Austin City Council joined Travis County in declaring the opioid overdose crisis a public health emergency on Thursday. The resolution, which was approved unanimously by Council, asks the city manager to invest in harm reduction strategies, including increased access to naloxone kits as well as a comprehensive plan that explores prevention, treatment and services for substance use disorders. In response to the vote, Texas Harm Reduction Alliance’s Cate Graziani released a statement that read, in part, “We’re eager to see this resolution supported even further through the upcoming budget and millions of dollars coming down from opiate settlement funds. … For 50 years we have been funding war on drugs strategies. The results have left us with the worst overdose crisis our country has ever seen, and the impacts extend far beyond policing and incarceration. Austin is no exception – we see the impacts of the drug war on our streets every day. People are trapped in poverty, lose access to housing, health care, and so much more. If the city wants to address the overdose crisis in the long term, we must address deep underlying needs that drive deaths and harm.”

A number of city offices and public facilities will be closed Monday in observation of the Juneteenth holiday, which commemorates the emancipation of enslaved people in Texas. Monday closures include city rec centers, senior centers, museums and cultural centers; Austin Energy customer service and call centers; Austin Public Health testing and vaccine sites; Austin Public Library branches, Central Library and the Austin History Center. There will be no changes to trash, recycling and compost collections or the schedule of the Austin Animal Center. The Austin Monitor will also be taking the day off, returning Tuesday. Exactly one year ago today, on June 17, President Joe Biden signed a bill making Juneteenth an official federal holiday. Learn more about Juneteenth, and how it’s being celebrated in Austin, here.

The city’s Office of Sustainability is offering a mini-grant program in an effort “to support communities in their efforts to grow, sell, and eat healthy food.” Grants of up to $3,000 will be available for eligible nonprofits, schools, businesses, homeowner associations, faith-based groups and grassroots initiatives. Lucia Athens, chief sustainability officer, said in a news release that creating a more equitable food system requires throwing support behind “community-driven solutions. We are thrilled to offer this grant to the leaders of change addressing food inequities locally.” Dr. Rosamaria Murillo, CEO of El Buen Samaritano, which received a mini-grant last year, said the support “helped us amplify our efforts to provide access to food to our community. One of the major contributors to our health and our wealth is access to food, and justice is about that – it’s about access.” Applications are being accepted through July 22. Find out more.

Preservation Austin is officially backing Council Member Kathie Tovo’s resolution to initiate historic zoning for the Sixth Street National Register District. The resolution, which is on today’s agenda, would offer protections for the buildings that are facing increased development pressures in recent months. In a letter to City Council, Preservation Austin wrote, “A local historic district here would support a balanced approach between preservation and density so that the most intact blocks of contributing buildings retain their historic character. The city of Austin’s Historic Design Guidelines outline best practices for preservation and development to thrive together, which would support Stream Realty’s plans for street improvements and the district’s revitalization.”

The Elisabet Ney Museum is hosting a new art exhibit called Secret Place, which the museum describes as a “site-specific installation created to be a meditation on the internal solitude inherent to the immigrant experience.” Rehab El Sadek, a U.S.-based Egyptian multimedia artist, created the installation from sculpture, photography and ordinary objects to demonstrate the “fragility of individual and collective memories. El Sadek’s heritage is also reflected in some of the materials, especially those used in Egypt for healing, protection, and conservation.” The exhibit also incorporates some of Ney’s personal objects that visitors may not have previously seen. As the release says, the exhibit shows the “parallels and differences” between El Sadek’s life and Ney’s. Both women “immigrated to the United States – and eventually Texas – after having established artistic practices abroad. Both had to start from scratch and relaunch their careers in a new country.” The opening reception for Secret Place will be held Saturday, June 18, 2-4 p.m. at the Elisabet Ney Museum, 304 E. 44th St.

The Trail Foundation and the Parks and Recreation Department announced Tuesday that an agreement giving the foundation more responsibility for the Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail had been executed. City Council gave its blessing to the agreement, which transfers operations and maintenance of the trail and some adjacent parkland to TFF, in October. According to a press release from the city, key points of the new agreement include the following stipulations:

• The parkland will always remain public property owned by the city.
• TTF will have more opportunities to host programming and family-friendly events along the trail, including live musical performances such as its weekly Music on the Trail series, volunteer opportunities, fitness activations, etc. The trail itself will never be closed for events.
• TTF has created an extensive operations and maintenance plan that includes plantings, tree care, trail edge maintenance and more to beautify and restore ecological growth.
• TTF will continue to expand its organizational capacity and private funding to manage and pay for its new role and phased plans.

“The city of Austin has always been a wonderful partner in helping advance initiatives on the trail,” Heidi Anderson, CEO of the Trail Foundation, said in a statement to the press. “Because of the city’s trust in the organization, TTF will now be able to better support and serve the trail and our community. The trail is an iconic Austin landmark, and we are excited to invest even further and deliver an incredible experience for neighbors and visitors alike to get out and enjoy nature.”

