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Election night ended two days ago but the presidential race is still dragging on, and some Austinites are starting to get antsy.
With hundreds of thousands of votes yet to be counted in five key battleground states—Alaska, Georgia, Nevada, North Carolina and Pennsylvania—this election is a nail-biter.
Nervous feelings are being shared among many on social media; the waiting game is testing people's patience.
logging in from beneath my blanket fort to check the election results https://t.co/ZyOJI8cBB6— the sleepytime owl 😴🧙♀️ (@the sleepytime owl 😴🧙♀️) 1604458197.0
Watching this election is like swimming a no breath 400 IM with jeans on in the Atlantic Ocean.— Kyle Sockwell (@Kyle Sockwell) 1604450937.0
Andrei Matei, who has been living in Austin for more than 20 years now, said he is shocked by the closeness of the presidential race.
"I'm very surprised that the race is as tight as it is at the national level right now," Matei said. "I've never seen our country more divided than it is now."
Austinites are reminding each other to remain calm, knowing the results would not be in anytime soon.
A reminder to all, we will not know who won the election tonight. Likely not for several days or more. Don't stay u… https://t.co/I151d7nCeV— Jeremy Dooley (@Jeremy Dooley) 1604466306.0
Others, like Austinite Rachel Wilson, are awaiting results calmly, with the attitude that whatever happens, happens.
"The presidential election is close as expected," Wilson said. "Regardless of the outcome we will all be OK. In life, and in politics, no defeat or victory is permanent."
Some locals are choosing to laugh the election nerves away, poking fun at the states the country is waiting on.
In this election Arizona, Michigan and Wisconsin showed up like https://t.co/lu6qY5Psd5— Joe Vargas (@Joe Vargas) 1604537974.0
Above all else, distraction via hanging with your pup, getting outside or grabbing a bite are popular choices for this election.
Texas has already had a tense election cycle. In the midst of COVID-19, this election was destined to be different than years prior. With six extra days of early voting in Texas, residents did their part by casting their vote.
In the months leading up to the election, Texas appeared to be a swing state with Republicans and Democrats neck and neck, keeping residents on the edge of their seats into election night.
Though Texas' 38 Electoral College votes will go to President Donald Trump, the election is still undecided. According to the Associated Press, Biden currently has 264 electoral votes and Trump at 214 electoral votes of the 270 needed to win office. With at least five states yet to confirm a lead, the race is still not over.
More on waiting:
As the presidential election hangs in the balance, Austin progressive groups look to council runoffs and 2021 legislative sessionPopular
Historic preservationists, for their part, overwhelmingly support historic zoning, which would preserve the buildings in perpetuity. The Historic Landmark Commission unanimously voted to initiate historic zoning in July, citing architectural significance, landscape features and association to historic figures. City staffers recommend historic zoning, calling both structures one-of-a-kind examples of vernacular architecture.
Tarrytown neighbors have also banded together to stop the demolition. Many have written letters, and a few spoke at the meeting. “How could anyone buy this property with the intent of destroying it?” Ila Falvey said. “I think it’s an architectural treasure.”
Michael Whellan, an attorney representing the property owner, said that the claims made by preservationists are shaky. The buildings are run down, he said, and have had substantial renovations. A structural engineer hired by the owner said any attempt at preservation would involve tearing down and rebuilding – an undertaking Whellan said would likely cost millions.
Whellan also argued that any historical significance derived from the property’s association with Delisle and longtime owner C.H. Slator is dubious. “These men are not noted for any civic, philanthropic or historic impact,” he said.
What’s more, according to Whellan, Slator likely participated in segregation as the owner of the Tavern on North Lamar Boulevard between 1953 and 1960.
A city staffer, however, said she found no evidence to support the claim. “We would never landmark a property where a segregationist lived, or there was a racist person,” Kimberly Collins with the Historic Preservation Office said.
Commissioner Awais Azhar couldn’t support historic zoning in part due to lingering uncertainty about Slator. “Focusing on that factor is not here to disparage an individual or family. It is not about playing the race card. This is an important assertion for us to consider as Planning commissioners,” Azhar said.
Commissioner Carmen Llanes Pulido said that allegations of racism should come as no surprise. “We’re talking about white male property owners in the 1950s, in Austin, on the west side – and of course they were racist,” she said. But she argued that allowing the house to be demolished based on these grounds does nothing to help people of color who have been harmed by racism and segregation.
The question of tax breaks was also controversial. Michael Gaudini, representing the property owner, said that the tax breaks associated with historic zoning would exacerbate inequality by shifting property tax burdens to less affluent communities. City staffers estimate that the property, appraised at $3.5 million, would get either a $8,500 or $16,107 property tax break annually, depending on whether a homestead exemption is applied.
Commissioner Grayson Cox preferred the commission focus not on tax breaks but on whether the structures merit preservation. “To me, nothing in the historic preservation criteria lists, is this person deserving of a tax break or not?”
Azhar, on the other hand, said he plans to propose a code amendment getting rid of city property tax breaks for historic properties.
The commission fell one vote short of recommending historic zoning, with six commissioners in support and three opposed. Azhar and commissioners Claire Hempel and Greg Anderson voted against.
The odds of City Council zoning over an owner’s wishes are slim. Nine out of 11 members must vote in favor, and there have only been a handful of such cases over the past several decades.
