Mayor Kirk Watson is determined to continue shaking up City Hall in 2024, with a focus on revising the police contract, according to the Austin Monitor. The shakeup first gained momentum following a February ice storm which highlighted the need for city government restructuring.
In the storm's aftermath, former City Manager Jesús Garza took an interim role after Spencer Cronk was dismissed, sparking an overhaul of city departments and staffing. Critics have argued that the changes are too disruptive, yet Watson stands by his aggressive approach, "I ran saying that we were going to shake up City Hall, that I thought City Hall was not organized for success," he told the Austin Monitor. The mayor cited multiple areas in need of stabilization, including the city’s airport, development services, and a strategy for addressing homelessness.
Public safety emerged as a particularly pressing concern for Watson in the past year, prompting a brief and controversial partnership with the Texas Department of Public Safety to aid the understaffed Austin Police Department. Despite the agreement's eventual failure amid criticism for disproportionately targeting Black and Latino residents, Watson sees no regret in his actions, "Looking back on that, I don't have any regret and I would do it again," he affirmed in the Austin Monitor interview. The mayor is set to renew a temporary pay package for officers and has started productive conversations with new Austin Police Association (APA) President Michael Bullock.
Watson's 2023 initiatives included hiring McKinsey & Co. to analyze the city's Development Services Department, seeking to streamline permitting processes. "I want McKinsey to be able to do its work without us sitting on the dais and saying, ‘Oh, I’ve got a new idea.’ That’s why we have them," Watson stated. He also pointed to the HOME initiative aimed at addressing housing supply and affordability as a sign of progress over past stalemates in housing policy debates.