Capital Metro is holding a webinar for community members who are interested in getting a comprehensive overview of the proposed subway stations for Project Connect’s Blue and Orange lines. The discussion will cover what the community needs, the technology required to construct tunnels, and the planned accessibility and safety features of the 28.2-mile light rail transit plan. Wednesday, June 22, 5:30 p.m. Register here.

In what is likely to be the final phase of the election lawsuit that would put all City Council districts on the November ballot, the city has filed its response to the suit by 13 Austin voters who claim they have been disenfranchised by redistricting, and the plaintiffs have filed their response. The city is represented by Renea Hicks, who has served as outside counsel for the city for several years. The plaintiffs are represented by Bill Aleshire. In order for the plaintiffs win their suit, the Texas Supreme Court would have to invalidate the Austin City Charter provisions requiring staggered terms and order the city to vacate the seats of Council members in districts 2, 4, 6, 7 and 10 at the end of the year. The city is already scheduled to hold elections for mayor and Council districts 1, 3, 5, 8 and 9. Plaintiffs who were moved from one of the latter districts into one of the districts not holding an election this year claim they’ve been disenfranchised by the move. Making that even more egregious, according to Aleshire, is the fact that the city has already implemented redistricting. The court could make a decision this week, but could also take more time. A Travis County district judge and a court of appeals have already rejected the plaintiffs’ arguments.

After multiple amendments and a considerable amount of haggling on the dais Thursday night, City Council unanimously approved directing staff to bring back an ordinance to tighten up environmental regulations. Speakers in favor of Council Member Kathie Tovo’s proposal to require that redevelopment projects meet full detention requirements, among other things, outnumbered those opposed. Luke Metzger of Environment Texas told Council that flooding is only going to get worse with climate change, as is the urban heat island effect with more and more concrete. “So, as we densify – and we do need to densify because sprawl is perhaps our biggest environmental crisis – as we densify, we need to make sure we’re mitigating some of those impacts, and item 61 is a critical measure to help make sure we reduce the impacts of stormwater runoff, help clean up our creeks, help reduce flooding, add more nature to our cities so that we can have both a natural city and healthier water.”

But several Council members expressed concern about the negative impact changes might have on future housing. Mayor Steve Adler and Council members Paige Ellis and Natasha Harper-Madison offered an amendment directing the city manager to look at ways to offset any impact on affordability and capacity of stricter regulations. Council Member Chito Vela offered an amendment telling staff not to disincentivize small-scale, “missing middle” housing projects through restrictions on impervious cover. In the end, Tovo thanked her staff as well as city environmental staff. Despite the emphasis on home construction, Tovo said, the new regulations would make sure the city is on top of industries with potential risks for polluting. She added that when there are levels of E. coli noted in creeks, the environmental staff needs to speed up communication with Austin Water so they can fix their pipes more quickly.

This whisper has been changed since publication to clarify the scope of the new regulations.

The board of directors of the Barton Springs/Edwards Aquifer Conservation District declared a Stage II alarm drought at their June 9 meeting. According to the news release, Lovelady Monitor Well and Barton Springs, two groundwater wells that are considered to be the district’s “drought triggers,” went below their triggers in late May and early June, respectively. The release explains, “Only one of the two drought stage triggers needs to be reached for a drought declaration to be made. However, to exit a drought stage, both Barton Springs and Lovelady must rise above their respective drought trigger values.” The last time this happened was Oct. 9, 2020. That groundwater drought declaration ended July 8, 2021. Find more details about the announcement as well as information about how customers with wells may conserve water here.

Passenger traffic growth at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport for April 2022 was up 121.74 percent compared to April 2021 with 1,865,046 passengers flying, “setting a new record for busiest month ever at the airport,” says a press release from AUS. Every single airline saw an increase in passengers. Southwest, for instance, reported 722,855 passengers in April, up 155.1 percent, while American Airlines had 500,823 passengers, a 161.7 percent increase. All of which suggests that long waits and lengthy security lines will not deter people who are determined to fly.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention raised Travis County’s Covid-19 Community Level to “medium” late last week after it rested comfortably at “low” for a spell. “We’re seeing steady increases in case totals and hospitalizations which is incredibly concerning,” Dr. Desmar Walkes, Austin-Travis County health authority, said in a statement to the press about the change. “We need everyone to do their part, especially those who are at higher risk. Wear a mask inside when gathering with others. We know that this will help protect loved ones at risk for poor outcomes and our hospital system.”  This chart explains the guidelines for CDC levels adopted by Austin Public Health:
New cases per 100,000 residents had risen to 202.99, passing the “medium” threshold of 200, which was established by the CDC. In addition, Travis County is conducting wastewater surveillance to monitor the presence of the virus. Find more information about the risk-based guidelines, free masks and tests, and vaccine information here.