Inauguration Highlights and Shadows

The atmosphere in City Council chambers was festive Friday evening, beginning with the full house, the Austin Police Department’s bagpipe-and-drum corps, a presentation of colors, and a formal performance of the National Anthem. Yet there remained an undertone of seriousness, not entirely tied to the evening’s purpose.

The specific occasion was the inauguration of the re-elected – Delia Garza (District 2), Greg Casar (D4), Leslie Pool (D7) – and new – Jimmy Flannigan (D7), Alison Alter (D10) council members, with an additional bit of official business in the re-election of Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo (D9). D1 CM Ora Houston nominated Tovo, praising her role as a Council mentor (the MPT position traditionally goes to the longest-serving member), and newly elected Flannigan interrupted to laughter – “I understand it’s tradition for the District 6 member to interrupt the proceedings,” in a not very subtle reference to his defeated predecessor Don Zimmerman – and then to second the nomination. The vote was unanimous.

Mayor Steve Adler gave a lighthearted introduction, welcoming the new members and noting the transition to the second 10-1 Council. He also acknowledged the Council majority of seven women – in that aspect, a reprise of the previous Council – and more jokingly added that he had grown a beard over the holidays, in solidarity with the rest of the male members (each of them bearded or mustachioed).

All in all, a merry occasion. Nevertheless, in brief acceptance speeches, several members took the opportunity to acknowledge the national political cloud hanging over the proceedings, in the shape of the incoming Donald Trump administration. Garza thanked her staff and family – “We weren’t wealthy in terms of money; we had wealth in terms of love, support, and a deep family bond” – then mentioned concerns about the effects of the national election, and its meaning for the Austin community. “Regardless of events at the federal level, our progressive values have not changed.

“We will fight together to ensure that Austin remains welcoming, remains progressive, and remains a city that aspires to protect its most vulnerable,” Garza continued. “And we will never, ever accept or normalize hateful rhetoric.”

Casar began with a story from his childhood – his mother patiently indulging his effort to pump air into a “ponchado” earth – using it as an example of the work that still needed to be done. He cited a litany of the various projects still before the Council – affordable housing, environmental protection, workers' rights, etc. – and then hit the larger theme: “Together we must organize to battle bigotry and Islamophobia and Trumpism and immigrant-bashing at every turn, so that we can truly be a model for inclusion and respect for all people, as was promised in our nation’s founding documents.”

Less formally, the same note was struck by Flannigan, who promised to “help set the tone of resistance” with the rest of his colleagues. (The new D6 council member also mentioned a couple of firsts: He’s the first openly gay man to serve on Council, and the first Williamson County resident.)

His fellow newcomer Alter and returning incumbent Pool delivered slightly more traditional remarks, thanking their teams, family, and colleagues, and promising, in Alter’s words, "To represent you at City Hall, to manage growth responsibly, to protect our open and green spaces, to invest in our children, to get Austin moving, and to make City Hall work for all of us.”

Ideally, those are the local burdens that will remain front and center at City Hall – but it remains to be seen if the looming shadows of the Legislature and the federal government will do much to darken Austin’s independent future over the next several years.

City Council convenes at 9am Wednesday and Thursday this week for policy workshops, to be held at the AT&T Executive Education and Conference Center, Room 301. Council will also hold a special-called meeting Wednesday afternoon, 4pm at City Hall, for a discussion and staff update on CodeNEXT. For more on City Council, follow the Daily News and this week’s print edition.