Lewis Conway Jr.

City Council, District 1

Campaign Website

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With Council’s decision to end CodeNEXT, how do you envision moving forward to update Austin’s land development code?

Our position is we should follow the guidelines set forth by PODER.

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How will you help address the affordability problems in Austin?

We have proposed three specific plans: 1. The People’s Affordable Housing Plan Our belief is that housing is a human …

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How will you address Austin’s housing shortage? What regulations will you change to allow more housing where people want to live?

Our campaign endorsed the $250 million housing bond that the Austin City Council recently approved for the ballot in November. …

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What is your vision for the future of high capacity transit in Austin?

Our methodology is to look around the country and identify places that look Austin and see what they have done. …

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Moving forward, what role should dockless mobility play in Austin?

We are against dockless mobility (in its current iteration), because it puts people out of work. The more we seek …

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What steps will you take to support modernization and digitization of operations within the City of Austin?

We will create a District based plan to modernize and digitize the functions of the government that most directly impact …

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What do you see as the City’s responsibility toward addressing the digital divide in Austin, and what steps would you take to bridge that divide?

Full responsibility. We should leveraging a portion of our 1% of the sales-tax divide to bridge that gap budget wise.

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How can the City support the continued growth and success of Austin’s tech sector?

We believe this is possible by helping foster an environment that is conducive to creating the next ‘Amazon HQ’, as …

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How can the City better work with Austin’s tech community to bring innovative approaches to civic challenges?

People’s Councils The People’s Councils that we are working to build in District 1 and throughout the city of Austin …

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Affordability is discussed a lot in our community. How do you define affordability?

Affordability in District 1 has to be defined through the lens of access to resources and opportunity. Peering through that …

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As you know, the City unsuccessfully tried to change the code, what do you believe needs to be done differently to achieve a better code? Will you support working to revise the land development code to provide and allow for predictability and deep affordability? (Y/N; Explain)

Yes CodeNext is not the answer to our problems. I believe that we must make changes in order to have …

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Which bond Propositions on the November 2018 ballot do you support or not support? Check each that you support. Briefly explain your position.

Prop K. The language is misleading.

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Would you support a policy requiring the City’s Development Services department to achieve its goal of 90% permit review completion within 15 business days across all departments/disciplines by April 2019? (Y/N/Explain)

Yes

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Council adopted the Strategic Housing Blueprint last year, calling for 13,500 new units annually over 10 years. This gets us to break-even in terms of need. Would you support amending the City’s proposed Strategic Housing Plan to increase the number to at least 15,000 housing units per year for 10 years, keeping the breakout across income levels and including permanent supportive housing for those chronically experiencing homelessness? (Y/N; Explain)

Yes Our belief is that housing is a human right. Approaching fair housing from a policy perspective has not fared …

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Do you support a budget at the effective tax rate so home and business owners continue to benefit from the “growth dividend” and pay the same amount in property taxes as in the previous fiscal year? How do we balance this strategy with meeting the needs of people struggling to access services due to a lack of service capacity? How do you prioritize additional funding? Where would you look for efficiencies? (Y/N; Explain)

Yes. We believe it’s possible to leverage the ‘growth dividend’ to help subsidize basic services like health care and we …

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Austin has long since been perceived as a town of creative innovators. Given the City’s recent regulatory attempts with the sharing and gig economy (Uber, AirBnB, Scooters), what is your position on how the City should handle emerging technologies and emerging markets? What is your view, generally, on the conflict between consumer demands and government interests? Similarly, when non-profits secure grant funding for innovative social solutions that requires a local match, what is your view on city funding being available for the match?

Austin is the #1 patent producing city in the whole state of Texas. We’re also one of the most educated …

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In a recent poll, residents of Austin cited rising property taxes as a major issue they face, iconic business are having to close their doors and longtime residents are moving out citing rising property taxes. Some have also cited homelessness as an impediment to business. How would you slow or stop the increase in City property taxes, encourage other taxing entities to do the same, and balance the requests for more funding coming from the City Departments and the public? One example of the request of more funding is to expand social service contracts to meet needs, including to provide more supportive housing programs. How do you balance less taxes and increased demand for social services? Please explain.

