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Here it comes: Elon Musk says 'stunning' $1.1 billion Tesla Gigafactory will be built in Austin area

The Cybertruck pickup and the Model Y will be produced at the Austin Tesla factory.
The Austin metro will soon be home to a $1.1 billion Gigafactory, Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk announced during the company's quarterly earnings update on Wednesday.
"We're going to make it a factory that's going to be stunning," he told investors, adding that construction is "already underway."
As proposed, the factory will be located on a 2,000-acre site in Southeast Travis County. It will provide at least 5,000 jobs and produce the Cybertruck pickup and the Model Y, a midsize SUV.
Both Del Valle ISD and Travis County offered Tesla tax rebates to build the factory in their jurisdictions. In exchange for significant long-term incentives, Tesla agreed to a minimum wage of $15 an hour for all factory employees, including construction workers.
The proposed factory site has been owned for years by the construction supplier Martin Marietta and used for a sand and gravel mining operation.
The finished factory will include a public-access boardwalk along the Colorado River, Musk said. "It's going to basically be an ecological paradise."
On Twitter, Mayor Steve Adler said that the factory will bring an "economic boost" to East Austin, while Gov. Greg Abbott welcomed the company.
Tesla picks Texas for its Cybertruck factory. Thanks to .@elonmusk & .@Tesla for embracing our great state. Th… https://t.co/tKr7tU2piK— Greg Abbott (@Greg Abbott) 1595455819.0
Tesla had support for the factory during the months of negotiation that preceded the announcement, but not from everyone.
Residents and union members raised concerns during public hearings about Tesla's track record of worker safety and adherence to incentive agreements.
This story is developing and will be updated.
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Popular
(Austonia)
Come later tonight, Texans will officially know who will be on the ballot for the November general election.
In Texas, candidates must win at least 50% of the vote to be elected. In the March primaries where the top candidate only received a plurality of votes, a runoff is being held. Voters will decide on the candidates to represent their party in the November general election. Just like the March primaries, voters will choose which party they'd like to vote in. Then based on location, each ballot will show which races are in a runoff.
Here's everything you need to know before heading to the polls.
Know before you go
The registration period for this election has passed; check if you're registered to vote here.
The polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. As long as you're in line by 7 p.m., you can vote.
You'll need a valid photo ID to present once you're at a polling location.
Here is where you can vote in Travis County.
View wait times at polling locations here.
Races to watch in Travis County:
Statewide
Lieutenant Governor
- Republican: Incumbent Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick won his primary in March.
- Democratic: Mike Collier and Michelle Beckley are vying to be the Democrat candidate on the ballot.
- Republican: Incumbent AG Ken Paxton is fighting for his seat against George P. Bush.
- Democratic: Rochelle Garza and Joe Jaworski will face off to be the Democratic candidate in this race.
View all the statewide races on the ballot here.
U.S. House of Representatives
View the district you live in here.
District 21
- Republican: Incumbent Chip Roy won his primary in March.
- Democratic: Claudia Andreana Zapata and Ricardo Villarreal are hoping to secure this vote.
- Republican: Dan McQueen and Michael Rodriguez are going head to head to be the Republican candidate in this race.
- Democratic: Former Austin council member Greg Casar won this race in March.
District 19
- Republican: Ellen Troxclair and Justin Berry are vying to be the Republican candidate in this race.
- Democratic: Pam Baggett won her primary in March.
A $6,000 cockatoo named Lemon Grab was stolen from a pet store Sunday afternoon, owner Kelsey Fernandez said. (Kelsey Fernandez)
A big-money bird has been stolen from a northwest Austin pet store.
Kelsey Fernandez, the owner of a $6,000 sulphur and citron-crested cockatoo named Lemon Grab, said the emotional support animal was taken from the Gallery of Pets store, around closing time on Sunday.
"I've struggled with mental illness my entire life, and ever since I got him I've been doing so much better," Fernandez told Austonia.
The $6k cockatoo is young and will starve unless he is fed by hand, Fernandez said.
In a surveillance video, a man appears to have something under his shirt as he and two others exit the business around the same time the store believes that Lemon Grab was stolen.
Fernandez said a report has been filed with the Austin Police Department with an $1,000 reward for his return.
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