Staunch environmental advocate Jack Goodman died last week at the age of 76. Jack served on the Barton Springs/Edwards Aquifer Conservation District Board of Directors for 22 years, leaving office in 2012. The job was a labor of love, paid nothing and offered no retirement benefits. When he was incapacitated following a stroke several years ago, his wife, former Council Member Jackie Goodman, gave up her job to be his caretaker. Jackie served on Austin City Council for 12 years, from 1993-2005, including as mayor pro tem. Council members get no pension, so despite her many years of service Jackie has little to show for those years except for her many friendships. Her longtime friend Alfred Stanley has set up a GoFundMe page to help pay for Jack’s funeral expenses.

With a campaign focused on affordability, District 9 City Council candidate Zena Mitchell has many of the same talking points as her competitors, but differs in one key aspect of her messaging – she’s made the decision to avoid fundraising large amounts of money, leaning into her slogan “people over profits.” Campaign finance reports from July show that, at the time, she only had $109 in expenditures.

As a former teacher at Northeast High School, Mitchell is sensitive to affordability concerns, looking to launch a rent-to-own housing program in the city and limit large-scale real estate investment with the hopes of giving average Austinites a competitive advantage in the real estate market. “I’ve lived in Austin for 30 years. My husband and I raised our kids here. We sent our kids to public schools. And now those kids that we’ve raised here can’t afford to live here,” she tells the Austin Monitor. Mitchell believes that large companies have a responsibility to step up and take more of an active role in supporting the community, saying, “The corporations are stressing our infrastructure, which is our human capital, our electricity, our water and our roads. And I think they need to pay for that.”

Another thing that makes her stand out is her commitment to progressive causes. Whereas many candidates are focusing their efforts on more local issues, Mitchell is committed to fighting for causes like abortion access and gun control. While she knows the odds of coming out ahead of her well-funded competitors aren’t in her favor, she’s hoping to overcome that with grassroots support. Mitchell draws a comparison to the 2022 Derby winner Rich Strike. “Did you see the Kentucky Derby this year? The odds were 80 to 1. That’s me.”

Starting next month, Wheatsville Co-op will expand benefits for food stamp (SNAP) clients by giving a 50 percent discount on fruits and vegetables. The discount is made possible with help from the Sustainable Food Center and the Double Up Food Bucks Program. “Thousands of SNAP clients have used Double Up to purchase fresh, local produce at Austin farmers’ markets. Now, SNAP clients can access their Double Up benefits every day of the week and in two convenient locations,” said Mark Bethell, executive director of Sustainable Food Center, in a statement to the press. “SFC is expanding food access options for Austinites on SNAP and supporting local businesses, who in turn, support local farmers.” This July alone, almost 40,000 people received SNAP benefits. Wheatsville is the first grocery store in Austin to offer Double Up SNAP incentives.

A portion of West William Cannon Drive will be closed for repair through Friday, Sept. 3, following a cave-in. According to the city’s Public Works Department, the street damage is on the western approach to the bridge and did not impact the bridge deck itself. No people (or vehicles) were harmed by the sudden collapse, which was caused by moving sediment after heavy rains. In the meantime, two eastbound travel lanes and the sidewalk will remain closed between Menchaca Road and Woodhue Drive, and drivers should look for an alternative route.

The recent deluge of rainy weather has increased humidity and moisture in the region to levels that significantly lower the risk of wildfire. So yesterday, Travis County Fire Marshal Tony Callaway decided to lift the burn ban for the unincorporated areas of Travis County, saying “conditions have improved enough to lift the burn ban,” but, “Even though the burn ban has been lifted, I urge the public to use extreme caution and obey all laws when burning outdoors.” According to the news release from the fire marshal, outdoor burning “must be conducted under state regulations found in Texas Administrative Code Section 30 TAC 111.219 or summarized on the Travis County Fire Marshal’s website.” Residents should contact their local fire department before conducting any outdoor burning, and of course, they should always have water nearby. “If residents require assistance in determining which fire department they will need to notify, they can contact the Travis County Fire Marshal’s Office at (512) 854-4621.”

This Saturday, the Downtown Austin Alliance and the city of Austin will hold an open house to discuss the future of Interstate 35. The event, which is free and open to the public, will focus on a Texas Department of Transportation proposal to widen and lower portions of I-35 through downtown Austin. As that proposal has evolved, the conversation has centered on the concept of a “cap and stitch” design that would create points of connection and public spaces across the highway. Following suit, Saturday’s conversation will focus on TxDOT’s project, Our Future 35: Austin’s Cap and Stitch Program. The discussion will feature community leaders and officials from TxDOT as well as artist activations from Ami Plasse, FANCHY Art, Justin Humphrey and Ray Price. Those interested in attending may register and find a schedule of events here.

