Council Member Leslie Pool has announced that she is proposing changes to the city code that aim to help local businesses by using public space. In a post on the City Council Message Board, Pool says she is working on something for the June 4 agenda that will allow restaurants, bars and retail “use of their parking lots, portions of the sidewalk, and more of the public right-of-way. This is intended to increase their business capacity and maintain social distancing measures. … For many small businesses, a partial reopening is not financially feasible, whether it’s because the retail or restaurant space itself is too small to keep customers safe, or customers themselves are demanding greater space to safely dine or shop.” To fix that, Pool proposes relaxing permitting, likely through the city’s Special Events Ordinance, to allow businesses to use more outdoor space in “shop the block” events.

This whisper has been corrected to clarify that the current plan will amend an existing ordinance. It will not be a new resolution, as initially reported.

The Parks and Recreation Department is taking a look at summer programming, and in light of the pandemic, has canceled all paid summer camps. Beginning July 6, the city will instead offer about 20 free programs, prioritizing those in East Austin communities. According to a May 22 memo, the new programs will be limited to 16-24 campers per day, with the registration process to begin in June. The city is looking to secure meal options for the camps. In addition, the parks department will continue to provide day camps for essential city employees, a practice that has been ongoing throughout the pandemic response. More information about city pools, which remain closed at the moment, “will be announced in the coming weeks,” according to the city memo.

In an effort to enhance boating safety, City Council approved an ordinance on Feb. 6 creating slow-no wake zones for boats on Lake Austin under and around Pennybacker Bridge and the area north of Tom Miller Dam, near the Walsh Boat Landing and Oyster Landing Marina, according to a news release from the city. “Under this ordinance, boaters must operate at headway speed, meaning that vessels are required to travel at the lowest possible speed needed to maintain control of the craft. These control zones are marked by navigational buoys as well as signage posted at the boat ramps and nearby businesses.” Officers with the Austin Police Department Lake Unit have been educating boaters about the new ordinance, trying to raise awareness “and gain voluntary compliance.” Because of Covid-19, the community education period has been extended until July 14. Following that date, boaters who violate the ordinance may be cited and possibly fined a maximum of $500.

Acting quickly on the resolution passed earlier this month, the Austin Transportation Department has announced the first batch of streets to be enrolled in Austin’s new Healthy Streets Initiative:

• Bouldin Avenue/South Third Street/Garden Villa Lane between Banister Lane and Barton Springs Road
• Comal Street between Manor Road and Lady Bird Lake
• Country Club Creek Trail extension (Trail, Wickersham Lane, Ventura Drive, Madera Drive) between Mabel Davis Park and Lakeshore Drive

A press release from the department notes the “effort follows the recent successful temporary street modifications on the bridge over Longhorn Dam on Pleasant Valley Road and the closure of Riverside Drive from South First Street to Lee Barton Drive.” Under the Healthy Streets Program, staff members are closing a portion of the road to motorized vehicles to encourage safe use by cyclists, pedestrians and other non-vehicular forms of transportation. Transportation cautions residents that “Healthy Streets are designed for ‘active use’ only, individuals are prohibited from gathering, barbecuing or playing games that involve physical contact of any kind. Participants are expected to keep at least six feet apart at all times and required to wear a face covering while engaging in active recreation.”

If your Memorial Day plans include Lake Austin, the city would like to remind you to have fun safely this weekend. To that end, the police department and lake patrol will prohibit personal watercraft, Wetbikes, motorized surfboards and the like beginning at sunset today through sunset on May 26. The ban, which is an attempt to ensure the safety of holiday crowds, only applies on Lake Austin.

Summer is around the corner, but kids who rely on Austin Independent School District’s meal program won’t go hungry. In fact, no kids need go hungry: AISD will provide free meals for any child under 19 at its meal locations around Austin while school is out. No registration or identification is required and “children may show up at any participating site to receive a healthy meal,” according to AISD’s news release. On weekdays the district offers breakfast and lunch, which can be picked up from more than 70 curbside and bus stop meal sites (view a map of meal sites). A weekend meal pack is available Fridays, containing breakfast and lunch for Saturday and Sunday. If a parent or caregiver is picking up a meal for a child without the child present, they must show one of the following documents:

• Student report card
• Attendance record
• Birth certificate for children not in school
• Student ID cards

Anneliese Tanner, the executive director of food services, said, “Children need good nutrition year-round so they can learn, grow and succeed in life. With more families impacted by the effects of Covid-19, we know food insecurity is on the rise in Austin. We are proud to continue to provide access to healthy, tasty meals for children throughout our community.” Starting Monday, June 1, the curbside meal sites will open earlier, moving service from 9-11 a.m. The bus stop meal delivery schedule will also be adjusted. There will be no meals over the Independence Day holiday, July 6-10, while the district is closed.

