Thanks to Austin’s Urban Trails Program with the help of partners Stonelake Capital Partners, pedestrians, cyclists and dog walkers now have a better way to get from Springdale Road to Govalle Park. A new quarter-mile section of the MoKan Trail now connects the two, providing a safe crossing below Airport Boulevard and expanding access to Govalle Park and the Southern Walnut Creek Trail. Take a look at the photos from the trail opening celebration, held Jan. 14, and you’ll see a lot of happy, smiling faces.

If you’ve got a special set of skills – say, you’re a hand tool wizard, or you know your way around a sewing machine, or you’re the person your friends call when their email isn’t working – the city invites you to volunteer as a repair coach at one of its Fix-It Clinics. Volunteer coaches “work directly with clinic attendees to guide them in fixing their broken items. Fix-It Clinics are educational events, so teaching repair skills is your primary role as a volunteer coach.” In other words, you’ll be showing attendees how to repair their items, not just doing it for them. Sound like fun? The next clinic is Feb. 25. Read more and sign up here to volunteer.

Austinites tuned in to their neighborhood listserv Thursday morning were urged to attend next Monday’s meeting of the city’s Parks and Recreation Board – 6 p.m. at City Hall – to discuss the controversial Zilker Park vision plan. Speakers may sign up ahead of time to speak for the allotted three minutes by calling the board’s coordinator, Tim Dombeck, at (512) 974-6716 or emailing Tim.Dombeck@austintexas.gov. Those wishing to speak remotely must sign up by noon the day before the meeting. Dombeck said approximately half a dozen people had already signed up to speak by mid-afternoon on Thursday. He indicated that the number was a little higher than usual. However, it is not clear from the agenda whether the parks board will actually be discussing the meat of the proposal. The agenda indicates that the board will be discussing the public engagement process for the draft Zilker Park vision plan.

Members of the Zilker Neighborhood Association, with input from the Barton Springs and Bouldin neighborhood groups along with Save Our Springs Alliance and Save Barton Creek Association, have put forth an alternative proposal that calls for “rewilding” the park. Their proposal and the city’s proposal have some overlap, but the neighborhood proposal does not include the increase of 29 parking spaces, among other things, that the city proposal envisions. The board is also scheduled to consider whether to recommend issuing requests for proposals or extending contracts with a variety of Town Lake Park vendors, which should draw a number of people to voice their support for entities like the Butler Pitch and Putt and the Waller Creek Boathouse.

This whisper has been edited to remove a reference to a “huge” increase in parking spaces. In fact, the vision plan only proposes an increase of 29 spaces. 

Preparation for construction of the Roy G. Guerrero Park bridge at Country Club Creek is underway, with actual work expected to start early this year. An update on the project from the city’s Public Works Department notes that fencing and closures of trails in the park are in place for safety reasons, and asks visitors not to cross fencing. During construction, there will be no access to creek crossing within the project zone, which is mapped below. The concrete pedestrian bridge collapsed in 2015, and the current stabilization project was a long time coming, as several city departments have worked to come up with a permanent solution. Now that it is underway, anticipated completion will be around the end of 2024 “pending any unforseen circumstances,” per the update.

Over the years, the length of City Council meetings has been a source of consternation for Council members, the public and the long-suffering local media, with plenty of solutions discussed, adopted and abandoned. In a post on the City Council Message Board, Mayor Kirk Watson has decided to keep it simple with a suggestion that meetings start on time, at 10 a.m., instead of the delayed start time that has become the fashion in the past few years. In addition, Watson has asked for proclamations to take place before the meetings start, at 9 a.m., in the Boards and Commissions Room, so if they run past 9:50 a.m., the Council meeting may still start on time.

The Lower Colorado River Authority has kicked off work on what will be a three-year project to “remove and replace the 10 floodgates at Wirtz Dam to help ensure the dam continues to operate safely and reliably for years to come,” according to an announcement from the river manager. The 72-year-old dam has nine floodgates that are original and a 10th that was added in 1974. “Each floodgate will be carefully removed and replaced with a new custom-made floodgate that meets today’s engineering standards. The work will be conducted on one floodgate at a time to help ensure the dam remains operational and available to pass floodwaters downstream.” As LCRA’s John Hofmann explained, “We could do this project more quickly if we replaced multiple floodgates at once, but we are in Flash Flood Alley and that is not a viable option. Dams along the Highland Lakes play a critical role in managing floodwaters, and we have to maintain their readiness at all times.” According to the LCRA, the project will not impact the efficacy of the dam, and will not require lowering Lake LBJ. Read more about the renovation and improvement project here.

