The city plans to install temporary housing and facilities as part of its efforts to reduce homelessness and help people move into permanent housing.

The city of Austin has chosen two potential sites for temporary encampments as "part of implementing the mandates of a May City Council resolution that specifies steps and deadlines for its Housing-Focused Homeless Encampment Assistance Link initiative," such as calling for the City Manager to "identify publicly-owned land or land within the city limits owned by other intergovernmental entities or willing community partners that could accommodate tiny home structures to serve as temporary housing" and present a budget for implementation.
As Cindy Widner writes, "the sites would need to be rezoned prior to the installation of temporary, prefab microshelters, which—along with fencing and round-the-clock security—the city apparently plans to provide." The city-owned locations were chosen based on their proximity to Capital Metro routes, the availability of utilities, and other factors. "According to a memo from Dianna Grey, the city's homeless strategy officer, and Parks and Recreation Department Director Kimberly McNeeley, 'Both properties are owned by the City of Austin, are being held for future creation of affordable housing, and could be used temporarily until that development takes place.'"
FULL STORY: City considers two sites for sanctioned encampments

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly
Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker
A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

Chicago’s Ghost Rails
Just beneath the surface of the modern city lie the remnants of its expansive early 20th-century streetcar system.

Bend, Oregon Zoning Reforms Prioritize Small-Scale Housing
The city altered its zoning code to allow multi-family housing and eliminated parking mandates citywide.

Amtrak Cutting Jobs, Funding to High-Speed Rail
The agency plans to cut 10 percent of its workforce and has confirmed it will not fund new high-speed rail projects.

LA Denies Basic Services to Unhoused Residents
The city has repeatedly failed to respond to requests for trash pickup at encampment sites, and eliminated a program that provided mobile showers and toilets.
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