A while back, Council passed a couple of resolutions aimed at making granny flats – also know as accessory dwelling units – easier to build in Austin. Last week brought an update to that initiative, with a memo from Development Services Department Director Jose Roig that estimated a March 6 public hearing for proposals from a December 2021 resolution and a June 2022 resolution. “Substantial progress has been made on ADUs, but additional time is required to finalize and internally review key aspects of staffers’ proposal. This is due partly to staff turnover, as well as the complexity of developing a more robust preservation incentive that staff can implement efficiently and will further the goal of facilitating ADU construction,” wrote Roig. “Staff are committed to incorporating ideas provided by Preservation Austin and the Infill Coalition over the summer.”

Austin’s most historic honky-tonk, the Broken Spoke at 3201 S. Lamar, will be the subject of discussion at the city’s Historic Landmark Commission on March 1. Last year, then-Council Member Ann Kitchen started the process of designating the Spoke a city historic landmark by sponsoring a resolution at City Council. Although opposition to the designation seems unlikely, the dance hall, like every other property seeking to be declared historic, must go through the process. U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, who previously represented downtown Austin and the South Lamar property where the Spoke has entertained customers for more than 58 years, urged Council to move forward with the designation in November. The honky-tonk where Willie Nelson, Bob Wills, Jerry Jeff Walker, and Marcia Ball, among others, thrilled listeners and dancers alike, already has a state historical designation. But the city designation is important because many music venues have been lost to development. In the resolution, Council requested that the work be done quickly “in order to protect and preserve the important institution within Austin and to align with the anticipated placement of the (state) Historical Marker in April 2023.”

Monday is Presidents Day, and the city (and the Monitor) will be taking the day off to enjoy a three-day weekend. (We hope you are, too!) As usual, city administrative offices and other municipal facilities will be closed Monday to observe the holiday. Most recreation centers will be closed, although city parks, golf courses, cemeteries and some pools will be open. We advise you to check austintexas.gov/parkclosures in advance to see what’s closed. Austin Resource Recovery trash, recycling and compost collections will be unaffected for the holiday. City utility customer service centers will be closed Monday, but you can make utility payments at coautilities.com. Austin Public Library, Recycled Reads Bookstore and the Austin History Center branches will be closed both Sunday and Monday. And if you’re planning on adopting a furry family member, you’ll have to wait until Tuesday since the Austin Animal Center will be closed Monday.

The next installment of the Wild Neighbors Speaker Series will explore the “amazing and unusual organisms that live in the dark, underground waters of the Lone Star State with special attention to new discoveries and groundwater ecology in the greater Austin area.” Tiny, mysterious, unknown creatures living in the deepest, darkest depths? We are here for it! The speaker, Dr. Benjamin Hutchins, a researcher and educator in the Edwards Aquifer Research and Data Center at Texas State University, focuses his work “on the distribution of groundwater species in Texas and patterns of biodiversity in subterranean habitats.” Friday, Feb. 17, noon-1 p.m. Register for the webinar here.

In the interest of improving your commute and getting your morning off to a good start, commuters passing through the Downtown Transit Station this morning will be offered free breakfast tacos, courtesy of Capital Metro, Downtown Austin, Movability, and GetThereATX. Staffers from these organizations will be on hand to answer questions and offer tools aimed at making everyone’s commute that much better. Thursday, Feb. 16, 6:30-9:30 a.m., Downtown Station.

Shoal Creek Conservancy and Jose M. Guerrero, former assistant director of the city’s Watershed Protection Department, are leading a very special bus tour of the Shoal Creek watershed. The tour will stop at Duncan Neighborhood Park, Great Northern Dog Park, Beverly S. Sheffield Northwest District Park, Jefferson Street, and the West 12th Street Bridge. Topics to be discussed include the “history of the Memorial Day flooding of 1981 along Shoal Creek, strategies that have helped mitigate flooding of our urban creeks both before and after the 1981 flood, and how water moves through developed watersheds.” Wear comfortable walking shoes and dress for the weather. Read more about this event here and register here. Saturday, Feb. 25, 8:30-11 a.m.

