The city’s Development Services Department is opening its new customer portal today, promising customers to “expect an improved online experience for your business with DSD.” AB+C – for Austin Build + Connect – is the city’s portal for high-volume transactional activities, including applying for and paying for permits, scheduling inspections, checking project status and setting up demolition notifications. Neighborhood advocates may use AB+C as their entry point to conduct a public search for case histories of specific properties and projects, according to city spokeswoman Robbie Searcy. She noted via email that the city launched the current portal in 2015. The new portal, she said, “will improve system stability, speed of response and the user experience. The upgraded portal also sets us up to improve functionality and enhance online submittal options, all of which are planned as future improvements.” Visitors to the portal should be able to chat with Customer Service online to help navigate the new interface.

It’s the time of year when we start to cast a jaded eye on the clutter seeping forth from our closets and cabinets, and a voice, sounding suspiciously like Jacob Marley’s, whispers in our ear: It’s time for spring cleaning. Fortunately, the city’s zero-waste blog has some valuable tips to help make this dreaded annual exercise less onerous and more sustainable. Instead of just throwing everything into a giant pile destined to rot for all eternity in the landfill, we are advised to separate our discards into categories: 1) still usable, can be donated; 2) broken but could be repaired; 3) repurpose; and 4) throw it out, though maybe recycle it. The city’s What Do I Do With tool can help you figure out where to take some of these items, or if something has truly come to the end of its useful life, where to dispose of it. Learn more about how to “zero-waste” your spring cleaning here.

As warned, Attorney General Ken Paxton filed suit Thursday against the city of Austin, Travis County, Mayor Steve Adler and County Judge Andy Brown, as well as interim medical director and Health Authority Dr. Mark Escott, to overturn the local officials’ regulations requiring business patrons to wear masks while indoors. Paxton is seeking a temporary restraining order and then a temporary injunction to prevent Austin and Travis County from enforcing their rules. Judge Lora Livingston of the 261st District Court will hear the case beginning at 10 a.m., according to a spokesperson. Gov. Greg Abbott issued a declaration, effective March 10, rescinding previous state orders requiring adults to wear masks at commercial businesses and limiting the number of people who could gather at businesses such as restaurants and bars. Adler and Brown said they would continue to follow local health authority rules as opposed to Abbott’s declaration. Brown released the following statement on Thursday: “I will continue to listen to our public health authority, medical professionals and the CDC who have consistently said masks save lives. It is unfortunate the attorney general is once again failing to make the health of our community his priority.” Adler said in a news release: “Judge Brown and I will fight to defend and enforce our local health officials’ rules for as long as possible using all the power and tools available to us. We promised to be guided by the doctors, science and data as concerns the pandemic and we do everything we can to keep that promise. Wearing masks is perhaps the most important thing we can do to slow the spread of the virus. We are not aware of any Texas court that has allowed state leadership to overrule the health protection rules of a local health authority. Masks work! The Attorney General is simply wrong. So again, #MaskUpATX.”

Editor’s Note: Andy Brown is on the board of the Capital of Texas Media Foundation, the parent nonprofit of the Austin Monitor.

Common Ground for Texans is holding a Zoom event to talk about the charter amendments slated for the May 1 city of Austin ballot. Panelists Andrew Allison with Austinites for Progressive Reform, Jason Lopez with Austin AFL-CIO, Jacob Aronowsky, and moderator Mike Ignatowski will discuss the pros and cons of Prop D (change date of mayoral elections); Prop E (create ranked-choice voting for city elections); Prop F (change from a Council-manager form of government to a strong-mayor system); and Prop H (adopt a voluntary public campaign finance program). After the discussion, the panelists will engage in an audience Q&A. Saturday, March 20, 2-4 p.m. Join via Zoom.

“Thanks to a very large donation of new clothes” from “a generous corporate donor,” the Austin Disaster Relief Network is distributing free clothing to residents impacted by Winter Storm Uri. Along with the clothes come hundreds of free care kits containing food, hygiene supplies and PPE, courtesy of Global Empowerment Mission/B Strong. ADRN volunteers will be handing out the clothing and care kits while supplies last, today from 9 a.m.-8 p.m., at 1905 S. Capital of Texas Hwy. (warehouse next to Vaqueros Cafe & Cantina). Individuals and families must register for a time slot to pick up clothing and care kits. Clothing sizes include adult small through extra-large and some children’s sizes.

AISD is working with community partners like Ascension Seton, CommUnityCare, Code 4 and Austin Public Health “to provide opportunities for district staff to be vaccinated since the announcement on March 3 by the federal and state governments to prioritize educators.” Director of Health Services Alexandra Copeland said in a news release that the actions by the federal and state government “will ensure our schools will be that much safer for our students, teachers, and families and will lead us towards more students and teachers returning to the classroom.” While AISD does not provide vaccines, the district “is taking advantage of vaccine opportunities” and working “to connect staff to opportunities as they become available.” As of March 10, the school district had offered 2,670 vaccine opportunities to its employees.

