If voters approve the $1 billion urban rail and road bond package in November, they can say hello to a 6 cent increase in the property tax rate over the next five years. ,..the City estimates that property tax appraisals will jump by over 25%!  Their example shows a $200,000 home being assessed at $255,000 by 2020.  So, the tax impact would multiply exponentially.

Read more:

http://austinaffordability.com/2014/07/30/rail-bond-vote-would-bring-historic-tax-increase/

Once we look past the slogan “rail or fail,” we find numerous examples that show that, when done wrong, public transit investments do fail. The Red Line commuter rail, whose ridership is far below initial projections, currently moves about two percent of the system’s riders while using up about six percent of its costs. And since MetroRapid’s introduction, combined ridership on the local and express version of the city’s flagship #1 route has fallen 11 percent.

http://aura-atx.org/2014/07/proposed-urban-rail-is-worse-than-doing-nothing/

see also AURA's pro and con pieces on East Austin Rail:

pro:

http://buildingatx.com/2014/07/guest-post-project-connect-is-a-solid-start-to-saving-our-city-from-traffic-congestion/

con:

http://buildingatx.com/2014/07/guest-post-project-connect-raises-concerns/

Second quarter campaign financing results confirm huge spending advantages for District 7 council candidates Jeb Boyt ($20,339) and Jimmy Paver ($18,582), followed by Melissa Zone ($6,634) and other candidates.  

Details of the funding results, including contributions by geography, were covered last week:

http://www.austindistrict7.org/boyt-paver-claim-fund-raising-lead-in-d7-race/

 

Austin is considered one of the safest cities of its size, but when it comes to property crime, tens of thousands of people fall victim every year.

Austin police solve more than half the violent crimes in the city. But according to the FBI's annual report, the city ranks 26th on the number of property crimes and last year police solved only 13 percent of those.

Read more:

www.kvue.com/story/news/local/2014/07/28/austin-ranks-high-for-property-crime/13289563/

Project Connect has announced two more open houses:

July 30, 5 pm – 8 pm – Spicewood Springs Library (8637 Spicewood Springs Rd, Austin, TX 78759)

August 3, 1 pm – 4 pm – Jewish Community Association of Austin (7300 Hart Ln, Austin, TX 78731)

http://projectconnect.com/central-corridor-urban-rail

Click on the links in the right corner for more information on the November bonds.

A July 20 American-Statesman editorial took issue with the Austin City Council for planning to issue bonds for buyouts of the homes of Onion Creek flood victims, since these bonds will be sold without voter approval.

Joanna Linden with the Capital Area Food Bank of Texas says St. John’s is shutting its doors because the rent is too high. The food bank will have to use other ways to meet the needs of that area of town. 

http://austin.twcnews.com/content/news/303459/north-austin-food-bank-to-close-its-doors/

At the end of the century, Austin’s average summertime high temperature could be six degrees above today’s average high of 97 degrees. And it may be hotter than 110 degrees in the city more than 20 days a year; even one day that hot is a rarity now.

Read more:

www.nytimes.com/2014/07/27/us/global-warming-think-its-hot-in-texas-austin-knows-better-get-used-to-110.html?_r=1

While some have likened the center to a "second downtown," it will never compete in sheer size to downtown Austin. "To be more accurate," notes David Blackbird, regional managing partner for the development and brokerage firm Stream Realty, "The Domain [is] North Austin's new downtown." 
http://austin.culturemap.com/news/real-estate/07-27-14-the-domain-continues-expansion-at-rapid-pace/

Team members and other residents of the Rundberg area participated in the PULSE count on July 23 for the area bounded by Parmer on the north, Cameron on the east, Research on the south and MOPAC on the west. The count identified 98 homeless people in the area. This number was more than twice the number identified in January of this year. However, after the event on the 23rd, it was determined that possibly some known homeless sites were missed. For the next count in January 2015, it is very important to have residents of the NACA area who are familiar with the area to participate.


Read more:

www.naca-austin.org/2014/07/restore-rundberg-report-7-25-2014/