After two years in the position, it’s official: Sylnovia Holt-Rabb is Austin’s new director of Economic Development. Holt-Rabb has worked for the city for 21 years, serving as acting director of the department since March 2020. According to a press release announcing the hire, during her tenure, the EDD “launched 13 unique pandemic-related financial assistance programs distributing more than $50 million to aid individuals, nonprofits and small business.” The department oversees operation of the Cultural Arts Division and Small Business Program, among other things. “I’m honored to be appointed as the city’s next Economic Development director and look forward to continuing in this leadership role to assist local businesses with the resources they need to be successful enterprises,” Holt-Rabb said in a statement to the press.

In preparation for budget season, the city’s quality of life commissions will be holding three virtual town halls to give community members an opportunity to weigh in with their spending priorities for the 2022-23 fiscal year. According to a city news release, the town hall meetings “will serve as listening sessions for the commissions to decide what communities need right now and how their budget recommendations can address those needs.” The virtual meetings, which will will last about two hours each, are scheduled for the following dates:

• Wednesday, Feb. 16, 6:30 p.m., Town Hall on Affordability and Resiliency
• Thursday, Feb. 24, 6:30 p.m., Town Hall on Access and Engagement
• Saturday, Feb. 26, 10 a.m., Town Hall on Public Safety and Health

Register here to attend. Zoom links will be emailed after registration. Those who are unable to attend a meeting but still want to share their feedback with the commissions may email budgetqa@austintexas.gov. All three meetings will offer Spanish and American Sign Language interpretation.

The unveiling of new historical signage for Eastwoods Park has been postponed and rescheduled for the summer to coincide with the annual Juneteenth festivities. Juneteenth historical interpretation signage and a Lone Star Legacy Award plaque, which were installed at the park last year, will be officially dedicated in a joint ceremony on June 11 at 11:00 a.m. Eastwoods Park, the site of Wheeler’s Grove, one of Austin’s earliest Emancipation parks, was once a favorite location for the local Black community to celebrate Juneteenth. The Eastwoods Neighborhood Association proposed a Juneteenth interpretive sign last year after surveying the surrounding community and raising funds for the installation.

Sure, last week was a bit, uh, chilly, but all that unpleasantness is in the past and it’s time to turn your attention forward to POOL SEASON. Season passes are now available for city swimming pools via the ATXSwims app, which you can find at Google Play and the Apple App Store. Once you’ve got your pass, you’ll use your phone to enter the facility. You can also get passes at pard.flowbirdhub.com – you’ll just need to email a copy of your receipt to AquaticsOffice@AustinTexas.gov and then pick up your season pass at Bartholomew, Barton Springs, Deep Eddy, or Springwoods pools. Speaking of Barton Springs, the popular pool will be closed for annual maintenance Feb. 26-March 11, but there are many other alternatives; just visit AustinTexas.gov/swimming to find locations and hours of operation. The ATXSwims app comes in mighty handy for daily ticket sales too, if you can’t commit to a season pass.

With normal city operations on hiatus due to freezing rain and glacial temperatures, the city of Austin is also freezing requests for information this week. The city submitted a “catastrophe notice” to the state on Feb. 7, which suspends certain Texas Public Information Act deadlines. That means pending public information requests will be paused for a week, and any PIRs submitted this week will be considered received on Feb. 14. However, according to a press release from the city, “Departments whose operations were not affected by the winter weather should continue to respond to public information requests under normal procedures.” The catastrophe notice will expire on Feb. 13, just in time for Valentine’s Day.

Austin Community College District is offering free Covid-19 testing at several of its campuses for students, college employees and community members. No appointment is required and walk-ins are welcome. Covid vaccinations – first, second and booster shots – are also available to the community at campus clinics. This week, free Covid testing is available at the following locations:

• Wed., Feb. 9, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Highland Campus, 6101 Highland Campus Drive
• Thu., Feb. 10, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Round Rock Campus, 4400 College Park Drive
• Fri., Feb. 11, 9 a.m.-4 p.m., Hays Campus, 1200 Kohlers Crossing

With humidity levels plunging and wildfire danger rising, the Commissioners Court has voted to issue another burn ban, effective immediately, for the unincorporated areas of the county. As Travis County Chief Fire Marshal Tony Callaway explained in a news release, the new burn ban “is needed to ensure the public’s safety.” Though the new ban covers outdoor burning, it does not affect “prescribed burns conducted under the supervision of a prescription burn manager.” The burn ban is due to expire on Wednesday, March 9, “unless further action is taken by the county judge or county fire marshal prior to that date.”

