'Today is a really happy day' ATP Board approves initial Project Connect recommendation

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 16:11:49 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – The Austin Transit Partnership Board of Directors gave Wednesday its official approval of the Austin Light Rail plan recommendation that was laid out Monday.Austin City officials packed the ATP boardroom and congratulated each other for getting to this milestone in the transportation initiative, almost three years after 58% of Austin voters approved Project Connect in November 2020. “Today is a really happy day,” Veronica Castro de Barrera, Chairwoman of the ATP board, said. READ MORE: Recommended Project Connect light rail plan unveiled The board did not lay out any new information but summarized the plan and reflected on all the hard work city staff has undertaken to get them to this point. “This Austin Light rail implementation plan you have in front of you today…embodies the values that we have been talking about with this community and gets us to a system that is interconnected – a system that is expandable; a system that can be used by all of Austin...

Tennessee's Kiki Milloy, pitching staff areas of focus for Longhorns in super regionals

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 16:11:49 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — When the Texas Longhorns softball team heads to Knoxville to take on the Tennessee Lady Volunteers, they'll face one of the country's most feared hitters and stingiest pitchers.Lady Vols outfielder Kiki Milloy, daughter of 15-year NFL veteran defensive back Lawyer Milloy, leads Division I with 25 home runs and a slugging percentage of 1.013, meaning she has more total bases (152) than at-bats (150) this season. She's fourth in on-base percentage at .580 and has stolen 37 bases, 11th in Division I, so she impacts the game everywhere she goes.MORE THAN THE SCORE: Stay up to date on sports stories like these, and sign up for our More than the Score sports newsletter at kxan.com/newslettersIn the circle, Lady Vols pitcher Ashley Rogers is third in Division I with a 0.73 ERA in 124.1 innings this season. Both players have helped the Lady Vols to a 44-8 record this season, and if the Longhorns want to go on a run like last year's — all the way to the championship series of...

One more complex of rain and thunderstorms possible

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 16:11:49 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Following multiple rounds of beneficial rainfall, one final complex of showers and storms is possible - mainly in the Hill Country - Thursday morning and midday. Warmer, drier weather briefly returns Friday through Sunday.Early-morning thunderstorms brought 1.36" of rain to East Austin, and 24-hour rain totals as high as 2" in San Saba County. Showers and thunderstorms continued through much of the day west of I-35, but have since dissipated.The weather looks quiet overnight, but we are monitoring another developing complex of thunderstorms riding the northwesterly flow aloft from New Mexico into Central Texas. This complex of rain may dissipate as it reaches our area Thursday morning/midday, but it may still pack enough punch to bring scattered showers and thunderstorms. BLOG: Summer forecast released: When do 100º days begin Hotter, mainly dry weather is in the forecast Friday through Sunday, but scattered late-day storms return on the Memorial Day holiday. Be s...

88th Legislative Session: Which bills died?

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 16:11:49 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) -- During Texas legislative sessions, thousands of bills are considered, but only a few survive to become law. As of Wednesday, only 10.1% of the bills filed during the session passed. Which bills made it to the governor’s desk? Due to the volume of bills, many never even receive a vote.House Bills 521 and 1744, which would have permitted pregnant women to use the high-occupancy vehicle lane, did not receive floor consideration in the House. Pregnant woman cited for HOV violation says fetus should count as passenger in Texas Bills can die at many other stages in the process. Some of the unsuccessful bills would have:Given a raise to state employees and retirees (HB 136)Reduced penalties for low-level marijuana possession (HB 218)Expanded medical marijuana access (HB 1805)Increased the legal age to buy assault rifles to 21 (HB 2744)Amendment the Texas Constitution to allow wagering on sports (HJR 102)Required public school classrooms to display the 10 commandments ...

