will be termed out in 2027 if the restrictions remain.

The San Antonio Business Coalition, the group’s name, is composed of CEOs, executive directors, and leaders of trade associations and chambers of commerce… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

➡️ What to know about the 18 Dallas charter amendments on the ballot (WFAA)

Early voting begins today and if you’re planning to vote in Dallas, you’ll notice a slate of 18 city charter amendment propositions on the ballot. Here’s what you need to know about early voting.

Dallas is required to consider changes to its charter, which defines how the city is governed. Once the city council votes on the proposed amendments, they’re put on a November ballot for voters to consider. Dallas began its charter review process last summer.

Attorney and former state Rep. Allen Vaught was named chair of the city’s charter review commission, which had 14 other members, including former city council member Adam Medrano serving as vice chair.

The 18 charter amendments on the ballot this year include 14 from the city council and four from resident petitions… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

[US and World News]

➡️ An organization has novel way to get members to vote. But is it legal? (NPR)

In America, we encourage voting as a civic duty, but an organization with millions of members is taking that obligation a step further. It’s requiring members to vote — or potentially lose their membership and the financial benefits that come with it.

The organization is the Neighborhood Assistance Corporation of America, which helps people get low-cost mortgages. NACA says it has 3.7 million members, including about 870,000 in the seven key swing states this election year.“

We’re not saying to people vote for a particular candidate,” says NACA CEO Bruce Marks. “We're saying that there's so much at stake in this election that you have to have your voice heard.”…  🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Musk offers voters $1 million a day to sign PAC petition backing the Constitution. Is that legal? (Associated Press)

Elon Musk, the billionaire founder of Tesla and Space X and owner of X who’s gone all-in on Republican Donald Trump’s candidacy for the White House, has already committed at least $70 million to help the former president. Now he’s pledging to give away $1 million a day to voters for signing his political action committee’s petition backing the Constitution.

The giveaway is raising questions and alarms among some election experts who say it is a violation of the law to link a cash handout to signing a petition that also requires a person to be registered to vote.

Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, the state’s former attorney general, expressed concern about the plan on Sunday.

“I think there are real questions with how he is spending money in this race, how the dark money is flowing, not just into Pennsylvania, but apparently now into the pockets of Pennsylvanians. That is deeply concerning,” he said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”… 🟪 (LINK TO FULL STORY)

_________________________

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