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(Source: Travis County/graph by Emma Freer/Flourish)
The Travis County dashboard reported 91 hospitalized COVID-19 patients across the 5-county Austin-Round Rock area on Sunday evening. Of those patients, 39 are in intensive care units and 20 are on ventilators.
How does this stack up against our local hospital capacity?
Austin-Travis County Interim Health Authority Dr. Mark Escott said last month that the metro has about 755 ventilators. Local hospital bed capacity is around 4,300, not including additional beds made available at the city's three protective lodging facilities, which allow people without homes and others to isolate safely.
According to the Texas 2036 COVID-19 dashboard, 40% of hospital beds in the 11-county Capital Area trauma service area were available as of Saturday. It also reported 75 COVID-related visits to area emergency rooms. Overall, ER visits are down.
Though Austin is well below capacity right now, as Texas reopens its economy, local officials continue to warn of a second surge in COVID-19 cases that could overwhelm local hospitals.
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ATXN.tv
Austin Public Health Director Stephanie Hayden introduced her coronavirus-themed piñata during a press conference Wednesday.
Instead of door-to-door trick-or-treating this Halloween, local health leaders are recommending that Austin residents start new traditions. For example, coronavirus-themed piñatas are proving very popular in 2020.
<p>"What new traditions can you create this weekend?" Austin Public Health Director Stephanie Hayden asked Wednesday morning while showing off her new piñata.</p><p>Interim Austin-Travis County Health Authority Dr. Mark Escott said he also intends to substitute trick-or-treating this year with a Halloween-themed piñata. </p><p>"I'm a little jealous of your COVID-19 piñata," Escott told Hayden.</p><p>But many Austin residents are experiencing pandemic fatigue, APH Chief Epidemiologist Janet Pichette acknowledged. For those people determined to party this Halloween, Pichette recommended social distancing—and, indirectly, a mask-themed costume.</p><p>"While I don't have a piñata, I do have a mask, so do wear your mask while you're out and about," Pichette said. </p><p>Despite COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations remaining relatively steady at the local level, Austin Public Health officials worry that exposure during Halloween celebrations could put the city on a dangerous trajectory. Statewide spread has already prompted health experts to <a href="https://austonia.com/covid-19-texas" target="_self">predict that COVID-19 cases are likely to grow</a> in Austin. </p><p>"This is a call to action for Austin and Travis County," Hayden said. "This can be avoided. We can come together as a community."</p><p>Health officials <a href="https://austonia.com/austin-covid-holiday-surge" target="_self">reiterated their same concerns as last week</a> that case spread from Halloween activity could make for a bleak holiday season the rest of the year. Fortunately, local hospitals aren't overwhelmed right now, and there is backup support, if needed.</p><p>"We are lucky that our hospital systems have affiliated hospitals throughout Texas and, in some cases across the country, so they do have the ability to surge personnel from other jurisdictions," Escott said. "But we can't all surge at the same time across our major metropolitan cities in Texas."</p><p><strong>More on COVID and the holidays:</strong></p>
<h2><a href="https://austonia.com/holidays-2020-2647869033" target="_self">Halloween and other holidays take on a new look in 2020</a></h2>
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDQ1MDM1OC9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1NjA3OTE4Mn0.Tfa08p7lkf1ymQ06eQbpYCkQaJox2N_SvRq6iceRgVQ/img.jpg?width=980" id="27733" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="52e3f82649a439990f7d531e17d5eb6e" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />Halloween and other holidays take on a new look in 2020(Evgeny Atamanenko)
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Rainey Street Residences is a 48-story, 409-unit apartment complex proposed at the corner of Rainey and River streets.
Two original Rainey Street bungalows, home to longtime bars Craft Pride and Javelina, could be replaced by a proposed 48-floor apartment complex.
