Shutting It Down
No new downtown events until construction stops, city official says
For the first time ever, the City of Austin is placing a moratorium on downtown event permits.
According to the Austin Monitor, Director of Transportation Robert Spillar and Special Events Program Manager William Manno have issued a recommendation to City Council to end all new permits amid the influx of construction and underground utility work downtown, as well as the temporary closing of Red River Street.
So where would this ban be? Though it's officially called "the Downtown Austin Project Coordination Zone," we'll call it "prime downtown." The zone extends north to Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and south to Oltorf Street. Running east to west the ban covers Chicon Street all the way to Mopac.
The moratorium, which only affects new events, could be issued for up to two years. Though his recommendation was sent to Austin City Council, the Austin Monitor reports that Spillar has the power to enact this moratorium without the council's approval. According to the Monitor, there were more than 100 street events held in the "Project Coordination Zone" last year alone.