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Whispers
Thursday, March 28, 2024 by Chad Swiatecki
Disability committee requests city conduct first census of local disabled community
The city may move forward with conducting its first comprehensive census of the local disabled population, a move that disability advocates say will help to properly gauge the need for services and other resources for that community. At a special meeting held last week, the Mayor’s Committee for People With Disabilities passed a recommendation for City Council to approve and carry out a point-in-time count of Austin’s disabled community. Committee Member Pete Salazar, who had requested the census in a recent meeting and helped to draft the language, said Mayor Pro Tem Leslie Pool has indicated support for the count.
¡Sí Se Puede! this Saturday
The 23rd annual ¡Sí Se Puede! César Chávez March & Celebration will take place this Saturday, March 30, to honor the life and legacy of César Chávez on his birthday. The celebration will take place at Parque Zaragoza from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., with sign-making and gathering for the march to start at 9 a.m. The march itself is a short one around the park. The celebration will feature speakers, community vendors, artists and nonprofits, and performances from Ballet Folklorico, high school drumlines and music from DJ Chris “Tejano Man” Tristan and Mariachi Sin Fronteras. The event is hosted by the United by Our Roots coalition of: HABLA; Amigos de Parque Zaragoza; PODER; East Austin Conservancy; Council Member José Velásquez, Austin City Council, District 3; George Morales, Travis Co. Constable Pct. 4; Del Valle Community Coalition; Fiesta Austin; HABLA y VOTA Action Fund; Muertos Clothing Co.; Council Member Vanessa Fuentes, Austin City Council, District 2; Austin Latino Coalition; LULAC 4221 & 650; Mexicanos 2070; MAS Cultura; La Voz Newspaper; HOT Tejano; Council Member Chito Vela, Austin City Council, District 4; Latino HealthCare Forum; and AFSCME Local 1624.
Bullock offers discussions, workshops on April 8 solar eclipse
As the April 8 total solar eclipse draws closer, the Bullock Museum will host two programs exploring the science of eclipses and how to view them safely. Next Wednesday at noon, the museum will hold a discussion about the nature of eclipses and how to properly photograph them, featuring Rob Pettengill, NASA JPL solar system ambassador and Astronomy in Chile education ambassador. A similar program will take place beginning at 10 a.m. April 7, with NASA ambassador Sophie Gairo and representatives from the McDonald Observatory talking about the solar eclipse. Families may also participate in science, technology and engineering demonstrations with Girlstart. More information on museum programming is available at www.thestoryoftexas.com.
Tell the city how to invest in our environment
The Joint Sustainability Committee will hold a public hearing today to help develop a new Environmental Investment Plan. In February, City Council approved a resolution asking city staff to look at a number of climate initiatives already approved in order to help prioritize and fund those that reduce carbon emissions, decrease water use, advance sustainability and improve community resilience. Today’s hearing, which will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. at City Hall, seeks public help in identifying what should be prioritized moving forward. Those unable to attend tonight’s meeting can fill out this online form with ideas and suggestions: bit.ly/JSCPublicForm.
Total eclipse, from the bus
Capital Metro is (kind of) joining in on the solar eclipse fun. First, the fun part: The transportation authority is hosting an eclipse viewing picnic from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Leander Station Park & Ride. On the less-fun side of things, Capital Metro is anticipating severe delays in the time surrounding the eclipse, due to an excess of traffic. In addition, the agency warns that its operators may choose to pull over vehicles during the two or so minutes of the full eclipse, due to total darkness and possible cosmic weirdness. Nonetheless, regular bus service and special rail service will remain up and running on April 8.
Tuesday, March 26, 2024 by Beth Bond
LCRA is replacing Burnet County floodgates to keep dam ready to respond to flooding
The first of 10 new floodgates was installed on Burnet County’s Wirtz Dam, which forms Lake LBJ. It is part of Lower Colorado River Authority’s $76 million, three-year project to remove and replace each of the dam’s original floodgates with new, custom-built floodgates made to today’s engineering standards. The dam was completed in 1951 with nine floodgates, and a 10th was added when a power plant was constructed in 1974. “Most of the floodgates have been in place for 73 years, so it’s time for them to be updated,” said Kelly Payne, LCRA vice president of water operations. “We’re in a drought now, but we’re in Flash Flood Alley, and we know the next flood could be right around the corner.” LCRA is replacing the floodgates one at a time so the dam remains operational and ready to pass floodwaters downstream, if needed. The project is expected to be completed in 2025. Throughout the project, the area up to about 300 feet upstream of the dam on Lake LBJ will remain off-limits to boaters.
