Austin news

• Millennials are buying more homes in these Texas cities than anywhere else in the US

  12-05-2024 17:00 via kxan.com
  
  (NEXSTAR) - Over the last decade, the total number of homeowners in the U.S. has increased year after year, particularly in Texas.According to the Census Bureau, Texas had the largest growth in population last year by adding 473,453 people – an increase of 1.6% in population. In total, Texas has the second-largest population out of any state with just under 31 million people. Austinites could get up to $3,000 for switching to ‘WaterWise’ landscapesBut of those new people making
  
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• Man arrested in hit-and-run during South by Southwest indicted on several counts

  06-06-2024 16:15 via kxan.com
  
  Editor's note: The above video is from previous, related coverage we reported on April 1, 2024.
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- The man who was arrested in connection with a deadly hit-and-run in downtown Austin during South by Southwest was handed three indictments by a grand jury earlier this week, according to the Travis County District Attorney's Office.Man arrested in hit-and-run during South by Southwest now facing murder chargeDistrict Attorney José Garza's office said Tyrone Thompson, 23, faces
  
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• Is Austin's housing market overvalued? At least by one measure, the answer is yes

  06-06-2024 14:54 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (Austin Business Journal) -- Home prices in Austin are eclipsing the median buying power of local residents.That's according to data from First American Financial Corp., which found the housing markets in at least half of the nation's major metro areas are overvalued compared to local buying power.Home prices have soared nationally over the past decade — especially during the pandemic — and that's driving a significant affordability crisis in many regions. High interest r
  
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• Watch Live: President Biden participates in D-Day remembrance at Normandy

  06-06-2024 14:08 via kxan.com
  
  PARIS (AP) — United States President Joe Biden will mark the 80th anniversary of the D-Day invasion in France this week as he tries to demonstrate steadfast support for European security at a time when some allies fear Donald Trump threatens to upend American commitments if he wins another term in the White House.The trip comes as the deadliest fighting on the continent since World War II continues in Ukraine and allied countries struggle to find ways to turn the tide against Rus
  
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• Austin gun activist behind bump stock case awaits Supreme Court decision

  06-06-2024 14:00 via kxan.com
  
  WASHINGTON D.C. (KXAN) — Throughout June, the Supreme Court will release opinions on several cases that the Justices heard during the term that started in October 2023. One pending case has a direct tie to Austin.The Court heard arguments earlier this year on the legality of a federal ban on bump stock rifle attachments, a case that was brought forward by an Austin gun store owner. Michael Cargill surrendered his bump stock devices in compliance with the 2018 ban issued by the Trump Admini
  
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• Williamson County now has more floodplains, study explains why

  06-06-2024 13:48 via kxan.com
  
  WILLIAMSON COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) — Williamson County has some preliminary findings from its ongoing Atlas 14 Floodplain Mapping Study, researchers finding that the number of homes near floodplains has doubled since the last time the data was updated.The county partnered with the Texas Water Development Board for this study with the goal of updating floodplain information with rainfall data released by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) in 2018.Cindy Engelhardt with H
  
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• Police, transportation, housing: One-on-one with Austin Mayoral Candidate Kathie Tovo

  06-06-2024 04:28 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Former Austin City Council Member Kathie Tovo is already hitting the campaign trail in her race for mayor. She hosted her first official campaign event in south Austin Wednesday.
  She sat down with KXAN's Grace Reader ahead of that event to talk about priorities and how she would handle major issues like police staffing shortages and challenges to the city's land development code. This transcript was lightly edited for clarity and conciseness:
  Introduce yourself:
  I'm Kathie Tovo,
  
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• Texas A&M bonfire will not return to campus

  06-06-2024 03:35 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (The Texas Tribune) -- After a monthslong review, Texas A&M University decided not to bring back the student bonfire tradition it discontinued 25 years ago after a deadly accident, President Mark Welsh III said Tuesday.For decades, students built a 60-foot bonfire every year ahead of football matches between A&M and the University of Texas at Austin. The tradition was suspended after tragedy struck in 1999, when a stack of logs collapsed in the middle of the night, killing 12 peop
  
