The city has organized a celebration for the St. Johns community to recognize the planned demolition of the former Home Depot building just off of Interstate 35. Scheduled for 9 to 11 a.m. on Aug. 12 at the former big-box store, the event is presented by Cortez Consulting and will feature live music, children’s activities, breakfast tacos and more.  The city-owned parcel was once home to a freedmen’s colony and was the subject of years of discussion regarding its best use as a redevelopment project. “With a rich history dating back to the 1890s, the St. John Site has been a pivotal location in Central Texas’ African American community,” according to the city. The Greystar development company and the Housing Authority of the City of Austin are leading the effort to build more than 500 housing units there, half of which will be income-restricted, as well as commercial areas and green spaces. Registration for the celebration at 7211 N. I-35 can be completed online in English and in Spanish.

If this item was a car dealership commercial, we might say, “Dive into these savings!” But it’s a news brief, so: The city’s Parks and Recreation Department announced on Tuesday that admission fees will be waived at almost all public swimming pools starting Wednesday and lasting thorough Sept. 30. The waiver was made “in consideration of the ongoing excessive heat,” according to a news release. There’s a catch: You still have to pay to use Barton Springs Pool, but any other pool is fair game. Last week, the city announced that six seasonal pools would stay open longer than normal, through Sept. 24. Get more info on pool hours at austintexas.gov/pools.

The 33rd Austin Pride Festival and Parade are set to add a little color to our lives on Saturday, and the city has announced road closures in advance of the celebration of the LGBTQ community. This year’s parade starts at 8 p.m. at the Capitol, marches down Congress Avenue and ends when it hits Cesar Chavez Street. Various downtown road closures will begin starting at 1 p.m., and most affected streets will reopen by midnight except for Fourth Street from Lavaca Street to Congress Avenue. (Y’know, for the partying.) Find a map of the closures at the city’s website. Highlights include:

• 11th Street will be closed from Colorado Street to San Jacinto Boulevard starting at 5 p.m.
• San Jacinto Boulevard will be closed from from 11th Street to 15th Street starting at 1 p.m.
• Congress Avenue will be closed from 11th Street to Barton Springs Road starting at 5 p.m.

The city offered alternate route suggestions:

• Northbound/southbound traffic: Red River Street and Interstate 35
• Northbound only traffic: Trinity Street and Lavaca Street
• Southbound only traffic: Guadalupe Street
• Eastbound/westbound traffic: 15th Street, Riverside Drive and Barton Springs Road

Get more info on this year’s Austin Pride at the city website.

Workforce Solutions Capital Area has partnered with Austin Community College and health care training nonprofit Dwyer Workforce Development to increase job training for nurses needed throughout Central Texas. Workforce Solutions Capital Area is covering tuition and some child care costs for students taking the training offered by Dwyer, with a personal case manager available to assist with the application process. With Texas Workforce Commission finding a shortage of 26,863 nurses across the state, the need for nurses is sure to grow locally as all of Austin’s major hospital systems – Ascension Seton, St. David’s HealthCare and Baylor Scott & White Health – have plans for significant expansion in the next five years. Workforce Solutions Capital Area is also hosting a summit on the state of local workforce education on Aug. 9 at the San Marcos Conference Center at Embassy Suites. Information and registration is available at business.sanmarcostexas.com.

Waterloo Greenway will hold a pair of community conversations later this month to help residents learn about and discuss plans for the restoration of Sir Swante Palm Neighborhood Park. The meetings will take place at the Juan in a Million restaurant (2300 E. Cesar Chavez St.) from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. on Aug. 24 and 10 a.m. to noon on Aug. 26. Participants will learn more about the preliminary design for the park, which will be restored as part of the third phase of the Waterloo Greenway that is expected to break ground in 2026. Currently, the second phase, known as The Confluence, is underway, with portions of Palm Park being used for staging and work areas for construction crews. For more information about plans for the park, visit waterloogreenway.org/future.

The Economic Development Department has launched its new Arts Education Relief Grant program, which will provide $475,000 to nonprofit arts education providers. The $25,000 grants can be used to cover expenses such as salary support, stipends for artists and contractual personnel, facilities costs, personal protective equipment, and expenses related to marketing and promotion. Applications open Aug. 8 and will remain open until Sept. 12, with more information and application materials available at austintexas.gov/arts-education-relief-grant. The Economic Development Department will offer application assistance via a virtual grant workshop at 6 p.m. on Aug. 8 and virtual office hours from 10 a.m. until noon on Tuesdays and Thursdays. The program is funded by the National Endowment for the Arts and is open to nonprofit arts education providers with activities that primarily serve participants from early childhood through 18 years of age.

