In a move that will come as a surprise to roughly no one,  city operations will continue to be closed through Friday due to the ongoing severe weather. In addition, Austin’s City Council meeting and all board and commission meetings have been canceled. Emergency operations and essential public safety services will continue disaster response. In addition, AISD will remain closed through Friday, aside from some essential staff.

In response to the myriad issues that have dogged Austin following unprecedented snow and cold, Travis County Judge Andy Brown has issued an order that prohibits price-gouging and asks businesses to curtail their use of electricity. “All manufacturing, industrial and commercial businesses that use electricity in their operations/processes are ordered to minimize non-essential processes and operations to the greatest extent possible. All athletic facilities, stadiums and other businesses shall not use exterior lighting unless it is necessary to provide essential services,” reads the order, in part. In a press conference held Tuesday afternoon, Austin Energy General Manager Jackie Sargent confirmed that the utility had asked the city’s largest customers – its industrial users – to shut down. “That’s not necessarily something that’s easy to do. So we really appreciate them for assisting in this in these extreme circumstances,” she noted.

Sargent also said that AE, the Downtown Austin Alliance and the city’s Chamber of Commerce had all asked downtown businesses to reduce power as much as possible. A statement from the utility explained, “The downtown network is excluded for now from load shedding (power outages) during controlled outages mandated by ERCOT. This is a complicated, inter-connected network which includes critical buildings like the Dell Seton Medical Center, warming centers, the COVID-19 Alternate Care Site, Capitol Complex and Austin City Hall, as well as other critical infrastructure and government buildings. Shutting down the downtown network would also cut off electricity to these critical buildings, which may also house vital communications equipment.”

A lit-up downtown skyline became a flashpoint for frustration this week, as many continued to live without power during record-setting cold weather. That state is expected to continue for an indeterminate amount of time, until the state’s power grid is able to meet demand. Until then, Mayor Steve Adler stressed the need to reduce electricity use as much as possible, in a collective effort to reduce electricity demand statewide. “We are putting out an urgent plea to businesses to reduce their power consumption, just as we are asking people in residences,” said Adler. “If you have power, please try to live almost like you don’t. If you have heat, run it low, run it lower. If you have lights, try to just use the light you need at that moment. If you have power, maybe you’ll take a turn using flashlights, or a candle.”

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

After being closed for two days, Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS) plans to resume flights today, Feb. 17, at 1 p.m. Flights scheduled prior to that time are canceled, and the airport authority warns travelers to check to make sure their flights are still scheduled and notes that the nation’s unprecedented winter storm isn’t over, and more delays and cancellations are likely. A press release from the airport explains, “Efforts to remove snow and ice from roadways, walkways and surfaces are ongoing and will continue through the night as AUS prepares for more inclement weather tonight. Passengers with confirmed flights for tomorrow are advised to check roadway conditions on DriveTexas.org and to give themselves extra time for safe travel to and from the airport. As AUS teams continue to respond to this weather event, airport operations will be impacted throughout the week. AUS will continue sharing the latest updates and information on our Twitter account.”

Travis County Judge Andy Brown announced yesterday that all Travis County facilities and offices, including the Commissioners Court, will be closed today due to unprecedented winter weather. Emergency and essential county staff will continue to work, however. The Commissioners Court will convene another day, depending on upcoming weather reports.

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

Due to the extreme winter weather Central Texas is having, Austin ISD is canceling classes today, tomorrow and Thursday. This Friday, Feb. 19, is an asynchronous learning day. Campuses will be closed Feb. 16-19 and no school buses will be operating. Because of power outages across the city, remote instruction has also been canceled this week. AISD community members or staff whose homes lack heat are encouraged to access city and county cold weather shelters and warming centers. For more info, call the 24/7 hotline: 512-305-4233.

The Development Services Department is inviting residents to share their experiences with systemic racism and inequity in Austin in order to help the city “create a plan for future improvements.” The nine-question survey, which should take about 10-15 minutes to complete, is anonymous. Answers to the survey will be shared with the city’s Equity Office. Tell your story from your own point of view and do not include any personal information. Fill out the DSD Equity Survey.

