Shawna M Reding, Molly Oak
AUSTIN, Texas — Austin City Council has voted to buy one more hotel to house the homeless, but decided to postpone the vote on another one until next week.
The new hotels that were discussed at the Wednesday, Jan. 27, council meeting are Candlewood Suites in northwest Austin (postponed) and the Texas Bungalows Hotel & Suites in North Austin (approved), which would be purchased for $9.5 million and $6.7 million respectively.
Neighbors and businesses near the hotels have pushed back against the purchases, saying the decision was made without their input.
While the vote to purchase the northwest location was delayed, it is expected to pass next week.
“By purchasing these hotels, we pull people off the streets and into housing and stability. It’s even more important that we approve the second of these hotels next week,” said Austin City Council Member Greg Casar. “These hotels will not only be homes for people, but will also provide services like job aid, health care, mental health resources, and more. This solution is only possible because of the transformation of Austin’s police budget. Although I’m disappointed that one of the two hotels was postponed today, I’m confident we can get the second one across the finish line next week. The community is calling on us to show real urgency in addressing homelessness.”
A City spokesperson told KVUE on Jan. 25 that there are around 200 people sheltering across the original five ProLodge locations, which all have a total occupancy of about 300 rooms. Since those hotels became ProLodge locations, the City said that nearly 150 people have moved out into safe housing.