Here’s some good news for doggos and the humans who love them: It’s finally safe for Fido to splash around in Lady Bird Lake again. Thanks to the cooler weather, the harmful algae that poses a risk to dogs is no longer present in the water. Watershed Protection staffers who have been monitoring the lake weekly say the blue-green algae is unlikely to return until next summer. Adds the department in a news release, “Thankfully, we did not receive any reports of dogs becoming ill or dying due to algae exposure after swimming in the lake this year. We credit this success to the care dog owners took in following recommendations and keeping their pets out of the water during the long, hot summer and fall.” You can check the current status of the monitoring program here.

The city has been working on a project to enhance safety and mobility for everyone who uses Stassney Lane, and it is now ready to start construction in spring 2021. The project design was created with input from the community and is made possible by funding from the 2016 mobility bond, Safe Routes to School programs and the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority. Among the planned changes, new protected bicycle lanes will be installed on Stassney Lane, creating an east-west All Ages and Abilities bikeway. Intersections will be revamped to improve safety for all modes of travel. In addition, the city will work with Capital Metro to move bus stops closer to safe pedestrian crossings at multiple locations on the corridor. Those interested in following along with the project’s progress can sign up for email updates on the project website.

Tuesday marks the final 2020 election day in Travis County, with voters making decisions on two school board races and two City Council races. Early voting ended Friday in the District 6 and 10 Council runoff races, as well as the two races for seats on the Austin Independent School District Board of Trustees. Incumbent District 6 Council Member Jimmy Flannigan is facing Mackenzie Kelly, and incumbent District 10 Council Member Alison Alter is facing Jennifer Virden. In the only AISD districtwide election, Leticia Caballero and Noelita Lugo are vying for the at-large Place 8 seat. In the District 5 race, Lynn Boswell is facing Jennifer Littlefield. According to data from Travis County Clerk Dana DeBeauvoir’s website, a total of 41,515 voters had cast ballots as of Friday night. Of those, 19,305 – about 46.5 percent – voted by mail. The clerk’s office will still be receiving ballots by mail, so that number is not final. None of the candidates in these races is identified on the ballot by party affiliation, but the incumbents have pointed out that Kelly and Virden are Republicans. And the Austin Young Republicans hosted about 20 out-of-town members this weekend, who were deployed to knock on doors for the contenders, according to Andy Hogue, Kelly’s campaign consultant. An ad for the gathering thanked the Republican Party of Texas, the Williamson County Republican Party, the Travis County Republican Party and Wilco Republican leaders as sponsors of the event. Participants got free meals and a free overnight stay at a local hotel as well as a karaoke party.

At its last meeting, City Council endorsed Compassion 2020, an initiative spearheaded by Citizen Discourse and United Way campaigning for a just, compassionate and anti-racist society. The resolution, authored by Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison and co-sponsored by Mayor Steve Adler and Council members Jimmy Flannigan, Pio Renteria and Ann Kitchen, also directs the city manager to develop a social contract. This document will serve “as a written agreement outlining a community’s core values and (instruct) the direction of laws, regulations, policies, contracts, culture and more,” according to the resolution. The resolution states that Compassion 2020‘s Compassion Contract, which includes such values as “be respectful, listen to understand, act with good intentions, support ideas with evidence and experience, disagree without being disagreeable, critique the idea not the person, and invite wonder,” will serve as the model for Austin’s contract. Supporters hope that Austin’s resolution, which is the first of its kind in the country, will inspire other cities to officially join the initiative. The city manager will work with Austin’s Joint Inclusion Committee to craft the language of the social contract and report back to Council by June 1, 2021.

The ATX Mobility Coalition has asked City Council and Capital Metro to appoint Julio Gonzalez Altamirano, Veronica Castro de Barrera and Dr. Colette Pierce Burnette to “community expert” positions on the Austin Transit Partnership Board. The coalition, which is made up of People United for Mobility Action, Austin Justice Coalition, Planning Our Communities and Workers Defense Action Fund, stated in a letter that it supports the three candidates because they are “highly qualified while meeting criteria that reflects our community’s goals for ATP Board Members, who:

● Include historically underrepresented communities, specifically board members of color, women and people with disabilities.
● Prioritize core transit riders and use transit regularly.
● Have a deep understanding of issues and measures related to equity.
● Have a holistic understanding of the impacts of transit-induced displacement and strategies to address the issue.
● Are committed to improving the experiences of pedestrians, bicyclists, and persons with disabilities.
● Are committed to workers’ rights and protections.
● Are committed to forging and strengthening relations with labor and community partners.”

The Austin Transit Partnership board will include one member of City Council, one member of the Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority Board of Directors, and three community members with expertise in finance, engineering and construction, and planning and sustainability.

Austin City Council Member Greg Casar and Philadelphia City Council Member At-Large Helen Gym have been selected to serve as co-chairs of Local Progress, which the website describes as “a movement of local elected officials advancing a racial and economic justice agenda through all levels of local government.” When he was elected in 2014, Casar became the youngest Council member in Austin history. He easily won reelection in 2016 and again last month. Earlier this year, he championed redirection of city resources previously allocated to the Austin Police Department. He also led the effort to give all workers paid sick leave, although that program has not been implemented because it is in conflict with state law. He was a leader in Council’s effort to pass the largest affordable housing bond in Texas history. Casar and Gym released the following statement: “As we prepare to step forward together into a new year with the same challenges, we know that our cities and municipalities must continue to be the epicenter of progressive change in this country. By working together, we can drive transformative change across all levels of local government, build power with our communities, and impact policy and governance at the state and national level. Together, we are redefining what is possible. This is what Local Progress is all about.”