Tuesday, March 26, 2024 by Elizabeth Pagano
Celebrate spring with safety
Instead of enjoying the spring weather (through a haze of pollen), the city’s Office of Homeland Security & Emergency Management has seized the opportunity to remind Austinites that one of our prettiest seasons is also a time for severe weather. In a Monday press conference, officials urged residents to prepare for hail, thunderstorms and flash flooding, all of which are at high risk in the springtime. This week, in fact, is Flooding Preparedness Week, which is typically marked by preparing for flooding. An extensive list of tips, best practices and resources can be found here or heard by watching Monday’s press conference here.
2024 Warrant Amnesty Program now underway
Today through April 19, people with active warrants can have fees waived if they take part in the 2024 Warrant Amnesty Program. During this period, no officers will be sent to take defendants into custody, and those who voluntarily go to an Austin municipal or community court location will not face arrest. Instead, the Austin Municipal Court and Downtown Austin Community Court are offering options to those who can’t pay right away. Those options include payment plans, community service and waivers for people experiencing financial hardship. During a series of walk-in dockets (listed here) no appointments are necessary. Under last year’s Warrant Amnesty Program, more than 2,300 outstanding warrants and delinquent citations were cleared.
Monday, March 25, 2024 by Elizabeth Pagano
Arrests made over ‘no refusal’ spring break
The stats from Austin Police Department’s spring break DWI enforcement and “No Refusal” initiative are in. The operation totaled 55 DWI arrests. Of those, 19 were made via blood search warrants, 24 via consent breath samples and 14 via nonconsent breath samples. In addition, enhanced charges were issued for 11 consent breath samples with a blood alcohol level of over 0.15, one felony DWI with a child passenger and one intoxication manslaughter. “No refusal” is an enforcement strategy that enables jurisdictions to obtain search warrants for blood samples from drivers who refuse breath or blood tests.
HEB and Waterloo Park team up for a free festival
Waterloo Park will soon host a free festival celebrating Texas parks, wildlife and the people that help preserve them. Called the “Our Texas, Our Future Wildlife & Environmental Festival,” the event is being held by HEB and the Waterloo Greenway Conservancy. It will feature a screening of HEB’s environmental docuseries “Our Texas, Our Future,” interactive exhibits, STEM and art workshops and guided garden tours. Visitors who bring plastic bags (to recycle) will be entered to win prizes from sponsors. The fest will take place noon to 4 p.m. April 21.
Thursday, March 21, 2024 by Jo Clifton
Aleshire questions source of funds, price for Tokyo Electron property
Attorney Bill Aleshire, former Travis County judge and tax assessor-collector, never shy about voicing his opinion on city government, has a multitude of questions about the city’s proposed purchase of the Tokyo Electron property on today’s agenda. As Aleshire points out, records from the Travis Central Appraisal District show the appraised value of the two parcels the city plans to buy is a little more than $49.3 million. (These numbers are frequently lower than the price paid by a buyer.) The city plans, according to the agenda, to pay a total amount not to exceed $87,045,000 including closing costs. That same agenda shows that the money for the property will come from bonds, although it is not clear from the agenda exactly which bonds will be used. Kimberly Moore of the Financial Services Department told the Austin Monitor via email, “The proposed acquisition is supported by a combination of certificates of obligation ($60 million) and Project Connect Anti‐Displacement funds ($27 million).” A city spokesperson has said that the site, which is close to a planned light-rail line along Riverside Drive, might provide “greatly needed space for a second Combined Technology and Emergency Communications Center,” as well as other city office space. Mayor Kirk Watson has a much grander vision for the site, which he has compared to the Mueller development.
Austin Animal Center reaches a ‘crisis point’
Adoption fees are currently waived at the city’s animal shelter, which is dealing with extreme overcrowding. Animal Services officials are asking for help finding fosters and adopters to deal with the crisis. “Our capacity limit takes into account doubling up dogs in the larger kennels, and half of our nonpublic building that should really be used for court cases, quarantines, owner incarcerations and hospitalizations, etc.,” Chief Animal Services Officer Don Bland said in a statement to the press on Wednesday afternoon. “Currently we have zero open kennels for any incoming dogs, including emergencies. We just received notification that 12 dogs from a cruelty case are on their way and we need space for them.” According to that press release, staff will be on hand to process fostering from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. every day this week. Those fostering medium and large dogs are being asked to foster for a minimum of two weeks. In addition, area rescues that can take on medium and large dogs could receive a monetary incentive if they have the capacity. Those rescue centers can email animal.rescue@austintexas.gov for more information.