Election Q&A: Austin City Council District 3 candidates

What challenges or needs related to the overall city budget and property tax rate do you anticipate facing during your term? What fiscal strategies would you bring to the table to address those?

Some challenges I anticipate the council facing during my term in office involve reducing the vacancy rate for civilian staff, ensuring that money allocated toward preventing displacement and homelessness are used with compassion and long-term thinking, having to use city dollars to protect Austin residents from policy shortcomings at the state and federal levels, and ensuring communities are well-resourced to withstand climate, economic and public health disasters. One of the biggest challenges faced by Austinites is rising property taxes. There are a few approaches to address this issue: increasing the supply of both market-rate and subsidized housing across the city, cracking down on property owners who have filed for a homestead exemption but use the property for short-term rentals and finding ways to better assist homeowners to navigate existing tax exemption opportunities. Different fiscal strategies that can be used to address these challenges, and needs can range from hiring staff who solely work toward finding systematic redundancies or expensive bureaucratic processes that can be made more efficient; ensuring that ordinances, propositions and budget items are founded in data; using lateral benchmarking, not only across U.S. cities but also international ones, to drive innovation and performance; and further engaging nonprofit partners to ensure they are supported and well-resourced in the work they do.

How should council address the implementation of larger transportation initiatives, including the I-35 expansion and Project Connect? What safety and mobility improvements would you propose for city roadways and bike/pedestrian routes?

I fully support Project Connect. We are decades behind on where we should be when it comes to our public transit system. The number of working-class people who can afford to live in Austin is shrinking rapidly, and this is having a huge impact on the economy. Businesses are struggling to hire people because more and more folks moving here from other cities or states are high-wage earners that can afford to pay the higher rents, and investors are gobbling up affordable homes and properties in order to build luxury housing. Without an adequate transit system, people can’t afford to commute one to two hours into town, assuming they even have a car. Small businesses are being acutely impacted by this since they operate on smaller margins and can’t afford to either be understaffed nor pay employees the wages necessary to afford living in Austin. Building a robust, reliable and efficient transit system is of absolute priority, and we must move forward with Project Connect before costs go even higher. The improvement priorities I consider most important in Austin are improving public transit, decreasing car dependency and maintaining roads and sidewalks. When it comes to public transit, Project Connect is the largest public transit venture that Austinites will be involved with. Ensuring that the yearslong project is developed in a sustainable and equitable way will be my top priority for the transit system. Additionally, I will work to ensure that the $300 million anti-displacement funds are spent in a way that aligns with community input. Another huge concern for many Austinites is the redevelopment of I-35. Very few residents want an expansion of the highway, and it is imperative that TxDOT take community needs into consideration. I have signed the ReThink 35 pledge to support a comprehensive study of community alternatives, such as rerouting nonlocal traffic around Austin and turning I-35 into a boulevard or burying I-35 and capping the highway so that it can be used for community amenities such as greenspace and safe bike paths. As we move towards a more dense, wakable, and transit-friendly city, we can consider creative ideas that reduce car dependency, such as car-free streets and the equitable expansion of the COA e-bike program.

Austin has weathered several disasters in recent years. How would you rate the city’s response to such incidents and what changes, if any, would you propose for civic emergency management operations?

I recall being without power during Winter Storm Uri, and it’s not something I’d care to repeat. I spent 12 days straight working 14-16 hours per day with other nonprofits and community leaders to ensure the safety and health of our city’s residents. I will not let such a disorganized disaster response affect Austinites again. I would follow the recommendations set out in the city of Austin and Travis County Winter Storm Uri After-Action Report & Improvement Plan Technical Report. The improvement plan framework is designed to address the shortcomings of both the city and county during the last winter storm. The recommendations align with the city of Austin Strategic Direction 2023 and the Strategic Vision and Goals of Travis County and are designed to bolster our disaster response. During Uri, I noticed that there was a lack of communication between the hundreds of good samaritan volunteers and the Emergency Operations Center. There was also no way to get information to citizens due to so many homes being without power and cell service. I will propose a direct line to the EOC from primary staging locations throughout the city. Examples would be Austin Fire Fighters Association building, Workers Defense building, Dove Springs Rec Center, and/or the Montopolis Rec and Community Center. I’d also advocate for several disaster and inclement weather equipped mobile units with PAs who could literally drive through neighborhoods without power or cell service providing community updates.

