“Keep Austin Weird” is the mantra the residents use to justify the motto that can be seen on spray painted buildings, souvenir posters, protest messaging and in between BLM and LGBTQ yard signs that dot many yards throughout neighborhoods within the capital city of Texas.

In reality, Austin is suffering the same dangerous conditions that plague most American cities run by far left progressive Democrats.

For instance, their Travis County District Attorney Jose Garza was funded by George Soros, the liberal billionaire who has publicly claimed his prize mission in life is the destruction of the United States.

Here are some headlines to prove the Soros-owned DA is doing the job of his master:

Notorious for bad traffic conditions and lengthy highway log jams, police are continuously understaffed to meet needs. 

A former police officer (who while on duty stopped to help my son Jack with a flat tire one night on the near east side of Austin), told me later he left the force and moved his family away.

“City officials were against us all the way. Reducing our forces. The beloved 6th Street became dangerous as the sun went down but there were not enough of us to control the growing violence.”

The truth is, despite cutting and limiting the police force, that under this DA and city council, George Soro’s intentions are now reality. The crime rate is soaring and many long time citizens have abandoned their once beloved city for greener pastures.

The police department spends even more. Last year the police accounted for only 14% of the city’s total payroll but 40% of its overtime spending.

• Detective Jesus Carillo took home $256,134 of overtime pay for a total salary of $336,605. He was the fourth-highest-paid person in the city.

• In 2023, police officer Jovita Lopez outearned almost everyone in Austin, helped out by $254,106 in overtime pay. The only two people who outearned her left before the end of the year: Austin Energy General Manager Jacqueline Sargent and City Manager Spencer Cronk, who collected massive amounts in severance and retirement payments.

Here are some of the worst neighborhoods in Austin.

MLK

• Population: 4121
• Crime rate: 12,941 per 100,000 residents (452% higher than the national average)

The MLK neighborhood is one of the main areas to avoid in Austin as it experiences a high rate of both violent and property crime.

Riverside

• Population: 12,906
• Crime rate: 13,530 per 100,000 residents (477% higher than the national average)

Located along the Colorado River, Riverside is another one of the high-crime areas in Austin that features a large homeless encampment along Riverside Drive.

Rosewood

• Population: 5,701
• Crime rate: 8,161 per 100,000 residents (248% higher than the national average)

Rosewood is another neighborhood that tops the list of Austin’s areas to avoid, with a high rate of poverty and urban decay.

Georgian Acres

• Population: 9600
• Crime rate: 10,925 per 100,000 residents (366% higher than the national average)

Georgian Acres is a neighborhood in north-central Austin with a reputation for drug activity and vehicle theft, especially in the northern section near Rundberg Lane.

Montopolis 

• Population: 12,211
• Crime rate: 9,434 per 100,000 residents (302% higher than the national average)

Located near the Austin-Bergstrom Airport, Montopolis is one of the poorest neighborhoods in the city and suffers from a high rate of violent crime.

Even the Austin Fire Department’s overtime spending has been in the headlines since a 2017 audit found the department did “not appear to have proactively implemented adequate cost saving measures” before spending $21 million on overtime that year.

Austin’s fire department spent an all-time high on overtime pay in 2024 after years of audits and supervision from the City Council designed to reduce the spending.

In 2023, the City Council ordered the fire department not to spend more than $9.6 million on overtime, but the department warned the city in June that they were on track to spend $11.6 million because of staffing shortages.

In September 2023 firefighters received 4% pay raises. By the end of the year, the department had spent $17.1 million on overtime.

In 2024, the fire department spent a record $22.7 million on overtime. 

• Lieutenant Kier Nixon topped the list with $160,042 in overtime earnings, giving him a total pay of $299,088.

• Eight others earned at least $100,000 in overtime.

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