AUSTIN, Texas — City of Austin officials were given a deadline of Monday, June 22, to submit plans to remove street markings after the state gave the final denial on letting the city keep the markings up.
Gov. Greg Abbott had originally directed cities across Texas to remove street markings like murals, citing the paint as distracting and unsafe for drivers.
One of the six murals that the state ordered to be removed is the “Black Artists Matter” mural on E. 11th Street in the capital city.
“My initial reaction was, it’s just paint,” said Daphne McDole, recalling her reaction when the governor made his initial order.
McDole is the CEO of the African American Cultural Heritage District (Six Square District), where the mural is located.
“This mural in this district is important because of the displacement of the Black community. This sends a strong message to anyone who enters that this is where you are,” McDole said.
The mural was installed in 2020.
“We kept kicking the can, if you will, to delay, and delay, and delay,” said McDole, “but finally, here we are at the end of the road where it has to be removed.”
Richard Mendoza, the director of the Austin Transportation and Public Works Department, sent a letter on Oct. 30 to the Austin district engineer from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), requesting an exemption from the state to leave the markings as is.
“The City of Austin requests an exception for these locations based on the demonstrated public safety benefit as evidenced by our collective crash data,” the letter wrote in part.
The state replied in May, reading in part, “these treatments do not align with the SAFE ROADS Initiative and the Governor’s directive issued October 8, 2025, both of which emphasize uniformity and predictability in traffic control devices to enhance safety statewide.”
Austin officials were given a June 22 deadline to submit removal plans to the state, which leaves community members like McDole wondering how to keep a presence of art when the mural is removed from the road.
McDole is a member of the Public Spaces Task Force, formed by the city after the state announced its efforts.
“The members will be charged with identifying and making recommendations for the City to ‘celebrate diversity, show our love of equality, acknowledge contributions to Austin’s culture and character, and present Austin as a unique, creative place wanting to be better by being inclusive,’” a Nov. 5 memo said.
“We do have plans to replace it with another mural, the same message, in a different place,” McDole said.
Other cities that have received notices from TxDOT to remove street markings have already begun their plans. San Antonio officials, for example, have removed a rainbow crosswalk and are constructing a rainbow sidewalk instead.
“There’s more to our love of our citizens in this community than just markings on a pavement,” said Austin Mayor Kirk Watson.
