Two Occupy Austin protesters are taking the city of Austin to federal court, charging “unlawful prior restraint” of protected speech through the city’s use of Criminal Trespass Notices to ban some Occupiers from City Hall premises for up to one year. more ›

Thursday morning in Dallas, 18 individuals camping at a site near City Hall in support of the ‘Occupy’ movement were arrested overnight and face trespassing charges, a Class C misdemeanor. more ›

Current opponents criticize single-member districts as leading to parochial ward politics. In response, supporters of a district-based governance system cite improved responsiveness to local needs, higher voter turnout and the possibility of increased minority representation. more ›

With all the crazy budget nonsense going on, wouldn't it be nice if you could just get into a room with a politician? Well, tonight you can. Austin Mayor Lee Leffingwell has partnered with KLRU to host a community forum to discuss the city's “transition into a major city.” A host of former Texas mayors will be there, including former Houston mayors Bill White (!) and Henry Cisneros. The free taping starts tonight at 6:30 in the KLRU studios on the UT campus. You can RSVP here. more ›

Mayor Lee Leffingwell said in a press release today that, contrary to what he promised voters in last year’s election, an urban light rail proposal will not be ready by its “overly ambitious” November 2010 deadline. more ›

Councilmember Chris Riley and Mayor Lee Leffingwell are crapping all over a plan by the Cities of Leander and Granite Shoals to discharge treated sewage, or effluent (pronounced "eff-you-uhnt"), into the Highland Lakes, including Lake Travis and Late Austin. Late Austin is currently the sole source of drinking water in Austin and the newly approved water treatment plant will draw from Lake Travis. Other councilmembers will decide on Thursday whether to join them in opposition. The Lower Colorado River Authority and Travis County have already indicated that they are opposed to the new plan. Texas Commission on Environmental Quality rules currently prohibit new treated wastewater effluent discharges into any of the Highland Lakes. LCRA predicts considerable degradation of water quality in the Highland Lakes if new discharges are authorized. Most of the fecal matter is removed from treated wastewater (unless there is a malfunction or it rains), but other contaminants remain - notably pharmaceuticals. more ›

• Mayor Leffingwell announces his downtown plan. (PS - No mention of condos!)
• Five arrested in alleged gang rape at homecoming dance in California.
• Get ready for ski season!

Speaking last Friday at City Hall, Mayor Leffingwell estimated there are around 4000 homeless people in Austin, with about 600 of those chronically homeless. Bill Hobson, Executive Director of Seattle’s Downtown Emergency Service Center, spoke to those fighting the problem in Austin: city and county agencies, private organizations and interested citizens. A Baylor graduate and self-described “recovering Southern Baptist”, Hobson focused on his experiences with 1811 Eastlake, a 75 bed facility for the chronic homeless opened in 2005. Eastlake residents are about evenly split between alcohol and drug addicts and those with serious mental health problems like schizophrenia. more ›

After months-long discussions over how to counter an estimated $30 million revenue shortfall, the City Council yesterday voted unanimously to approve the final Fiscal Year 2010 budget. more ›

A swearing-in ceremony should be both solemn and fun. The rules are simple: dress up, bring your family, friends and staff, and speak briefly. At City Hall on Monday, two returning council members, Mike Martinez and Sheryl Cole, and two new members, Chris Riley and Bill Spelman, along with the new Mayor, Lee Leffingwell, took the oath of office. Leffingwell moves to the center position of what he called a strong city council. In a short speech, he cautioned that tax revenues continued to decline. Using a metaphor from his days as a pilot, he said, “We will arrive safely at our destination, but there might be some turbulence along the way.” Leffingwell offered no specifics on his budget priorities. The inaugural was also an opportunity for the council to thank outgoing Mayor Will Wynn for his nine years of service. Martinez praised his leadership and cited the welcome extended to Katrina victims as an example. Wynn and outgoing council member Brewster McCracken received sustained applause as they walked off the dais for the last time. more ›

Many thanks to everyone who attended the Urban Is Core: Austin Super Forum last Saturday, especially the candidates Brewster McCracken, Lee Leffingwell, David Buttross, Chris Riley, Perla Cavazos, Mike Martinez, Bill Spellman, Sheryl Cole, and Osemene Sam. Also, special thanks to Josiah Ingalls, who had to work during the forum, but was kind enough to complete our questionnaire. If you missed the forum (or liked it so much you want to see the candidates' answers to more questions) click their names above to see their answers to our questionnaire. The mayoral and place 1 races are especially hot contests and the outcome of those races will have a big impact on the shape of our city in the years to come. more ›

This Saturday, April 4, Austinist.com is joining several local urban groups to present the Urban is Core - Austin Super Forum. The forum will give candidates for Mayor and City Council in the May 9, 2009 election an opportunity to discuss urban issues with voters. As a precursor to the forum, we sent questions to each of the candidates, which we will be publishing throughout the week. Click through to see answers from Lee Leffingwell, running for mayor. more ›

Editor's note: In hopes of getting a little more information on how the candidates in the May 10 Austin City Council election may respond to issues facing Austin, we sent out a few questions. First up is Lee Leffingwell, the incumbent running for Place 1 against Allen Demling and Jason Meeker. See all his responses after the jump. more ›