It’s time once again to take a look at what’s happening at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, or AUS as it likes to be called. According to a recent news release, passenger traffic experienced “dramatic declines” last year as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. “Overall in 2020, AUS had 6,472,579 passengers pass through its doors – that’s down 62.7% from the 17,343,729 passengers the airport saw in its highest-ever passenger travel year, 2019. These are the lowest passenger numbers for AUS since the airport opened in 1999.” In contrast, cargo numbers have grown significantly, “increasing by more than 20% over 2019, reflecting the role of AUS in the Austin region’s recovering economy. A major contributor to this growth was the start of new cargo operations by Amazon Air early in the year.” To wind things up, airport officials say they’re seeing an increase in passenger traffic, which they attribute to “the airport’s robust health and safety measures and a growth in passenger confidence that we’re optimistic will continue throughout 2021.”

Chas Moore, the executive director of the Austin Justice Coalition, announced Thursday that he was withdrawing his support for the strong-mayor initiative and other proposals from Austinites for Progressive Reform. The group presented a petition with more than 24,000 signatures to the city clerk to get six charter amendments on the May 1 ballot. Those proposals ranged from one that would eliminate the city manager’s position and put the mayor in charge of most hiring and firing of department heads to one that would adopt a new campaign finance system. Members of various labor organizations in the city have opposed all of the propositions, with the most attention given to the strong-mayor system. Moore was part of a group that vetted the propositions and added his name to APR’s list of supporters. But as he said in a news release, “This week, I publicly withdrew my support of the Austinites for Progressive Reform proposed charter amendments because I received a message from the community loud and clear: Austinites for Progressive Reform has not built the trust required to push forward transformative structural changes to our city charter with the kind of robust community support we need to see.”

An allegation that nonprofit Save Austin Now stepped into PAC territory while gathering signatures to reinstate the homeless camping ban lacks evidence – for now. An evidentiary hearing at Wednesday’s Ethics Review Commission meeting was postponed when the nonprofit’s counsel could not attend. The commissioners will now hear evidence for and against the allegation on March 10, pushing a final hearing to April at the earliest. The complaint, brought by political consultant Mark Littlefield, received a preliminary hearing last month, but the affair was light on evidence. “You know it when you see it,” Littlefield said. Save Austin Now denies wrongdoing. If more evidence is coming, we’ll hear about it in March.

Yesterday, some city services – parks and curbside pickup – were disrupted due to inclement weather. With the threat of winter weather continuing through next week, Austinites can stay on top of park closures by visiting the parks department online. Anyone whose curbside service was disrupted by the weather is asked to leave their items to be collected out, with an assurance that they will not be cited by the Code Department. Numerous, non-weather closures are planned for Monday due to the Presidents Day holiday. A full list of those closures can be found here. Though the Austin Monitor isn’t much impacted by unseasonably cold weather, aside from not liking it much, we will be taking a break from publishing on Monday and will return on Tuesday.

Lady Bird Lake Boardwalk (Photo by The Trail Foundation)

Architecture buffs, visitors to the city and adventure-seeking perambulators will welcome the news of a brand-new online tour of Austin architecture. Happy Trails, the second self-guided tour from Guide to Austin Architecture, “follows the fascinating, obscure histories of landmarks along the Ann and Roy Butler Hike-and-Bike Trail to trace downtown Austin’s lakefront revitalization over time,” according to the news release. Ingrid Spencer, the executive director of AIA Austin and the Austin Foundation for Architecture, said, “We wanted to share our love for this trail and provide a new experience to Austinites during these strange times. So many landmarks on the trail have incredible stories – from the monumental to the mundane.” The 10.2 mile trail, which has 14 stops, was produced by local architect Bud Franck, with help from The Trail Foundation. Happy Trails debuts today.

Common Ground for Texans’ next panel will explore the timely topic of election integrity and voting rights. “As we view the issues through different lens, can we agree on definitions to move forward with solutions and strategies? Examples of areas that are likely to come up are: vote-by-mail, online voter registration, placement of polling places, voter ID.” The confirmed panelists – “both conservative leaning and progressive leaning folks,” are Rose Clouston, voter protection officer with Texas Democratic Party; Jennifer Richmond, the founder of TruthInBetween and a member of Braver Angels Central Texas Media Action Group; and moderator Mike Ignatowski, board member of Common Ground for Texans. Saturday, Feb. 27, at 2 p.m. via Zoom. Visit the CG4TX website for registration info.