Howdy, Au
stin. Are you tired of your community being a monopoly board for the developer lobby? Do you agree that Austin should not be just one big real estate play…as you watch your affordability continue to tank? Is Prop 1 scaring the crap out of you? Watch this hilarious 30-sec video. Then, please:
Sign the petition below (OR on the right hand column of this page), share your own feelings with the Mayor and Council, then share it with others, AND
Please vote NO on the $720 million transportation bonds! (Early voting is Oct. 24 thru Nov. 4).
Here’s the one argument for voting NO that you may not have heard yet, one that unites most voters. The Mayor could have led the 10-1 Council to implement road impact fees, totally allowable under state law and designed to make developers share in the costs of roads for new developments. Instead, Mr. Adler left $50-90 million in the pockets of developers in 2015 alone. Now he and the majority Council, want YOU to pay the full weight for this massive uncapped $1.799 billion bond!
Sign the petition and share it! For more reasons to vote no read this helpful explanation from Rob Walker, MBA Stanford in Finance; PhD University of Texas in Taxation and Councilwoman Disrict 1 Ora Houston’s op-ed here. And, just in case you think we’re doing younger people any favors through continued debt accumulation, we urge you to read this October 3 article in Investor’s Business Daily, “In Fast Growing Texas, Local Debt Has Soared“. Guess which state is only surpassed by New York in debt per capita? More about the costs of growth in central Texas can be found at CostofGrowth.com and the League of Independent Voters here.
By the way, we have a donor willing to match the first $600 we raise to help advertise this petition and Vote NO effort online, so please give what ya can to the can!
Dear Mayor Adler and Austin City Council Members:
Stop talking about affordable housing and require home builders to construct homes in every project that working and middle class families can afford.
Stop giving away the $46 million dividend from the Austin Citizen Electric Utility to multinational corporations and use that money to reduce our property taxes.
Stop jeopardizing our homes with more plans to pack and stack more condos and in every established neighborhood.
Stop handling minority issues by gentrifying our neighborhoods to push us out of our town.
Start fixing our traffic mess with plans that we can afford and that actually address congestion -- not like this $720 million uncapped bond with no guarantees.
Start making growth pay for itself by imposing impact fees on new developments for roads as allowed for under Texas law.
I understand that Austin is not just one big “real estate play” or a developer's monopoly board.
I want my local officials to know this too -- and to act accordingly.
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First NameE
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Share your own concerns with the Mayor and Council in this space, along with your Council District number if you know it.
Dear Mayor Adler and Austin City Council Members: Stop talking about affordable housing and require home builders to construct homes in every project that working and middle class families can afford. Stop giving away the $46 million dividend from the Austin Citizen Electric Utility to multinational corporations and use that money to reduce our property taxes. Stop jeopardizing our homes with more plans to pack and stack more condos and in every established neighborhood. Stop handling minority issues by gentrifying our neighborhoods to push us out of our town. Start fixing our traffic mess with plans that we can afford and that actually address congestion -- not like this $720 million uncapped bond with no guarantees. Start making growth pay for itself by imposing impact fees on new developments for roads as allowed for under Texas law. I understand that Austin is not just one big “real estate play” or a developer's monopoly board. I want my local officials to know this too -- and to act accordingly.
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Why don't you share this with your friends, please:
PS After this election, a new coalition in Austin is coming together to “reboot 10-1” — to continue pushing for structural reforms in Austin. Interested? Send a note to info@indytexans.org or call us at 512-535-0989. Thank you, Austin!
PPS We all know that Austin is leading the “Growth Machine” in Texas. Please share this with your Austin voting friends and enjoy this hilarious scary video from Honest Transportation Solutions: