Central Texas top stories for March 3, 2025. Firefly Aerospace’s “Blue Ghost” lunar vehicle successfully landed on the moon early Sunday morning. Local officials are urging the community to start preparing for wildfire season now. NASCAR driver Christopher Bell came out on top in the EchoPark Automotive Grand Prix at Circuit of the Americas. Texas Women’s basketball team won the Southeastern Conference in their first year in the league.
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SXSBREAKS!
It’s that time of year where we discuss our annual official SXSW Showcase SXSBreaks and our amazing line up. We also discuss Rza from Wu Tang’s comments about the rise of southern hip-hop.
Pease Elementary is set to reopen as a child care center, it will bring kids back to the historic Austin school.
Pease is one of four elementary schools the Austin ISD school board voted to close after the 2019-20 school year. Now, Austin ISD has been working on plans to repurpose those campuses. As KUT’s Becky Fogel reports, a nonprofit plans to open a child care center in the former school.
KUT Morning Newscast for February 28, 2025: AISD’s vaccination rate for incoming kindergarteners is below target.
Central Texas top stories for February 28, 2025. As the measles outbreak in West Texas continues to raise concerns throughout the state, AISD’s vaccination rate for incoming kindergarteners is below target. The Greater Austin YMCA will lease office space from AISD to help decrease the school district’s $10 million budget deficit. Texas Women’s basketball team beat Mississippi State 68-64.
Office vacancies in downtown Austin are at an all-time high, affecting other businesses.
Since the pandemic, things in downtown Austin just haven’t been the same. Seeing more empty buildings downtown is affecting businesses like restaurants, coffee shops and even parking garages. KUT’s Luz Moreno-Lozano reports how businesses are trying to adapt and the city and its partners are trying to help.
KUT Morning Newscast for February 27, 2025: Austin will have a new Office of Arts, Culture, Music, and Entertainment.
Central Texas top stories for February 27, 2025. The city of Austin has created a new office that will house its music, arts, culture and entertainment departments under one roof. Without consistent rain, flowers that bloom in the spring might not make a big showing this year. LTISD has a new Interim Superintendent.
Going to SXSW? How to get good tacos and avoid ‘taco traps’
Chances are if you’re going to South By Southwest this year, you’re gonna need to grab a bite on the fly. In this bonus episode of the Tacos of Texas podcast, Mando Rayo gives you the scoop on where to find the best tacos during SXSW and just as importantly, where not to!
Bonus Taco Tip! Bookmark the 2024 SXSW Austin Taco Map before hitting the streets this SouthBy season!
The programming in this bonus episode of the Tacos of Texas podcast was originally aired live on the Texas Standard in March, 2024.
Still reading? We appreciate you! And as we gear up for season CINCO of the Tacos of Texas podcast, we want to hear from dedicated listeners like you! Please tell us what you want to hear on the show by taking our listener survey at kut.org/tacosurvey
Thank you.
¡Vamos!
KUT Morning Newscast for February 25, 2025: Public health leaders say it’s a good time to check your measles vaccination status.
Central Texas top stories for February 25, 2025. After a possible measles exposure in Hays County, health leaders say it’s a good time to check your vaccination status. Round Rock ISD is working to balance its budget. UT women’s basketball team is number one on the Associated Press Top 25 poll. Legislation in the statehouse would increase salaries for teachers for the first time in years, but some educators aren’t convinced.
KUT Morning Newscast for February 24, 2025: Hays County officials are warning about a possible measles exposure in Central Texas.
Central Texas top stories for February 24, 2025. Public health officials say declining vaccination rates are driving an outbreak of measles in West Texas. Now, Central Texas officials are warning about a possible measles exposure in San Marcos and San Antonio. Congressman Greg Casar held his first Austin town hall since President Donald Trump returned to office last month. The median sales price of a home in Austin is up slightly compared to this time last year
KUT Morning Newscast for February 21, 2025: ACC plans to expand its partnership with Texas A&M’s engineering department.
Central Texas top stories for February 21, 2025. We’ll have below freezing temperatures tonight, Austin’s overnight shelters are set to remain open. ACC plans to expand its partnership with Texas A&M’s engineering department with a $1.5 gift from Samsung Austin semiconductor. The University of Texas head football coach is set to make more than $80million over the next seven years. The San Antonio Spurs beat the Phoenix Suns 120 to 109 at the Moody Center. The Hill Country Conservancy finalized an agreement with the John Knox Ranch to protect 255 acres of land.
