Category Archives: Affordability
RELEASE: White House names Austin a TechHire Community
Microsoft, Google & IBM to provide paid tech internships in Austin for 200 veteran and low-income graduates from accelerated training programs at ACC, Texas State University, Zenith
In the run-up to the President’s trip to Austin to speak at SXSWi, the White House announced today that Austin had been designated a TechHire Community. The White House’s year-old TechHire Initiative is designed to develop homegrown information technology workforce.
“In my State of our City address last month, I promised to make workforce development in tech a special focus of this year. The White House designating Austin a TechHire Community reflects the real progress we are making. The TechHire Initiative will help us create the best, most-effective job training ecosystem in the country. Austin is good at creating jobs. This will make us better at getting our own people ready to take those jobs.”
NEWSLETTER: Progress on affordability (3/5/16)
Remember when I said last week was busy? This week started off with SXSW announcing that the President and First Lady are coming to town, U.S. News & World Report naming Austin the 2nd-best city in the country to live in, and my declaration of a breakfast taco war with San Antonio. But more importantly for Austin, the Council made a lot of progress on affordability this week. Continue reading
OPED: Mayor weighs in on Austin music crisis — and what the city’s going to do about it
By Steve Adler3.4.16 | 9:11 am
Editor’s note: In this exclusive op-ed, Mayor Steve Adler weighs in on the current state of Austin music — and plans for the future.
We didn’t need another study to tell us that Austin’s local music industry is suffering under the affordability crisis, but the news that it has lost 1,200 jobs since 2010 was sobering. We won’t be the Live Music Capital of the World for much longer if we keep losing musicians and music venues.
That’s why I’m happy to tell you that the Austin City Council just did something about it by adopting the Austin Music and Creative Ecosystem Omnibus Resolution. This resolution proposes creative solutions for our creative class, because inherent in the problems facing the music and arts sectors are opportunities that, if successful, will help them not just survive but thrive.
Remarks: Introducing Austin Music and Creative Ecosystem Omnibus Resolution
Photo credit: Aaron Majors
We didn’t need another study to tell us that Austin’s local music industry is suffering under the affordability crisis, but the news that it has lost 1,200 jobs since 2010 was sobering. We won’t be the Live Music Capital of the World for much longer if we keep losing musicians and music venues.
We’re going to need all our creativity, ingenuity, and vision to deal with the crisis that faces the musicians and artists alike who are getting priced out of homes and studio space. The work they are producing is as vibrant as ever, but this city has never been more unaffordable for them. And what do we ultimately gain if we get another weekend of the ACL Festival but we lose another Liberty Lunch?
That’s why today I am introducing the Austin Music and Creative Ecosystem Omnibus Resolution. This resolution proposes creative solutions for our creative class. Because inherent in these problems are opportunities identified in this resolution that, if successful, will help our local music and arts sectors thrive.