The details
The DACC generally works with those experiencing homelessness and has been in operation for more than two decades. It's currently based out of the city's One Texas Center at 505 Barton Springs Road.
The diversionary court handles cases and offers social support services such as case management for its clients, many of whom are identified as repeat offenders. The bulk of the DACC's work has traditionally centered around the thousands of minor public offense cases committed each year downtown and in the surrounding Central Austin area, such as public camping violations re-established by voters in 2021.
Following the departure of the court's longtime administrator Pete Valdez last year, the city launched a national search for his replacement and announced Kingham's appointment July 6.
Kingham worked at Austin Public Health for several years before arriving at the DACC in 2017 where he handled various administrative duties and a portion of the city's social service investments in the community. According to the city, Kingham previously led initiatives to involve more people experiencing homelessness in city planning work as well as the Violet KeepSafe transitional storage program for those without a safe place to secure their belongings.
“Robert Kingham is an excellent choice as the next court administrator for the Downtown Austin Community Court,” Bruce Mills, Austin's interim assistant city manager overseeing public safety, said in a statement. “He has the experience and knowledge needed to ensure the DACC continues to integrate new processes and policies that will help meet the needs of our court clientele and the community.”
In other news
The selection of a new DACC administrator comes soon after city leaders moved to broaden the scope of the court's work across Austin.
Discussion of expanding the DACC's jurisdiction stretched through last year. Stakeholders including the court advisory board weighed how more Austinites might be able to access its services given the facility's current limitation in and around downtown only—especially as it remains physically located south of Lady Bird Lake, outside that boundary.
Public engagement in 2022 found that a majority of stakeholders supported pushing the limits of the court's service area out across Austin in a move for greater equity in access. Additionally, there was broad support for adding to the types of cases that the DACC can adjudicate.
Following those conversations, City Council recently moved to strike geographic limitations on the DACC's work and allow the court to handle more misdemeanor cases. Council also sought to fund two new case manager positions at the court to address a mounting caseload.
“With this expansion, we will ensure that no matter where you live—downtown, Pleasant Valley, Springdale, Rundberg or Westgate—you can gain access to the same transformational aid that the DACC has been providing for years in downtown Austin," Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison said in June.
A city spokesperson said it's expected that those changes will be brought to council for final review and approval this fall.
The future
Those changes come as the future of the DACC facility remains uncertain after the court relocated out of downtown in 2021, a move that was expected to be temporary at the time.
City officials had considered bringing the DACC back downtown to an old municipal building last year. However, concerns about the cost of refurbishing the historic building alongside pushback from local residents and advocacy groups eventually led to that idea stalling out. The court has remained at the One Texas Center since then.
In March, the DACC's advisory board formally asked city leaders to commit to securing a new downtown facility after years of operating without adequate space or in a central location. Members also requested nearly $3 million to support new staff positions and programming, nearly $700,000 of which council asked to add to this year's city budget planning.
"The Downtown Austin Community Court advisory board urges City Council to allocate funds and explore all available means to avoid setbacks and instead increase DACC’s efforts to address homelessness in Austin," board members wrote in their recommendation.
