Tag Archives: Austin

Lone Star Rail District update

Posted on April 22, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Haven’t heard from these guys in awhile. According to [Lone Star Rail District], the [proposed rail line] will provide essential relief from the I-35 highway congestion. The express trip from downtown Austin to downtown San Antonio would take 75 minutes. … Continue reading →

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AirBnB in Texas

Posted on April 19, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

The Rivard Report offers a useful overview of this growing service. With success comes regulation and Airbnb, the wildly popular “sharing economy” website that allows users to rent out portions of their home to adventuresome travelers, has had more than … Continue reading →

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How many crimes does your police department solve?

Posted on April 13, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Fewer than you think, unfortunately. Violent crime in America has been falling for two decades. That’s the good news. The bad news is, when crimes occur, they mostly go unpunished. In fact, for most major crimes, police don’t even make … Continue reading →

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Economic segregation in cities

Posted on March 2, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

From Wonkblog: Concentrated poverty is one of the biggest problems facing cities today, as more of the urban poor become isolated in neighborhoods where the people around them are poor, too. Growing economic segregation across cities, though, is also shaped … Continue reading →

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Plastic bag bans work

Posted on February 23, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Someone tell Greg Abbott. Shortly before being sworn in as governor, Greg Abbott called for doing away with local bans on plastic bags, fracking and tree-cutting that he says amount to a “patchwork quilt of bans and rules and regulations … Continue reading →

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Uber to leave San Antonio

Posted on February 7, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Not unexpected. Uber management sent a letter to Mayor Ivy Taylor and City Council Wednesday, warning that the rideshare service will leave San Antonio on March 1 unless the recently-passed existing is modified or repealed. Uber representatives say the new … Continue reading →

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First impressions of the 2014 results

Posted on November 6, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

My initial thoughts, for what they are worth. – Let me begin by saying that for all the criticism I had of the UT/Texas Trib’s polling and the skepticism of Internet-sample methodology, they were fairly accurate in the end. In … Continue reading →

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Austin gives early approval to Uber and Lyft

Posted on October 1, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s temporary pending a second Council vote and further study. After nearly four hours of testimony and debate, council members gave initial approval shortly after midnight to new rules that would temporarily legalize ridesharing companies such as Uber and Lyft, … Continue reading →

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Abbott issues bag ban opinion

Posted on September 8, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

It’s complicated. Do plastic bag bans and restrictions in cities like Austin, Laredo, and Brownsville violate Texas law? According to an opinion issued by Attorney General Greg Abbott’s office handed down on Friday afternoon, that depends on how you define … Continue reading →

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AirBnB in Houston

Posted on August 31, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

When people talk about “the sharing economy” for good or ill, the main players that get named tend to be Uber, Lyft, and AirBnB. We’ve heard a lot about the first two in Houston lately, but prior to this Chron … Continue reading →

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Another lawsuit against Uber and Lyft

Posted on July 26, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

That’s three lawsuits that I know of. A coalition of Texas disability advocates sued ride-share companies Uber and Lyft on Thursday as part of dozens of lawsuits filed around the state ahead of the anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities … Continue reading →

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Here comes the Uber and Lyft vote

Posted on June 11, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Barring anything unexpected, today is the day that Houston City Council settles – for now, anyway – the Uber/Lyft issue. Houston is not the only place where transportation network companies are seeking to do business in Texas, of course. The … Continue reading →

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The Uber/Lyft debate comes to Austin

Posted on May 15, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Get ready, y’all. The discussion around Austin’s public transportation debate has been at times both fevered and nuanced, driven in large part by social media. There have been discussions about lightrail, late-night bus service, parking ticket waivers, taxi driver accountability … Continue reading →

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AG opinion sought on bag bans

Posted on March 14, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever. As proponents continue to tout the benefits of banning plastic bags, the debate over whether Texas cities like Austin actually have the ability to enact such ordinances has made its way to the attorney general’s office. In a letter … Continue reading →

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Enforcing a new payday loan ordinance

Posted on December 18, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Mayor Parker’s proposed payday lending ordinance will be up before Council today, though it might wind up being delayed until the new Council is sworn in. It’s not clear yet how the vote might go, but in the meantime it’s … Continue reading →

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Austin B-Cycle coming

Posted on December 8, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Took ’em long enough. Service will launch Dec. 21 with 110 bikes and 11 stations, including one sponsored by the Chronicle. The full project will be completed by March 1, 2014, with expanded stations planned to service the UT-Austin campus, … Continue reading →

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The cities versus the payday lenders

Posted on October 28, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The Observer writes about representatives from Texas cities getting together to talk about how to fight the scourge of payday lenders. The conference panel on Thursday was an opportunity for city officials from around the state to share advice and … Continue reading →

