Severe drought with no relief in sight has led the Lower Colorado River Authority to cut off water to agricultural customers. Currently, the entire Hill Country watershed is in extreme drought. LCRA controls the flow of water through the lower Colorado River basin, and the interruption means that no Highland Lakes water will be available to agricultural customers in Colorado, Wharton and Matagorda counties. It is the first time water has been cut off since the implementation of the 2020 Water Management Plan, which “requires LCRA to cut off water from the Highland Lakes to interruptible customers during conditions such as the current drought so water supplies will continue to be available to cities, businesses and industries,” according to an LCRA press release. “This is how the Water Management Plan was designed to work,” John Hofmann, LCRA executive vice president, said in a statement to the press. “It allows LCRA to react quickly to changing conditions.” Though there is still plenty of drinking water on hand, it’s been more than 18 months since Buchanan and Travis lakes were last full, and their water supply is expected to continue to decline throughout the summer.

The 2022 Roots & Wings Festival – the annual citywide celebration of all things trees and pollinators – is winging its way toward Austin at high velocity. The actual event, a fusion of Arbor Day and Monarch Appreciation Day, will take place Oct. 22-Nov. 5. Area nonprofits and other organizations that would like to host a community event celebrating trees, pollinators or nature have until Aug. 5 to apply. When brainstorming your proposal, keep in mind that festival organizers have expressed the “hope that this year’s fifth annual Roots & Wings Festival allows every Austinite to connect more deeply to our city, our natural spaces and to each other.” Find out more about event criteria and how to apply here.

Austin got some much-needed rain this week, but conditions remain worryingly dry leading into a holiday weekend that centers around setting things on fire. Travis County Judge Andy Brown, Travis County Fire Marshal Tony Callaway and the fire chiefs of Travis County’s Emergency Services Districts are warning residents that the risk of wildfire is high. Though they are bringing in extra staff to deal with fires that may result from firework celebrations, they are also urging caution. “Our Emergency Services Districts are doing everything they can to prepare for the holiday weekend, but they need the community’s help,” Brown said in a statement to the press. “I urge everyone to be mindful when celebrating with fireworks this holiday. All it takes is one small spark to start a wildfire that can quickly get out of control.” Callaway acknowledged the voluntary limitation of firework sales by local retailers, but urged everyone else to do their part as well. “If you are going to use fireworks, it is imperative that you follow the safety tips from my office. Folks need to remember that they can and will be held responsible for damages resulting from the use of fireworks,” he said. The Travis County Fire Marshal’s Office also offered a list of recommendations:

• Never allow young children to play with or ignite fireworks.
• Sparklers burn as hot as a welding torch and are NOT for little kids to use. Give children glow sticks to play with and leave the sparklers to the adults.
• Never lean over the fireworks when lighting them.
• Don’t pick up fireworks that have not completely gone off; they may still explode.
• Throwing fireworks at each other is a bad idea. Don’t do it.
• Light fireworks one at a time.
• After fireworks complete burning, spray them with water or put them in a bucket of water. Do NOT put them in the trash.

Editor’s Note: Andy Brown is on the board of the Capital of Texas Media Foundation, the parent nonprofit of the Austin Monitor.

Fourth of July arrives conveniently on a Monday this year, giving city facilities and many others – including the Austin Monitor – a three-day weekend. Most city administrative offices and municipal facilities will be closed on Monday, July 4. Among the closures are recreation centers and senior centers and most museums and cultural centers. Austin Public Library branches, Austin Central Library, the Austin History Center and the Austin Animal Center will be closed Monday. Austin Public Health’s testing and vaccine sites will be closed on Saturday, July 2. There are no changes to Austin Resource Recovery trash, recycling and compost collections, but ARR administrative offices will be closed Monday. City golf courses, parks, tennis centers and Zilker Botanical Garden will be open as usual on Monday. Some swimming pools may be operating on modified schedules – check here for more info. Find details about Parks and Recreation closures here. See you Tuesday!

Get ready, because there’s a lot happening this weekend, and if you’re planning on celebrating we recommend you plan out your route in advance to avoid traffic snarls. There’s big stuff happening both downtown and in Northwest Austin on Monday, July 4. The annual free shindig at Auditorium Shores starts at 8 p.m. with the Austin Symphony Orchestra concert, followed by the fireworks show. There will be no parking in the neighborhoods surrounding Auditorium Shores and the Long Center – none, zip, zilch – and sections of Barton Springs Road, South First Street and Riverside Drive will be closed. This map depicts the closures. Capital Metro is offering free rides after 5 p.m. to this event; use the trip planner to find the best way to get there on public transit or MetroBike. You can walk or bike directly to the concert site or you can rent a scooter: The southwest corner of Riverside Drive and South First Street will be available to drop off scooters and other dockless devices. For those driving cars, the city recommends parking north of Lady Bird Lake in the downtown area and walking to the event, and here’s some info about downtown parking garages. Then there’s Willie Nelson’s Fourth of July picnic and fireworks. The all-day affair will be at Q2 Stadium, with doors opening at 11 a.m. and music starting at noon. Capital Metro will also take you here for free, but not until after 5 p.m. MetroRail will be operating on a special schedule serving Q2 Stadium: Trains from each direction will stop at Kramer Station and not run the entire length of the MetroRail line, with no direct service from Leander to downtown. Here’s more info about parking at the event, if you decide to brave it.