With everything else that’s going on, it’s easy to forget that it’s also peak flu season right now – if you haven’t gotten your yearly jab yet it’s definitely time. No insurance? No worries, Central Health-affiliated CommUnityCare is holding a no-cost drive-thru flu shot clinic this weekend for uninsured residents of Travis County. Head over to Manor Senior High School on Sat., Dec. 12, from 8 a.m. to noon. Not only can you get your flu shot from the safety of your own car, you can also pick up personal protective equipment and a voucher for a turkey from HEB. No-cost flu vaccinations will also be available for MAP members and patients with a sliding fee CommUnityCare card. Those who have health insurance should bring their insurance card so insurance can be billed directly, with no out-of-pocket costs for individuals.

With New Year’s eve celebrations on the horizon, the Travis County Commissioners Court has voted to approve an order banning the use or sale of restricted fireworks outside the city limits of any city or town in Travis County. The use or sale of any kind of fireworks is illegal in the city of Austin. The most dangerous types of fireworks included in the ban are called “skyrockets with sticks” and “missiles with fins.” Travis County Fire Marshal Tony Callaway explained that the order was prompted by the ongoing drought in Central Texas and the increased risk of wildfires from fireworks. “We need to use all the tools available to us to ensure public safety,” he said. The order is in effect from Dec. 20 to Jan. 1, though it may expire sooner if rain comes during the December fireworks season.

The Austin Transportation Department has completed safety and mobility improvements at the North Lamar Boulevard/Payton Gin Road intersection. The changes “include new shared use paths for people walking and riding bikes, new high-visibility crosswalks, traffic signal upgrades, and a new median on North Lamar Boulevard near the intersection,” according to the department’s news release. Assistant City Manager Gina Fiandaca said, “We’ve seen significant crash reductions after other intersection safety projects have been built in Austin. We’re excited to deliver a solution to what had been a challenging, high-crash intersection for many years.” The project is part of the 2016 Mobility Bond Intersection Safety/Vision Zero program.

City Manager Spencer Cronk has released his end-of-year review. While he admits that he, like many of us, is “looking forward to the end of 2020,” he made a valiant effort to find the silver lining.

“While 2020 may have tested us in many ways, as an organization and a community, we rose to the challenge,” he wrote in the introduction. “City employees, especially our public health care workers and first responders, stepped up repeatedly to answer the call and serve our community with unyielding dedication.”

Highlights from the review include:

• The Economic Development Department within five months established seven new programs to distribute millions in recovery dollars to individuals, families, local businesses, and non-profits. The department also trained hundreds of Austinites to be better prepared for the existing and future job market, provided classes and coaches which helped thousands of others to continue working. They also assisted small businesses who in turn created more jobs.
• Austin Energy and Austin Water focused on investments in a variety of energy, water, and air quality programs and initiatives, emphasizing conservation and environmental protection and helping reduce the City’s municipal carbon footprint.
• In partnership with Public Works, the Austin Fire Department and Austin/Travis County Emergency Medical Services opened a joint Fire/EMS Station in Del Valle/Moore’s Crossing, the first of five stations to be built in the coming years to provide improved response times in underserved neighborhoods.

There’s plenty more over at the 2020 Year in Review website, where you can find out about specific topics such as Covid-19 and reimagining public safety, and peruse detailed reports on the progress each department made this year toward the Strategic Direction 2023 plan.

All that hand sanitizer we’ve been bathing in appears to be working: The Centers for Disease Control recently announced that flu cases nationally are lower than normal for this time of year. Flu activity is also much lower than normal in Austin-Travis County and the state of Texas. For comparison, a flu report for the week of Nov. 22 from Austin Public Health showed only six positive flu tests. Last year at this time, APH reported more than 800 positive flu tests. Janet Pichette, chief epidemiologist at Austin Public Health, attributed the lower numbers to community members being more proactive, getting their flu vaccine, and “washing their hands, social distancing and wearing face coverings, which not only helps to fight Covid-19 but slow the spread of flu as well.” Since this week is National Influenza Vaccination Week, there’s no better time to get your flu vaccination if you’ve been putting it off. Visit VaccineFinder.org to find a location near you offering flu shots. Those who are uninsured or are Medicaid recipients may get flu shots from Austin Public Health. Call 512-972-5520 to schedule an appointment.

Austin Community Foundation and United Way for Greater Austin announced on Tuesday the third and final round of grant funding for local nonprofits from their community-led philanthropic fund. All Together ATX provides flexible resources to nonprofit organizations working with communities experiencing economic and health-related hardships due to the Covid-19 pandemic. This round, 111 organizations will receive a total of $3.5 million for basic needs and support. The funding, which includes a matched gift from the Sheth Sangreal Foundation, breaks down as follows:

• Food security – 34 grants totaling $435,000
• Direct cash assistance – 42 grants totaling $2.2 million
• Social supports – 30 grants totaling $555,000
• COVID-19 modifications and personal protective equipment – 25 grants totaling $356,000

Find the complete list of grant recipients here. The funds will be distributed electronically by Dec. 24. Since March 27, 2020, Austin Community Foundation and United Way raised $7.7 million for All Together ATX from corporate and individual donors.