Malloy Basin drainage project facing funding deficit

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 16:11:49 GMT

By Erika MathieuSunny South NewsLethbridge County council has approved Coaldale’s request for a letter of support to move forward their Disaster Mitigation and Adaptation Fund Application (DMAF) to resolve the current funding deficit related to the Malloy Basin drainage projects.The Malloy Drain Implementation plan involves the Town of Coaldale, Lethbridge County, and the St. Mary River Irrigation District (SMRID), which have been working for several years to address stormwater drainage issues within and surrounding the town of Coaldale.As discussed during the County’s May 18 council meeting, to date, Phases 1 and 2a have been completed. Although Phase 2b was approved in the budget, Director of Infrastructure at Lethbridge County, Devon Thiele told council, “there have been delays to the project beyond the County’s control, and due to inflation, we now have a project funding deficit.”The Town of Coaldale had previously signed on to do the engineering on the project with one of their...

Brent Ginther Candidate Questionnaire

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 16:11:49 GMT

Southern Alberta Newspapers reached out to each candidate in Taber-Warner and asked a series of questions about issues of interest in the provincial election. Editor’s Note: We did not receive responses from Paul Hinman (Wildrose Loyalty Coalition), Jazminn Hintz (NDP), Joel Hunt (Green Party) and Frank Kast (Independence Party of Alberta).Brent GintherSolidarity Movement of Alberta1) What are the top issues in the local riding, and what would you and your party do to try to address those issues?The top issues in my riding are the fact that it is becoming unaffordable to raise a family in the richest province in the country and that no mainstream political party is responsive to the will of the voters they claim to represent. Our governments both federal and provincial continue to sign our country and province into agreements that nobody has ever consulted us about. As a candidate for The Solidarity Movement of Alberta, I am free to represent the interests of my constituents because...

Grant Hunter Candidate Questionnaire

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 16:11:49 GMT

Southern Alberta Newspapers reached out to each candidate in Taber-Warner and asked a series of questions about issues of interest in the provincial election. Editor’s Note: We did not receive responses from Paul Hinman (Wildrose Loyalty Coalition), Jazminn Hintz (NDP), Joel Hunt (Green Party) and Frank Kast (Independence Party of Alberta).Grant Hunter, UCP1) What are the top issues in the local riding, and what would you and your party do to try to address those issues?The top issue for most families is the high cost of living. The best way to help Albertans pay for their groceries and make their mortgage payments is by ensuring they keep more money in their pockets. The United Conservative Party is committed to making life more affordable by cutting taxes for all Albertans starting with personal income taxes.A re-elected UCP government will create a new 8% bracket on income under $60,000. This means every Alberta earning $60,000 or more will save $760 – that’s over $1,500 per fami...

Hunter hits the hustings as Taber-Warner incumbent

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 16:11:49 GMT

Incumbent Grant Hunter is seeking re-election as the MLA for Taber-Warner for the United Conservative Party.Hunter was first elected in 2015 and re-elected in 2019, and has a Bachelor of Science degree and a Masters of Business degree. Hunter has been an entrepreneur most of his life and so he knows what small businesses have to deal with.In 2019 Grant was tasked with setting up Alberta’s Red Tape Reduction strategy. He was a member of cabinet for two and a half years as an associate minister while he took Alberta from a grade of F to a grade of A on the Canadian Federation of Independent Business’ Red Tape Report Card. This was the first time that Alberta had ever received a grade higher than a D.Hunter has been working for the past two years on building a super-cluster of agri-food processors in southern Alberta. He was instrumental in the Highway 3 twinning, the 230,000 acre irrigation expansion, and the Lethbridge Exhibition Centre expansion.Hunter is running again to finish the...

Green Party candidate has background in construction and engineering

Published Fri, 07 Feb 2025 16:11:49 GMT

Seeking the favour of voters for the Green Party of Alberta, Joel Hunt has thrown his hat into the ring for Taber-Warner.Hunt is a resident of Bow Island, Alta., where he moved after growing up in the Fraser Valley in BC. He has a diploma in Building Engineering Technology from the BC Institute of Technology, and has spent 30 years in construction, architecture, and engineering fields, having built everything from houses to government to agricultural buildings.Joel recently became a LEED Green Associate because of his concern about the effect of the construction industry on our environment. His hope is for governments to step up their reactions to climate change, believing it a moral duty to act when we knew back in the 1970’s burning fossil fuels was going to lead to catastrophe.Hunt did not respond to requests for an election profile interview.