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SAVE THE DATE: The Austin-San Antonio Corridor Council’s General Membership Meeting is scheduled for Wednesday, September 19 at the International Center located at 203 S. St. Mary’s St., Suite 313 in San Antonio. Mayor Will Wynn of Austin will be guest speaker. For information or to RSVP contact Sarah Matthews or council@thecorridor.org.
The AMTRAK and Talgo, Inc demonstration tour of commuter rail operations in Seattle has been cancelled and will be rescheduled for next spring. For information contact council@thecorridor.org.
Infrastructure
If you've been wondering how those "availability payments" work - the mechanism that TxDOT hopes to use to get around cumbersome legislation affecting their ability to do toll projects - Ben Wear's column in this morning's Austin American Statesman has a pretty good, if a little cynical, explanation. See the details.
More than 550 proposals have already been received in North Texas - from 50 different political jurisdictions - for the $3.3 billion bounty that the North Texas Tollway Authority will pay for the right to build the hotly-contested SH 121 toll project. And that's before the deal is even signed. Details here.
Comal County will issue more than $20 million in certificates of obligation to fund numerous capital improvement projects, including a $6 million courthouse renovation. Other projects include $6 million for a new office building, $5 million for a dam on Dry Comal Creek, $375,000 to expand justice of the peace and adult probation offices and $100,000 for a livestock barn.
The city of Kerrville and Kerr County already have realized the advantage of sharing certain operational activities - such as splitting the cost for operation of the airport and library. Now officials of both entities are looking at increasing their shared opportunities, and infrastructure maintenance, health insurance coverage and dispatch operations for emergency entities are among them.
Transformation of a crumbling dam into a whitewater park has earned San Marcos a slot as a finalist for the 2007 Award for Municipal Excellence, given by the National League of Cities. Details here.
After a two-year battle, the Brushy Creek "Green Monster" sign in Williamson County was dismantled last week. Neighbors had fought in court to remove the double-sided green billboard from its location at O'Connor Drive and RM 620.
Economic Development
The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio has been ranked the top Hispanic-serving institution for attracting federal research dollars, according to a report released by the National Science Foundation. The Health Science Center received $88.8 million that is $29 million more than New Mexico State University, the 2nd ranked Hispanic-serving research institution.
Austin is the best place for business in the US, according to Moody's Economy.com Inc. Moody's, an independent economic research firm, reported that the Austin-Round Rock MSA earned the top spot over 400 metropolitan areas. In the last index, published in March 2007, Austin-Round Rock MSA ranked seventh.
A $4 million, 25,000 sq. ft. office park is in the works for Buda's downtown. Buda Office Park Condominiums will be a collection of one-story office buildings near the historic Main Street. It will likely house offices for attorneys, doctors and engineers.
Pape-Dawson Engineers Inc. has donated $100,000 to the University of Texas San Antonio College of Engineering to create an endowed scholarship program for students studying civil or environmental engineering. UTSA's College of Engineering is one of the nation's leading producers of Hispanic engineers.
Tourism pumped $2.8 billion into the local Austin area economy last year and created thousands of jobs, according to the Austin Convention & Visitors Bureau. Last year, the Austin area attracted 18.9 million visitors compared to 17 million visitors in 2003.
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