KUT Morning Newscast for February 20, 2025: Federal cuts are affecting an Austin nonprofit that helps people find health coverage.
Central Texas top stories for February 20, 2025. The Austin area is under an Extreme Cold Warning until today at noon. The city will keep shelters open through Friday night – and maybe beyond. Federal budget cuts are affecting Foundation Communities, an Austin nonprofit that helps people find health coverage. An Amber Alert has been issued for a teenager missing from Temple.
KUT Morning Newscast for February 19, 2025: The Austin area is under Extreme Cold Warning today.
Central Texas top stories for February 19, 2025. The Austin area is under an Extreme Cold Warning until tomorrow at noon with dangerously cold wind chills. More than 200 acres of environmentally sensitive land near Southwestern Travis County are being permanently protected by the city of Austin. Liberty Hill ISD is moving to a four-day school week.
Soup recipes for caldo weather that aren’t caldo
As the weather dips, we’re bringing it to you Tacos of Texas style! Switching it up this soup season with Mando Rayo who shares his favorite Mexican soup recipes for the winter weather (aka caldo weather.)
The programming featured in this bonus episode was originally aired on the Texas Standard on December 11, 2024.
As we gear up for the next season of Tacos of Texas, we want to hear from listeners like you! Head to kut.org/tacosurvey to send us your thoughts and ideas for the upcoming season of the show! And stay tuned for Season CINCO of Tacos of Texas.
¡Vamos!
The beating heart of Elon Musk’s business empire is growing in Texas
Fifteen hundred miles from Washington, DC, Elon Musk has been quietly growing his business empire outside of Austin. His Texas footprint could rapidly grow this year, as he moves X’s HQ and expands his SpaceX Starlink facility’s size in rural Central Texas.
KUT Morning Newscast for February 18, 2025: Winter is not over, the Austin area will see below freezing temperatures.
Central Texas top stories for February 18, 2025. The National Weather Service has issued a Cold Weather Advisory for Central Texas starting late tonight until tomorrow at noon. The City of Austin will open its cold weather shelters for the next couple of nights. Austin area school districts are struggling with budget deficit, one local district is looking at adopting a four-day school week to cut down on costs.
KUT Morning Newscast for February 17, 2025: Food insecurity is growing in the Austin area, organizations are trying to help.
entral Texas top stories for February 17, 2025. As everyday expenses like groceries continue to rise, Hays County Food Bank is trying to help those in need. A construction is underway for an emergency food pantry in Bastrop. Round Rock city leaders are calling for drought-friendly landscaping in new developments. UT’s women’s basketball team beat LSU over the weekend.
Will Outkast make it into the Rock ‘N Roll Hall of Fame?
Fresh and Confucius discuss whether Outkast has a legitimate chance at making the Rock ‘N Roll Hall of Fame. The pair also breakdown Kendrick Lamar’s halftime show and their thoughts on it.
Texas Extra: Introducing Season 3 of The Disconnect: Power, Politics and the Texas Blackout
Listen to the first episode of Season 3 The Disconnect: Power, Politics and the Texas Blackout.
This season the podcast explores the history of oil and gas regulation, how the industry became essentially self-regulating, and how some Texas officials continue to see natural gas as the future of electricity production, despite the rapid rise of renewable sources like solar and wind.
In the first episode, you’ll hear the story of a con man and a group of hardscrabble East Texas farmers who uncovered the biggest oilfield in U.S. history — and how that discovery forced an obscure state agency to confront the destructive forces of unrestrained oil drilling.
Listen and Subscribe to The Disconnect: Power, Politics and the Texas Blackout
KUT Morning Newscast for February 14, 2025: AISD says its projected budget deficit has grown to $110 million.
Central Texas top stories for February 14, 2025. The Austin Independent School District says its projected budget deficit has grown by nearly 20-million-dollars. A Texas judge ruled a New York doctor has to stop providing abortion care to people in Texas via telemedicine. Now it is illegal to park in a bike lane in Austin. Ascension Seton’s annual Austin Marathon takes place this Sunday, expect road closures starting today.
Austin’s light-rail plans are closer than ever to becoming a reality, but the project would require dozens of businesses to be demolished.
KUT’s Nathan Bernier takes us on a tour around Austin to learn about some of the properties that could be bulldozed to make space for the city’s high-frequency urban rail.