District 9 Race Warms Up

Chris Riley

City Council incumbents Chris Riley and Kathie Tovo are now officially in campaign mode, vying for the District 9 seat in what will likely be the second most-closely watched race of the season.

Kathie Tovo

Riley kicked off his campaign May 29, and Tovo launched her re-election bid Tuesday night. They're both drawing on their respective records – and their visions for moving Austin forward – in selling themselves to Central Austin voters. A third candidate, Erin McGann, is also running.

Riley took first crack at distinguishing himself from Tovo, who, with outgoing Council Member Laura Morrison, has often been on the losing end of 5-2 votes on issues ranging from high-density projects to tax incentives for companies. "I don't ever intend to be a bomb-thrower or nay-sayer or someone who thinks that Austin's future needs to be defended from other Austinites," Riley told a crowd of some 200 supporters at Spider House on 29th Street. The lifelong Austin­ite touched on some of the more critical issues of the day – chiefly transportation and affordability. He cited his work on a transportation system to accommodate every mode of travel. "We know we need better options, but we can't pave our way out of regional traffic congestion," he said. He also advocates increased density with more units in the central city, closer to jobs, schools, and services. "We can create those options in ways that strengthen rather than damage the fabric of established and historic neighborhoods, by focusing on corridors and on infill opportunities," he said.

Launching her campaign at El Mercado in South Austin, Tovo told the packed house (one supporter said the head count was more than 350) that she's worked hard to keep her 2011 campaign pledge to represent everyday Austinites – "not the lobbyists and developers who come before us in a steady stream." On affordability, Tovo said she successfully fought against a 12% electricity rate increase that Austin Energy proposed in 2012, and led the adoption of an ordinance that improved payment-plan options for residents struggling to pay their electric bills. And she echoed one of her 2011 talking points on rapid growth: "We need to guide development, not rubber stamp it," she said. "We need to make growth pay for itself instead of asking taxpayers to subsidize it."

Council Member Morrison introduced Tovo as one who's stayed true to her core values, and lauded her advocacy work for neighborhood schools. "Kathie was a pioneer in Austin in our modern understanding that schools and neighborhood quality go hand in hand," she said.