With the citywide boil-water notice still in effect, Austin/Travis County has opened additional sites for residents to pick up bottled water. As of Monday, seven sites are open to supply water to those who lack the ability or the means to purchase or boil their own water. Here is the location of the seven water distribution sites:

• Travis County Expo Center, 7311 Decker Lane, noon-8 p.m.
• Austin Water Glen Bell Service Center, 3907 South Industrial Drive, open 24 hours (bring your own water container)
• Austin Water North Service Center, 901 W. Koenig Lane, open 24 hours (bring your own water container)
• Kelly Reeves Athletic Stadium, 10211 W. Parmer Lane, noon-8 p.m.
• Southeast Metropolitan Park, 4511 State Highway 71, noon-8 p.m.
• Travis County Tax Office-Southeast, 4011 McKinney Falls Parkway, noon-8 p.m.
• Walnut Creek Metropolitan Park, 12138 N. Lamar Blvd., noon-8 p.m.
• ACC Pinnacle Campus, 7748 U.S. Highway 290, noon-8 p.m.

Those who need water but cannot get to any of the distribution sites should call 311 for assistance. Residents are asked to please recycle all single-use plastic bottles and jugs instead of throwing them in the trash. You can find the most up-to-date information on water distribution sites here.

The next Wild Neighbors webinar explores a topic that is close to many people’s hearts: hummingbirds, the winged jewels of the avian world. Tania Homayoun, a conservation biologist with Texas Parks & Wildlife, will share her knowledge of hummingbird biology, the various species found in Central Texas and how you can attract more of these tiny, iridescent hovercrafts to your garden. (Bonus: Not only do hummingbirds pollinate flowers, they eat hundreds of insects a day, including mosquitoes!) Friday, Feb. 18, noon-1 p.m. Sign up here. If you’ve missed previous episodes of the Wild Neighbors Speaker Series or want to rewatch a favorite, they’re all archived on YouTube for your viewing pleasure.

The Austin Transit Partnership will host two virtual town hall meetings this week to hear from community members on their ideas concerning governance and equity in the creation of rail and bus lines that are part of Project Connect. ATP was created with the legal authority to finance Proposition A, which voters approved in 2020 to deliver a multi-modal rapid transit plan. The ballot language for Prop A and a joint powers agreement between the city and Capital Metro promised an independent board to oversee the project. The community advisory group for ATP and other local advocates have voiced their concerns about the independence of the board. There is also a concern that Capital Metro’s executive director, Randy Clarke, is also serving as executive director of ATP. The transit partnership hired transportation consultants at Eno Center for Transportation to produce a review of leadership and governance to advise its board on best practices and the best structure for Project Connect. The other major issue members of the public are expected to address is how the project plans to help residents who may be displaced by the new rail lines. Register in advance to receive the Zoom links for the meetings: town hall No. 1, Tuesday, Feb. 8, at 6 p.m.; and town hall No. 2, Saturday, Feb. 12, at 11 a.m.

The Economic Development Department is inviting artists to apply for its Art in Public Places program, which operates on a quarterly basis. The first quarter offers eight art projects totaling over $700,000 in commissions, with individual artwork commissions ranging from $30,000-$169,000. Sylnovia Holt-Rabb, who is the interim director of the EDD, said in a press release that as the city grows, it seeks to grow its public artwork collection, an endeavor that will “create jobs, not only for the commissioned artists, but also for subcontractors such as engineers, architects, fabricators, installers, materials vendors, lighting experts, and other professionals.” The first application period ends March 31. Find more details about AIPP and eligibility requirements, as well as upcoming information sessions, here.

In the past, a City Council member leaving office was often greeted with a cake, small gifts and fond words. Council Member Greg Casar, whose last meeting was Thursday, got many kind words but little else. The pandemic was reason enough not to throw a party, but the ice storm left scant room for celebration. Casar is leaving his seat to seek the Democratic nomination for Texas Congressional District 35, and José “Chito” Vela will be sworn in to the District 4 position on Monday. Mayor Steve Adler praised Casar as a member of the original 10-1 Council, saying he helped fulfill the promise of change, equity and access that voters envisioned when they voted for the district system. He listed some major accomplishments that Casar helped shepherd through the system, such as increased benefits and wages for city employees and multiple efforts to help low-income Austinites. Other members of Council chimed in, praising Casar for his energy, stamina and willingness to work with others even when they were not ideologically aligned. While Casar said he wasn’t quite ready for the tributes, he responded with thanks. “I feel very moved and touched with what you have said and what people in the community said and I have been so honored to get to be a part of this …. We’re all really just one family.” Casar said his seven years on the Council were “an experiment in democracy.” His was one of the loudest voices in pushing the city to take the claims of sexual assault victims seriously, and last week, the city finally settled with a group of survivors who sued to force the city to change its practices. Casar concluded by telling his colleagues, “I’m so grateful to you because I know how much it takes to do this work … it’s been a great honor to work alongside all of you and this community.”