SAVE AUSTIN NOW UPDATE:
We would like to update you in several areas:
911 CALL CENTER
It's not just a police staffing shortage that has reached crisis levels in Austin.
Now the 911 call center is understaffed and desperate callers are waiting on hold there too.
From a recent Bridget Grumet column (https://www.statesman.com/story/news/columns/2022/06/29/grumet-more-austin-911-calls-sit-hold-staff-shortage-drags/7706745001/) in the Austin American-Statesman:
The folks who answer 911 calls are steadfast professionals, trained to help deliver emergency aid on what could be the worst day of your life. But they are facing their own crisis within the walls of Austin’s 911 command center.
Just ask anyone who’s called 911 over the past year and waited on hold.
“We are currently down 44 call takers, 22 (police) dispatchers. That's a 40% vacancy rate,” Mayra Toro, an assistant manager at the 911 call center, recently told the Austin City Council. “Citizens on average are holding over a minute,” and in some cases, much longer.
One supervisor said an alarm company recently waited 22 minutes on hold to report a burglary that was in progress (thankfully a neighbor also spotted the intruder and reached police sooner). And throughout the day, some 911 calls stack up in the hold queue for anywhere from 20 seconds to a minute or two.
“It was a rare thing for calls to hold during my first 18 years here, and now it's a rare thing if they don't,” Austin police dispatcher Mary Castillo told council members at their June 16 meeting.
“Can you imagine needing life-saving assistance, managing to get to a phone and call 911, only to be placed on hold?” Castillo continued. “That's not an acceptable service level. It's a dangerous and detrimental one, and it's your new normal.”
Recall that due to Steve Adler and Greg Casar's disastrous 1/3 police budget cut, the Austin Police Department was forced to stop receiving most calls at 911 and began routing most of them through 311, which has far longer hold times.
Until Austin residents demand adequate public safety services, our city will continue to become less safe.
VICTORY: ANN KITCHEN WILL NOT SEEK RE-ELECTION
Ken Martin of the Austin Bulldog recently reported (https://twitter.com/austinbulldog/status/1537863928507682816?s=20&t=OQMtCEYxgn2WgKVg6z9_4g) that Council Member Ann Kitchen, who represents District 5 (South Austin) will not seek re-election. While she was term-limited, she could have collected signatures to put herself on the ballot in 2022.
Kitchen's district in South Austin is more to Pack Saddle Pass and some of the worst homeless encampments in our city.
Austinites in District 5 now have an outstanding opportunity to elect a public safety and taxpayer advocate to serve a four year term and help save our city. Stay tuned.
TEXAS SUPREME COURT RULES AGAINST REDISTRICTING LAWSUIT
Local attorney Bill Aleshire brought a thoughtful lawsuit against the City of Austin for disenfranchising more than 30,000 voters in the redistricting process by moving them into districts not on the ballot in 2022.
Despite this clear case of disenfranchisement, the Texas Supreme Court denied the lawsuit with no explanation. Aleshire has requested a rehearing or at least an explanation for the denial.
As of now, we have to assume that only five seats on the City Council will be on the ballot in November:
District 1: Natasha Harper-Madison is seeking re-election.
District 3: Pio Renteria is term-limited and unlikely to seek re-election.
District 5: Open (Kitchen)
District 8: Paige Ellis is seeking re-election.
District 9: Kathie Tovo is strongly considering running for Mayor. This should be an open seat.
Save Austin Now Candidate Support PAC will be evaluating all candidates for City Council and consider making endorsements after the filing period has ended.
PROP B LAWSUIT
Save Austin Now is suing the City of Austin for their failure to fully enforce Prop B, despite it passing in May 2021 by a 58%-42% vote. The lawsuit is pending and we hope to begin discovery very soon.
If you have specific examples of illegal public camping inside the City of Austin, you can email us photos, video and explanations here (EnforcePropB@protonmail.com). Please provide as full an explanation as possible, including when/where and what happened. Please also include your contact information. If you are interested in becoming a plaintiff to our lawsuit, please email Matt (matt@saveaustinnowpac.com).
Our lawsuit will take some time and while we have excellent, committed lawyers, this battle will require resources. You can donate to our legal effort here (https://secure.anedot.com/save-austin-now-pac/save-austin-now-pac-legal-fund-c4cfa533f8ab98c9da232). If you wish to send a check to ("Save Austin Now PAC" and mail to 807 Brazos Street Suite 202, Austin, TX 78701).
If there's an encampment in your residential neighborhood or near your office: First, contact your council member. Then, call 311 and report. Then call the Texas Department of Public Safety to report. Do this every few days.
NOVEMBER IS COMING
We need to elect solution-oriented, non-ideological people to City Council: This fall, five City Council seats will be on the ballot. Every single incumbent on the 2022 ballot refuses to demand full enforcement of Prop B and continues to support radical policies that harm standard of living for Austin families.
We are recruiting candidates now. If you are interested in exploring running for City Council, please fill out our candidate interest form here (https://form.jotform.com/220663893380158).
SUPPORT OUR WORK
You can support our efforts to hold city leaders accountable for their decisions here (https://form.jotform.com/220663893380158).
If you wish to send a check to ("Save Austin Now PAC" and mail to 807 Brazos Street Suite 202, Austin, TX 78701).
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As we have said before, we have only begun to fight!
Thank you!
-Matt Mackowiak & Cleo Petricek
Co-founders, Save Austin Now PAC
> Questions? Email Matt (matt@saveaustinnowpac.com).
> Learn more: http://www.SaveAustinNowPAC.com
Will you please support our efforts now?
You may donate to our legal effort here: https://secure.anedot.com/save-austin-now-pac/save-austin-now-pac-legal-fund-c4cfa533f8ab98c9da232.