<p><a href="http://www.javelinabar.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Javelina</a> and <a href="https://craftprideaustin.com/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Craft Pride</a> opened next door to each other in 2012 and 2013, respectively, representing two of the longest-tenured establishments since Rainey Street became an entertainment district in the mid-2000s.</p><div class="rm-embed embed-media"><iframe allowfullscreen="" aria-hidden="false" frameborder="0" height="450" src="https://www.google.com/maps/embed?pb=!1m18!1m12!1m3!1d3446.2683630518145!2d-97.74108468487987!3d30.25793398180524!2m3!1f0!2f0!3f0!3m2!1i1024!2i768!4f13.1!3m3!1m2!1s0x8644b5abccc73fd9%3A0x40c34bd76f2366b4!2sCraft%20Pride!5e0!3m2!1sen!2sus!4v1603893974354!5m2!1sen!2sus" style="border:0;" tabindex="0" width="600"></iframe></div><p>The Design Commission voted Monday to support concept plans for <a href="http://www.austintexas.gov/edims/document.cfm?id=349133" target="_blank">River Street Residences</a>, a proposed 409-unit apartment complex, but not before some commissioners raised concerns about replacing two of the most-established bars at the south gateway of Rainey Street.<br/></p><p>"People see it as a bonafide nightlife district, they see it as someplace special in Austin," Commissioner Beau Frail said during the Monday meeting. "There is a very large contingent of the city that will see this project as another nail in the coffin of Rainey Street."</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="142bc9451034dcf25b019468064194fc" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="a378e" type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDYwMzExMS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzNzE1ODIyMH0.Zw-1uSkNM39jSOT9QG2AdPZqeN0NdCJOUqNkyfZGs2s/img.jpg?width=980"/>
<small class="image-media media-caption" placeholder="Add Photo Caption..." spellcheck="false">An apartment highrise is proposed at the current location of Craft Pride.</small><small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">(Flickr)</small></p><p>While there has been plenty of business turnover on Rainey Street during the past decade, this situation most mirrors a similar scenario from 2014. That is when Lustre Pearl—one of the first bars to open on Rainey Street—<a href="https://www.bizjournals.com/austin/blog/real-estate/2014/03/lustre-pearls-closure-signals-start-of-rainey.html" target="_blank">was displaced from the Driskill Street corner</a> to make room for Millennium Rainey residential project, now called <a href="https://www.camdenliving.com/austin-tx-apartments/camden-rainey-street/apartments" target="_blank">Camden Rainey Street Apartments</a>. That original bungalow was relocated to establish Lustre Pearl's East Austin location, and a second location opened <a href="https://austin.eater.com/2016/3/2/11147198/lustre-pearl-rainey-open-march-bridget-dunlap" target="_blank">across Rainey Street in 2016</a>. That same apartment project also caused another popular Rainey Street bar called White House to close for good.<br/></p><p>Ultimately, Frail and most other design commissioners voted to support the River Street Residences project as long as project developers promised to open up the ground-floor commercial space facing Rainey Street. Chair David Caroll cast the lone "nay" vote against the Design Commission recommendation.</p>
<p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="37a02e71451b2cd0c5f4dbf905e7c53d" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="6f53e" type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDYyNjE5MS9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyMjI5OTU2OH0.8nkGRUteJ9EclgqQBdedU91CgX7Y5Z_bLVvlkR--07M/img.png?width=980"/>
</p>
<p>The project next advances to the Planning Commission and eventually City Council for full approval. Exact dates have not been confirmed by city officials before deadline.<br/></p><p>Attempts to reach Craft Pride and Javelina ownership were also not successful, but River Street Residences representatives said during the Design Commission meeting Monday that current property occupants are kept up-to-date on the project.</p><p><strong>Another potential displacement</strong><br/></p><p><a href="https://www.via313.com/" target="_blank">Via 313</a>, which relocated its second-ever food truck from South Austin to Craft Pride in 2013, would also be displaced if the River Street Residences project is approved by the city. Co-owner Brandon Hunt said he heard rumors that Craft Pride and Via 313 could find a new home in the completed skyscraper, but that is just speculation for now.