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Bag ban update

Posted on October 15, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Having survived legislative meddling, bag bans are back on the agenda in Texas cities. Six months after Austin’s ban on most disposable plastic and paper bags took effect at checkout counters across the city, political fights are raging in Laredo and Dallas … Continue reading →

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Redistricting and voter ID lawsuit updates

Posted on August 31, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

From Texas Redistricting, a typically thorough look at where things stand with redistricting and voter ID litigation in the three courts – San Antonio, where the redistricting litigation has been ongoing and is likely due for some action; Corpus Christi, … Continue reading →

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Texas cities embracing bicycles

Posted on August 27, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a good thing. In Fort Worth, the mayor hosts occasional bicycle rides called “Rolling Town Halls.” The Dallas City Council could may soon require new businesses to set aside space for bicycle parking. Over in El Paso, officials are … Continue reading →

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Film incentive lawsuit

Posted on July 23, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

I can’t wait to see what happens with this. A lawsuit filed by Austin-based filmmaker Robert Rodriguez and the production company behind his film Machete accuses The Texas Film Commission of denying agreed-to financial incentives after the commission decided the … Continue reading →

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Austin wins X Games

Posted on July 22, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Congrats, Austin. The X Games are going from the glitz of Los Angeles to deep in the heart of Texas. Athletes with skateboards and motorcycles will be competing in the Texas capital after ESPN announced Wednesday that Austin will be … Continue reading →

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Enrolling the uninsured

Posted on June 30, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This is going to be such a huge job. Fresh produce wasn’t the only thing you could find at the Farmers Market [last] Saturday. Volunteers with the Get Covered America campaign were passing out flyers and letting people know that … Continue reading →

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Making San Antonio more musical

Posted on June 2, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

San Antonio is a little jealous of Austin, it seems. Tired of San Antonio playing second fiddle to Austin when it comes to a live music scene, Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff on Friday laid out ambitious plans to change … Continue reading →

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Collecting compost from restaurants

Posted on May 25, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

The city of Austin takes another step on its path towards zero waste. Austin restaurants and other food businesses will have to compost food scraps starting in 2016, under new rules the City Council OK’d Thursday. Food service businesses — … Continue reading →

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Are we too hip for our own good?

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Craig Hlavaty notes Houston’s current status as the It City of the national media, and wonders if that’s necessarily a good thing for us. But with the praise and accolades, lots of Houstonians are fearful that the Bayou City will … Continue reading →

Posted in Elsewhere in Houston | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

Cities generally ignore Abbott’s domestic partnership opinion

Posted on May 7, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Good for them. Attorney General Greg Abbott’s opinion [last] week, while not binding, is the latest of several challenges to same-sex benefits across the country that so far have had mixed results in the courts and prompted changes after officials … Continue reading →

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No X Games for Houston

Posted on May 6, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Alas. After more than 10 years in and around downtown Los Angeles, the X Games will leave Southern California for a new destination next year. Chicago, Detroit, Austin, Texas, and Charlotte, N.C. have been announced as finalist cities to earn … Continue reading →

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Not just Austin, dammit

Posted on April 29, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

What Flavia Isabel says: The single purpose of this post is to eradicate the phrase “Oh yeah, Austin is a blue dot in a sea of red” from the vocabulary of anybody who cares about turning Texas blue. I am … Continue reading →

Posted in Show Business for Ugly People | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Mobile payments

Posted on April 21, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Austin is a hot spot for the hot new thing in retail technology. Mobile payments technology is gathering steam across the country, but Austin is one of the hot spots, both for deployment of new technology and for development of … Continue reading →

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More on that underutilized high speed toll road

Posted on April 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

More toll road travails. Traffic counts on the new section of Texas 130, released Friday by the Texas Department of Transportation based on newspaper open records requests, show that the tollway southeast of Austin in its first couple of months … Continue reading →

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From the “What’s it to you”? department

Posted on March 27, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Freshman Rep. Drew Springer likes meddling in other people’s business. Austin’s recycling director urged the Legislature on Wednesday night to allow the city’s plastic bag ordinance to continue without state interference. Bob Gedert, director of Austin Resource Recovery, told the … Continue reading →

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Austin bag ban lawsuit filed

Posted on March 1, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

This bears watching. The Texas Retailers Association is suing the city of Austin over a disposable bag ban set to take effect [today], saying the ban violates state law and should be tossed out. The ban will prohibit all Austin … Continue reading →

Posted in Legal matters | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Austin to get bike sharing

Posted on January 16, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

About time, y’all. City Council will vote Thursday on a five-year contract with a newly formed nonprofit organization, Bike Share of Austin, to operate the system. The Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization awarded Austin a $1.5 million grant last summer … Continue reading →

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