Lack of healthcare and healthcare facilities are debilitating socially and economically to the people of East Austin. We believe our …

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Council has passed 2 resolutions supporting an annual increase of about 2-3% for social service contracts in order to ensure that service agencies can keep up with rising costs of doing business and maintain service capacity. Would you direct the City Manager to include this annual increase in the budget for contracts meeting their performance targets? (Y/N/Explain)

Yes. Just as we offer cost of living increases for private prison contracts, so should we here as well.

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One of the best ways to make Austin more affordable is to ensure we have a diverse set of industries which provide local, skilled and the hard-to-employ talent the opportunity to compete for jobs that have a career ladder. The Austin City Council is considering adopting a revised economic incentive policy, expanding the previous one-size-fits-all policy. If the Austin Chamber of Commerce presents a company that meets the criteria for an incentive as set by City Council policy, will you vote to support incentivizing jobs for both small operators and large in our city? How will you monitor success with the provision requiring employment of the hard-to-employ?

Yes, I will support. We must implement a stakeholder process firstly as a monitoring instrument. However, we are proposing a …

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How will you coordinate with regional partners to meaningfully address our increasing traffic level? What is your long-term vision for addressing traffic in Austin, and what would be the immediate first actions you would champion as a City Council Member to address the crisis?

We believe the City and Cap Metro must commit to public transportation as a 1st option for District 1 and …

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Do you agree that the ballot language proposed for two ballot petitions – the CodeNEXT petition and the Austin Efficiency Audit – was misleading to the voters of Austin and if so, will you help clarify to voters what these measures really mean – regardless of how you might vote on them? (Note: This article in the Austin Bullldog is a helpful review. Also note: the Texas Supreme Court ruled on August 27 th , in favor of the city of Austin – see KUT report here.) Rate your support on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most support and 1 being the least.

Our initial concern about bringing CodeNext to the ballot was the lack of understanding in regards to the contents of …

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Will you pledge to immediately reconvene the Charter Revision Commission to revisit its recommendations and to discuss how to ensure its most important recommendations are placed on the next available city ballot? (Note: This helpful article in the Austin Bullldog explains how Council inaction put the kibosh on major reforms that should have been on the November ballot. The most egregious omission to us at IndyAustin was Recommendation 4 – which would close a loophole currently preventing petitions to repeal controversial Council decisions like the Precourt Soccer Stadium or the 2008 $2.3B biomass boondoggle – aka Voter Referendum. Read our Referendum page here.) Rate your support on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most support and 1 being the least.

I am in full agreement with Fred Lewis. Democracy Dollars—Provide public campaign financing through Democracy Dollars. Developing this recommendation involved …

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Will you refrain from voting to allow the City Manager to execute contracts for controversial projects like the Soccer Stadium on public land and demand a final review and vote of the Council? (Note: This letter from open government attorney, Bill Aleshire, to the City Attorney, warns about the legal problems that are likely ensue after a final lease or contract is signed with Precourt Sports Ventures.) Rate your support on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most support and 1 being the least.

ABSOLUTELY! Rate your support: 10

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As climate change and fast-paced growth proceeds in Austin, there is growing concern to both secure water supply for the future while conserving a finite resource for our region. Will you pledge to support an Austin future that prioritizes conservation, reuse, and local water supplies, and to oppose actions that would require pumping of groundwater in either the Edwards Aquifer or the Carrizo/Simsboro aquifers east of Austin beyond a sustainable level that matches rates of recharge? Rate your support on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most support and 1 being the least.

We are advocating that COA develop an environmental justice strategy that lists programs, policies, planning and public participation processes, enforcement …

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Do you agree that Austin desperately needs a united front of officeholders, local businesses and voters to “make growth pay for itself?” (Note: An example is the passage of full water impact fees implemented on new developments in 2013. See the huge benefits below. Mind you, these benefits would have disappeared had the “Pilot Knob fiasco” been allowed to stand.) $300 million collections years 1-10 (already raised $150M in first 5 years) $45 million less debt service Fiscal Year 2018 15% lower customer bills Rate your support on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most support and 1 being the least.

We believe this speaks for itself. Rate your support: 10

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For Austin City Council District 1: How would you have voted on the Delwau Campgrounds Project in District 1?

