City Council adjourned at the fairly miraculous hour of 5:52pm last Thursday (April 6), and while most of the credit goes to a relatively brief and uncontentious agenda, Mayor Steve Adler and his colleagues did plow through the 49 Items at a fairly brisk pace.
The headline matters, more or less, were three reports: 1) a briefing by Economic Development staff on the proposed economic incentive deal with Merck Sharp & Dohme Corporation (public hearing and vote April 13); 2) a brief presentation and Council reception of the report by the Mayor’s Task Force on Institutional Racism and Systemic Inequities; and 3) a public hearing on the Strategic Housing Plan, also to be considered for approval, and possible inclusion in the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan, on April 13.
We’ve reported on all three reports previously (see links above), but it’s worth a few notes here concerning the Council and audience reception. On the Merck proposal – $856,000 in city incentives over 10 years, in return for about $1.9 million in direct benefits – there were a few misgivings on the dais, although the prevailing sentiment was positive, less over the the direct economic benefits than for the synergistic potential with Dell Medical School and other local institutions (e.g., Huston-Tillotson, Austin Community College, and Austin ISD).
Some witnesses were harshly critical of the incentives, describing the proposal as another unnecessary giveaway to a corporation that doesn’t need them. But Colette Pierce Burnett of Huston-Tillotson looked forward to a partnership for student training and internships, and Mini Kahlon of Dell described both the research and health care possibilities as strong local initiatives. On the dais, District 2 Council Member Delia Garza was the most skeptical, suggesting that the project’s 600 high-tech jobs do not answer Austin’s greatest need, urging staff to work harder at middle and lower-income jobs; others responded that there would be plenty of secondary employment generated by the project. There were other detailed questions, some to be answered next week, but most council members suggested support for the proposal (with city approval likely to trigger state incentives as well). (You can comment online on the proposal, through April 12, here.)
The Racism report received a somewhat milder reception, in that it was technically a Task Force report submitted for Council consideration, not requiring specific action – that will come as its 200+ recommendations move through staff review and itemization (and many of which challenge Austin ISD or local business leadership rather than the city). A couple of witnesses did complain that it is not yet directly tied to city actions, but Pierce Burnett (co-chair of the Task Force, with AISD Supt. Paul Cruz) defended the approach, and even provided for a couple of minor corrections in the submittal. She noted that 49-member Task Force called on related work of some 200 people in all, and that they were please to find synergies among them. “One of the byproducts of the working groups,” she said, “was that those people got together and saw that you’re doing much similar work to what I’m doing, and if we were collective in our efforts … we could make greater strides. We may go fast alone, but we go farther together.”
Finally, public testimony was divided on the Strategic Housing Plan, with some witnesses suggesting that it was insufficiently focused and possibly threatening to traditional neighborhoods, while others defended its major aspiration – 135,000 new housing units (or more) over 10 years – and its specific recommendations about how to address that need. Action was left suspended – with council members requesting updates from staff, based on the testimony, and further discussion in Tuesday’s work session. Dais sentiment seemed to reflect hesitation over importing the plan into the comprehensive plan – which would give it the force of ordinance – so it might well enter the designated city limbo of “things we’d like to do. …”
In other actions, Council:
• Getting Tased?: Moved forward on a $4 million contract with Taser International (now Axon) for 700-plus APD officer body cameras. Seemed a curious action, because it 1) is an end-run on a pending lawsuit over contract favoritism; and 2) Axon is now offering free cameras, as an enticement to provide control of data storage.
• Solarized: Over objections from D8 CM Ellen Troxclair, approved Austin Energy incentives to developer PSW Real Estate ($351,000 for about 200 homes and condos) and Target ($1.1 million over 10 years at four facilities). Troxclair objected to the subsidies; other council members defended the ongoing policy as both reducing AE long-term costs and helping to combat climate change.
• Peace at ABIA: Following testimony from members of UNITE!, approved a “labor peace agreement” policy for airport concessions – that is, in return for freedom to organize without management interference, the union refrains from threatening strikes or other disruptions. Troxclair objected to the potential (and unidentified) cost to small businesses; Garza (among others) defended unionism, and emotionally thanked the unionists for testifying in a difficult time for workers, especially immigrants. “Because you will continue to do that work and organize,” she told the workers, “either you or your children … will be sitting on this dais some day.”
City Council’s next regular meeting is Thursday, April 13 – work session is Tuesday morning, followed by another Wednesday budget session. At only 41 Items, Thursday’s agenda is moderate, but includes the return of the Merck proposal for a vote and third reading of the still contentious Austin Oaks PUD (with the public hearing, and the arguments, still open). It will also, however, be Glimmer of Hope Day. May it be so.
For more on City Council, follow the Daily News (including a report, later today, on the city manager search), and this week’s print edition.
This article appears in April 7 • 2017.
