Frances Acuna, volunteers, & students meet to discuss E. Williamson Creek Trail
Austin seeks feedback as it overhauls approach to protecting waterways and communities
“Austin city leaders claim they are trying to change what they call "climate injustice," in part by overhauling the Watershed Protection Department's strategic plan, which will guide its priorities and decision-making for the next decade. …[Frances Acuna] said it is GAVA volunteers who clean up ignored areas, like the Williamson Creek Greenbelt, where Acuna said trash accumulates from a homeless camp. She said she's tried to get help from the City, but the lack of response only made her angry.”
Texas researchers, Austin activists partner on new Climate Atlas
“It means nothing to communities who are directly impacted if we don’t do something with [the map]. If our decision-makers don’t act and follow the lead of directly impacted people, so ultimately, that’s going to determine how useful this tool is,” Llanes said.
New co-op grocery store to address food deserts in east Austin
“The impact will be having healthier food,” [Nolvia Castillo, an Austin resident & GAVA member] said. “[My neighbors] are elated. I don’t know how to express this because it is what they’ve always wanted.”
City plans for community-owned grocery project in East Austin
"We have Austinites who have to travel 20, sometimes 30 minutes to get to their nearest full-scale grocer. And that is simply not OK for a city like Austin; that’s prosperous," District 2 Council Member Vanessa Fuentes saId.
East Austin Doesn’t Get the Same Shade, and Consequences Ripple for Health and Equity
[T]he heat has gotten much more extreme in recent years, taking a toll on residents' health, [Carmen Llanes Pulido] said. "One of our folks in South Austin is a paramedic and EMT for children and talks about how many more children come in with respiratory issues in the emergency room on hot days," she said. "When you're seeing kid after kid after kid, you start thinking about the true cost of pulling up a bunch of heritage or keystone trees or paving over a bunch of green space."
Dove Springs getting a new trail: Donde Corre el Agua
Dove Springs residents Blanca Ortíz, Elena Rodríguez and Enedina Sánchez, who initiated the project, teamed up with Frances Acuña of Go Austin/Vamos Austin and Bjørn Sletto, a UT architecture professor, and his class to pull together a 100-plus-page book that spells out how the project should be approached.
Texans struggle to pay skyrocketing rent
“We need the city to invest in the community. That is part of what GAVA is recommending to the city," [Monica] Guzmán said. "We need the city to invest more money in contracts for social service agencies and community-based organizations that provide financial emergency relief, rent relief, utilities…”
Affordable Housing and How to Get More Keeps Council Busy
Coming through loud and clear at City Council's June 9 meeting were deep anxieties about expanding the vertical mixed-use density bonus program, designed to create affordable housing on Austin's core transit corridors.
Representatives of Go Austin/Vamos Austin (GAVA) urged Council to slow down and rework the ordinance…
Council approves new mixed-use development rules and launches separate corridor proposal
Looming over the discussion was a March court ruling [Acuna et al. v. City of Austin]on property owners’ right to petition zoning changes and force a 9-vote supermajority at Council.
People sheltered at Mendez Middle School, the site of a potential resilience hub, during Winter Storm Uri (Photo by Jana Birchum)
East Austin Residents Need Resilience Hubs Sooner Rather Than Later
Acuña said it's impossible for some Onion Creek residents to walk almost 2 miles on ill-kept sidewalks to the Mendez Middle School, the nearest potential resilience hub, in the event driving is not an option. During extreme weather conditions, residents trying to make this trip by foot could be exposed to life-threatening situations, she said.
Austin pilot program to give struggling residents $1,000 per month
The guaranteed income program — similar to others around the country — is meant to help the most vulnerable in the community, such as families on the brink of eviction, and people who have recently found themselves on the street.
A total of 85 recipients will take part in the pilot, according to city documents.
Austin partners with local nonprofits on $20M Project Connect anti-displacement fund
The City of Austin announced Monday it will work with nonprofit organizations and community partners to disseminate $20 million in anti-displacement funding related to Project Connect.
Zoning battle ends in victory for Grady and Brownie project
“Even some of my friends who work for the city now live in places like Georgetown or Buda, and have to take on the burden of commuting,” Taylor Lang of Go Austin/Vamos Austin said.
Proposed VMU changes stir compatibility controversy
“You can’t address compatibility citywide in one piece of a proposal,” Commissioner Carmen Llanes Pulido said. “This has tremendous community planning implications.”
Austin OKs $41 million in Project Connect anti-displacement efforts
“People who have the finances are showing up with cash in hand making offers of over $20,000 and more over asking price,” [Monica] Guzmán said.
Latest Data Brief Provides Insight Into Southeast/North Austin Zip Codes
“The [A2SI] survey is cutting edge because we weren’t finding anybody else who was applying both public health and public policy to these kinds of issues,” said Carmen Llanes Pulido, executive director at GAVA.
GAVA ED carmen llanes pulido is La Voz’s person of the year
“As an acknowledgement of Carmen Llanes Pulido’s many contributions to the Austin community we believe she is most deserving of La Voz Newspaper’s Person of the Year Award.”