I would have voted against it. For the reasons underlined below. Coleman explained that the primary driver behind this project …

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Do you agree that increasing housing supply is only one side of the supply-demand equation for beating back Austin’s affordability crisis, and that Austin should refrain from subsidizing growth during times of rapid growth so as to reduce demand growth to levels that can be met with new supply? If so, in the Candidate Response section below, please tell us your ideas for ways to make Austin’s growth pay for itself. (Hint: You can refer to any of the materials parked on this page from the years of work conducted by local developers, Brian Rodgers and Ed Wendler, Jr., especially the power point at the bottom of the page Total Accounting and Impact Fees.) Rate your support on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most support and 1 being the least.

“If it is subsidized — by current residents paying for the infrastructure demands of roads, water lines, new police, fire …

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Will you refrain from supporting any economic development projects that do not adhere to a 90% local hiring requirement​, unless they are related to addressing a security threat to the Austin area? (Note: 2014 Candidates Steve Adler and Greg Casar approved this idea in ChangeAustin.org’s candidate questionnaire. To our knowledge, neither have attempted to fulfill this promise.) Rate your support on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most support and 1 being the least.

One of our original campaign goals was to bring 0% unemployment to District 1, we feel a 90% local hiring …

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Will you pledge to propose an ordinance or charter amendment to end the practice of the Chamber of Commerce or any other private trade association from negotiating public subsidy deals for the City of Austin without a super-majority vote of the City Council? — like the one going on right now for bringing the Amazon H2Q to the Austin area? (Note: This IndyAustin blog linking to the Austin Bulldog on the secretive Amazon negotiations by the Greater Austin Area Chamber of Commerce and Amazon for the City of Austin.) Rate your support on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most support and 1 being the least.

Absolutely, in fact we created The People’s Assembly of District 1 to address that concern specifically. Rate your support: 10

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Will you defend the right to petition for a public vote on publicly owned property outside the facilities so long as petitioners are conducting themselves in an orderly, legal, and peaceful manner to secure signatures? (Note: In 2017-2018, the Austin Public Libraries and the Palmer Events Center began barring petitioners from petitioning on city property outside the facilities. Petitioners were forced to threaten suit. The issue pending. The San Antonio Firefighters recently filed a federal lawsuit for similar practices by the San Antonio Public Library.) Rate your support on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most support and 1 being the least.

Nonviolent demonstrations are the cornerstone of the civil and human rights movement in American history. We will make every effort necessary …

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Do you support Austin voters securing their right to vote on CodeNEXT or any comprehensive​ development code overhaul — Proposition J on the November ballot? (Note: Passage of Proposition J does not mean that all code changes come to a public vote – only a comprehensive code overhaul, whether it’s called CodeNEXT or something else.) Rate your support on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most support and 1 being the least.

Our campaign has been built on the philosophy of participatory democracy, we believe folks should be involved in every aspect …

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Do you support the right of Austin voters to vote on the sale, lease, or conveyance of any City-owned land that will be used as a sports and/or entertainment stadium? (Note: We recommend this Statesman commentary by UT Professor, Nathen Jenson, for context to this question.) Rate your support on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most support and 1 being the least.

Absolutely, unequivocally. Under no circumstance, for no reason, should taxpayer (city-owned) land be up for sale, lease or otherwise, without …

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When the Council considers an agenda item that includes granting fee waivers or waivers of environmental standards, a.​ will you pledge to push for public agenda notices that clearly set out proposed fee waivers whether or not it is required by the Texas Open Meetings Act? And, b.​ , will you pledge to help ensure that staff- granted waivers are reported to Council? (Note: District Judges said that the postings for Pilot Knob – which did not mention over $100 million in fee waivers, and the Champion tract agenda item – which did not mention waivers from the Hill Country Roadway Ordinance and Lake Austin Watershed Ordinance – should have included public notice of those waivers.) Rate your support on a scale of 1 to 10, 10 being the most support and 1 being the least.

Democracy should be, by nature, participatory. Rate your support: a. 10  b. 10

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Do you support maintaining affordable utility costs across Austin Energy and Austin Water that adheres strictly to the City’s affordability goals for Austin Energy, which require AustinEnergy rates to be in the bottom half of Texas ratepayers and minimizes increases to two percent per year for each rate class? (Y/N Explain)

Yes. We have an opportunity to lead the nation in green energy. Let’s create an Austin that is creating cleaner, more …

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What is your collaborative vision when working with other governmental entities (Travis County, State of Texas, Central Health, etc.)?