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• Austin Water asking customers to conserve water Friday

  06-06-2024 03:15 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Austin Water is asking customers to in southwest Austin to conserve water on Friday.The interactive map provided by Austin Water shows a large area that will be impacted."There is a small leak at the joints," said Randi Jenkins, assistant director of customer experience with Austin Water. "If it is not addressed, it becomes a worse leak and so taking care of this now on a large water main is a priority for us."Austin Water crews will be out on Friday morning to repair the 4
  
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• Safety recommendations to be released after near miss between planes at Austin's airport

  06-06-2024 02:25 via kxan.com
  
  WASHINGTON D.C. (KXAN) — The National Transportation Safety Board will hold a meeting Thursday on its investigation into the near collision of two airliners at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport in 2023.According to a release from the NTSB, the meeting will include "presentations from investigators, deliberate over the draft report and vote on the proposed findings, probable cause and safety recommendations" after the February 2023 incident at AUS. Timeline shared of near-miss between
  
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• One seriously injured in rollover involving concrete truck near Lakeway

  06-06-2024 00:34 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — One person was seriously injured after a concrete truck rolled over Wednesday afternoon near Lakeway, according to officials.Austin-Travis County EMS and Lake Travis Fire Rescue responded to the area of 528-745 Highlands Boulevard, which is near Lakeway, shortly before 4 p.m. for the crash. Travis County STAR Flight also responded to the crash, LTFR said on social media.One person was reported pinned in the vehicle, but LTFR said crews were able to remove that person from t
  
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• One seriously injured in rollover involving cement truck near Lakeway

  06-06-2024 00:34 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- One person was seriously injured after a cement mixer truck rolled over Wednesday afternoon near Lakeway, according to officials.Austin-Travis County EMS and Lake Travis Fire Rescue responded to the area of 528-745 Highlands Boulevard, which is near Lakeway, shortly before 4 p.m. for the crash. Travis County STAR Flight also responded to the crash, LTFR said on social media.One person was reported pinned in the vehicle, but LTFR said crews were able to remove that person from th
  
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• 'It's alive down here': Construction on Lockhart’s downtown revitalization project could start in 2024

  06-06-2024 00:27 via kxan.com
  
  LOCKHART, Texas (KXAN) – Malachi Gonzales has been giving fades at Malachi's Barbershop for the past seven years. He’s lived in Lockhart his whole life and has witnessed many changes to the city, particularly the downtown square where the historic Caldwell County Courthouse is located. “[When] I was a kid I mean, these [buildings] had cobwebs in all the windows,” he said, between haircut appointments. “Now, It's it's alive down here. I mean, every day, the
  
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• HIV Long-term Survivors Awareness Day marks new future for patients

  05-06-2024 23:46 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — June 5 is HIV Long-term Survivors Awareness Day, marking the anniversary of a 1981 CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report that first described cases of what would later be called HIV.A picture of the June 5, 1981 report by the CDC about deaths from "Pneumocystis Pneumonia," which would be renamed to AIDS years later. (Courtesy CDC)
  In 1983, HIV reached Austin; five years later, a group of people with AIDS opened The Austin Immune Health Clinic as "radical hospice care" f
  
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• VIDEO: Body camera shows response before police shot suspect making Molotov cocktails at gas station

  05-06-2024 23:20 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- Body camera video released Wednesday shows the events that led Austin police to shoot an armed man who had holed himself up in a southeast Austin gas station and made Molotov cocktails. APD identifies man shot by police officer at southeast Austin gas stationAPD released two 911 audio files, one police radio traffic audio file and two body cam videos, surveillance footage from inside the the gas station and one drone video. The body cameras were worn by Officers James Fabian and
  
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• Abbott launches top 10 wanted illegal immigrants list

  05-06-2024 23:03 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- On Wednesday, Gov. Greg Abbott announced the launch of an illegal immigrants list, which will comprise of the top 10 wanted illegal criminal fugitives, Abbott's office said in a news release Wednesday.The Top 10 Most Wanted Criminal Illegal Immigrants List is a joint partnership with the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS). The list will help find repeat offenders who have entered the country illegally are wanted for dangerous crimes committed in the state, the release said.
  
