Graphic by Chris Quintana
Austin’s city boards and commissions are specialized city groups that make recommendations to City Council and perform other duties. Each of the 68 commissions holds regular meetings that are open to the public.
Some commissions like the Building and Standards Commission go beyond recommendations and hold quasi-judicial powers. All commissioners are unpaid volunteers appointed by City Council members.
Meeting agendas outline all meeting activities. Waterloo Greenway gave the Downtown Commission a presentation in August detailing the next phase of the park project after the recent Confluence opening.
“We look out for what the city is doing, what the city is not doing, giving direction if something is not going the way it should,” Downtown Commission Chair Ed Ishmael said.
Presentations are held at the commission’s request or presenters can request to be included on the agenda. To speak at any public meeting at City Hall, contact the representative listed on the commission page.
Commissioners often have expertise related to the board they serve. Commissioner Ishmael is an attorney and owner of Ishmael Law Firm. Austin Technology Commission Chair Steven Apodaca is the AppleCare global change management lead at Apple.
The Technology Commission oversees the Grant for Technology Opportunities Program (GTOPs) which supports nonprofit partners doing device distributions, tech-related outreach and education. The commission’s recommendations to City Council this year address data centers, artificial intelligence and surveillance technologies.
“We do our best to engage with other commissions, groups, constituents and other advocacy organizations as well as the city council agenda meetings to stay aware of current events,” commission Chair Apodaca wrote in an email.
The Arts Commission made recommendations about the hotel occupancy tax that funds ACME grants, the Art in Public Places ordinance and the 2027 city budget.