On Tuesday, Evolve Austin Partners launched, inviting Austinites to join it in creating “the best Austin imaginable” and supporting the Imagine Austin Comprehensive Plan. More information about the group, its partners, its causes and ways to get involved is available on the Evolve Austin website and Facebook. Evolve Austin Partners is a network of organizations collaborating for a more compact and affordable Austin. Partners include Ecology Action, Friends of Austin Neighborhoods, The Alliance for Public Transportation, Congress for the New Urbanism, Austin Up, Habitat for Humanity, Bike Austin, Austin Music People and the DAA.

This Saturday, the Real Estate Council of Austin will hold its annual “Christmas in October” project to benefit the Blackland Community Development Corporation. This year, the council will be joined by District 1 Council Member Ora Houston and more than 100 volunteers. The benefit is being held to support the CDC’s efforts to renovate its conservancy and play spaces. The Blackland CDC was created in 1983 to provide transitional and permanent supportive housing for families, and it continues its mission to maintain the Blackland neighborhood in East Austin as an “inclusive, affordable place families can thrive through a variety of social services and housing options.” RECA has held its Christmas in October project since 1991, raising more than $1 million for local community groups. Last year, SafePlace was the beneficiary, and the event won a “National Make a Difference Day” award from USA Today. This year’s event will take place on Oct. 17 from 8 a.m. until noon at the Blackland CDC, located at 1902 East 22nd St.

It may have irritated a few disc golfers, but the Pease Park Master Plan has gone on to win a 2015 Project Plan Award from the Texas Chapter of the American Planning Association. The plan is a result of a partnership between the city’s Parks and Recreation Department and the Pease Park Conservancy, which raised more than $250,000 toward the planning effort. That plan calls for the restoration of historic structures, riparian restoration, improved habitats for wildlife and improvements to the tree canopy, among other things. The Pease Park Conservancy will celebrate the award at its annual fall fundraiser, which will take place at the Allan House on Thursday, Oct. 22.

The Association of Metropolitan Water Agencies has recognized Austin’s water utility for its commitment to sustainability. The utility won the Sustainable Water Utility Management Award at the group’s meeting in Savannah, Georgia, on Monday, according to information provided by Austin Water. Utility Director Greg Meszaros said that receiving the award was “a significant honor. Our region’s drought has driven home the crucial need for sustainability, and this award attests that Austin Water is building a foundation that will sustain our community even in the worst of times. I applaud our employees and the Austin community for everything they’ve done to be responsible stewards of our water resources and water utility.” Austin was selected for the honor in part because of successful conservation and drought management strategies, which the utility said “resulted in the lowest per capita water use by Austin water customers in decades. Usage has declined every year indicating that conservation habits are here to stay,” the utility said in a statement. In addition, the association cited Austin’s partnerships with stakeholders “to develop policies reflective of community values.” The association is an organization of the largest publicly owned water utilities in the U.S.

Today, the city’s Economic Development and Parks and Recreation departments will present the Partners in the Arts awards at City Hall. The award recognizes individuals and organizations that have made a valuable impact on the work of those departments and the city over the past year. The ceremony recognizing this year’s honorees will take place at 5 p.m. in the Atrium at City Hall, with awards being presented by city representatives and Mayor Steve Adler.

City Council went into executive session during a work session on Tuesday to discuss the possibility of increasing the city’s upcoming solar-contract investments to as many as 600 megawatts at its regular meeting Thursday, more than double the nearly 300 megawatts that it approved on Oct. 1. Mayor Steve Adler gave a brief overview of the discussion after Council returned to open session. In addition to discussing contract pricing, “security issues” and the possible locations of the solar plant or plants, Council also talked about the “net revenue” of the different contract groupings, Adler said. “The net revenue loss in year one for increases over the initial purchases already approved is about three to four times more expensive on an incremental basis because of those additional elements that go beyond just contract price,” he said. Council, Adler said, has asked staff to release as much of the pricing analysis to the public as it can without releasing confidential or proprietary information. Adler also said that Austin Energy staff told Council that further investment in solar would not “result in a reduction of the time or the amount of gas plant operation” that the city engages in, because the city does not run the gas plants unless they are “in the money.” Therefore, Adler said, “whether or not we buy solar is an independent issue as to whether or not or when we run our gas plants.”

