Rep. Doggett Announces Over $105 Million to Reconnect Austin at Cesar Chavez
Contact: Alexis.Torres@mail.house.gov
Washington, D.C.—Today, U.S. Representative Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas) announced $105.2 million in federal funds for the City of Austin’s Cap and Stitch Program to reconnect east and west at César Chávez Street, increasing access, mobility, and economic opportunity. The funds, distributed by the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT), are made possible through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA)—a law for which Rep. Doggett was the only Centex supporter and which every Texas Congressional Republican opposed. Rep. Doggett also previously secured an appropriation for preliminary engineering on this project, which was recently supplemented by an additional U.S. DOT planning grant.
“I previously obtained an appropriation for preliminary engineering for this project to reunite two long-divided parts of Austin,” said Rep. Doggett. “Today’s investment represents a very hopeful development regarding a troubling highway expansion. It offers important opportunities for our community. These are the first three blocks of what could eventually be additional benefits through additional capping along I-35 with help from UT, the City and other interested parties.”
The City of Austin, in collaboration with the Downtown Austin Alliance and other community partners, launched “Our Future 35.” The community-centered initiative to create public spaces and amenities through the design and construction of freeway covers (caps) and widened multimodal bridges (stitches) along I-35 through the center of Austin. The federal funds announced today will help add a cap and community amenities over three city blocks of the reconstructed I-35 from César Chávez Street to 4th Street, transforming what would otherwise be a concrete canyon into a premier public space for Austin.
Last Congress, Rep. Doggett supported the IRA, which established the Department of Transportation’s Neighborhood Access and Equity Grant (NAE) Program to improve walkability, safety, and affordable transportation access and address existing transportation facilities that create barriers to community connectivity or negative impacts on the human or natural environment, especially in disadvantaged or underserved communities.