</p><p>Via 313 has had major success in Austin since opening a single food trailer in 2011. After expanding to five locations throughout the years, the food establishment announced this year it is taking its Detroit-style pizza to the national level. </p><p>"If not for that trailer on Rainey Street, maybe they wouldn't be going national today," Commissioner Samuel Franco speculated during the Monday meeting. He worried about the next Via 313 not having the same odds of success without an affordable spot in a heavily trafficked nightlife district.</p><p>The spot certainly was affordable—free, in fact, minus utility costs, according to Hunt. Via 313 couldn't have opened its first brick-and-mortar location in Oak Hill without success at Rainey Street as well as its first location at Violet Crown Social Club in East Austin, he said.</p><p>But the Rainey Street location ultimately did not even factor in the valuation <a href="https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/savory-invests-in-via-313-pizzeria-to-propel-new-growth-301151071.html" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">when Via 313 recently received investor support</a> to expand nationally, Hunt said. Instead, the value of that spot should be weighed culturally, he said, similar to how Torchy's Tacos kept operating its original South 1st Street trailer long after the chain expanded beyond Austin.</p><p>Via 313 has kept the Rainey Street location open throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and Craft Pride reopened last Tuesday. Nonetheless, Hunt said that Rainey foot traffic is roughly half of what it once was. </p><p>"It's been a battle for sure," he said. "It's slowly getting back to normal down there as far as traffic goes."</p><p>The culture of the street has also changed over the years as more highrise projects enter the entertainment district, Hunt said. He points to the apartment project that displaced the original Lustre Pearl and 70 Rainey, a 34-story condo tower that opened last year, as the main examples.</p><p>"I can't complain too much because before we were there, there were people who felt disrespected and displaced," Hunt said, referring to <a href="https://austin.towers.net/discover-a-different-rainey-street-in-this-unearthed-1981-documentary/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Rainey's original Latino roots</a> before the neighborhood was rezoned for downtown-level density, making it into what it is today. "It seems like the natural evolution of that area."</p>
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(MetroBike/Twitter)
Capital Metro is making sure people can get to the polls to vote this year.
<p>MetroBike, Capital Metro's bike rent program, is offering free 24-hour bike rentals as part of youth cycling nonprofit <a href="http://ghisallo.org/" target="_blank">Ghisallo Cycling's</a> ATX #pedaltothepolls initiative anytime during voting. The offer can be redeemed at a kiosk or on the app.</p><div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="fa34a0c459ce39dabf1c6c8e50032f93" id="e23fa"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1321084277702991875"><div style="margin:1em 0">Exercising while exercising your right to vote? @ATXMetroBike is offering a free 24-hour pass during voting.… https://t.co/LGRRU7K9xg</div> — Capital Metro (@Capital Metro)<a href="https://twitter.com/CapMetroATX/statuses/1321084277702991875">1603806011.0</a></blockquote></div><p>And Capital Metro isn't stopping there; it will also provide free bus rides all day on Nov. 3 in spirit of Election Day.</p><div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="7f738def93f32fd7795154d14805161a" id="fddea"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1319037006610128896"><div style="margin:1em 0">🎉 Big thanks to @CapMetroATX for offering free bus rides Election Day! To redeem a free #MetroBikeATX Bike Pass to… https://t.co/Io4KgIMHWU</div> — MetroBike (@MetroBike)<a href="https://twitter.com/ATXMetroBike/statuses/1319037006610128896">1603317903.0</a></blockquote></div><p>Additionally, Ghisallo Cycling Initiative is <a href="https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/edd91f79cc1345099b65f6a30d50fb14" target="_blank">providing free voter information</a> including poll maps, bike and bus routes, and voting guides up until Nov. 3.<br/></p><p>To access free bike rides, use the following codes:</p><p>On the BCycle app:</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>Early Voting: EVOTE20</li><li>Election Day: 2020VOTE</li></ul><p>At a kiosk:</p><ul class="ee-ul"><li>Early Voting: 3868320</li><li>Election Day: 868320</li></ul>
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(Charlie L. Harper III/Austonia)
After sounding the alarm last week that the pandemic was growing in Austin, local health officials said Tuesday there are signs of a possible plateau. But caseload increases across the state suggest another surge is on the horizon, and researchers at the University of Texas at Austin estimates that there is a 100% chance the pandemic is growing locally.
