Letters are posted as we receive them during the week, and before they are printed in the paper, so check back frequently to see new letters. If you'd like to send a letter to the editor, use this postmarks submission form, or email your letter directly to [email protected]. Thanks for your patience.

Dear Editor,
    The Crestview Neighborhood Association newsletter says that a "business entity" is planning to purchase and redevelop the Argosy Apartments at 1003 Justin Lane. The March 13 public hearing at the Travis County Commissioner Precinct 2 office will discuss this purchase.
    ML CASA V, LP has applied for as much as $17.5 million in bonds to be issued by the Travis County Housing Finance Corporation for the redevelopment of the property. Twenty percent of the units will be reserved for persons making 50% of the adjusted median income of the area.
    Since I live across from the apartments, I know that they were repainted, re-roofed, and repaired around 2007. The $17.5 million is to go for financing, interior, and exterior renovation.
    Exterior renovation has recently been done.
    What are taxpayers buying? What is the cost per unit?
    The contact person for ML CASA V, LP is Kristina Lynn. Her website address is Henderson Global Investors of Chicago. It describes itself as a pure asset management house. Who is buying this property? Is this a sweetheart deal? Why are we giving financing to a Chicago asset-management house that describes itself as: "fund managers organized into compact, nimble teams, able to make decisions without the hindrance of a house-style or committee. Decisions are taken in a considered way – mindful of the risks yet alive to the opportunities."
    Why would the county trust these people with our money?

Dear Robert Faires,
    Thank you so much for your article "All Over Creation: Unexpected Losses" [The Arts, Feb. 10]. Phil Aulie was my closest friend and closest collaborator. He was an incredible musician, poet, actor, artist, and human being, and I feel your article perfectly captured the life and spirit of Phil, and did a wonderful job of refocusing the attention from the sadness of his death to a more hopeful and happy look at what he taught us in his life. For that, I cannot be more thankful.
    However, in the article you said that over the past year he had turned his attention back to theatre. And while it is true he worked on two plays, that doesn't really paint the full picture of his last year of life. He had also been working hard with his band Federal! State! Local! to finish their debut album, Touch Fuzzy, Get Dizzy.
    This was an endeavor he was absolutely ecstatic about finishing up and releasing to the public. He was extremely proud of all of our hard work on the album, but was particularly proud of some of the drum tricks and vocal takes he was able to pull off for the recordings.
    The album was recorded over the course of two years in three studios, with three different engineers, and three different lineups of the band. Amazingly, on Sunday, Jan. 29, we went down to the studio in Kyle and finished recording the album. Two days later, Phil Aulie was found dead in his apartment.
    The album is his final mark on the music and art scene of Austin, and I feel that knowing about the two-year struggle to pull it together helps to give a more well-rounded view of his final years.
    Once again, thank you for your fantastic article. It helped me to remember that although he has passed away, Phil will never truly be gone because his amazing contributions to the music, poetry, and theatre scenes, and his spirit of kindness and generosity will live on forever.

Dear Editor,
    In your recent article on City Council ["Inside Out … Outside In," News, Mar. 2], you totally left me out of the Place 5 candidates. Aside from filing, Dominic Chavez has done zero campaigning. I have been aggressively hitting the streets, knocking on doors, and gaining supporters. You could have easily seen my filing paperwork that is on file with the city clerk. Please, please … include all the candidates in the discussion. We need to be working together to get the messages out about voting. Heck, even if they don't vote for me, I just want to see more than 7% voter turnout this time! 

Dear Editor,
    Was anyone else in Austin as disappointed as I was when Stephen Colbert made bipolar disorder into a joke, without a hint of irony or self-awareness, while interviewing Claire Danes on his show on Thursday, March 1? We're making a lot of progress; it's a lot less socially acceptable than it used to be to put people down because of their gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, or race. It happens, but it's not as acceptable as it once was. But it is still acceptable to treat people with mental health disorders and physical and cognitive disabilities as a joke. That's why people keep their disabilities or mental health diagnoses a secret, even from co-workers and friends. They still have to stay in the closet or face socially sanctioned discrimination.

Dear Editor,
    After reading all the recent letters concerning the ongoing controversy of staple use at the Chronicle, something I have dubbed "Staplegate,” I think it is time for the public to weigh in on the matter. I feel that many, such as myself, have been keeping our feelings hidden, afraid of backlash from our neighbors. But now the time has come to speak out.
    I, for one, am totally against any use of staples at any time. And while I may not have had the heart-wrenching paper-handling problems that Mr. Hinojosa [“Postmarks,” Feb. 24] and Jack Bishop [“Postmarks,” March 2] have described, there is no denying the impact that your staple usage has had on my life. That mainly being an intolerable increase in my housework time, in particular, the time spent lining the bottom of my birdcage. Prior to your rampant use of staples, I knew exactly how many Chronicle pages to place in exactly which pattern to achieve maximum coverage. Now I am faced with a dilemma: It's either take the time to remove the staples or develop a whole new strategy. I have decided not to even play that game, and am now seeking another cage-liner. I'm looking at you Greensheet!

Dear Editor,
    How strange that Ryan Clinton of FixAustin.org and by proxy, Ellen Jefferson of Austin Pets Alive!, sued the city over moving the shelter to its new location. I'm curious: If they had won the lawsuit, where would Austin Pets Alive! be now?