Passenger traffic at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport remained at its lower-than-usual numbers in September, due to the ongoing pandemic, according to a press release. Fewer travelers passed through the airport in September than in August. “September passenger traffic decreased by 70.5% compared to September 2019 with 417,037 passengers flying during the month.”

When the Bee Cave City Council meets tonight, some angry residents of Hamilton Pool Road will be tuned in via Zoom to hear what the Council members have to say about the West Travis County Public Utility Agency. Although there is an item on the agenda for a “discussion and update” related to the agency, there is no reference to the Council’s 2013 resolution. Jim Koerner, founder of Hamilton Pool Road Matters, told the Austin Monitor that a number of residents had requested a discussion about that resolution, which specifically opposes development on the property where Provence intends to build a high-density subdivision with 1,600 new homes within the Barton Creek watershed. Residents are worried about pollution of Barton Creek as well as increased traffic if the public utility agency settles the lawsuit filed by the property owner. Koerner said it was particularly frustrating to residents that the two people appointed by Bee Cave to the utility authority board – including Bee Cave City Manager Clint Garza – seem to be the ones driving the settlement. Resident Gene Lowenthal told the Monitor that Garza “is telling Council members not to talk to us, not to discuss Provence, and not to discuss the 2013 resolution that was opposed to Provence.” Although the Council is not slated for action, the board of the utility is scheduled to meet on Nov. 19. Lowenthal and Koerner are worried that the board will approve the settlement and give the developer 1,137 water taps, as requested. If that happens, Lowenthal said, “it will open the door to all kinds of development. The line is capacity limited today and that has saved us from rampant development,” but that protection will disappear once there are more water taps. Organizers announced Monday they will hold a Save Hamilton Pool Road protest rally before the Bee Cave City Council meeting from 3:30 to 5 p.m. directly behind City Hall in the Hill Country Galleria.

The Austin Board of Realtors has been dubbed the new Ambassador Association to Ireland through the National Association of Realtors. The designation is “designed to help enhance member connections to real estate opportunities and share association best practices around the world,” according to a news release. ABoR President Romeo Manzanilla added that buyers from Europe make up 12 percent of purchases in Austin and Central Texas, so “this partnership will strengthen our relationship with the international real estate community and help connect Realtors with international clients who are moving to Central Texas.”

Small-business owners in Austin in need of a boost may now apply for micro-grants called GoGrants. These active mobility grants, launched by the transportation management association Movability, provide “financial assistance up to $5,000 to qualifying businesses and nonprofit organizations to support active mobility options for their employees and customers.” Some examples of eligible projects are bicycle parking for customers, storage lockers for employees who ride their bikes to work and incentives like memberships to bike-share or e-scooter vendors. Here’s a list of other eligible projects. The deadline to apply is Nov. 30. Find information about the program at Movability.

Due to an increase in fraudulent short-term rental licenses, the city is cracking down on unlicensed short-term rentals and rental scams. The Austin Code Department reminds the public that owners of short-term rentals – any room, cottage, guest house that is rented for less than 30 days – must apply for an operating license annually. According to the city, “Scammers often use valid-looking printouts of a license with official-looking letterheads, graphics, and other forms of fraudulent identifiers including false information. Additionally, an STR license is considered fraudulent if presented or used as a valid document when its current state is expired.” A valid license should be posted inside every short-term rental. If you see a license posted on the wall but you’re not sure whether it’s valid, you can do a public search for the license here or here. If you think a license is fraudulent, report it to the Code Department at 512-974-2633.

Central Texas isn’t just an appealing place for humans; a wide array of wild creatures also calls it home. Balcones Canyonlands Preserve has invited Kelly Simon, an urban wildlife biologist with Texas Parks and Wildlife, to give a webinar talk titled “Animals of the Wildland-Urban Interface.” In addition to describing the rich diversity of urban wildlife, Simon will reveal how we can create more welcoming habitat for other critters and how different species contribute to a healthy, functioning ecosystem. Friday, Nov. 20, noon-1 p.m. Register to attend here. If you can’t attend the online event, a recording of the webinar will be posted on the Austin Water Wildland Conservation Facebook page and YouTube channel afterward.

