HOME resolution passes

City Council voted 10-1 yesterday to approve the measure aimed at making fixes to the HOME initiative. Marc Duchen gave a lengthy presentation offering instances of lower-priced single-family units being replaced with two or three more expensive units. My response: new is always more expensive than old, but small new is always cheaper than big new.

The one point of his that might have merit is that there are instances of builders using HOME to build what is technically two units but is sold as one monster house. That seems like more the exception than the rule though.

Thanks to today's sponsor: 

Adam Loewy is one of the top injury lawyers in Austin and very active in Texas politics. While he often disagrees with Jack Craver’s opinions, he’s proud to support independent media.

Storm clouds over Cap & Stitch

KUT reports that Chito Vela, one of the most vocal supporters of the I-35 Cap & Stitch concept, agrees with city staff that the city is not in a position to fund and build actual decks on the highway anytime soon.

"I wish we could. I wish we were in a different situation, but we're not," Vela said during a live taping of The Big Dig Podcast at KUT Fest. "And the loss of that federal grant, I think, changes everything."

The city had been awarded a $105 million federal grant under the Biden administration. But the Trump administration later canceled the award, removing what Vela described as the "seed money" that could have helped Austin attract support from private donors, the state or future federal grants.

Vela still supports committing funds to build the support structures that will enable the city to build decks in the future. Council voted last year to commit $104 million to the support structures.

Vela and others describe funding for the support structures as important to leaving the door open for a future where there is more support from the federal and state governments to make the decks happen.

The "future-proofing" argument isn't compelling to me. It might lead to a really great project in 20 years ... but there's also a pretty good chance that it won't lead to anything. And there's a very good chance that the $104 million investment for the support structures is going to balloon. TxDOT has no incentive to control costs on behalf of the city of Austin.