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November 7, 2023

In today's BG Reads:

✅ An Austin-area guide to voting in the Nov. 7 election

✅ Texas university students tread divisive climate amid Israel-Hamas war

✅ WeWork files for bankruptcy

Read on!

[BINGHAM GROUP]

[AUSTIN METRO NEWS]

An Austin-area guide to voting in the Nov. 7 election (KUT)

On Tuesday, you'll be able to weigh in on 14 statewide constitutional amendments, including propositions to reduce property taxes for child care centers and give retired teachers cost-of-living raises. There are also county-specific measures on the ballot.

Here’s what you need to know to vote in the Nov. 7 election… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Three consultants enlisted to fix city’s arts, music grant programs (Austin Monitor)

Amid criticism over problems with the rollout of new grant programs for artists and musicians, the Economic Development Department has hired three outside consultants to study and recommend how to improve their performance.

A memo released last week by Sylnovia Holt-Rabb, director of EDD, detailed plans for improving the experience for applicants to the new programs, following complaints of slow payouts, poor communication and an application process that was difficult to navigate. In recent weeks, the Live Music Fund and the Elevate grant program for artists have come under fire before the Music Commission and Arts Commission, with Holt-Rabb vowing to correct those problems before the next round of funding opens.

The department has hired technology consulting firm Gartner to improve the application process and evaluate EDD’s overall technology needs. Two Austin-based groups have also been hired: Snap Management will work on organizational development within EDD, and Measure Austin will study the impact of the grant programs in the community.

Gartner is expected to complete its work by the end of this year, while Measure Austin is expected to finish its community analysis by this spring. The organizational analysis by Snap Management doesn’t have a firm timeline yet but the memo said it is “targeting to wrap up all recommendations also by Spring 2024.”… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Austin real estate market still burning hot, according to Urban Land Institute study (Austin Business Journal)

Austin’s real estate market is still burning at a supernova level, according to a new study.

The Urban Land Institute, which focuses on real estate and land use, released its widely respected 2024 Emerging Trends in Real Estate report on Oct. 31. The report compiled data and insights from over 2,000 real estate industry experts to explore shifts and trends in the property sector and predict 10 markets to watch for the coming year.

Austin ranked fifth on the list this year, down from No. 3 last year. The rest of the top five was rounded out by other Sunbelt cities: Nashville at No. 1, then Phoenix, Dallas-Fort Worth and Atlanta.

ULI conducted the study in partnership with PricewaterhouseCoopers, a professional services firm.

Austin was classified as a "magnet city" in the report, or a city that’s a migration destination for both people and companies. Further, Austin kept its moniker of a supernova city, considered by ULI to be among the fastest-growing markets consisting of 1 million to 2 million residents… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

[TEXAS NEWS]

Houston early voting turnout suggests disengagement from 2023 mayoral race (Houston Public Media)

Harris County has about 500,000 more registered voters than it did in 2015, which was the last time the county's largest city had an open mayoral seat on the ballot.

But while the electorate has grown in and around Houston, to about 2.6 million registered voters countywide, participation in city politics has not necessarily followed suit.

The percentage of voters who cast ballots during the early voting period was about 9 percent both in 2015 and 2023, according to Brandon Rottinghaus, a professor of political science at the University of Houston. A total of 239,325 people voted in Harris County during early voting this year, which spanned from Oct. 23-Nov. 3.

Rottinghaus described this year's early voting turnout as "good but not great" and said it signals that Houstonians could be less concerned about Election Day on Tuesday and more focused on a likely runoff in December. Or, he said, it means voters are generally disengaged from this year's candidate field and the issues they've been discussing – even in a crowded mayoral race headlined by two well-known local politicians, U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee and Texas Sen. John Whitmire.