This whisper has been updated.

Beginning in February, entry points to the Permitting and Development Center will be gated and garage rates will be enforced. As is the case at City Hall, these fees will not apply to people attending public events and meetings or members of the media, and parking validation can be found at the building’s security desk or in the meeting. For everyone else, payment will be required for parking more than 30 minutes, at $5 for the first hour, up to $35, based on garage rates established by the city. The rates will be in effect 24 hours a day.

The city of Austin announced yesterday that it had formalized a “park operations and maintenance agreement” with Pease Park Conservancy on Jan. 13. The agreement means that the city will share management of Kingsbury Commons with the conservancy moving forward, though a partnership has been in effect since 2021, and establishes a phasing plan to transition more maintenance and conservation duties to the conservancy in the future. “The relationship with Pease Park supporters began over 15 years ago with a community driven Adopt-A-Park group dedicated to stewarding the trees at Pease District Park. The recently executed agreement solidifies the partnership between Pease Park Conservancy and the city of Austin. The Parks and Recreation Department is excited to formalize this partnership and to continue working together towards a shared goal,” Parks and Recreation Director Kimberly McNeeley said in a statement to the press. In addition to fundraising for renovation of the park, the Pease Park Conservancy staff has been a daily presence there. A news release about the agreement outlined the responsibilities of the conservancy, which include cleaning bathrooms and facilities, performing safety inspections, operating and maintaining the splash pad, maintaining planting beds, coordinating events and reservations, and emptying trash and recycling throughout the day.

Austin Public Health’s new YouTube series, Walkes Talks, aims to “shine a light on public health and promote healthy conversations.” The debut episode, which features Austin-Travis County Health Authority Dr. Desmar Walkes, Texas Health Action Chief Medical Officer Dr. Sandra Guerra and APH’s Jimmy Baker, who runs the department’s HIV prevention and outreach program, focuses on the “staggering gap in health care for Austin’s LGBT+ community.” As well as providing some examples of the challenges LGBT+ people face when seeking health care, the 36-minute conversation shares resources “from organizations striving to provide better experiences in health care.” Listen here.

PARD’s Aquatic Division is asking anyone who formerly worked as a lifeguard to complete a survey in the hopes that their experience will “inspire the next generation of lifeguards.” The city still needs to hire and train another 700 lifeguards in order to fully staff all of Austin’s pools for the upcoming swim season. Part of the division’s recruitment strategy is showing that working as a seasonal lifeguard doesn’t have to be a one-time gig; it can be a steppingstone to a number of great careers. Lifeguards can start as young as 15 and there is no upper age limit. Take the former lifeguard survey. Learn more about lifeguarding in Austin.

According to a news release from Austin Public Health, the latest Covid-19 subvariant, XBB.1.5, has been detected in Austin-Travis County. This new, “highly transmissible” variant, which “contains more mutations capable of evading immunity than any other variant,” is estimated to be responsible for 43 percent of Covid cases around the country. Staying up to date with the Covid vaccines and boosters is still the best way to protect yourself and your family from getting sick. Wearing face masks indoors when around groups of people is also recommended. You can order another round of free Covid test kits from the federal government. Use the CDC’s mask-finder tool to find free N95 masks at a pharmacy near you. APH’s next community vaccine event will be held this Wednesday, Jan. 18, from 2-6 p.m. at the University Hills Branch Library, 4721 Loyola Lane.

It’s that time of year again – time for Homeland Security and Emergency Management’s 2024 emergency preparedness calendar contest! (Contests and calendars are two of our favorite things around here.) The contest is open to all K-8 students who live or attend school in Central Texas. The artwork should contain “a safety message about a specific hazard such as severe weather, flash flooding or excessive heat or cold conditions. Artwork can also contain emergency preparedness actions such as building a kit or staying informed.” HSEM chief Juan Ortiz called the contest a “fun, yet important way to get whole families involved and thinking about being prepared ahead of an emergency. We are developing the next generation to be aware of what they can do to keep their families safe during disasters.”  The deadline for submissions is March 31. Find the contest guidelines and more information here. You can pick up a free copy of the 2023 emergency preparedness calendar at public library branches and county recreation centers.