More people are flying out of Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, according to a news release. Total passenger traffic for November 2023 was up 3.57 percent compared to the previous November, with 1,911,494 passengers flying during the month. Air cargo was down by 2.54 percent year to year, totaling 24,412,283 pounds, but international air cargo was up 11.7 percent.

From Feb. 15 through April 21, a solo exhibition by Austin photographer Leta Harrison will be on display at The Gallery at Central Library. In “Black Girls Don’t Wear Red Lipstick,” she trains her camera on Black women who use self-expression as a form of activism. The show is curated by Keyheira Keys and Whitney Hamilton of the arts alliance Of Color Atx. In Harrison’s joyous, bold photographic prints, she showcases women reclaiming their power, challenging oppressive beauty standards and stifling stereotypes. An opening reception that’s free and open to the public is set for 6 to 9 p.m. Feb. 15, with a spoken word performance by Christa Brown and music by DJ Lauren Light. And a Black History Month celebration is planned for 1 to 3 p.m. Feb. 24, with an inspiring spoken word event and a thought-provoking writing workshop.

On Thursday, City Council indefinitely postponed two zoning cases that were envisioned as mixed-use developments with tall buildings that would offer housing for low-income Austinites. Because a Travis County judge has found that the city failed to follow proper procedures in approving the Vertical Mixed Use 2 ordinance, those cases cannot move forward at this point. District 5 Council Member Ryan Alter, whose district includes properties on Red Bird Lane and South Congress Avenue, said a new version of the ordinance needs to come back to Council, “sooner rather than later.” A few minutes later, Zoning Officer Joi Harden told Council that cases in Crestview Village and North Lamar would also be postponed indefinitely for the same reason. Mayor Pro Tem Leslie Pool said she wanted action on the ordinance so those District 7 properties could be built with the affordable housing envisioned by the VMU2 ordinance. City Attorney Anne Morgan responded, “We are committed to bringing that back to you sooner rather than later.” When Council approved the ordinance in 2022, they did so in part to facilitate creating more affordable housing. The VMU2 zoning would require somewhere between 224 and 305 affordable units for people with a median family income of 30 percent to 80 percent MFI.

Starting on Feb. 5, the city’s Development Services Department will begin accepting applications related to the newly approved HOME amendments designed to allow more housing on single-family lots in the pursuit of a more affordable Austin. A message from the department explains that more communication about the implementation will be forthcoming and that:

• Current regulations will remain in effect for single-family residential projects.
• Residential building permit (BP) applications with two- and three-dwelling units will be reviewed under HOME amendments if submitted on or after Feb. 5, 2024.
• Residential BP applications submitted prior to Feb. 5, 2024, will be reviewed under pre-HOME (current) regulations unless an applicant submits an update on or after Feb. 5 that specifically opts into HOME amendments. Updates for this purpose are permitted only for two-unit projects; three-unit projects will require a new BP application for consideration under HOME.

Applicants who wish to have projects reviewed under current regulation should complete the Fair Notice Application process, selecting the vested rights application. Information about the amendments and their implementation will continue to be updated on the city’s website.

The Watershed Protection Department’s 2023 annual report is out now, covering efforts to reduce the impact of flooding, erosion and water pollution – with some super local explainers included. Here’s an overview:

• Crews cleaned 76,748 feet of storm drain pipeline (the distance you’d drive from the Broken Spoke to the Domain) and installed or replaced 10,131 feet of storm drain infrastructure (the length of 33 UT Towers).
• Crews stabilized 7,174 feet of unstable stream channel, equivalent to about 191 MetroBuses lined up end to end.
• The Liberty Park Water Quality Pond Retrofits project prevented 7,900 pounds of pollution from entering the Barton Creek watershed – nearly the same weight as 253,000 Mexican free-tailed bats.

The full report is available at austintexas.gov/watershed/2023.

On Thursday, City Council will decide whether to authorize a $2 million contract with McKinsey & Company, Inc. to provide “a comprehensive review of homelessness strategies, programs, and services.” It is pretty much a foregone conclusion that they will approve the contract, but at Tuesday’s brief work session, Council Member Ryan Alter said analyzing the work of each entity involved in trying to help people experiencing homelessness is “an incredibly important scope of work.” He said the study would help “to ensure that we are not overlapping or wasting a precious resource, especially as it relates to homelessness.” In response to a question from Council Member Chito Vela, Mayor Kirk Watson said McKinsey would analyze the work done not only by the city, but also by Travis County and Central Health. According to meeting notes related to the Council agenda, “The objective of this comprehensive review is to assess the effectiveness of the strategies, programs, and services provided by the City of Austin and other partners, which may include Central Health, Travis County, Integral Care, and The University of Texas at Austin Dell Medical School (‘Healthier Austin Partners’ or ‘Partners’) to make homelessness rare, brief, and nonrecurring.”