Starting Friday, the parks department will resume its policy of requiring seasonal passes for visitors to Emma Long and Walter E. Long Metropolitan Parks, Friday through Sunday and holidays. Vehicle passes will be required March 12 to Oct. 31; pedestrian passes are required March 12 to Sept. 7. Buy your passes online at AustinTexas.gov/Parks. Park visitors should continue to practice social distancing, hand sanitation and wearing face masks. Parking is not allowed on the right of way outside the two parks; please reserve day passes and park only in designated parking areas.

Photo by Katie Boyer, U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service

The monarch butterfly, one of the nation’s most iconic insect species, has been in decline for years due to the widespread loss of its native habitat and decades of pesticide use. The U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service reports that populations of the orange-and-black pollinator in the U.S., Canada and Mexico “have dropped by about 90 percent over the past 20 years.” Now the Texas Department of Transportation is stepping up to help save the monarch by joining the Monarch Butterfly Candidate Conservation Agreement for Energy and Transportation Lands, a historic accord that “encourages transportation and energy partners to participate in monarch conservation by providing and maintaining habitat on millions of acres of rights-of-way and associated lands,” according to the news release. Monarchs visit Texas every fall and spring as they migrate from their breeding grounds in the north to spend the winter in Mexico. To aid in the monarch’s recovery, TxDOT is “enrolling 1.238 million acres of land, consisting of 73,038 center lane miles of highways and interstates.” James Stevenson, TxDOT maintenance division director, points out that state rights-of-way “are excellent habitat for wildlife, including pollinators such as the monarch butterfly as well as bats, bees, birds, and many more. Since milkweed is a crucial host plant for monarchs, TxDOT fully supports milkweed growth on state rights-of-way. Thousands of acres of milkweed appear on rights-of-way every year due to TxDOT’s longstanding wildflower and pollinator programs.” And the butterflies aren’t the only creatures who will benefit; while the agreement was designed with monarchs in mind, the conservation measures will be beneficial to all pollinating insects.

Though it will be taking a slightly different form, the ABC Kite Fest is scheduled to return to Austin on March 27-28. This year, instead of holding the celebration at Zilker Park, organizers are encouraging Austinites to fly their kites at nearby green spaces while maintaining a safe distance from others, in accordance with CDC guidelines. “The ABC Kite Fest is one of the city’s most anticipated annual events and we’re honored to be a part of it,” said Colin Wallis, CEO of Austin Parks Foundation. “This year presents the perfect opportunity for Austinites to explore the nearly 300 parks and green spaces our community has to offer as we extend the festival beyond Zilker Park,” he said. “We can’t wait to see the entire city filled with kites and families enjoying this time-honored tradition at their local parks.” Participants are encouraged to share photos by tagging the festival on social media. More information on the modified festivities, and how to safely hold community kite contests, can be found on the festival website.

AISD wants families that rely on school meals to know that the district will continue to provide access to healthy food while campuses are closed next week for spring break. The district will be providing free seven-day meal packs before the break, available at the curbside pickup sites this Thursday, March 11. According to the announcement, “Seven-day meal packs are free for any child younger than 19 as well as those older than 19 who utilize special education resources or who are enrolled in school to complete the requirements for a high school diploma.” The healthy meals feature “protein, grains, fruits, vegetables and milk.” All food is served chilled and is intended to be reheated at home. Additional seven-day meal packs will be available at the Central Texas Food Bank’s mass distribution event at Toney Burger Stadium, 3200 Jones Road, on Tuesday, March 16, 9 a.m. to noon. An “assortment of supplementary food” will also be provided at that time. The regular curbside meal distribution will resume on Thursday, March 25.

A new public art installation celebrating Ann Richards, “Texas’ trailblazing, sharp-witted former governor,” made its debut yesterday along the Ann Richards Congress Avenue bridge, where 96 8-foot-tall banners “featuring quotes and images of the legendary governor” will flap in the breeze on the way to the state Capitol throughout the spring. The project commemorates the 30th anniversary of Richards’ inauguration and celebrates “one of her key legacies, the Ann Richards School for Young Women Leaders.” A collaboration between the Downtown Austin Alliance’s Writing on the Walls initiative and the Ann Richards Legacy Project, the colorful banners can be seen on both sides of a nearly 12-block span of Congress Avenue.

Students, staffers and families who have questions about the State of Texas Assessment of Academic Readiness might want to attend AISD’s live virtual engagement session about STAAR and End of Course exams. According to a district news release, “The STAAR assessment is one of the many ways AISD supports academic student growth.” The session will feature Chief of Schools Anthony Mays and Carolyn Hanschen, executive director of accountability and assessment, who will answer questions from a moderator and audience members via Facebook comments. Tuesday, March 9, 5:30 p.m., on AISD’s Facebook page and AISD TV.