Austin’s New Logo Sparks Outrage Over Million-Dollar Price Tag
The City of Austin unveiled its first-ever official logo on Thursday morning, but instead of civic pride, the reveal has triggered a wave of criticism over its simplistic design and hefty price tag. The whole project cost the city about $1.1 million, according to City of Austin Chief Communications Director Jessica King.
The minimalist design features a blue “A” formed by two intersecting lines, representing what city officials describe as the Austin “A” with a design inspired by the area’s rivers, hills and “dynamic energy” of residents.
City Manager T.C. Broadnax has positioned the logo as the first in the city’s history to unify the city and its services.
Many residents and social media users have been less than impressed with the result of what became a seven-year development process
Public Backlash
The logo has been widely mocked online, with critics drawing unflattering comparisons to corporate rebrands.
Texans had plenty to criticize about the revamp, calling it a “Cracker Barrel attempt.” Others have questioned whether the generic design truly represents Austin’s unique character and vibrant culture.
The controversy intensifies when considering the financial investment. The city spent over seven years and $1 million to design it, replacing a classic, detailed logo that had been in use since 1919. Critics argue the new design “appears to have nothing to do with Austin or Texas, even though the city government insists otherwise.”
“Many millions of our tax dollars went into this need to be refunded immediately. We are not and never will be the City of Dallas.” — Mackenzie Kelly, former Austin City Council member
Breaking Down the Costs
City officials have defended the expenditure by explaining how the budget was allocated. The vast majority of that went to outreach and engagement, while the design element was about $200,000. The remaining funds covered community engagement, research, and the broader branding initiative that began in 2018 when city council approved establishing a “consistent and clear brand” as part of the city’s strategic plan.
Mixed Reception
While the online reaction has been largely negative, some Austin residents have offered more measured responses. Some described it as “clean and simple,” while others described it as “modern” or “just fine.”
Looking Forward
The new branding will officially launch on October 1st, with other city elements — like official uniforms, facility signs and vehicles — featuring the reimagined brand image. Whether public opinion will soften over time remains to be seen, but the initial response suggests Austin’s expensive new identity may have created more division than unity among its residents.
The question now is whether this simplified symbol can eventually win over the hearts and minds of Austinites who feel their vibrant city deserves something more distinctive than two blue lines.
Because of falling short of state accountability standards for three consecutive years, twelve Austin schools may close or undergo major changes starting in the 2026–27 school year. Austin ISD sent letters to the families of these schools on Thursday to warn them of this possibility.
This announcement comes as the district is already in the process of implementing turnaround plans at three middle schools in North Austin and is considering closing multiple campuses across the city for budgetary reasons.
A Hays High School student was arrested for bringing a gun on campus yesterday. (FOX 7 Austin)
Lago Vista High School was placed on a temporary lockdown after a suspect fled on foot during a traffic stop near the campus entrance on Thursday. (CBS Austin)
A Harris County man is facing charges he provided a vape and alcohol to an underage girl in Dripping Springs in exchange for sexual favors.
Austin police are looking for two suspects in an aggravated assault incident three weeks ago.
Three people were arrested after they were found with stolen mail and fake credit cards during a traffic stop in Kyle. (FOX 7 Austin)
A death occurred at the Urban Alchemy homeless shelter on East 8th Street in Austin, discovered after 7 wellness checks over a 24-hour period, raising questions about the effectiveness of monitoring procedures and safety protocols in place at city-run homeless facilities.
An Austin assisted living facility and two of its former employees have been indicted by a Travis County grand jury in connection to a resident’s death during the 2021 winter storm, the Travis County District Attorney José Garza announced on Thursday. (KVUE-TV)
Austin Mayor Kirk Watson has penned an opinion piece for the Austin American-Statesman on the new Austin Convention Center project.
Travis County Judge Andy Brown talks about the property tax rate, the county’s budget and flood recovery.
Manor, located about 15 miles from downtown Austin and relatively close to Tesla Inc.’s factory in eastern Travis County, has seen its population swell more than 50% in recent years, from 13,642 in 2020 to 21,500 in 2024.
