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It is moving season Austinites, have you picked out a new home?
With some of the most expensive rent in the country—$1,735 per month on average in Austin according to RentCafe—you’re going to want to search for any apartment discounts you can get.
Don’t move without weighing your options. Here are nine average-priced apartment complexes around the city with specials going on right now.
Starting at $1,335 | Parkwood Terrace | 1201 East Old Settlers Blvd.
For a taste of Round Rock living, Parkwood Terrace is offering two weeks free on its 777-square foot, $1,335 per month apartment. These apartments have big open concept floor plans. Must book through Smart City apartment locator to get this deal.
Starting at $1,395 | Iron Rock Ranch | 1215 W Slaughter Lane
These sparkling white south Austin apartments come with sky-high ceilings, built-in desks for the work-from-home grind and expansive walk-in closets. Iron Rock Ranch is currently offering $750 off classic units. Must book through Smart City to get this deal.
Starting at $1,457 | Reveal Onion Creek | 12000 S I-35 Frontage Rd.
Located in the far south Onion Creek neighborhood, Reveal offers stylish one-to-four bedroom apartments home with high ceilings, expansive windows and integrated smart entry. Reveal is currently offering six weeks free on one bedroom, one bathroom units.
Starting at $1,495 | The Mont | 2405 Montopolis Dr.
Make yourself at home in East Austin all while enjoying four weeks free on rent from 726-square foot one bedroom, one bathroom units starting at $1,495 to 1,105-square foot two-bedroom units that run for $2,260.
Starting at $1,515 | Alta Austin Ave. | 2601 N Austin Ave.
If you want to get outside the hustle and bustle of the city, head to Alta Austin in Georgetown, where you can enjoy one month free on one-bedroom, 783-square foot apartments. Residents can indulge in a 24/7 fitness center, community garden and fenced-in pet park.
Starting at $1,535 | Alexan Springdale | 5521 Springdale Rd.
This brand-new complex is bringing luxury living to the northeast side with plank flooring, nine-foot ceilings and community amenities. Currently, Alexan Springdale is offering two weeks free, on rent and utilities, for its $1,535/monthly 542-square foot apartment. Units up to two bedrooms are subject to up to four weeks free.
Starting at $1,540 | Highline | 13201 Legendary Dr.
This McNeil-area home comes with nine-foot ceilings, granite countertops and walk-in closets. Catch six weeks free on a one-bedroom, one-bathroom, 668 square foot apartment. Must book through Smart City to get this deal!
Starting at $1,665 | Lenox Park | 6000 Ed Bluestein Blvd.
Tucked in the Mueller area, Lenox Park’s apartments could be mistaken for a new home with built-in shelving and designer finishes. You can take a month off of one bedroom, one bathroom apartments starting at 528 square feet.
Starting at $1,750 | Falconhead | 3400 Ranch Road 620
The westernmost property on this list, located in Lake Travis, Falconhead will have you living in style. Act quick to get six weeks free in a 791-square foot one bedroom, one bathroom home. Must book through Smart City to get this deal!
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Popular
(Jordan Vonderhaar/The Texas Tribune)
The Texas Senate Democratic Caucus is urging Gov. Greg Abbott to call an emergency special legislative session to consider a variety of gun restrictions and safety measures in the wake of a mass school shooting in Uvalde that left 19 children and two adults dead this week.
In a letter released Saturday morning, all 13 Senate Democrats demanded lawmakers pass legislation that raises the minimum age to purchase a firearm from 18 to 21 years old. The Uvalde gunman was 18 and had purchased two AR-style rifles which he used in the attack.
The caucus is also calling for universal background checks for all firearm sales, “red flag” laws that allow a judge to temporarily remove firearms from people who are considered an imminent threat to themselves or others, a “cooling off period” for the purchase of a firearm and regulations on high capacity magazines for citizens.
“Texas has suffered more mass shootings over the past decade than any other state. In Sutherland Springs, 26 people died. At Santa Fe High School outside Houston, 10 people died. In El Paso, 23 people died at a Walmart. Seven people died in Midland-Odessa,” the letter reads. “After each of these mass killings, you have held press conferences and roundtables promising things would change. After the slaughter of 19 children and two teachers in Uvalde, those broken promises have never rung more hollow. The time to take real action is now.”
Such laws are unlikely to gain traction in the Republican-controlled Legislature, which has a track record of favoring legislation that loosens gun restrictions. Only the governor has the power to call lawmakers back into a special session for emergency work.
Asked about a special session at a Friday press conference in Uvalde, Abbott said “all options are on the table” adding that he believed laws would ultimately be passed to address this week’s horrors. However, he suggested laws would be more tailored toward addressing mental health, rather than gun control.
“You can expect robust discussion and my hope is laws are passed, that I will sign, addressing health care in this state,” he said, “That status quo is unacceptable. This crime is unacceptable. We’re not going to be here and do nothing about it.”
He resisted the idea of increasing the age to purchase a firearm, saying that since Texas became a state, 18-year-olds have been able to buy a gun.
He also dismissed universal background checks saying existing background check policies did not prevent the Santa Fe and Sutherland Springs shootings, which both happened while he has been in office.
“If everyone wants to seize upon a particular strategy and say that’s the golden strategy right there, look at what happened in the Santa Fe shooting,” he said. “A background check had no relevance because the shooter took the gun from his parents…Anyone who suggests we should focus on background checks as opposed to mental health, I suggest is mistaken.”
Since the massacre at Robb Elementary School, the governor’s comments about potential solutions have centered around increasing mental health services, rather than restricting access to firearms.
This story has been edited for length.
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(Project Connect)
Designs for stations along Project Connect’s Blue Line were presented this week, giving a detailed look at what part of the rail system extending from downtown to the airport could look like.
The planned stations that have gotten the latest focus include Waterfront, Travis Heights and Lakeshore stations past Lady Bird Lake.
At the Waterfront station, the preliminary design aims to prevent visual obstructions and save on costs. This is accomplished by a transit guideway that will lower from the bridge to a level station.
Heading onto East Riverside Drive, the light rail faces a curve requiring a slow down to about 10 miles per hour.
The Travis Heights station could involve relocating a pedestrian crosswalk zone at Alameda Drive to Blunn Creek. Since light rails can't effectively operate on a steep grade, this allows the transit guideway to avoid that.
From there, the rail will extend to the Norwood Park area, and though it will reach along the right-of-way zone, the park will be able to remain open.
A view of the Blue Line by Lady Bird Lake. (Project Connect)
The line involves some coordination with the Texas Department of Transportation. That's because the department is working on an intersection that will have to be built before the phasing of the section of the Blue Line involving an I-35 crossing.
When it comes to the safety of cyclists and walkers, design ideas include a pedestrian hybrid beacon by East Bouldin Creek that would provide a protected signal to cross. And for the intersection TxDOT is carrying out, Project Connect is working with them on pedestrian access across the intersection. It could involve shared use paths along the street and crossings beneath it.
This summer, the public can expect 30% of design and cost estimates to be released. Though the project was $7.1 billion when voters approved it in November 2020, the latest estimates factoring in inflation and supply chain constraints show it could ultimately be upwards of $10 billion.
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