Travis County is taking Volkswagen to court over the automaker’s admitted gaming of U.S. emissions tests. After discussing the issue with fellow members of the Commissioners Court during executive session on Tuesday, County Judge Sarah Eckhardt announced a resolution directing county attorneys to file civil action against Volkswagen Group of America and Audi of America for alleged violations of state environmental statutes. Travis County isn’t the first in Texas to go after the German companies. Harris County and Fort Bend County are also pursuing legal action, although they recently found their efforts drawing fire from Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton.

This Thursday, City Council will once again tackle proposed changes to the city’s Short Term Rental Ordinance. It will be the third time that the entire Council has taken up the resolution recently, but it promises to be the first time that it will actually get through all of the proposed amendments. Yesterday, Council Member Leslie Pool added two more amendments to the pot for consideration: Reducing the permit fee for owner-occupied short-term rentals (Type 1) to $50 per year and increasing the permit fee for commercial short-term rentals (Type 2) to $500 per year. Currently, the city charges a $235 licensing fee and a $50 notification fee for short-term rentals.

Not only will City Council be taking up short-term rentals at its Thursday meeting, but it will be taking up accessory dwelling units, as well. Though her amendments didn’t make it into the committee’s recommendations, Mayor Pro Tem Kathie Tovo will try again to bridge the gap between the two acronyms. She has announced her intention to bring forward an amendment to the ADU Ordinance that would prohibit any ADU built after Oct. 1, 2015, from being used as a STR. That amendment failed in a vote of 2-2 at the Planning and Neighborhoods Committee, with Council Members Greg Casar and Sheri Gallo voting in opposition.

On Oct. 16, Austin is invited to join an interactive walk with the CodeNEXT team. According to a press release about the event, “The City of Austin is hosting seven Community Walks to tee up the ‘CodeNEXT: SOUND CHECK’ where the technical writers of the City’s land development code – consultants and professional staff from multiple departments – will collaborate and “check their work. … Each walk will last one hour, during which residents, business owners and staff are encouraged to share observations and insights. Members of the City Council and Code Advisory Group may also be on hand.” The walk is just one in a series of events scheduled around the Land Development Code rewrite. The full schedule of walks is:

Throughout the last week of October, the city of Austin will be celebrating Better Streets Week with a series of community conversations about how to make our streets vibrant, safer and more pedestrian-friendly. There is a full week of activities planned, all of which are outlined here. To get free tickets and learn more about the events, which are taking place around the Designing Cities Conference hosted by the National Association of City Transportation Officials, visit the city’s website.

This weekend, Austin Resource Recovery will open the Recycle & Reuse Drop-Off Center at 2514 Business Center Drive. This means that Austinites will be able to recycle and reuse a variety of materials in one place, now that the Household Hazardous Waste Facility and the Resource Recovery Center have merged. According to the city, “Residents can now drop off more items, including plastic bags and plastic wrap, cardboard, paper, glass, hard plastics, metal and all single-stream recycling. By the end of October, Styrofoam will be accepted as well. The center’s reuse area is also expanding. It now accepts reusable art supplies, which will be distributed to artists and teachers for reuse in creative projects. … The Recycle & Reuse Drop-Off Center will accept a variety of items, such as household hazardous waste, automotive fluids, tires and scrap metal, electronics and large appliances, large hard plastic items, lightbulbs and batteries, brush and yard trimmings, cardboard and all single-stream recycling. There are also many items available for free pick-up, such as ReBlend paint, mulch, household cleaners, automotive fluids, fertilizers and pesticides.” The center’s hours of operation are Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday, 7 a.m. to noon. It will be closed on Sundays and city holidays. The center will open for business on Saturday, Oct. 17, and a family-friendly event will celebrate the occasion from 10 a.m. until noon.