| Dear Neighbors,
On August 6, City Manager Spencer Cronk presented his Fiscal Year 2019 budget proposal. This is the first budget guided by the Council's recently adopted Strategic Direction 2023. For the first time, we are tracking funds based on community outcomes instead of solely allocating money to city departments.
Since I was elected, I have advocated for fiscal discipline and worked to improve the city’s long term financial health. As a result of my efforts, along with those of my colleagues, we now have more room in the budget than in years past. Rather than simply spend as much as we can, we have an opportunity to deliver excellent services and limit property tax increases.
On August 9, I successfully motioned to cap the effective tax rate at the 6 percent level, which is 25 percent lower than the maximum allowed. This action guarantees the lowest tax rate increase since the inception of the 10-1 Council and ensures we maintain fiscal discipline in this budget. The next step in the budget process is to hear from the community. The first public hearing will be at City Hall on Aug. 22 at 1 p.m., and the second will take place as part of the Aug. 30 Council meeting. The full proposed budget and supporting documents are available for your consideration on the City's Budget Development website. A shorter four-page overview also has been prepared for your convenience.
If you plan to come down to City Hall for a budget hearing and would like to discuss your fiscal priorities with my office, please let us know. I will be listening to testimony, of course, but if you would like to chat with my policy advisors, you can call us at (512) 978-2110 or send an email to District10@austintexas.gov. We're looking forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Alison Alter
Council Member, District 10
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Table of Contents - Spicewood Springs Road Open House – Aug. 29
- Dockless Mobility Update – Aug. 23
- Austin Energy Summer Savings Event – Aug. 28
- Deep Eddy Labor Day Pool Party – Sept. 3
- Back to School Anti-Idling Event – Sept. 5
- Star Party at Bull Creek Park – Sept. 7
- People's Gallery Call for Artworks – Oct. 17 Deadline
- Citizen Communication via Videoconferencing
- District 10 Artist Feature – Ericka Barnes
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| | | Spicewood Springs Road Open House – Aug. 29
City of Austin staff invites you to an open house for the Spicewood Springs Road Regional Mobility Project on Wednesday, August 29. Stop by anytime to review and provide feedback on three draft options for mobility and safety improvements to Spicewood Springs Road.
The 2016 Mobility Bond provides $17 million for preliminary engineering, design and construction of safety and mobility improvements on Spicewood Springs Road between Loop 360 and Mesa Drive.
The project team used input collected from the community last year, along with technical assessments, to develop these options. This fall, staff will finalize one option that will move into the design phase of the project.
If you can’t attend the open house in person, all open house exhibits will be available for review on the project website beginning Aug. 30. Feedback can be submitted in person at the open house or on the project website from Aug. 30 through Sept. 14.
Wednesday, August 29, 2018 6-8 p.m. Westover Hills Church of Christ 8332 Mesa Drive |
| | | | Dockless Mobility Update – Aug. 23
Three months ago, the City of Austin launched a pilot program allowing dockless mobility companies to offer services in Austin. The bicycles and scooters provided by the seven companies that have been licensed do not have stations where users must pick up or return the vehicles. The community has expressed mixed reviews about the dockless program, and the City is asking for resident feedback through an online survey that takes about five minutes to complete.
To provide interested stakeholders with an update on the pilot, address questions and concerns, and discuss the the possible future of dockless mobility in Austin, the Austin Transportation Department and the Downtown Austin Alliance are hosting a breakfast at the Contemporary Austin Jones Center. Thursday, August 23, 2018 7:30-9 a.m. The Contemporary Austin Jones Center, Community Room
700 Congress Avenue
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| | | Austin Energy Summer Savings Event – Aug. 28
Join Austin Energy and Austin Water for a community summer savings event at Riverbend Church. Attendees will have the opportunity to receive tips to lower summer utility bills, discuss energy and water usage with a representative, learn how to monitor usage from a phone or tablet, and hear about helpful rebates for energy and water efficiency.
If you cannot attend the event on Aug. 28, visit the Summer Savings website to learn about how you can reduce your energy usage and save on your utility bill.
Tuesday, August 28, 2018 4-7 p.m. Riverbend Church Campus (Building Quad 4) 214 N. Capital of Texas Hwy |
| | Deep Eddy Labor Day Pool Party – Sept. 3
Join me, Friends of Deep Eddy and Love Austin Pools for a Labor Day Pool Party! This is a family-friendly event that will feature food, drinks, live performances, and swimming for all. I'll be there to talk about the importance of pools in our community, so come by and say hello! |
| | | | Back to School Anti-Idling Event – Sept. 5
The City of Austin and Clean Air Force of Central Texas are teaming up to host a Back to School Anti-Idling event at Highland Park Elementary. I will be there along with AISD superintendent Paul Cruz, Highland Park Elementary Principal Katie Pena, and AISD Director of Health Services Tracy Spinner to share AISD's efforts to reduce idling time at schools and discuss the health impacts of poor air quality.