City playgrounds, skate parks and pavilions are set to officially reopen, though city officials will continue to urge caution in using the facilities. While the parks department has found that these outdoor recreation areas do pose some risk, the lack of direct correlation between usage and virus spread (and the fact that people were using them anyway) has caused the city to change its strategy. A Nov. 4 memo from PARD Director Kimberly McNeeley explains, “Beginning immediately, PARD will replace closure signage with caution signage to inform users of risks and suggest usage parameters should an individual elect to engage with the amenity.” The memo goes on to say that city sports programming will remain on hold. Parks system closures and regulations, which remain dependent on current Covid-19 conditions, can be found at austintexas.gov/parkclosures.

The city’s Watershed Protection Department says there is still a high risk of blue-green algae that is toxic to dogs at Lady Bird Lake and Red Bud Isle. With cooler weather, the algae is becoming less predictable and more sporadic on Lady Bird Lake. While no blue-green algae was found in the most recent sample taken from the lake, on Oct. 27, clumps of the algae were found at Red Bud Isle. City officials strongly recommend that dog owners keep their dogs from swimming in or drinking from the lake. Handling the algae is also not recommended. For more information, check out the city’s web page on the subject.

Following her report at Monday’s board of trustees meeting, AISD Superintendent Dr. Stephanie Elizalde wrote a letter to district staff summarizing the information she shared with the board. In the letter, she gave an update on Texas Education Agency funding, remote vs. on-campus learning, a staffing summary, an update on Covid-19 in Austin, and AISD’s participation in the Rapid Testing Project. Read the superintendent’s entire letter here.

Near the end of Tuesday’s ballot, voters who live within Austin Independent School District got a chance to vote on school board candidates. Two of those races resulted in runoffs, allowing voters to return to the polls on Dec. 15. In District 5, the candidates were Piper Stege Nelson, Lynn Boswell and Jennifer Littlefield. Nelson came in third behind Boswell with more than 38 percent of the vote, and Littlefield with more than 36 percent. The other AISD runoff is in the at-large position 8, where Leticia Moreno Caballero got about 46 percent of the vote and Noelita Lugo won 30 percent. The other candidates, Mike Herschenfeld and Jared Breckenridge, won about 12 percent each. Ofelia Maldonado Zapata won the District 2 contest with more than 60 percent of the vote, besting John Mckiernan-Gonzalez, who got 28 percent of the vote, and Adolphus “Andy” Anderson, who won just 11 percent. Kevin Foster ran unopposed for the AISD District 3 seat. In Del Valle, Damian Pantoja got nearly 65 percent of the vote to win the District 2 seat on the Del Valle ISD Board of Trustees. His only opponent was David J. Albert.

As expected, Democrat Andy Brown will be the new Travis County judge, officially filling Texas state Sen. Sarah Eckhardt’s empty seat. Brown will serve the remainder of Eckhardt’s term after being nominated by the Travis County Democratic Party. The court will also see a new commissioner, with former ECHO head Ann Howard defeating Republican Becky Bray with 56.88 percent of the Precinct 3 vote. In Precinct 1, Commissioner Jeffrey Travillion will hold on to his seat easily, with a staggering 75.92 percent of the vote over Republican Solomon Arcoven. During Monday’s Travis County Commissioners Court meeting, interim County Judge Sam Biscoe said he expected to hand the keys over to Brown sometime in mid-November.

Andy Brown is on the board of the Capital of Texas Media Foundation, which is the parent nonprofit of the Austin Monitor.

The Texas Municipal Clerks Association has named Austin City Clerk Jannette Goodall as its Municipal Clerk of the Year for 2020. Mayor Steve Adler took a few minutes to congratulate Goodall at last Thursday’s City Council meeting. Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison said she was surprised that Goodall had not been sainted, given the amount of patience required for the job. In addition to that honor, Goodall was also elected treasurer of the Texas Municipal Clerks Association at its annual meeting last week. The organization has more than 1,030 members throughout Texas and operates the Texas Municipal Clerks Certification Program at the University of North Texas in Denton. Goodall, who has been Austin’s city clerk since early 2013, has worked for the city for more than 20 years.