City Cast Austin

Austin is no stranger to autonomous vehicles — a decade ago, this is where the first fully autonomous car ride took place, and then-Mayor Steve Adler declared Austin the “Kitty Hawk of driverless cars.” Late last year, Waymo rolled out service for Austinites on an insider waiting list, and our guest, Dan Weinstock, got approved to ride. Since then, he’s racked up 60 rides in the self-driving cars,...

Spring is fully in the air, along with the pollen, and we are going outside. Happy April, y’all! In this episode, Host Nikki DaVaughn is joined by Spectrum News Anchor Nicole Clark and City Cast Austin Executive Producer Eva Ruth Moravec to share some great tips on how to spend your month. We’re talking about which festivals you should go to (don’t make us pick between Eeyore’s 60th Birthday Party...

Once again, Democrats are outnumbered in the Texas Senate, leaving them little to do to fight Republican priorities. It’s a winner-take-all session, according to our guest, Sen. Sarah Eckhardt, D-Austin, and things are looking “pretty nasty, brutish, and short.” So, where does she get her encouragement? And, where does she think Democrats can effect change? Eckhardt joins host Nikki DaVaughn to di...

The Texas Legislature is still in town, and while one lawmaker tried to get the state to take control over the city’s government, there was unanimous opposition. Host Nikki DaVaughn is joined by Hey Austin newsletter editor Kelsey Bradshaw and executive producer Eva Ruth Moravec to dig into the “District of Austin” proposal on this week’s Friday News Roundup. Plus, we discuss an iconic Austin fest...

For one Austinite, this city was crucial to the fight for Women’s Rights in the 1960s. So decades after her activism helped desegregate dorms at The University of Texas at Austin and secure women’s reproductive rights, it’s been difficult for her to watch abortion access disappear. So what gives author Alice Embree hope, and how is she working on making things better for women and other Texans yea...

Travis County District Attorney José Garza is in hot water after his office was found to have missed a 90-day deadline to indict suspects on felony charges in several cases. Reporter Tony Plohetski first brought the issues to light when he reported on two suspected murderers who were released on low bonds from jail — but as Plohetski tells host Nikki DaVaughn, the problems didn’t stop there. Elsew...

How well do you know Travis County Sheriff Sally Hernandez? As the top cop in charge of the county jail, Hernandez has improved the sheriff’s office’s response to mental health issues and is getting a national lifetime achievement award in May honoring her career in law enforcement. Hernandez invited host Nikki DaVaughn to her office for an interview about the sheriff’s office’s biggest challenges...

As the days on the Texas Legislative calendar tick away, lawmakers’ pace of work is speeding up — and they’re still keeping at least one eye on Austin. While the bill to turn Austin into the “District of Austin” probably won’t go far, one that would ban all consumable hemp products in the state has already passed the Texas Senate. Other legislation targets Project Connect, short-term rentals, and...

It’s been a week, but we’re still talking about the horrific crash on Interstate 35 that killed five and injured several others, and we’ve got an idea for getting tractor-trailers like the one that crashed off the highway-that-will-be-a-construction-zone for the next 10 years. Plus, you may have seen the news that South by Southwest is condensing its various festivals into one shorter, seven-day s...

Is it just us, or were the crowds at South by Southwest smaller this year? We spent days galavanting around town, and have some opinions. So, we’re bringing you our thoughts on the unexpected, the overrated, the beloved, and our big picture hot-takes from SXSW 2025, with host Nikki DaVaughn, Hey Austin newsletter editor Kelsey Bradshaw, and executive producer Eva Ruth Moravec. And in case you miss...

Some might say that our city’s slogan, “Keep Austin Weird,” is outdated. But for those who coordinate OUTsider Fest, weird — otherwise known as out of the mainstream — is the target participant. The festival’s artistic director, Laura Gutiérrez, joins host Nikki DaVaughn in talking about the role the festival plays in Austin’s LGBTQ-plus community, as well as the importance of her work as an assoc...

New population estimates from the U.S. Census Bureau show that the Austin metro area is now the 25th most populated in the country. But that metro area stretches from Round Rock to San Marcos. So what’s happening within Austin’s city limits? Host Nikki DaVaughn is joined by City Demographer Lila Valencia to dig into our local population changes and what they mean.  Learn more about the sponsors of...