Next week, Austin Water will hold a virtual meeting about a water-saving landscape ordinance that is part of the City Council-approved Water Forward Plan. The Landscape Transformation Ordinance aims to use less water, through methods like irrigation regulations for new systems, gray water requirements and a city plant list. The virtual meeting will give the public an opportunity to weigh in on proposed regulations, as well as on inspection and enforcement. Anyone wishing to attend the Aug. 10 meeting, which will take place from 6 to 7 p.m., can register to attend online.

The city and Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority have announced trail, sidewalk, rail transit and intersection safety improvements coming along East Fifth Street. Capital Metro plans to double track the MetroRail in two projects in the area: Navasota Street to Robert T. Martinez Jr. Street and Robert T. Martinez Jr. Street to East Seventh Street. “The City is evaluating East Fifth Street along the Red Line Trail between Navasota Street and Pedernales Street to support bicycle, pedestrian and vehicular access and safety with these rail improvement projects,” according to the Transportation and Public Works Department. Get more details on the projects and give your feedback through Aug. 14 here. There also will be a virtual information session at 6 p.m. on Monday, July 31; sign up here.

Come to the North Austin Safety Summit from 10 a.m to 5 p.m. on Aug. 12 and let your voice be heard. Hosted by We’re All Neighbors, the Walnut Creek Safety Team and more neighborhood associations, this event at St. Mark United Methodist Church (601 W. Braker Lane) “will be an opportunity for those living in the 3-square-mile radius of the intersection of North Lamar Boulevard and Braker Lane to address crime and community safety,” according to an announcement. Sessions on the schedule include discussions of homelessness and policing, as well as a panel with Council members Leslie Pool and Chito Vela. Attendees will be able to submit questions. Sign up and see the full schedule at the official Eventbrite page.

The city’s Heritage Preservation Grants are open, with $2.7 million poised to be distributed to capital, planning, educational or marketing projects that promote Austin tourism. According to a press release from the city, all grants will be awarded on a competitive basis after being evaluated by a panel that reviews its “impact on preservation, tourism, access, and project viability.” The release continues, “Grant projects must engage new audiences, be history-informing, promote diverse stories, and attract tourism to historically designated sites. Eligible applicants include for-profit, government, and non-profit entities. Applicants may submit either a capital, planning, educational, or marketing proposal per funding cycle.” Eligibility requirements and applications can be found online.

In addition, applicants can get more information by watching a prerecorded webinar, or by attending a workshop:

• August 9: Virtual Awareness Workshop I (noon)
• August 9: In-Person Office Hours (6310 Wilhelmina Delco Drive, 5:30-6:30 p.m.)
• August 14: Virtual Awareness Workshop II (10 a.m.)
• August 21: Virtual Awareness Workshop III (noon)
• August 23: In-Person Office Hours (George Washington Carver Museum, 10-11 a.m.)
• August 29: Virtual Awareness Workshop IV (6 p.m.)
• August 31: Virtual Awareness Workshop V (noon)
• September 6: In-Person Office Hours (Austin City Hall, 5-6 p.m.)
• September 8: Virtual Awareness Workshop VI (noon)
• September 13: In-Person Office Hours (6310 Wilhelmina Delco Drive, 5:30-6:30 p.m.)

Applications are due by September 22 at 5 p.m.

Central Health, the hospital district of Travis County, has announced a series of community conversations coming next month. Titled “Your Voice. Your Tax Dollars. Your Healthcare,” the sessions will include “a presentation on how Central Health’s 2024 budget will ensure healthcare is getting better in Travis County,” according to the announcement. There will be Q&As after the presentations. Topics up for discussion include new clinics and expanded health care coverage enrollment for people with low income. Residents have three different options to attend: 5:30 p.m. Aug. 17 at Asian American Resource Center, 5:30 p.m. Aug. 22 at Travis County Community Center in Pflugerville and 10 a.m. Aug. 28 at Central Health Southeast Health & Wellness Center. Meals will be served at all events. Find more info, including about free transportation and access in a language other than English, here.

Don’t junk that couch, kids. MoveOutATX, an annual donation event in West Campus, is coming this month, co-sponsored by local groups including Austin Resource Recovery. From 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. July 28-31, students can visit one of eight donation stations in North and West Campus to drop off gently used furniture, household items, small appliances, clothing, cleaning supplies, unopened food and more. The items will go to local reuse organizations. Each day that the donations are accepted, some furniture will be taken to the Free Furniture Market, open 6:30 to 8:15 p.m. at UT’s Wright-Whitaker Sports Complex (287 W. 51st St.). Any Austinite can grab a piece of furniture there on a first-come, first-served basis. Item limits may be enforced, and participants must transport their finds on their own. Get more info – like how to volunteer and where to drop off unwanted goods – at MoveOutATX.org.