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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · 1d

What happens to the 13 schools Austin ISD wants to close? AISD says they'll be sold, leased or repurposed.

Tax records show the campuses are worth nearly $296 million and have over a million square feet of air conditioned space.

Map in the story.

www.kut.org/education/20...

Almost $300 million in public property is at stake as Austin ISD looks to close 13 schools

Campuses slated for closure were also set to receive millions of dollars in upgrades under the largest bond in AISD history, approved by voters in a landslide 2022 election.

www.kut.org

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · 4d

Bastrop wants to build a pedestrian tunnel under Buc-ee's and they're turning to Elon Musk for help.

I also learned in this story by @lmcgaughy.bsky.social that Dallas and Houston both have extensive underground pedestrian tunnel systems.

www.kut.org/business/202...

This Texas city wants tunnels to connect its trails. It’s asking Elon Musk for help.

Officials in the city of Bastrop have asked Musk’s tunneling firm, The Boring Company, to build several tunnels to connect the area’s trails. If approved, the city manager anticipates the million-doll...

www.kut.org

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · 9d

Starting today, Texas is charging sales tax on the fees sellers pay to list items on places like eBay, Poshmark and Etsy.

www.kut.org/texas/2025-1...

Texas starts taxing seller fees on sites like eBay, Poshmark and Etsy

Small sellers say the new tax on fees cuts into already thin margins while the comptroller argues state law requires online marketplaces be taxed like any other data processor.

www.kut.org

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · 11d

Behind those walls along I-35, TxDOT is building one of the largest tunnels Austin's ever seen.

www.kut.org/transportati...

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · 15d

A train stopped on Union Pacific tracks at FM 1626 caused a traffic apocalypse in
far South Austin this morning.

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · 24d

A new @evilmopacatx.bsky.social phone app is promising to make sense of MoPac's unpredictable toll lanes by showing drivers how much each minute of time saved will actually cost.

Alan Farmer made the app, inspired by "the terrible that is MoPac in the toll lane."

www.kut.org/transportati...

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · 25d

More than a dozen new nonstop flights coming to Austin's airport in the months ahead

www.kut.org/transportati...

New nonstop flights coming to Austin airport in the months ahead

Airlines led by Delta are rolling out a slate of new routes from Mexico City to Miami to Denver to Palm Springs.

www.kut.org

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · 28d

Delta today announced twice daily nonstop service from Austin to Miami is starting Nov. 22 on a Boeing 737-800.

Delta also has these nonstops coming up:

✈️ Palm Springs on Nov. 8
✈️ Denver on Nov. 9
✈️ Cancun and Cabo on Dec. 20
✈️ Columbus and Kansas City on Jun. 7, 2026

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Sep 10

The order also bans sales to minors, requires labels provide recommended serving size and health warnings, and loops in TABC to enforce laws and rules.

You can read it here: gov.texas.gov/uploads/file...

gov.texas.gov

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Sep 10

Delta-9 (D9) is used to draw the distinction between marijuana and hemp.

Less than 0.3% D9 by dry weight = "hemp"

More than 0.3% = "marijuana"

But D9 occurs in small amounts, so most people smoking cannabis — even in legal states — get high from THCA converted to D9 by heat.

An employee of ATX Organics shows a jar of ATX Organics’ THCA hemp flower on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, at ATX Organics in Austin. Photo by Michael Minasi / KUT News

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Sep 10

NEW: Governor Abbott's executive order on hemp would essentially ban the sale of THCA flower (shown below) and THCA concentrates.

Abbott's order calls for testing THCA after it's heated and converted to Delta-9, the main ingredient in cannabis that gets people high.

Jars of ATX Organics THCA hemp flowers are pictured on display on Wednesday, Aug. 27, 2025, at ATX Organics in Austin. Photo by Michael Minasi / KUT News

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Sep 10

Will TxDOT build a 21-foot-tall concrete noise barrier stretching half-a-mile along I-35 next to where the upper decks are now?

Cherrywood residents have to cast their vote by today.

www.kut.org/transportati...

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Sep 4

In Texas, tweens can still legally buy THC gummies at a gas station, because state lawmakers couldn't agree on whether to ban or regulate cannabis known as "hemp."

www.kut.org/politics/202...

