Council: In the Shadow of the Dome

Photo by David Brendan Hall

City Council is settling into a biweekly regular schedule for the next couple of months, although that only counts regular meetings, so it's a little misleading. There's no formal meeting today, Feb. 8, but they've already held a special-called work session Tuesday afternoon, and the first of four all-day budget work sessions Wednesday, Feb. 7 (to be followed by Feb. 21, March 7, and April 4). Regular action meetings will be Feb. 15, March 1 and 8 ... and then the annual spring break.

Last Thursday's meeting carried a heavy load ("Council: Because We're Happy!" Feb. 6) with a couple of votes held over until Feb. 15. One of those is the proposed settlement agreement covering the Champion Tract 3 development on City Park Road. Council postponed the vote until next week – over the objections of the applicant landowner/developer – on the grounds that an updated staff environmental analysis arrived too late for adequate consideration. Aside from the specific vote, the discussion generated some musings from Mayor Steve Adler on the external implications – including the potential for another lawsuit from the developer (over a settlement approved in 2016, but derailed in court by an inadequate agenda posting). That quickly shifted toward a larger, more persistent concern: the shadow of the state Legislature obstructing the city's attempts at local control, particularly in land use matters. "This is a hard case," said Adler. "More than anything else in this case I am sick, once again, of what the state does to a community that tries to puts its values in its ordinances and resolutions."

The immediate issue was the historical pattern of the state overriding Austin's attempts to maintain environmental standards in land use matters, for which the Champion case is only one example (the better-known cases involve protection of Barton Springs). Earlier in the day, Council had voted (on consent) to approve a resolution sponsored by Delia Garza that would (if eventually confirmed by ordinance) withhold city business from companies choosing to be involved in the "building, maintenance, or financing" of the Trump administration's desired border wall. At a press conference preceding the Council meeting, CMs addressed, among other things, the possibility that the 2019 Legislature would take action against Austin for such impertinence (echoing ongoing legal pressure over Austin's status as a supposed "sanctuary city").

Next week's agenda features a similar flashpoint: Greg Casar's proposal to require local businesses to provide paid "sick time" for all employees. Although Tuesday's work session on the resolution appeared to reflect strong dais support for the proposal – indeed, some CMs wondered why such a policy isn't already in place statewide – one of the considerations for next week's vote will be, "What will the Legislature do?" From the bag ban to gerrymandering, "Austin values" can expect a battering when progressive policy decisions draw Republican attention under the Dome.

Some other things to watch next week:

• Whither Fútbol? The agenda lists an Office of Real Estate Services item for a "discussion" of potential city-owned sites for a Major League Soccer stadium, but late last week staff asked for three more months of review – so for the moment, it's stoppage time.

• About That Contract: Two Items from Council would move to restore certain not-under-dispute "specialized pay" policies for Austin Police officers (e.g., bilingual, mental health) while simultaneously directing staff to resume meet-and-confer negotiations with the Austin Police Association.

• Forensic Backlog: APD continues its effort to reduce the distressing backlog in sexual assault kit analysis; an amendment to the contract with Sorenson Forensics would add $220,000 and another six months.

And as always, next week will feature plenty more zoning cases ....