"It's unfortunate," Rottinghaus said. "In a race with high-profile candidates and a lot of money spent, at a time of real importance for the city, people just don't seem more engaged than they have been in the past."… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Texas university students tread divisive climate amid Israel-Hamas war (Houston Chronicle)

Rice University President Reginald DesRoches condemned antisemitism, anti-Palestinian rhetoric and Islamophobia on Friday amid multiple calls to recognize the far-reaching impact of the brutal Israel-Hamas war that is now stretching into its second month. “Every single person at Rice — regardless of their background, ethnicity, religious beliefs, political stance or any other characteristic — deserves to feel safe and respected,” DesRoches said in a letter on Friday. “While freedom of expression is an important Rice value, acts of hate and hate speech have no place at Rice, are strongly denounced and will not be tolerated.” While Rice officials said the letter received praise from most, the statement failed to hit the mark across Israeli, Jewish, Muslim and Palestinian communities, some of whose members said the university hasn’t gone far enough.

“It feels like lip service,” a Rice Students for Justice in Palestine representative said, speaking anonymously because of safety concerns. “Overall, this does nothing for the students, and I think it would have been better if they didn’t say anything else.” Rice is among the countless universities trying to navigate a divisive climate in which students are holding vigils, protests and fundraising events to make their voices heard. Pro-Palestinian activism has been more visible, students say, and pro-Israeli activities remain quieter and more interpersonal because of fear of antisemitism.

Harvard, George Washington, New York and Columbia universities are among the campuses that have gained attention in the past month. Security has increased at Rice, the University of Houston’s religion center and Israeli and Palestinian events at the University of Texas at Austin, officials said. UT reported two instances of pro-Palestinian graffiti, however, and police were called after several men entered a campus building and attempted to disrupt students’ Palestine Solidarity Committee meeting, officials said. Video shared by KXAN in Austin showed the middle-age men calling one of the students a terrorist… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

[US/WORLD NEWS]

WeWork files for bankruptcy (Wallstreet Journal)

WeWork filed for bankruptcy, capping the flexible-office-space venture’s remarkable collapse after once being the nation’s most valuable startup. 

The company filed for chapter 11 protection in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New Jersey. The Wall Street Journal reported last week that the company is planning to file for bankruptcy.

WeWork Chief Executive David Tolley said roughly 90% of the company’s lenders have agreed to convert their debt into equity, wiping out about $3 billion in debt. 

WeWork, valued at $47 billion at its peak, is facing the consequences of excessive expansion that left it with many unprofitable locations. The office-space provider signed hundreds of long-term office leases at the top of the market in the late 2010s. It spruced the spaces up and effectively sublet them for as little as a month at a time. 

That business crumbled when demand for its desks fell and vacancies rose during the pandemic, while WeWork remained on the hook for billions in rent payments to landlords. WeWork’s losses totaled around $16 billion as of June, as it churned through all the money it raised from top investors and lenders over the past decade.

WeWork was co-founded by former baby-clothes entrepreneur Adam Neumann in 2010. The company raised billions from investors and built a global network of co-working spaces at breakneck speed. Neumann was forced out in late 2019 following a botched attempt at an initial public offering and spiraling losses. The company’s new management cut costs, but found its efforts to turn a profit frustrated by a weak office market... (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Former President Donald Trump spars with New York judge in civil fraud trial (NPR)

For just over four hours, former President Donald Trump took the witness stand to answer questions over his knowledge of fraudulent financial statements filed by the Trump Organization.

It did not take long for the testimony to take a dramatic turn, marked by verbal sparring among Trump, his lawyers and New York Judge Arthur Engoron. The judge asked lawyers to control the former president for his extended answers, Trump accused the judge of ruling against him and also accused the state attorney general of being a political hack.

Engoron reminded Trump, who is the frontrunner for the GOP nomination for president, that his courtroom is not a campaign rally… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

Right turn on red? With pedestrian deaths rising, US cities are considering bans (Associated Press)

The United States is one of few major countries that generally allow right turns on red. Concerned that cars idling at stop lights could compound an energy crisis, the U.S. government warned states in the 1970s that they could risk some federal funding should cities prohibit right on red, except in specific, clearly marked areas.

Although another energy-conscious provision capping speed limits at 55 mph has long been abandoned, right on red has endured.

“It’s an example of bad policy,” said Bill Schultheiss, director of engineering at Toole Design Group, which consults with public transportation agencies. “It made sense in the context of the gas crisis, but it was way oversold on what it would achieve. It’s a mandate that doesn’t consider the full consequences.”… (LINK TO FULL STORY)

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