The Other Ones Foundation will host a job fair for unhoused clients today in an effort to pair local businesses with people who might struggle to maintain employment. According to a press release from the homelessness nonprofit, the group “will host numerous corporate, government, and nonprofit agencies to promote their career opportunities across a variety of fields” today from noon to 3 p.m. at 3801 S. First St. “Members of the unhoused community experience many barriers to traditional employment: missing IDs or permanent address, difficulty with transportation or hygiene maintenance, and a lack of soft skills that have eroded over time from isolation and marginalization. Austin also has a highly competitive and saturated job market, rife with stigma towards individuals with job gaps, or who present as having experienced homelessness. TOOF’s supportive programs work with individuals on overcoming these barriers and preparing them to re-enter the workforce. Finally, we make a smooth handoff to our incredible partners who want to offer these folks a chance to work,” TOOF’s director of communications, Max Moscoe, said in a statement to the press. “Employment for people experiencing homelessness is important not only for the financial leverage it gives them, but for the feeling of empowerment and involvement that comes from engaging in community. These life-changing efforts are only possible with partnership from the hiring organizations and community support for TOOF programming.”

On Sunday, the executive committee of the Travis County Democratic Party selected Pooja Sethi to serve out the unexpired term of Katie Naranjo as party chair. Naranjo announced Sethi’s election in an email to party supporters, writing that “Pooja brings years of organizing and policy experience as the Chief of Staff for Texas Rep. Vikki Goodwin. Her passion, legal background, and fundraising experience will bring a new and energetic chapter for our party. I hope you join me in welcoming and supporting Pooja’s historic leadership as our first” Asian American Pacific Islander party chair. Naranjo said it’s the right time to leave the role given incoming leadership and her second child due this spring. Sethi, an attorney, ran for the City Council District 10 seat in 2020, coming in third behind Council Member Alison Alter and Jennifer Virden. Sethi endorsed Alter in the runoff, and Alter went on to defeat Virden.

The 2024 Small Business Fundamentals Week takes place Jan. 22-26, offering business owners specialized, no-cost classes in marketing, bookkeeping and other foundational topics. Hosted by the city’s Economic Development Department, the in-person trainings are offered at 5202 East Ben White Blvd., Suite 300. Register here and find more information on small business classes at SmallBizAustin.org. Space is limited, so if classes reach full capacity, registrants will be added to a waiting list. The classes offered are:

• Jan. 22: Starting (or Rebuilding) Your Own Business
• Jan. 23: Write a Business Plan You’ll Actually Use
• Jan. 23: BizAid Business Orientation
• Jan. 24: Basic Bookkeeping for Small Business
• Jan. 24: The Basics of Human Resources
• Jan. 25: Marketing 101: Establishing Your Brand
• Jan. 26: Explore Funding Options for Your Small Business
• Jan. 26: Create Your Marketing Plan & Content Calendar

This fall, the city marked a major milestone early – finishing the sidewalk program funded by the $720 million transportation bond approved in 2016. The project completed one year early, after constructing or repairing 56 miles of sidewalk with the $37.5 million allocated to the cause. Though Austin is nowhere close to completing its sidewalk network, with hundreds of miles still needing to be built, the work isn’t done either. Funds from 2018 and 2020 mobility bonds are being used toward the effort to complete the monumental task of filling the missing sidewalks in Austin.

For parents, it’s nearly time to start thinking ahead to summertime child care plans. One option is summer camps for ages 5 through 15 provided by City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department, including therapeutic summer programs; visual and performing arts, culture and history summer camps; and nature-based summer camps. Starting at 10 a.m. Feb. 10 until close of business on Feb. 17, Austin residents with approved financial aid and those seeking adaptive and inclusion support programs can register early in person and by phone. Registration times vary based on location, and evening and weekend times are available.

• For therapeutic summer programs, which embrace diversity and involve a team of certified therapeutic recreation specialists and inclusion aids, Austin residents can register from 10 a.m. Feb. 10 until close of business on Feb. 17. Non-Austin residents can register beginning at 2 p.m. Feb. 24.
• Austin residents can register for culture and arts summer camps beginning at 10 a.m. Feb. 24. Non-Austin residents can register beginning at 2 p.m. Feb. 24. Participants are limited to registering for no more than three weeks per child, per visual and performing arts, culture and history camp.
• For nature-based summer camps, Austin residents can register beginning at noon Feb. 24.  Non-Austin residents can register beginning at 2 p.m. Feb. 24. Participants are limited to registering for no more than three weeks per child, per nature-based summer camp.
• Community recreation center summer camps aim to enhance young people’s interests, skills and abilities.. Austin residents can register for community recreation center summer camps beginning at 1 p.m. March 2. Non-Austin residents can register beginning at 3 p.m. March 2.

For more information about summer camps, visit AustinTexas.gov/SummerCamp.

The most recent report from Texas Comptroller Glenn Hegar shows that Austin’s sales tax collections rose to nearly $29.3 million for November, a 2.24 percent increase over last year. Round Rock saw a 6.23 percent increase, rising from about $9 million to $9.6 million, according to the report released Wednesday. Overall, Hegar announced he will send cities, counties, transit systems and special purpose districts $1.1 billion in local sales tax allocations for January, up 3.3 percent above allocations for January 2023. The Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority will receive more than $32 million, an increase of about 2.5 percent, the comptroller said. Of Texas’ 20 largest cities, only Midland and Odessa saw a decline in their sales tax revenues for November. Each collected about 5 percent less than they did a year ago. Houston will receive $71.6 million, about 2 percent more than at the same time last year, and San Antonio will get $38.9 million, about 1.32 percent more than a year ago.