We believe our DistriCare plan, a pilot universal health care program for East Austin, will eliminate folks being uninsured and …

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Solutions to homelessness exist – they require scaling up social services and housing programs, including the pathways from shelter to housing. To date, Austin has not identified adequate funding to address this challenge. How would you work to identify the funding needed?

State laws make it difficult to pass a fair chance housing ordinance, but that shouldn’t stop us from providing Fair …

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Austin has experienced growth but some constituencies have been left behind. What is your vision for the City’s role in funding/supporting the nonprofit network that provide much needed social services? What is your plan for addressing disparities and inequities in our community?

As a Socialist, I reject an economic order based on private profit, alienated labor, gross inequalities of wealth and power, …

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Transportation is the second highest family cost. When it is difficult to move freely around Austin, access to services and economic opportunities are limited; time spent commuting leaves less room for family obligations and socializing; and Austin becomes a more frustrating place. Do you support the items below? (Please mark each one you agree with)

Agree: Improve high-capacity transit to make it a more convenient, reliable alternative to single occupancy vehicles Support improvements for South …

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Why do you identify as a Democrat?

I think for me, the better question is: why do you identify as a Democratic Socialist? We are socialists because …

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Please share your experience and involvement in the Democratic Party in Travis County.

In 2017 I led the Fair Chance Tx coalition that stopped 76 Republicans from getting HB577 to the floor for …

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Affordable housing is a major problem in Austin. Large numbers of people who work in Austin cannot afford to live in Austin. Many families are moving outside the city to find affordable housing. Do you have any ideas to help create more affordable housing or to make existing housing more affordable?

To dive a bit deeper into our People’s Plan for Affordable Housing: I am calling for an equitable allocation of …

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Although Austin has remained a relatively safe city, there have been far too many shootings of African American men. What kind of changes would you institute at APD to reduce the number of officer-involved shootings and reduce the degree of mistrust that exists between the African American community and the police?

Anecdotally: Firstly, we believe in a participatory budgetary process; one that engages the communities most impacted and a process that …

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A respected University of Texas study has found that Austin is the only high-growth city that is losing African Americans, both in terms of numbers and percentage of the total population. Do you consider this a problem? If so, what would you do to reverse or stabilize the decline?

Absolutely. As a lifelong Austinite, that has friends and family that have forced to outer edges of Austin, I can …

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Rising property taxes are a growing concern. There are a number of people who believe taxes are high because the city provides not only essential city services (police, fire, etc.) but non-essential services (social service contracts, education funding, etc.) If elected, how would you prioritize what is or is not an essential city service?

Firstly, we aren’t in agreement that essential city services are the drivers for rising property taxes. We believe property assessment …

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Which Democratic value speaks to you most?

Popular Sovereignty: The power of the government comes from the people.  

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What are the most critical issues in your district and how will you address them?

Lack of healthcare and healthcare facilities are a major issue for East Austin. Our DistriCare plan, a pilot universal healthcare …

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What is your top environmental concern and how would you address it?

Climate change and environmental destruction is a threat to our communities in Austin. While the people at the top create …

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Explain what important aspects of the land development code revision you support.

CodeNext is not the answer to our problems. I believe that we must make changes in order to have affordability, …

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What policies do you support to make Austin a more affordable place to live for all residents?

Let’s create an Austin that works for working people. I propose that we institute a community land trust program that …

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What policies will you advocate to address the increasingly unaffordable housing, transportation, and utility costs that are economically segregating our neighborhoods?

We can make Austin a city that working people can afford to work in, live in, and raise their children …

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What policies will you advocate to accommodate and welcome the full abundance and diversity of people who aspire to live in Austin’s neighborhoods?

I think we can begin with passing the affordable housing bond, to ensure folks have access.

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How will you resolve policy issues and cases that come before you when the wishes of some incumbent residents in a neighborhood conflict with the interests of other residents and the larger, city-wide community?

We launched The People’s Assembly of District 1, specifically for this reason and purpose.

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What policies and approaches will you advocate to promote neighborhood improvement, and avoid neighborhood protectionism, as Austin changes and grows?

We have to rely on our citizenry to guide us and lead us.

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