Texas Troops Deployed to Illinois: Gov. Greg Abbott authorized sending the Texas National Guard to Illinois at the president’s request to reinforce ICE’s aggressive immigration sweeps in Chicago, where, The Texas Tribune notes, “U.S. citizens and children have been caught up in raids and altercations between masked federal agents and locals in the nation’s third largest city.” Hundreds of Texans are now tasked to “safeguard” ICE officials here and potentially elsewhere; Trump’s plan to send troops to Portland – another majority Democratic city he’s deemed “dangerous”– has so far been thwarted by courts.
AISD Schools to Close, District Rezoned: On Friday, Austin ISD announced their plan to close 11 elementary schools, two middle schools, and one high school program, all campuses east of MoPac. They’ve also totally redrawn the entire district map, affecting 98% of schools, which means thousands of students will find themselves zoned for a new school starting next school year. Five more schools are turning non-zoned, as they’ll house special dual-language programs, so the neighborhood kids currently attending those schools will be rerouted. However, rezoned students can stay at their current school if they want to through the final grade level through a transfer request – only, a lack of bus transport for transfer kids may make that hard for many families.
No Decision Yet on Austin’s Homelessness Navigation Centers: Attorney General Ken Paxton’s lawsuit against Sunrise Community Church is at a standstill after Judge Aurora Martinez-Jones issued a continuance on the state’s evidentiary hearing originally on the docket for Oct. 6. The hearing will determine if Sunrise Navigation Center must cease operations until its relocation. The lawsuit filed in November 2024 calls Sunrise a “magnet” for crime and drug use, citing needles found on Joslin Elementary School grounds and reports of violent incidents as evidence. The city has proposed purchasing a property for a South Austin Housing Navigation Center near I-35 and Oltorf, but is getting pushback from nearby residents; City Council is scheduled to vote on the purchase Thursday, Oct. 9.
Wall Street Versus Y’all Street: The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission approved the Dallas-based Texas Stock Exchange’s (TXSE) registration to operate as a national securities exchange, reports The Barbed Wire – and Trump is a fan. In a weekend tirade on Truth Social about New York’s “SCUM” attorney general that insisted companies won’t want to use the New York Stock Exchange while she’s still in office, he crowed, “The new Texas Exchange will be taking ALL of this business away, and we’re talking Hundreds of Billions of Dollars!”
It’s Only the Fate of Free Speech on the Line: Texas State professor Tom Alter is waiting to hear if he still has a job in the school’s history department. Alter was summarily fired without due process on Sept. 10, three days after speaking at a socialism conference. He was reinstated two weeks later when a Hays County judge issued a restraining order against Texas State. On Monday, he met with university President Kelly Damphousse, who is expected to make a final decision on Alter’s employment by the end of this week. Alter’s supporters say his firing blatantly violated the First Amendment. The American Association of University Professors has helped him find legal representation and the Texas State Employees Union has rallied support for him on campus. Alter told reporters after meeting with Damphousse that the struggle for free speech will continue regardless of the decision about his own employment. “If it is positive, it will be a victory that will strengthen the struggle to defend hundreds others being attacked, fired, and persecuted for their ideas. If it is negative, we will be on the front line of that struggle nonetheless.”
Austin Monitor Becoming Austin Current, Partnering on New Show With KUT: The Austin Monitor will deliver in-depth government and accountability stories under a new name, The Austin Current, the newsroom announced Monday. “We’re creating a different kind of newsroom – one that listens closely to the community and delivers the coverage that matters most,” Editor-in-Chief Melissa Taboada said. The nonprofit news org is also partnering with KUT News to produce a new weekday audio show breaking down the top local stories. Launched Monday and airing weekdays at 1pm, The Austin Signal is hosted by Jerry Quijano and will cover news, music, sports, and culture.
Gaza Aid Activist Arrives Back in Austin: Pro-Palestinian activist Greg Stoker was released by the Israeli army over the weekend and arrived back in Austin Tuesday night to supporters chanting, “Greg, you make us proud!” Stoker, longtime Austin resident and former Army Ranger, spent much of September sailing with the Global Sumud Flotilla, a collection of dozens of boats manned by over 400 activists, doctors, reporters, and politicians seeking to bring humanitarian aid to the people of Gaza. However, as Stoker had predicted, Israeli forces intercepted the flotilla last Thursday, briefly imprisoning the activists, including Greta Thunberg. Though the flotilla was not allowed to deliver the aid to Gazans, Stoker said it brought attention to the ongoing genocide, telling KUT News, “We won the comms war and we won the political battle behind the scenes.”
Improvements Planned for Congress Avenue: A $13 million urban design project in parts of Downtown is moving forward, with the first phase of construction to begin in early 2026, KVUE reports. The area of Cesar Chavez Street to Seventh Street will receive upgrades including sidewalk expansion, additional turn lanes, and improved bike barriers. The initiative is part of the larger $130 million Congress Avenue Urban Design Initiative.
Another Dusty Weekend Ahead: Still clearing your throat from a dusty first weekend at ACL Fest? Expect more of the same. KXAN First Warning Weather reports that “light winds and plenty of heat are the two main weather ingredients needed for dust devils” and that’s what we have to look forward to “at least the next week or more in Central Texas.”
Base Power Moves Into Former Statesman Property: There had long been hopes for a mixed-use project to move into the onetime home of the Austin American-Statesman, a large and lucrative tract along Lady Bird Lake. However, the Statesman reports, “after years of lawsuit-related delays in efforts by the Cox family – the newspaper’s former owners – to redevelop the site,” a temporary tenant, Base Power, has moved its manufacturing and shipping operations into the property. Founded in 2023 by Zach Dell (son of Michael), Base Power supplies battery backups – a growing need in grid-anxious Texas.
Child Care Just Got More Affordable: On Tuesday, the Travis County Commissioners Court approved two multimillion-dollar contracts intended to support affordable child care in the area, KXAN reports. Starting in January, the initiatives, funded by the voter-approved tax rate hike from the November 2024 election, will use $17 million to establish 1,000 student scholarships for children ages 0-3 from low-income families. An additional $4 million will go toward gap funding payments to enable centers to provide high-quality child care starting next month.
Reimagining Sixth Street: Everybody’s got an opinion about Sixth Street, right? (Case in point: It didn’t name itself “Dirty” – we the people of Austin did that.) Well, the city of Austin is considering three different design alternatives to the storied street: one with bike and scooter lanes on both sides of the street plus curb insets for vehicle drop-off and loading; one with only a westbound bike/scooter lane plus drop-off and loading on one side; and one that removes the bike/scooter lanes altogether. Got an opinion? Or a bright idea for further improvements? Take the Sixth Street survey now at https://publicinput.com/v13338.
This article appears in October 10 • 2025.
Related