Empire Control Room & Garage
Jana Birchum / Design by Zeke Barbaro
Volume 43, Number 38
ON THE COVER:
features
Vote Now in Best of Austin 2024!
Cast your ballot by Monday, May 20, at midnight
news
Chronicle Endorsement for the Runoff Election
Early voting ends May 24 for the May 28 election
BY THE CHRONICLE EDITORIAL BOARD
Headlines / Quote of the Week
Palestinian Woman Finds a Friend in Austin and a Plan to Escape From Gaza
How a Snapchat message turned into an evacuation campaign
BY MAGGIE Q. THOMPSON
Council to Approve More Ambitious Development Reforms, and Considers Displacement
City aims to lower housing cost, considers displacement risk
BY AUSTIN SANDERS
UT Professor Rich Heyman Fired After Arrest at Pro-Palestine Protest
University groups see his firing as intimidation tactic
BY AUSTIN SANDERS
Austin ISD Budget Woes Take a Turn for the Worse
Hard decisions will have to be made, officials say
BY BRANT BINGAMON
food
Restaurant Review: LeRoy and Lewis Barbecue
The BBQ trailer-turned-brick and mortar is generally delicious but could use a more streamlined menu
BY MELANIE HAUPT
music
Austin’s Crucial Concerts for the Week
Jackie Venson, Grace Sorensen, Monte Warden, and many more
BY CARYS ANDERSON, DEREK UDENSI, MICHAEL TOLAND, LAIKEN NEUMANN, ABBY JOHNSTON, CAT MCCARREY, RAOUL HERNANDEZ, GENEVIEVE WOOD AND DOUG FREEMAN
Live Music in Austin
BY DEREK UDENSI
Screens
Film Reviews
Babes
Female friendship, pregnant bodies go under the microscope in hilarious Babes
Back to Black
Amy Winehouse biopic gives you all the details you’ll recognize from the singer’s tragically short life – but not much beyond that
The Blue Angels
Documentary about the Navy’s elite Flight Demonstration Squadron
Gasoline Rainbow
A new addition to the semi-improvised “kids on a road trip” genre by the directors of Bloody Noses, Empty Pockets
If
A little girl discovers she can see other people’s imaginary friends
The Strangers: Chapter 1
The creepy-people-in-creepy-masks home invasion horror gets rebooted by Renny Harlin
arts & culture
Consigned to History: The Last Days of the Austin Antique Mall
When two iconic Austin businesses share an address, someday one was going to lose out
BY RICHARD WHITTAKER
Theatre Review: Bottle Alley Theatre Company’s Aurora
This alien exploration works as a play and an encapsulation of what makes Austin special
BY CAT MCCARREY
How a Shed in North Campus Is Growing Austin’s DIY Art Scene
Scrappy art gallery shedshows brings people together to celebrate Austin’s overlooked talent
BY MEHER QAZILBASH
Sketchfest, Shakespeare, and More Arts Events to Fill Your Week
Things are gonna get cheeky, queer, and local
BY JAMES SCOTT, KATHERINE MCNEVINS, CARYS ANDERSON, CAT MCCARREY, KIMBERLEY JONES, LINA FISHER AND VALERIE LOPEZ
A CelebrASIA, Taste of Mexico, and Lesbian Wedding Highlight Our Community Events
Fests, gatherings, classes, and more
BY JAMES SCOTT, KATHERINE MCNEVINS, CARYS ANDERSON, JAMES RENOVITCH, KIMBERLEY JONES AND CAT MCCARREY
columns
Opinion: Clean Air Can’t Wait – How We Can Improve the I-35 Project
There are urgent environmental considerations to the highway expansion
BY NATASHA HARPER-MADISON, VANESSA FUENTES, PAIGE ELLIS, ALISON ALTER AND BRIGID SHEA
The Austin Chronic: Should I Throw Away My Marijuana in Fear of Fentanyl?
APD reassures there’s no evidence that contaminated marijuana is “prevalent in our community”
BY KEVIN CURTIN
Qmmunity: Social Butterflies
Find your community with these local queer social groups
BY JAMES SCOTT
Day Trips: Watergarden, Corpus Christi
Back and better than ever after seven-year dry spell
BY GERALD E. MCLEOD
The Luv Doc: Moby Dick McConaughey
People have been spinning tall tales about celebrities in Austin for years
BY THE LUV DOC
Mr. Smarty Pants Knows
BY MR. SMARTY PANTS
Free Will Astrology
Your weekly horoscope, May 17-23
BY ROB BREZSNY
The Common Law
Where’s the line between peaceful protests and criminal conduct?
BY LUKE ELLIS
Feedback
Letters to the editor, published daily
sports
The Verde Report: Yes, Owen Wolff Is the Coach’s Son. No, That Doesn’t Make Him a Nepo Baby.
Plus: Austin will host the All-Star Game
BY ERIC GOODMAN
comics
