Here’s what you need to know this week if you live in Northwest Austin:
1. Austin Community College teams with city to host job fair
Austin Community College is partnering with the city of Austin to host a mini job fair Monday. The free event takes place from 1-5 p.m. in the multipurpose room at ACC's Eastview campus at 3401 Webberville Road, Austin. The fair will give local job seekers a chance to meet with Austin-area employers who have immediate job openings and receive assistance from community nonprofit organizations.
The Austin City Council District 10 race will be decided in a runoff election.[/caption]
2. Austin City Council District 10 seat to be decided in runoff election
On Tuesday, first-term incumbent Council Member Sheri Gallo faces off against challenger Alison Alter in the only Austin City Council runoff race this election cycle. Early voting for the runoff election ran Dec. 1-9. The two candidates were the top two vote-getters in the Nov. 8 general election, as Gallo received 48 percent of the vote, and Alter received 36 percent. Election rules require winners to receive more than 50 percent of the ballots cast.
Read what Gallo and Alter spoke about during a Nov. 29 campaign forum.
3. Austin Oaks PUD proposal before City Council once again
A public hearing and possible action on the
Austin Oaks PUD proposal is on the agenda Thursday for Austin City Council. The
city’s zoning commission approved the controversial rezoning case in November, opening the door for redeveloping the Northwest Austin site as a planned unit development.
The existing 445,322-square-foot Austin Oaks office complex sits on 31.4 acres of land on the southwest corner of Spicewood Springs Road and MoPac. Developer Spire Realty is proposing to build 865,900 square feet of office space, 12,800 square feet of restaurant space and 90,000 square feet of hotel space. Several neighborhood groups have rallied against the proposal and several previous iterations and have argued, in part, that development plans are too large for the property.
The Northwest Austin Civic Association
has scheduled a town hall meeting from 6:30-8 p.m. Monday regarding the Austin Oaks PUD proposal. The meeting takes place at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, 8134 Mesa Drive, Austin.
In a diverging diamond intersection drivers would temporarily cross to the left side of the road to either turn left or pass through the Parmer Lane intersection. Drivers wanting to go straight on the frontage roads would take the bypass lane highlighted in blue.[/caption]
4. TxDOT plans improvements to address traffic congestion at Parmer Lane and I-35
The
interchange at Parmer Lane and I-35 could see some changes as the Texas Department of Transportation seeks to relieve bottlenecks by converting the interchange into a diverging diamond intersection. TxDOT hosted an open house Tuesday for residents to view its plans for $25 million worth of intersection improvements at
I-35 and Parmer and $3.2 million of ramps improvements on
I-35 between Grand Avenue Parkway and SH 45 N in Pflugerville. Construction could begin on the I-35 improvements in late 2018 and be complete in summer 2020.
5. Pflugerville ISD places superintendent on paid administrative leave
PfISD's board met Monday and
voted to put Superintendent Alex Torrez on paid administrative leave.
Torrez said last week he will finish his contract year and then resign from the district, according to a Dec. 7 news release. “This is a good time to make a change, not only for me, but also for the district, which can begin preparation for new leadership,” said Torrez, whose contract runs through September 2017.
The Austin City Council District 10 race will be decided in a runoff election.[/caption]
2. Austin City Council District 10 seat to be decided in runoff election
On Tuesday, first-term incumbent Council Member Sheri Gallo faces off against challenger Alison Alter in the only Austin City Council runoff race this election cycle. Early voting for the runoff election ran Dec. 1-9. The two candidates were the top two vote-getters in the Nov. 8 general election, as Gallo received 48 percent of the vote, and Alter received 36 percent. Election rules require winners to receive more than 50 percent of the ballots cast.
Read what Gallo and Alter spoke about during a Nov. 29 campaign forum.
3. Austin Oaks PUD proposal before City Council once again
A public hearing and possible action on the Austin Oaks PUD proposal is on the agenda Thursday for Austin City Council. The city’s zoning commission approved the controversial rezoning case in November, opening the door for redeveloping the Northwest Austin site as a planned unit development.
The existing 445,322-square-foot Austin Oaks office complex sits on 31.4 acres of land on the southwest corner of Spicewood Springs Road and MoPac. Developer Spire Realty is proposing to build 865,900 square feet of office space, 12,800 square feet of restaurant space and 90,000 square feet of hotel space. Several neighborhood groups have rallied against the proposal and several previous iterations and have argued, in part, that development plans are too large for the property.
The Northwest Austin Civic Association has scheduled a town hall meeting from 6:30-8 p.m. Monday regarding the Austin Oaks PUD proposal. The meeting takes place at St. Matthew's Episcopal Church, 8134 Mesa Drive, Austin.
In a diverging diamond intersection drivers would temporarily cross to the left side of the road to either turn left or pass through the Parmer Lane intersection. Drivers wanting to go straight on the frontage roads would take the bypass lane highlighted in blue.[/caption]
4. TxDOT plans improvements to address traffic congestion at Parmer Lane and I-35
The interchange at Parmer Lane and I-35 could see some changes as the Texas Department of Transportation seeks to relieve bottlenecks by converting the interchange into a diverging diamond intersection. TxDOT hosted an open house Tuesday for residents to view its plans for $25 million worth of intersection improvements at I-35 and Parmer and $3.2 million of ramps improvements on I-35 between Grand Avenue Parkway and SH 45 N in Pflugerville. Construction could begin on the I-35 improvements in late 2018 and be complete in summer 2020.
5. Pflugerville ISD places superintendent on paid administrative leave
PfISD's board met Monday and voted to put Superintendent Alex Torrez on paid administrative leave.
Torrez said last week he will finish his contract year and then resign from the district, according to a Dec. 7 news release. “This is a good time to make a change, not only for me, but also for the district, which can begin preparation for new leadership,” said Torrez, whose contract runs through September 2017.