In observance of the Memorial Day holiday, all Austin Independent School District meal sites will be closed on Monday, May 25. In order to ensure that kids and their caregivers have enough food to last the long weekend, AISD Food Services will be providing two breakfast and lunch meals on Thursday, May 21, and Friday, May 22. As always, it’s suggested that families bring a bag to transport their meals home safely. All AISD offices will also be closed May 25, with regular business hours resuming Tuesday, May 26.

For the past two weeks, Austin Parks and Recreation Department has been monitoring the number of people who use Emma Long, Commons Ford Ranch and Walter E. Long parks in order to promote social distancing protocols. Entry to these parks requires a day pass reservation – including on the upcoming Memorial Day holiday, Monday, May 25 – and there are a limited number of passes available for each day. Starting today, Thursday, parks department staff will be monitoring walk-in/cyclist capacity at these parks. Once capacity is reached, no additional walk-ins or bicyclists will be allowed into the parks. In coming weeks, walk-ins/cyclists will move to a day pass system similar to that now being used for vehicles at these parks. Day passes do not come with “in-and-out” privileges. “Patrons should come prepared to stay until they are ready to leave,” says a PARD news release.

The Cultural Arts Funding team is holding virtual open office hours for all Cultural Funding programs on Tuesday, May 26, from 10 a.m.-noon. All current cultural contractors are invited to come and meet (virtually, of course) with any available Cultural Funding staff member. Groups and individuals who have questions about their Fiscal Year 2020 contracts or the FY 2021 application process are encouraged to attend, no appointment needed. Use this Zoom link to attend: https://zoom.us/j/94012088170.

A Tuesday ruling from a federal court has opened vote-by-mail for Texans during the Covid-19 pandemic. In his ruling, U.S. District Judge Fred Biery sided with the plaintiffs, which include the Texas Democratic Party, in an interpretation that counts a lack of immunity from Covid-19 and fear of infection at polling stations as a “disability” under state law. In his ruling, Biery ordered that all Texas voters who wish to vote by mail to avoid transmission of the virus may request an absentee ballot, with the ruling to remain in effect until a judgment is issued or the pandemic subsides. “There are some among us who would, if they could, nullify those aspirational ideas to return to the not-so-halcyon and not-so-thrilling days of yesteryear of the Divine Right of Kings, trading our birthright as a sovereign people for a modern mess of governing pottage in the hands of a few and forfeiting the vision of America as a shining city upon a hill,” Biery wrote. Read the entire ruling below.

Download (PDF, 905KB)

The Historic Landmark Commission found itself stuck between a rock and a hard place at its meeting on May 18. Although commissioners and staff did not find that the Bungalow and Container Bar at 90-92 Rainey St. met the threshold required for historic designation, they were unwilling to approve a demolition permit to level the buildings and replace them with a 53-floor high-rise. “I would prefer to delay it rather than approve it. I have a real problem approving the removal of a contributing building in one of our oldest and earliest National Register districts,” Commissioner Terri Myers said. Although it took two tries to approve a postponement of the case until the commission’s June meeting, the commission eventually voted 6-1 to postpone. Commissioner Witt Featherston voted in opposition. “I just don’t support delay for the sake of delay,” he said. “It all just seems sort of superficial at this point.” The commission is able to delay the case for 180 days before making a decision. That clock runs out on July 27. While the commission did not pursue opening a case for historic designation of the building, Commissioner Ben Heimsath called the vote to postpone a “symbolic gesture.” Myers said that in this case, symbolism was the most effective tool in the commission’s toolbox. “I don’t think it’s meaningless. I think it means something that we don’t roll over and play dead,” she said.

Even though residential home sales in the Austin area declined by more than 21 percent in April, the median sales price continued to climb, according to the Austin Board of Realtors. With the number of listings dropping by more than 7 percent in the area, the median sales price increased by more than 3 percent to $325,000. Also, homes spent fewer days on the market compared to 2019, an average of 43 days, ABoR said. Continued declines in listings in April could mean a second consecutive month of declining home sales. ABoR reported that the median price for residential homes in Austin increased by 12.3 percent from the same month in 2019, bringing the average price to $421,000. At the same time, residential sales declined by about 33 percent. In Travis County, prices increased by 9.7 percent over last year to $395,000. In Williamson County, residential sales declined by about 19 percent, but the median price rose to $300,000. On the other hand, according to ABoR, “Hays County residential sales in April spiked 16.2 percent to 395 sales, and sales dollar volume jumped 18.6 percent,” while the median price declined by 1.6 percent to $284,950. Caldwell County saw a sales decline of nearly 37 percent and the median home price dropped slightly over last year to $202,500.