The intersections of Seventh and Eighth streets and the Interstate 35 frontage roads are getting a raft of mobility enhancements that will make traveling through area safer and more pleasant. Work crews have already broken ground on some of the planned improvements, which include:

• A new high-visibility crosswalk at Seventh Street and the northbound I-35 frontage road
• A raised median island on the northwest corner of Seventh Street and the northbound frontage road
• Driveway modifications in the area
• A new segment of bicycle lane and exclusive right-turn lane eastbound on Seventh Street
• Upgraded pedestrian infrastructure, including restriped high-visibility crosswalks and new Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)-compliant curb ramps
• Upgraded signal infrastructure, markings and signage

To find out about traffic lane closures while the work is underway, check Austin Transportation’s Facebook and Twitter pages. The fact sheet gives a handy overview of the entire project.

With the recent storms leaving puddles of standing water that serve as ideal nurseries for pesky mosquitoes, Austin Public Health is reminding people to take safeguards to protect themselves from West Nile virus, which is spread by the bite of an infected mosquito. According to a recent news release, four human West Nile cases have been confirmed in Travis County and the health department vector control program “has identified a second positive mosquito pool for West Nile virus in the 78759 ZIP code.” That shows “that the West Nile virus is in our community and precautions should be followed.” Marcel Elizondo, the interim assistant director for Environmental Health Services, said removing standing water is one of the most effective methods for keeping communities safe as it prevents mosquitoes from laying eggs and reproducing. You can find more information about West Nile and how to “fight the bite” here.

With the filing deadline passed, the Office of the City Clerk has conducted a drawing to determine the order on the November 2022 municipal election ballots. The order will be:

Mayor
Phil Campero Brual
Celia Israel
Erica Nix
Kirk Watson
Anthony Bradshaw
Jennifer Virden
Gary S. Spellman

District 1
Misael D. Ramos
Clinton Rarey
Melonie House-Dixon
Natasha Harper-Madison

District 3
José Velásquez
Daniela Silva
Gavino Fernandez Jr.
José Noé Elías
Yvonne Weldon
Esala Wueschner

District 5
Ryan Alter
Bill Welch
Ken Craig
Stephanie Bazan
Aaron Velazquez Webman
Brian Anderson II

District 8
Paige Ellis
Richard Smith
Antonio D. Ross
Kimberly P. Hawkins

District 9
Zena Mitchell
Zohaib “Zo” Qadri
Greg Smith
Joah Spearman
Kym Olson
Ben Leffler
Linda Guerrero
Tom Wald

In an effort to streamline the cleanup of public spaces occupied by homeless encampments, the city has launched its new Homeless Encampment Management Team. The new system is designed to help prioritize the $4.8 million budgeted for encampment cleanup and a new “tracking and prioritization tool” will support “consistent data capture and improve understanding of needs, risks and trends across encampments citywide.” A memo about the team and the tool has more information about the restructuring, which enlists a number of city departments and redefines the situations they may respond to. Find more information about the city’s efforts to prevent and address homelessness here.

If you’ve been considering adopting a furry family member, there’s no better time than this Saturday, when the Austin Animal Center will be waiving all adoption fees in an effort to find homes for 100 dogs. At the annual Clear the Shelters event, a partnership with KXAN and Telemundo, shelter staffers and volunteers will be on hand to facilitate adoptions and process walk-in foster applications. As shelter chief Don Bland explained in a press release, “This summer we have really struggled with capacity in a new, post-pandemic environment. On Friday we had 61 dogs staying in crates. The dogs keep flowing in and, unfortunately, we’re not getting them out as quickly as they’re coming in. If we can get 100 dogs adopted, fostered or rescued, then we can create needed space and avoid the likelihood of having to suspend intake.” Sixty dogs found their forever homes at the last Clear the Shelters event, which was held before the pandemic in 2019. Adoption program manager Rebekha Montie acknowledged that 100 dogs is a “high goal,” but said the shelter has high hopes that the community will step up. “We have so many dogs and cats just waiting for their forever homes,” she said. Take a look at available pets here. Saturday, Aug. 27, 9 a.m.-6 p.m., Austin Animal Center, 7201 Levander Loop.

Though it’s not yet official, Austin EMS Association members and City Council now have a contract to vote on. The proposed contract, which will be effective for one year if approved, includes starting pay of $22/hour for EMTs and $30.03/hour for paramedics. Current employees would receive raises ranging from 4 to 11.2 percent, dependent on position and tenure. Negotiations for the new contract began in November, and have largely focused on wages; an initial offer that would raise new medic pay by 14 cents an hour was loudly rejected. In a statement to the press, Emergency Medical Services chief Robert Luckritz said, “I am very pleased that the city and EMS Association have come to a tentative agreement. This agreement will allow us to continue to focus on recruitment and retention of our sworn staff through improvement of their quality of life, while helping us enhance the already exceptional care provided by our Austin-Travis County EMS clinicians to the residents and visitors of Austin and Travis County.” After a vote by the union, Council is expected to vote on the contract on Sept. 1. If both parties approve it, the contract will go into effect.