A new 50,000 square-foot retail center is in the works that will feature a Chuy’s and a Bojangles. (Austin Business Journal)
Society of Unconventional Drummers, or SOUnD, filed a lawsuit Wednesday with several other student organizations at UT Austin and UT Dallas against the schools’ respective presidents, the UT Board of Regents and UT System Chancellor Dr. John Zerwas over a new state law they claim violates their right to free speech. (KUT 90.5)
The Austin City Limits Music Festival is now hiring. The first day of the two-weekend festival is exactly one month away.
WEATHER
THURSDAY’S HIGH / LOW TEMPERATURES
AUSTIN-BERGSTROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
CAMP MABRY
Thursday was officially the hottest day of the year so far.
5-DAY FORECAST / AUSTIN, TEXAS
The Gulf has been virtually untouched this hurricane season, with short-lived Tropical Storm Barry in June being the only storm to move through the region this year. The absence of activity has allowed the water to become incredibly warm, priming the Gulf for fast-developing storms. (AccuWeather)
“If anything goes in there, it almost certainly will become a major hurricane.” — AccuWeather Lead Hurricane Expert Alex DaSilva
Legislators are inching closer toward changing laws to address at least pieces of the multitude of problems with flood prevention and disaster response that they’d heard about in recent weeks — many of which were not new problems at all. (Texas Tribune)
Many people in Kerr County still desperately need help rebuilding two months after the devastating flooding.
The State of Texas is preparing to execute Robert Roberson next month. In 2002 Roberson was convicted of the shaken baby death of his two-year-old daughter, Nikki. The Center for Integrity in Forensic Sciences (CIFS) is calling on Texas authorities to prevent what they say is the wrongful execution of Roberson. He is scheduled to die on October 16. (Texas Public Radio)
The Texas legislature’s second special session concluded with both chambers adjourning sine die, leaving the THC issue unresolved despite extensive negotiations.
The property tax reform bill (SB10) failed after amendments reduced the voter approval threshold to 1% while exempting public safety expenses.
The Weekly Roundup
Official with the State Fair of Texas say a clear bag policy will be in effect this year. Organizers expect the Fair to attract over 2 million visitors during its 24-day run, making safety a top priority.
SPORTS
NFL: The first play of the 2025 NFL season hadn’t even occurred before there was plenty of drama between the Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles last night.
Eventually, there was a game.
Jalen Hurts rushed for two touchdowns for the Eagles, who lost hot-tempered star defender Jalen Carter early for spitting on Dak Prescott, then withstood a rare weather delay and needed a late stop to beat the Dallas Cowboys 24-20 early Friday in a wild start to the NFL season. (Yahoo! Sports)
ON THE SCHEDULE
HOUSTON TEXANS:
MLB: The Houston Astros lost the series-deciding game to the New York Yankees last night.
Carlos Rodón pitched six strong innings to tie for the major league victory lead with 16 and Trent Grisham hit his career-high 30th homer of the season and 100th of his career to help the New York Yankees beat the Houston Astros 8-4 on Thursday night. (Yahoo! Sports)
ON THE SCHEDULE
AL WEST STANDINGS
Texas Longhorns Football – San Jose State Preview | LIVE | 9/5/25 |
THURSDAY NIGHT SCORES
Eastside 48, LASA 0
Granger 42, Thorndale 21
Hendrickson 38, Leander 0
Hewitt Midway 58, Cedar Ridge 31
McCallum 52, Travis 13
McNeil 34, Lake Belton 28
Stony Point 17, Buda Johnson 14
Vista Ridge 28, Bowie 21
Weiss 22, San Marcos 15
TONIGHT
Liberty Hill will be looking for a win tonight in new head coach David Seaborn’s first game in charge.
Stories Bigger Than Texas: The Alamo Podcast Episode 98:
“The Travis Letter’s Journey Home “
With the Alamo under siege, Lt. Col. William Barret Travis penned a letter to the people of Texas and all Americans in the world. His passionate plea for help is now one of the most treasured artifacts in all of Texas. We reveal the successful effort to bring the Travis Letter back home to the Alamo, for good: the plans for where to display it, and how its words remain so resonant today. Featuring Alamo Trust, Inc., Executive Director Dr. Kate Rogers; the Alamo’s Senior Historian Ernesto Rodriguez; the Alamo’s Senior Researcher & Historian Kolby Lanham; and the Alamo’s Collections Manager Misty Lanham.
Travis County, Lake Travis, etc. was named for Travis.
There was a spat & Cowboys lost! Ugh!