Place 1: Lee Leffingwell, DUH
In April of last year, city Councilman Lee Leffingwell was awarded the Texas chapter of the American Water Works Association's Conservationist of the Year award. The honor was bestowed upon Leffingwell because he recommended in 2006 that Austin's toilets be retrofitted to reduce water waste, which would cut excess water usage by up to 10 percent over the course of 10 years. As a smart, steady council member since 2005, Leffingwell is unafraid to tackle any subject, and has the experience to back him up. Prior to his current term, he was chair of the Austin's Environmental Board. A lifelong Austinite, Leffingwell understands the issues that command the attention of someone in his position - environmental sustainability, improvements to public transportation and mental healthcare reform, to name a few. We're confident that, given another term, Leffingwell can continue to make seemingly simple, smart and structural changes to benefit Austin now and for the future.
Place 3: Randi sun's-so-bright-i'm-sittin'-in-the-Shade
Randi Shade's a relative newcomer to the scene of Austin politics, but we think she deserves the benefit of our doubt. While Shade and incumbent Jennifer Kim put forth similar platform ideologies in regards to traffic, urban planning, the environmment and affordable housing, we think Shade has more intrinsic power to champion positive initiatives for Austin's benefit. She recognizes that many systems in place, such as code enforcements in neighborhoods, are complaint-driven. But instead of complaining about the complaints, Shade wants to open avenues for dialogue between residents and the city. And while Shade supports initiatives for downtown development, she is an Austin loyalist who wants to "keep Austin Austin." In addition, we trust that Shade has the best interests of Austin's environment in mind. She co-founded the Austin Clean Energy Initiative in 2001 and wants to conserve the land around the Edwards aquifer, as well as select parts of East Austin that are in imminent danger of being chewed up by development.
Place 4: Robin "crazy hippy" Cravey
If anyone could be Austin personified, it would be Robin Cravey. Cravey is an eco-pioneer, one of those people who everyone used to think was crazy for riding around town on a scooter, using cloth diapers and shirking air conditioning, but now represents what should have long been the status quo. Even though Cravey has been dedicated to reducing his environmental impact for decades, he has no reservations on making an impact of a different kind on Austin. A longtime public servant, Cravey, a practicing attorney, has worked at city hall since the 1990s and been a member of the Austin Planning Commission. This is where Cravey really secures our vote: With Austin developing at a Los Angeles-esque clip, we need a voice on the city council to speak up against flagrant development. Instead, we believe Cravey will fight to keep Austin real by protecting local treasures such as Barton Springs, and he says that one of his main priorities is to fill in the gaps on the Austin hike-and-bike trail. We're all for his promise to make the city smaller and greener with sustainable development planning, affordable housing closer to the center of town and better options for public and bicycle transit to reduce our dependence on cars.