The Austin Parks and Recreation Department is working hard to solve its lifeguard shortage in an effort to staff all of the city’s swimming pools. The current number of lifeguards trained and ready to work stands at 551 – enough to open new pools for the July 4 weekend. Martin Pool at 1626 Nash Hernandez Sr. Road and Dottie Jordan Pool at 2803 Loyola Lane both reopen Sunday, July 3. Ramsey Pool at 4201 Burnet Road and Mabel Davis Pool at 3427 Parker Lane will open July 10. And Deep Eddy Pool is bumping its normal monthly closure from Tuesday, July 5, to Tuesday, July 12, in order to accommodate the holiday crowds. Deep Eddy will be open on July 5 from 8 a.m. to noon for lap swim and noon to 8 p.m. for recreational swimming. The city continues to hire lifeguards at $16-$19/hour depending on experience and certifications. Need a summer job? Bonuses, paid sick leave, a free bus pass and flexible scheduling are all part of the package.

Nearly a quarter of residential water meters in Austin have been replaced with new My ATX Water digital meters, according to a news release from Austin Water. More than 50,000 of the new smart meters have been installed to date, and by 2025, the utility aims to have all customers served by Austin Water using the new meters. “The new digital infrastructure will provide a better understanding of how the entire water distribution system is performing at any given moment to enhance resilience to impacts from extreme weather,” says the utility. Robert Goode, interim director, adds that the new meters also help identify leaks and provide information “about areas with outages so that we can respond quickly to get things back online again.” Check the map to see if your address is on the list to receive a meter upgrade, and learn more about the digital meters here.

With the Fourth of July holiday less than a week away, Airbnb has announced that its provisional ban on parties, launched two years ago, has become permanent policy. According to a news release, Airbnb has seen a “direct correlation between our implementation of the policy in August 2020 and a 44 percent year-over-year global drop in the rate of party reports. We’ve seen even more success in Texas, where there’s been a 46 percent year-over-year drop in party reports.” The short-term rental platform has also introduced “strict anti-party measures” for the Independence Day weekend, declaring that “guests without a history of positive reviews on Airbnb will be prohibited from making one-night reservations in entire home listings.” Airbnb successfully road-tested this policy over the last Fourth of July and the most recent Memorial Day holiday. Read more about the codified party ban policy here.

The city is going to be lowering speed limits on dozens of major streets inside Austin’s urban core. As the Transportation Department explains, existing speed limits on many city streets were decided long before the city’s population exploded and Austin became the major metropolis it is today. Engineering studies have concluded that making adjustments will “better align speed limits with the city as it exists today.” The department also points out, “Speed is the number one contributing factor to fatal crashes in Austin, and combined with other strategies, reducing speed limits is one way the city is working to reduce the number of deaths and serious injuries on city streets to zero.” Check out this map of the speed limit changes – and prepare to take your foot off the gas.

The Development Services Department wants all builders to know that new carbon monoxide detector rules are just around the corner. Starting this Friday, July 1, “carbon monoxide detectors will be required for all new Mechanical Change-Out permits, except for projects involving only electric-powered equipment.” These new requirements “apply to installation, alteration or repair of all fuel-fired mechanical systems.” City inspectors will be checking for CO detectors for all projects that were permitted on or after July 1, and, “Because this is a critical life and safety issue, there are no exemptions or alternatives to compliance with this requirement.” Any questions? Contact the building inspectors.

Though officially on break until the end of July, Austin City Council is seeking to hold a special called meeting to address the recent action by the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade. After word of the ruling was leaked earlier this year, Council members began drafting a response in the form of the GRACE Act, which prevents city funds from being used to collect information about or report abortions and directs the city to de-prioritize abortion investigations. Council Member Chito Vela posted to the City Council Message Board on Friday, writing, “As a result of the Supreme Court’s decision, the Texas trigger ban will take effect 30 days from today, on July 24. This draconian law will apply sentences of up to 99 years in prison for anyone convicted of performing or assisting in any abortion, with no exception for rape or incest. … Today is a painful day for our country, and I grieve the violations of bodily autonomy which the Texas state government will soon impose on Austin residents. I welcome any of my colleagues who wish to co-sponsor the GRACE Act, and I hope our city can be a source of grace to those who will be targeted for making what should be a private medical decision.” He explained that he and Council Member Vanessa Fuentes have asked to convene a special meeting to pass the act “as soon as possible.”

The Texas Supreme Court last week rejected an effort by 13 Austin voters to force the city to hold an election in districts where voters chose their Council members just two years ago, or in the case of District 4 Council Member Chito Vela, in January. Attorney Bill Aleshire told the Austin Monitor that the high court had turned down the plaintiffs’ request for the court to step in. At issue is the fact that after redistricting some voters were moved into precincts not scheduled to select a Council member this November. Because they voted in their old district four years ago but won’t be able to vote for a Council member until 2024, Aleshire argued that his clients have been deprived of their constitutional right to vote. Travis County District Judge Lora Livingston ruled in favor of the city when the matter came before her in May. Both the Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court have now rejected the plaintiffs’ argument. That means District 2 Council Member Vanessa Fuentes, District 6 Council Member Mackenzie Kelly, District 7 Council Member Leslie Pool, Mayor Pro Tem Alison Alter in District 10 and Vela will retain their seats until 2024. The scheduling of district elections as set forth in the city charter staggers district terms to eliminate the possibility of all Council members being newly elected at the same time. Aleshire said Sunday he had filed a motion for re-hearing, the final procedural step he can take in the case.