Before Austin City Council took off on Spring Break, it took several actions to address quality of life issues, like boosting the city’s inventory of “missing middle” housing, addressing how we maintain our public art, recommitting to transparency in meet-and-confer processes, and more. Host Nikki DaVaughn is joined by The Austin Common’s Amy Stansbury to get into council’s latest actions — plus u...

With the end of SXSW comes the end of an era: The Austin Convention Center, as we know it, will never look the same. It’s set to be demolished soon, and a new center won’t reopen until 2029. With an average of 23 million domestic tourists visiting Austin every year — many drawn to our conventions and festivals — what will festivals look like these next few years? Can Austin hold onto its status as...

Austin City Councilmember Natasha Harper-Madison, entrepreneur and hoops champion Fran Harris, and more Austinities have had a lot to say this SXSW, and we’ve been keeping our eyes on all of it. Plus, did you know the city is trying to hire laid-off federal workers in town? Host Nikki Davaughn is joined by executive producer Eva Ruth Moravec, and Hey Austin newsletter editor Kelsey Bradshaw to rou...

According to South by Southwest, only about 18 percent of the performers in the music festival are from Austin. So, we wanted to know: How do local musicians feel about the behemoth SXSW? Nikki DaVaughn, a musician herself, hosts local musicians J. Summar of Tender Wolf and John Branch to get into it all.  Learn more about the sponsors of this March 13th episode: Rodeo Austin Flyaustin Port Aransa...

On March 19, Austin’s first women’s sports bar will open, just in time for the first round of NCAA’s Tournament, in which the Lady Longhorns are ranked No. 1. The 1972’s cofounder Debra Hallum joins Nikki DaVaughn in explaining why we need gender-based sports bars, why they’re opening even despite plans for a light rail to plow through their building, and just how many local women’s sports there a...

Austin drivers have lots of reasons to despise our local toll road authority, TxTag, and the investigative team at KXAN knows all about it. Recently, reporters revealed that even after the dysfunctional authority admitted how bad it was and transferred authority to another agency, the problems continued. Host Nikki DaVaughn is joined by reporter Matt Grant, who found that more than half of TxTag’s...

An estimated one in seven of Austin’s short-term rentals is illegally operating, and City Council members are trying to change that. But those efforts have been underway for years, and have been largely unsuccessful, resulting in unfriendly legal rulings and bills filed at the Texas Capitol. Recently, council changed three regulations aimed to wrangle short-term rentals, but postponed enforcing tw...

The Texas Legislature is moving bills along, our state agencies are changing under the Trump administration, and there’s a ton going on in town this weekend. TGIF, y’all, it’s time for the Friday News Round Up. Host Nikki DaVaughn, executive producer Eva Ruth Moravec, and Hey Austin newsletter editor Kelsey Bradshaw are getting into some of the biggest news in town this week. We discuss how Gov. G...

Perhaps the most mysterious part of South by Southwest to many folks is the film and television portion — which gets underway this weekend. Did you know that local Austinites qualify for special discounts? Join host Nikki DaVaughn as she uncovers the mysteries of the SXSW Film and TV Festival with Eric Webb, a festival programming associate and film aficionado. With more than a decade of festivals...

Philanthropic giving in Austin has been flat for the past few years on Amplify Austin, a 24-hour period of giving that this year features 750 local nonprofits. But what donors do this year will be a bellwether, according to today’s guest, Piper Stege Nelson, executive director of I Live Here, I Give Here, which puts on Amplify Austin. Nelson joins host Nikki DaVaughn to discuss why giving is seemi...

South by Southwest can be intimidating, overwhelming, and ridiculously expensive. But for today’s guest, Austinite Lisa Hernandez, if you’re shelling out for anything at SXSW, you’re doing it wrong. She joins host Nikki DaVaughn to chat about how to enjoy — and we mean truly enjoy — the festival for free, from the apps to download in preparation, to the accounts to follow, and all of our best tips...

Watching the California fires spread this year was scary — especially if you’re the assistant chief of the wildfire division in the fifth most at-risk city for wildfires in the country. Carrie Stewart is back with host Nikki DaVaughn to talk about what the firefighters who were dispatched to Los Angeles learned about what Austin should do right now, and how the fall fire season is looking for Cent...

We made it to Friday, y’all! Join host Nikki DaVaughn and executive producer Eva Ruth Moravec as we round up the news that caught our attention this week. We’re talking about how the Dallas Cowboys are bringing flag football to girls at Austin high schools, a new bill that Texas lawmakers are considering to restrict funding for public libraries that host so-called drag queen story hours, and the m...