Wednesday, Sept. 5 7:25-7:45 a.m. Highland Park Elementary School 4900 Fairview Drive
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| | | Star Party at Bull Creek Park – Sept. 7
Enjoy a night of looking at the stars with the Bull Creek Foundation and the Texas Museum of Science and Technology! The Star Party will be at the Bull Creek District Park. Attendees can park in either parking lot and meet the group in the meadow behind the restrooms. Telescopes will be available, but if you have your own, feel free to bring it. Be sure to RSVP at this link. A suggested donation of $10 per person or $25 per family directly supports the Bull Creek Foundation, and can be donated here.
Friday, September 7, 2018 8-10 p.m.
Bull Creek District Park 6701 Lakewood Drive
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| | | People's Gallery Call for Artworks – Oct. 17 Deadline
The City of Austin’s Cultural Arts Division invites Austin-area artists, galleries, museums, and arts organizations to apply for the 2019 People’s Gallery exhibition. Now in its 14th year, the People's Gallery showcases a variety of work by local artists throughout Austin City Hall and aims to encourage public dialog, understanding, and enjoyment of visual art. Applications for the exhibition are currently being accepted through October 17, 2018 for 2- and 3-dimensional artworks in any medium.
This year, the City is hosting an additional call: Install the Wall. Artists are invited to propose temporary, site-specific artwork installations for display in the Mayor’s second floor stairwell at City Hall for the duration of the 2019 exhibition. The total project budget is $3,000 and must include all materials, installation, and de-installation of the artwork.
Applicants to the 2019 People’s Gallery exhibition—which will run February 22, 2019 through January 1, 2020—may submit up to five artworks for consideration. Complete information on the call and a link to the online application system is available at http://tinyurl.com/peoplesgallery. Eligible artists must be 18 years or older and reside or work in Bastrop, Blanco, Burnet, Caldwell, Hays, Travis or Williamson Counties.
An artist information meeting was video-recorded and will be available on the Cultural Arts Division website soon. Complete guidelines for the program may be found here.
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| | Citizen Communication via Videoconferencing
Did you know that you don't have to drive down to City Hall to participate in Citizen Communication? Early last year, I was a proud cosponsor of a resolution directing the City Manager to analyze ways to expand library services offered to residents. This expansion included providing access to General Citizen Communication via videoconferencing, as well as facilitating teleconferencing by military families, community organizations and small business start-ups at local libraries.
Using the videoconferencing capabilities that our public libraries now possess is a great way to speak to Council about important issues without having to make the trek downtown, saving time, money and energy. Please note that you must plan in advance if you would like to take advantage of these new services. To ensure you are able to utilize the videoconferencing technology, contact your local library a few weeks before the date you would like to speak to Council and ask staff for assistance. |
| | District 10 Artist Feature – Ericka Barnes |
| | Thank you to District 10 artist Ericka Barnes for sharing her art with us! The piece featured above is Dope Crochet Bicycle Yarn Bomb. Barnes creates art based on people and places that inspire her, as well as based on her moods. She has been crocheting since the age of 12 and began yarn-bombing in order to create pieces that were versatile, textured, improvised and semi-permanent installations. A time-lapsed video of the creation of this piece can be watched here.
Once Barnes realized the impact Dope Crochet creations had on her and her customers, she set out to use her art to beautify the city. Barnes hopes that viewers will encounter her art on their daily walks to work or on their lunch breaks and find a little joy in the uncanny nature of yarn bombed bicycle, tree or another installation of her art.
Barnes also crochets earrings and accessories, and does yarn installations as well. Her portfolio of work and more information about the artist can be found at www.dopecrochet.com. |
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Do you know a local artist whose work you'd like to share with your neighbors? If you or someone you know have a knack for painting, drawing, photography, etc., we would love the opportunity to feature work from District 10 artists in the newsletter! To submit an artist/piece to be featured here, please email my Communications and Outreach Coordinator, April Brown, at April.Brown@austintexas.gov. If you are sending in your own work, please include a photo of the work you would like to share with your neighbors, the work's title, year, medium/materials, and a link to your website if you have one. Also encouraged is a bit of background info, such as:- What/who inspired the work?
- What do you hope its viewers will feel/think?
- Why did you choose the medium, subject matter, style?
Through these artist features, we hope to showcase some of the many talents and passions of District 10 residents and increase awareness of the importance of art in our communities. |
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