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• H-E-B chairman donates $20M to Texas food banks

  05-06-2024 22:41 via kxan.com
  
  Editor's note: The above video shows KXAN News' top morning headlines from Wednesday, June 5, 2024.TEXAS (KXAN) — H-E-B chairman Charles Butt is donating $20 million to 20 Texas food banks statewide to help mitigate food insecurity, the grocer announced Wednesday.The donation comes as the U.S. Department of Agriculture ranks Texas one of the most vulnerable states for food insecurity in the country. National data found the Lone Star State comes in second as the most food insecure U.S. stat
  
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• 'Grateful to be alive': Clubhouse programs take pressure off overwhelmed Texas mental health hospitals

  05-06-2024 20:43 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (The Texas Tribune) -- When Jonathan Denhart was discharged from the psych ward at Austin Oaks Hospital last year, he was prepared to be back very soon.For more than 40 years, Denhart has cycled through rehabs, sober housing, mental health hospitals, and 12-step programs to treat his bipolar and substance use disorders, but nothing worked.The 60-year-old Austin resident couldn’t find or keep a job, and he knew once he left the hospital, the temptations of the outside world would be
  
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• Autonomous vehicle company will begin test drive in Austin

  05-06-2024 20:31 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — An autonomous mobility company is taking Austin for a test drive.Zoox announced Wednesday it will begin public testing in Austin and Miami this summer — the fourth and fifth public testing locations for the company.Zoox said it will send out its autonomous, Toyota Highlander testing fleet with safety drivers near business and entertainment districts around the city."The retrofitted test fleet is used to validate the company’s autonomous driving software before i
  
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• Oil tank catches fire after being struck by lightning in Fayette County

  05-06-2024 20:15 via kxan.com
  
  Editor's note: The above video shows KXAN News' top morning headlines from Wednesday, June 5, 2024.FAYETTE COUNTY, Texas (KXAN) -- An oil tank in Fayette County caught fire after being struck by lightning Wednesday, according to the Fayette County Sheriff's Office.
  The sheriff's office posted a photo of the fire on Facebook late Wednesday morning. It happened in the 700 block of Farm to Market Road 1291, just outside of Fayetteville.
  Oil tank catches fire after being struck by lightning in Fayet
  
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• Inside Battleship Texas' historic comeback, 80 years after D-Day

  05-06-2024 19:48 via kxan.com
  
  GALVESTON (Nexstar) -- Eighty years ago this week, the Battleship Texas fired the first shots toward Nazi pillboxes on D-Day. Its heavy artillery proved vital as Allied troops retook the beaches of Normandy and eventually all of Europe, clearing the way for infantry from miles off shore. It's now awaiting its return to the waters just off the coast of Galveston to give Texans a unique journey through American history.The Texas was first launched in 1912 and is a veteran of both world wars. She s
  
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• After abrupt closure, Foxtrot to reopen some stores

  05-06-2024 19:47 via kxan.com
  
  Editor's note: The above video shows KXAN News' top morning headlines from Wednesday, June 5, 2024.AUSTIN (KXAN) — Chicago-based convenience store chain Foxtrot announced Wednesday morning that it will open "a new Foxtrot," via a post on its Instagram account.A representative for Foxtrot declined to say which of its Texas locations will reopen. He did tell KXAN that the reopened stores will be in Dallas and Austin, but will not include all of the chain's locations.PREVIOUS: Foxtrot announc
  
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• Events happening in Austin to celebrate LGBTQ+ Pride this month