This whisper has been updated to correct Guerrero’s title.

Austin Public Works’ Urban Trails Program has issued an all points invitation to celebrate the opening of a new Northern Walnut Creek Trail section. On Saturday, March 4, it will be feted with live music from Ashton “Infinity Jones” Deary, food, a youth bicycle ride, a guided nature walk and a ribbon cutting. In addition, there are a number of It’s My Park Day volunteer activities available. With the trail extension, the Northern Walnut Creek Trail is now 4.4 miles – from Balcones District Park to Oakbrook Drive. Eventually, the trail will connect to the southern section of the trail to make up a 19-mile system. More information about the trail festivities can be found here.

By all accounts, 2022 was a rollicking, record-breaking year for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport. According to the airport’s year-end review, AUS “experienced an unprecedented growth of passenger volumes as demand for air travel rose far beyond the airport’s busiest passenger activity volumes seen in 2019, before disruptions caused by Covid-19.” The review goes on to say that passenger volume for December 2022 “was the highest December on record with 1,717,601 passengers flying during the month, up 7.63 percent compared to December 2021.” As for the busiest month of last year? That would be the merry month of May, “which welcomed 2,021,747 passengers in a single month and the total passenger count for 2022 was 21,089,289 passengers, up 55.40 percent from 2021, officially making 2022 the airport’s busiest year ever.”

City Council will convene once again Wednesday for a special called meeting intended to tie up the loose ends from its previous meeting – City Manger Spencer Cronk’s employment and a proposal to approve a one-year police contract. The meeting, which is scheduled for 9 a.m. on Feb. 15, will take the place of the now-canceled Audit and Finance Committee meeting. Last week, Council opted to postpone a request to negotiate a one-year contract between the city and the police department in lieu of a four-year contract that has been in negotiation for the past year. The one-year contract is intended to serve as a stopgap that will not override the oversight questions that will be put before voters in May, among other things. Discussion about the contract on Thursday laid bare tensions between Council members and the city manager, who is expected to be fired in a vote at Wednesday’s meeting. Anyone wishing to speak on either topic can do so online before Tuesday at noon or at City Hall until 8:15 a.m. on Wednesday.

Mayor Kirk Watson certainly knows how to start a meeting. In addition to being on time, he has provided flowers for all of his colleagues on the dais. Kate Alexander, Watson’s communications chief, says he pays for the touch of brightness personally and that the flowers come from Central Market.

This is never welcome news for aqua-maniacs, but Barton Springs Pool will be closed for its annual almost-spring cleaning from Feb. 25 to March 10. Springwoods Pool is also due for some routine maintenance, which will close that pool for just two days, Feb. 21-22. To immerse yourself in other year-round pools in the meantime, visit AustinTexas.gov/pools. In other watery news, the city’s Aquatic Division is super-serious about recruiting lifeguards and is holding a hiring event at Fiesta Gardens at 2101 Jesse E. Segovia St. on Sunday, Feb. 26, 5-8 p.m. Prospective lifeguards will be able to fill out an application on-site and get signed up for lifeguard training. Applicants should bring their photo ID and Social Security cards to the event.

We certainly hope this is old news by the time it reaches you: Austin Energy has completed restoring power to almost all of the remaining customers who were still waiting for the lights to come back on after the recent ice storm. According to a news release from the city utility, “More than 99.9% of customers have power. Austin Energy is working directly with a small number of customers who remain without power because of damage on customer-owned equipment that needs a licensed electrician to repair.” If you are among that 0.1% of customers without power, find an update here or call 512-322-9100 to get an estimate on reconnection. Austin Energy General Manager Jackie Sargent said, “We know the storm’s aftermath has been difficult for customers, and we are grateful for the resilience of our community. We are also thankful to the hundreds of mutual aid crew members, working side by side with our field teams, as part of the largest restoration operation in Austin Energy’s history.”