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Plenty of variables go into determining individual rates for car insurance, but in Austin they’ve coalesced into a simple rule of thumb — if you live east of Interstate 35, you’re probably paying more than similar drivers in much of the rest of the city.
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Today at 11:30 a.m. CST, the neighborhood group Friends of McKalla Place will hold a protest rally at St. David’s North Austin Medical Center to denounce the healthcare provider’s sponsorship of Precourt Sports Venture, Austin FC, and the proposed MLS soccer stadium.
Precourt Sports Ventures (PSV), Austin FC (MLS soccer team) will not pay property taxes that are sorely needed to fund health and social services for indigent care. “It's disappointing that St. David's has chosen to sponsor this speculative venture fueled by corporate welfare, greed, and political motivations. This is not the type of corporate citizens that Austin respects nor the values or the moral principles of our community. Precourt's property tax exemption is a gross social inequity that will impact our children, our poor, and working families for the next 50 years.” said a group ‘s representative. The PSV’s stadium deal is the single largest corporate welfare packages in Austin’s history. Opposition to their property tax exemption is a widespread sentiment in Austin. Earlier this year, Friends of McKalla filed a ballot petition with 29,000 signatures of registered voters calling for a public vote to prohibit a for-profit business tax free use of public land. The petition was certified by the City Clerk and is expected to be on the November ballot. As Austin faces an affordable housing crisis, high property taxes, and budget short falls, citizens are not accepting of the lucrative land deal offered to the California billionaire. “This deal is a poor policy decision and it places a huge burden on Austin taxpayers just so Precourt can turn a profit on his professional sports team,” said a representative of Friends of McKalla. Prominent community leaders are also concerned with the social inequity of the incentive package, the lack of funding for area infrastructure, and flooding risks to neighbors and small businesses in the area. Nelson Linder, President of Austin NAACP, states “It’s important for St. David’s to send a consistent message by not supporting corporations that avoid paying their fair share of taxes.” According to stats from Glimmer Austin, over 150,000 people in Austin and Travis County do not know where their next meal is coming from. They rely on food trucks, pantries, etc. to receive a free meal. It’s hard to imagine that a city brimming with food trucks and restaurants of every sort and variety has so many people suffering from hunger. These are largely the people who are living at or below the poverty line. In Austin, 250,000 people live at poverty level, meaning they earn $1,000 or less a month, or $2,000 for a family – which makes it very difficult when you are trying to eat, live, provide shelter, and care for loved ones.
The South Austin Community Church parking lot will serve as the location for the Community Summer Food Program. The first date is Monday, June 24th from 5:00 to 8:00pm. Email rose.smith@blackwomeninbusiness.org for more information. |
For frequent updates, visit the Facebook page of Austin NAACP President Nelson Linder!
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