Every morning, we send you a free email packed with Austin news, business, and entertainment. Join 16,000+ readers who wake up to Austonia's newsletter.
Local news and fun, every day 6am.
Featured
austonia newsletter
Most viewed
(Video by Steven Joyner/Austonia)
Arrive at the site in Southeast Travis County where Tesla just announced it will be building a $1.1 billion Gigafactory, and you'll find 18-wheeler trucks running in and out of the property. See the area from above, and it's a flurry of activity.
Though the news is less than a week old, CEO Elon Musk said during the call where he confirmed that the company had chosen Austin that work was already underway.
The $1.1 billion factory is expected to be producing the Tesla Cybertruck and Model Y by late 2021.
There are still a few more steps for the company—Tesla will need city and county approvals as further development gets underway—but a city staffer said July 16 that the company is allowed under existing permits to begin reclamation work, which "would be the first step in preparing the site for future development."
Want to read more stories like this one? Start every day with a quick look at what's happening in Austin. Sign up for Austonia.com's free daily morning email.
- Elon Musk says $1.1 billion Tesla factory will be in Austin - austonia ›
- Elon Musk seeks to fast-track $1.1 billion Tesla factory in Austin ... ›
- Tesla considering buying Austin site for new factory - austonia ›
- Tesla asks Travis County for 20-year property tax rebate deal ... ›
- Del Valle ISD OKs Tesla tax deal for Austin factory - austonia ›
- Tesla Gigafactory will accelerate growth in southeast Austin - austonia ›
- DRONE: Nestled out of sight on Lake Austin, a massive $90M campus funded by H-E-B's CEO barrels toward completion - austonia ›
- Elon Musk's Neuralink startup is hiring in Austin, Texas - austonia ›
- Tesla files site plan for Austin Gigafactory - austonia ›
- Tesla announces plans for affordable vehicle - austonia ›
- Tesla files plans to build batteries at Austin Gigafactory - austonia ›
- Elon Musk announces Austin Gigafactory will open in 2021 - austonia ›
- Tesla truck is getting redesign before work starts in Austin - austonia ›
- Austin Chamber of Commerce Wins Magazine's Deal of the Year - austonia ›
- Elon Musk is spotted driving a Cybertruck through Giga Texas - austonia ›
Popular
(Sergio Flores/The Texas Tribune)
By Patrick Svitek
Beto O'Rourke caused a dramatic scene on Wednesday when he angrily confronted Gov. Greg Abbott at his news conference about the Uvalde school shooting, yelling, "This is on you."
After Abbott was done giving his initial remarks, O'Rourke approached the stage and told Abbott he was "doing nothing" to combat gun violence. He said the Uvalde massacre, in which a gunman killed 19 children and two adults, was "totally predictable."
Some of the Republican officials onstage with Abbott quickly denounced O'Rourke, telling him to go away. Another man onstage used expletives to criticize O'Rourke for interrupting the event. O'Rourke was eventually escorted away amid the unruly scene.
“I can’t believe that you’re a sick son of a bitch that would come to a deal like this to make a political issue,” Uvalde Mayor Don McLaughlin told O'Rourke at one point.
.@BetoORourke just showed up and shook things up. @statesmanpic.twitter.com/Z1FtBwUEdJ
— Luz Moreno-Lozano 🦇 (@LuzMorenoLozano) May 25, 2022
(Uvalde ISD)
Nineteen kids and two adults are dead after a shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas—a small town an hour and a half west of San Antonio—on Tuesday afternoon.
Gov. Greg Abbott said the suspect, 18-year-old Salvador Ramos, is believed to have been killed by the police. The Uvalde Police Department said the shooting began at 11:43 a.m. Tuesday.
“What happened in Uvalde is a horrific tragedy that cannot be tolerated in the state of Texas,” Abbott said. “He shot and killed—horrifically, incomprehensibly.”
Texans are grieving for the victims of this senseless crime & for the community of Uvalde.
Cecilia & I mourn this horrific loss & urge all Texans to come together.
I've instructed @TxDPS & Texas Rangers to work with local law enforcement to fully investigate this crime. pic.twitter.com/Yjwi8tDT1v
— Greg Abbott (@GregAbbott_TX) May 24, 2022
According to University Health Hospital officials, a 66-year-old woman and 10-year-old girl arrived in critical condition. Uvalde Memorial Hospital reportedly received 13 children for treatment and two individuals who were already deceased. At the time, it was believed 14 had died in this shooting.
The shooter prompted a lockdown at the elementary school of just under 550 students, with San Antonio Police sending SWAT, and Eagle chopper and Crime Scene Investigators.
According to White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre, President Joe Biden has been briefed on the tragedy and “His prayers are with the families impacted by this awful event, and he will speak this evening when he arrives back at the White House.”
At 21 deaths, it is the deadliest school shooting in Texas and one of the deadliest in the U.S. since 26 at Sandy Hook Elementary lost their lives. This is the U.S.'s 213th mass shooting of 2022.