  05-06-2024 19:43 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) -- June has been celebrated as LGBTQ+ Pride month since the 1970 Stonewall Riots in New York. Though the City of Austin doesn't host its official Pride celebration until August, there are several community events and celebrations honoring the LGBTQ+ community throughout the month of June.Why is Austin’s pride parade celebrated in August?On Wednesday, the City of Austin recognized Pride month with an official proclamation. The city said in solidarity with Austin's LGBTQ+ commu
  
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• Why you shouldn't nap after drinking on a plane: study

  05-06-2024 19:05 via kxan.com
  
  (NEXSTAR) – Whether it's tomato juice, coffee or a stiff drink, many people have a go-to airplane beverage.For those flyers who opt for a wine, beer or cocktail, a new study suggests that doing so while at altitude comes with health risks, even if the person is young and healthy.
  "Passengers frequently drink alcoholic beverages during a long-haul flight and fall asleep afterwards," the researchers wrote, noting that negative sleep effects were worse aboard a plane than on the ground. "Unde
  
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• Texas DFPS reports 386 children trafficked while in conservatorship last year

  05-06-2024 18:52 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN — A report from the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services (DFPS) in May details how many children in DFPS conservatorships went missing, and how many were victims of human trafficking, during fiscal year 2023. ‘Nightmare’: Former Texas foster care workers describe dangerous living conditions inside unlicensed placementsAccording to DFPS, 1,164 of the 31,475 minors (3.7%) in its care were reported missing last year. Of those missing, 83 were reported missing
  
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• Here's why Netflix will stop working on some Apple TVs

  05-06-2024 13:56 via kxan.com
  
  (The Hill) -- Netflix will no longer be supported on second and third-generation Apple TVs starting in August.Netflix won’t be available on these older Apple TVs after July 31, the company wrote on its set-up website. The Verge reported that Netflix notified customers of the decision in an email, saying the move was made to “maintain the best possible Netflix experience.”It’s not clear what may have led Netflix to halt its services on these older Apple TVs, which the comp
  
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• Summer-like pattern shuts down rain chances

  05-06-2024 12:30 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — Our forecast is starting to look a whole lot like summer and far less like spring the next 7+ days.Sunny, hot and dry conditions can be expected areawide today as a large ridge of high pressure continues to build over the western U.S. Afternoon highs will warm well into the 90s the next 3+ days, feeling ever hotter (100°-150°) when factoring in humidity.Next week, a trough setting up to our north will help push the mentioned high pressure system further away from us
  
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• Heat returns tomorrow for four days

  05-06-2024 12:30 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The morning rain and thunderstorms Wednesday cooled the air so that high temperatures were close to the normal of 92° Wednesday afternoon. The high both at Camp Mabry and at Austin-Bergstrom reached 91°.The rain between 6 a.m. and noon left the following high rain totals:
  2.16"La Grange
  1.25"Giddings
  1.18"Rockdale
  Totals dropped to below an inch in many cities east of I-35. Rain totals from the interstate westward averaged a few hundredths up to .10".The forecast wi
  
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• Heat returns Thursday for four days

  05-06-2024 12:30 via kxan.com
  
  AUSTIN (KXAN) — The morning rain and thunderstorms Wednesday cooled the air so that high temperatures were close to the normal of 92° Wednesday afternoon. The high at Camp Mabry ended up being 92°.The rain between 6 a.m. and noon left the following high rain totals:
  2.16"La Grange
  1.25"Giddings
  1.18"Rockdale
  Totals dropped to below an inch in many cities east of I-35. Rain totals from the interstate westward averaged a few hundredths up to .10".The forecast will be dry to end the w
  
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• Elgin ISD hosts job fair to fill positions for growing district

  05-06-2024 12:28 via kxan.com
  
  ELGIN, Texas (KXAN) -- The Elgin Independent School District is hosting a job fair Wednesday afternoon to help fill teacher vacancies as the district continues to grow in size. The school district is adding two new elementary schools in the next two school years.
  Elgin ISD Board of Trustees recently raised salaries by 3% across the district and approved raising the starting salary for teachers to $55,760. The district's Assistant Superintendent on Human Capital, Al A. Rodriguez, said the increas
  
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