THC still legal for all ages after Texas lawmakers leave hemp unregulated again

Texas lawmakers ended their second special session without regulating or banning hemp.

www.kut.org

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Aug 29

Selling THC vapes in Texas will be illegal starting Monday.

www.kut.org/politics/202...

Texas to ban sales of THC vapes starting Monday

A new state law outlaws sales of any vapes containing cannabinoids that would otherwise be legal in Texas, but possession is not explicitly prohibited.

www.kut.org

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Aug 28

BREAKING: Austin's airport expansion will get even bigger under a deal approved just now by the City Council.

The contract with seven major airlines unlocks billions in funding and will lead to more than 20 gates being constructed by the early 2030s.

www.kut.org/transportati...

Austin airport expansion to get even bigger under new deal approved by council

The city is negotiating a decade-long deal with major airlines that will unlock billions in financing and determine the exact number of new gates and size of the terminal expansion.

www.kut.org

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Aug 21

EXCLUSIVE: The Federal Aviation Administration is denying a request to upgrade Austin's airspace to the same level surrounding the nation's busiest airports.

www.kut.org/transportati...

FAA denies request to increase safety restrictions in skies above Austin's airport

The FAA team at ABIA had requested Austin's airspace be upgraded to Class B, a more restricted category designed to reduce the risk of midair collisions around the nation's largest airports.

www.kut.org

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Aug 15

NEW: As of 6:30 this morning, the Texas Education Agency released A-F scores for more than 9,000 campuses and 1,200 school districts statewide.

www.kut.org/education/20...

TEA releases last two years of A-F school ratings. Here's how to find your campus.

The Texas Education Agency has published delayed A-F ratings at TXschools.gov. Austin ISD has more A campuses and fewer Fs.

www.kut.org

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Aug 5

Correction: Concrete barricades — which will be pre-cast, not poured on site — will run two blocks from San Jacinto to Neches, not three blocks from San Jacinto to Red River.

Neches to Red River will keep these rubberized curbs. Here's the existing barriers, a map and the memo from TPW:

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Aug 4

The city of Austin will install concrete barricades along sidewalks on both sides East Sixth Street from San Jacinto Blvd. to Red River St.

The Downtown Austin Alliance has plans to try and make the barricades look nicer.

News conference planned for when construction starts on Mon., August 11.

A man walks across a pedestrian crossing on Sixth Street at night. Photo by Michael Minasi, KUT News

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Jul 23

Texas calls this "hemp" because state and federal law is confusing and arbitrary.

It's just weed, y'all. Almost exactly what you could buy in California or Colorado.

Here's a guide to some of the most popular cannabis products at your local shop.

www.kut.org/politics/202...

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Jul 18

The old bridge was built in 1960.

The new bridge will be slightly higher and wider. Unlike the old bridge, the new one will have a median and shoulders.

- One 12-foot-wide lane in each direction
- Six-foot-wide shoulders on either side
- Two-foot-wide striped median

Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Jul 18

RM 1431 is an important road connecting Marble Falls to Lago Vista.

With the bridge gone, the detour is 40 miles.

TxDOT map showing the RM 1431 detour due to the destruction of the bridge over Cow Creek. The map goes from RM 1431 to RM 1174 to RM 1869 to 29 to 183 and back to RM 1431.

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Jul 18

NEW: Construction starts Monday to rebuild the RM 1431 bridge over Cow Creek that was destroyed by floods.

TxDOT hired Hunter Industries for just over $4 million to finish within 60 days. Will get a bonus of $50,000/day for each day they finish early up to 20 days max.

Image of RM 1431 bridge smashed into pieces, scattered into Cow Creek like dominos. Photo by Mari Urbano

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Jul 18

Austin is considering making Sixth Street a two-way street from I-35 to Brazos. Analysis due in late August.

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Nathan Bernier @kutnathan.bsky.social · Jul 16

Fixing Austin's low-water crossings would take 200 years at the current pace.

www.kut.org/transportati...

Fixing Austin's low-water crossings would take 200 years at the current pace

Austin has dozens of low-water crossings that can flood during heavy rains. But money is tight and the city is only able to upgrade one every three years or so.

www.kut.org

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