District 8 picks a new council member: Selena Xie and Jeffery Bowen vie for an open Southwest Austin seat

District 8 voters will elect a new council member on Nov. 3. The West and Southwest Austin district has more than 99,000 residents and takes in Zilker Park, the Barton Creek Greenbelt and the Violet Crown Trail, KUT reported. Candidates told KUT that wildfire and flooding are top issues there.

The seat is open because incumbent Paige Ellis could not get on the ballot. Under the city charter, a term-limited council member can run again with petition signatures from 5% of the district's qualified voters. Ellis needed 3,044 valid signatures, and city officials counted 62 fewer than that, KUT reported in August. Her term ends in January.

The candidates

According to KUT:

• Selena Xie is a commander with Austin-Travis County EMS and a former president of the Austin EMS Association. She supports the $295 million parks and library bonds, citing pool repairs, Zilker Park, Circle C Park, sidewalks and the Hampton Branch Library. She said there are "a lot of programs" she would cut before asking residents for more taxes. She proposes expanding the city's audit team and auditing spending every five years.
• Jeffery Bowen, who previously ran for mayor, opposes the bonds, citing existing city debt and about $700 million in deferred parks maintenance. He wants a closer review of city spending and program results. Axios reported that he has led the Austin Neighborhoods Council.

On housing, KUT cited data showing District 8 has built nearly 1,500 affordable units, about 20% of its goal, second-lowest of the 10 districts. The median home price there is $680,000. On homelessness, Xie called camping in wildfire-prone areas a safety risk that must be addressed quickly. Bowen said the city should measure which programs work and focus on prevention.

What our records show about the seat

Ellis's record. Our District 8 page counts 2,371 roll calls for Ellis. She missed two, voted no seven times and was with the majority on 93.2% of divided votes. Items she led that passed include a request that the regional mobility authority do a full environmental study of MoPac South, new rules and outreach on electric dirt bikes, a $100,000 Circle C off-leash dog area paid from her office budget, and a resolution starting zoning changes for "missing middle" and mixed-use housing, which passed 9-1.

Wildfire. On Oct. 22 the council adopted the updated Community Wildfire Protection Plan. Council Member Marc Duchen said wildfire risk is especially high in West Austin. We covered the plan here.

A water plant in the district. The same day, the council approved up to $89.7 million to convert the Ullrich Water Treatment Plant, in District 8, away from chlorine gas and anhydrous ammonia. Our story is here. Ellis also made the motion on an eminent domain item for the Barton Creek-Oak Acres flood project in the district, which passed without objection.

A contested rezoning. On Oct. 8 the council approved a rezoning of the CityView site on Loop 360 with a conditional overlay. A valid petition had been filed against the case. Ellis then gave staff direction on transportation safety work along Highway 360.

Bonds. Ellis was a co-sponsor of the May resolution that started this fall's bond package and voted for it again on Aug. 4. The new member will help decide the next bond. On Oct. 8 the council adopted a six-year bond cycle resolution that points to bond elections in 2028 and 2034.

Money

Our campaign finance pages cover sitting council members only, so they include Ellis but not Xie or Bowen. Community Impact has reported on candidates' filings.

What's next

Early voting runs through Oct. 30. Election Day is Nov. 3. Our early voting guide covers the full city ballot.