What challenges or needs related to the overall city budget and property tax rate do you anticipate facing during your term? What fiscal strategies would you bring to the table to address those?

The biggest fiscal challenge that I anticipate is the allocation of funds. We speak about equity and justice but the budget is the real indicator. As a commissioner on the Austin Community Development Commission, I have worked with other commissioners to make budget recommendations that address the issues of housing, health, food insecurity among others, and we worked to make sure that the budget demonstrates equity.

How should council address the implementation of larger transportation initiatives including the I-35 expansion and Project Connect? What safety and mobility improvements would you propose for city roadways and bike/pedestrian routes?

These major projects must be implemented with community in mind. Who lives in the area and who will be most impacted? Of course the answer is those working class families that have historically been marginalized in our city. The I-35 expansion, for example, will greatly affect our East Austin communities and those who drive on I-35 to get around. We need to oppose the expansion of I-35, but also make sure that our working families are able to stay and live near their work and schools so that they can drive less. We also need to reroute those drivers just passing through. If we can help working families drive less and reroute traffic, we will need to expand I-35. Project Connect is huge because it is not just a transportation project but a land use and real estate project. The question is, who will benefit? Working families are already being displaced along East Riverside Drive and South Congress Avenue because speculators are buying up the land in anticipation. We need to make sure that our working families are able to stay in their communities near the Project Connect lines and make sure that any development around these lines includes family friendly housing. Again, when our working families are able to live near the Project Connect lines, they will drive less and we will decrease traffic around the city. Even those that do not live near I-35 of the Project Connect lines need alternative ways to get around their communities and the city. We need to reduce the amount of car trips that are less than a mile. Many parts of our city lack proper sidewalks, pedestrian pathways, pedestrian crossings and other improvements that can help us get around without using our cars. We need to look at why people are driving less than a mile to drop off their kids at school, to get a snack at the corner store, or to the local community center.

Austin has weathered several disasters in recent years. How would you rate the city’s response to such incidents and what changes, if any, would you propose for civic emergency management operations?

We need a community approach to emergency preparedness. During the height of the COVID pandemic and during Winter Storm Uri, our communities did not know where to find resources or information. I partnered with our Parent Support Specialist to make sure that our families had the information and resources they needed. We organized a food and water drive, without Resilience hubs are a great start and a great idea, but we need to take a community-centered approach. Many residents, including those that need assistance the most, are not even aware of the resilience hubs project nor the community meeting being held.

How should council address the implementation of larger transportation initiatives, including the I-35 expansion and Project Connect? What safety and mobility improvements would you propose for city roadways and bike/ped routes?

Project Connect is a failure, and we need to go back to the drawing board to bring an effective solution to building an effective public transportation system. Multiple solutions including limited-evasive widening of I-35 must be resolved. Roadway improvements need to be examined, including widening streets and improving sidewalks for safety to alleviate the traffic congestion. We must correct the traffic nightmares at the South Austin Hospital through its expansion.

Austin has weathered several disasters in recent years. How would you rate the city’s response to such incidents, and what changes, if any, would you propose for civic emergency management operations?

The leadership in Austin has failed in its response to recent disasters. Emergency management operations needs to ensure communication to residents and visitors is prioritized as well as its response. Proactive policies, improvements and maintenance are needed to the infrastructure so it can withstand within reason the various disasters Austin endures.

How should the council address the implementation of larger transportation initiatives, including the I-35 expansion and Project Connect? What safety and mobility improvements would you propose for city roadways and bike/pedestrian routes?

I would like to analyze the current plan for the I-35 expansion and Project Connect to see if the current plan could reduce traffic for the next 20 years. I will make my decision afterward. I would like to expand the walkway along the Lady Bird Lake along the river past District 3 toward the airport.

Austin has weathered several disasters in recent years. How would you rate the city’s response to such incidents, and what changes, if any, would you propose for civic emergency management operations?

Austin has a great response time for severe weather. I would not propose any new measures for the time being.