<p>"Right now, the projections for Thanksgiving are bleak, but it's not too late to turn that around," Austin-Travis County Interim Health Authority Dr. Mark Escott said. "And I'll tell you that if we experience a surge during Thanksgiving, that surge will not be over by Christmas." </p><p>Positively, the seven-day moving average of daily new confirmed cases in Travis County is 86, as of Monday evening, down from 93 a week ago. Similarly, the seven-day moving average of daily new hospital admissions is 21, down from more than 23 last Wednesday, and only 11 new admissions were reported on Monday.</p><p>Escott said this is "not a clear downward direction yet" but expressed hope for further decline.</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="bc6fa284a8f96dbf4b54883a60370347" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="c2193" type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDYwMTg1Ny9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYxMTA3NjQ5OH0.foJmPGmSS1oLJ8deQ_09zSianDfBopz984frpDFmlkg/img.png?width=980"/>
</p><p>However, there are other indicators that remain concerning.<br/></p><p>The COVID-19 Modeling Consortium at the University of Texas at Austin project the Austin metro will "break into Stage 4 territory of risk as early as Nov. 4," Escott said.</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="a984ab88d3bf0ad523397d56a38768b6" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="671e4" type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDYwMTc2NC9vcmlnaW4ucG5nIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzMDEwMzg5OH0.zCmj7IltycatoFf8IyPDkyKZXWzYTMDzGa-5pJM288A/img.png?width=980"/>
<small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">(COVID-19 Modeling Consortium at the University of Texas at Austin)</small></p><p>Currently, the Austin area is at <a href="https://austonia.com/austin-covid-stage-3" target="_blank">a Stage 3 level of risk</a>, according to Austin Public Health's risk-based guidelines. The main factor in determining risk is the moving average number of daily COVID-related hospital admissions. At Stage 4—which the metro was in between late June and late July—the daily hospital admissions would total 70 or more.<br/></p><p>Escott emphasized that Austinites can reverse this trajectory by redoubling their protective actions: masking, social distancing and washing their hands. But he expressed concern about the consortium's models for different large cities across Texas—and especially El Paso, where <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/coronavirus-live-updates/2020/10/26/927866489/el-paso-judge-issues-2-week-curfew-to-stem-surge-of-covid-19-cases" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">hospitals are at capacity</a> and a countywide curfew is in effect. </p><p>"This is certainly something we have to pay attention to because, as we saw this summer, surges in other jurisdictions across the state often predated surges of our own," he said. </p><p>Another concern is a significant increase in the number of new COVID cases reported at long-term care facilities, such as nursing homes.</p><p>In the last two weeks, Austin-Travis County facilities have reported 40 new cases, four times the number reported in the previous two-week period. </p><p>Compounding this risk is a shortage of personal protective equipment.</p><p>The Texas Public Interest Research Group, a left-of-center advocacy group, released a report on Tuesday that found more than 10% of nursing homes across the state have no N95 masks. </p><p>"It's unconscionable that Texas is dealing with severe PPE shortages at this point in the pandemic," TexPIRG State Director Bay Scoggin said at a press conference on Tuesday.</p>
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(Bob Daemmrich)
Austin ISD will offer face-to-face, on-campus learning to all students whose families choose to take advantage of it starting on Monday, Nov. 2, in compliance with the Texas Education Agency's guidelines.
<p>To prepare, the district has ordered plexiglass dividers and will install them at all campuses next week, AISD Superintendent Dr. Stephanie Elizalde said at a board meeting on Monday. It is also working to access a supply of <a href="https://austonia.com/rapid-covid-test" target="_blank">rapid tests</a>.</p><div class="rm-embed embed-media"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet">We are now at the front of the line for the rapid COVID-19 tests and are working on having this possibly on hand next week.<br/><br/>The rapid testing is 97 percent accurate and the district would get a supply each month.<br/>— Austin ISD (@AustinISD) <a href="https://twitter.com/AustinISD/status/1320874955211476992?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">October 26, 2020</a></blockquote> <script async="" charset="utf-8" src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js"></script></div><p>Despite these preparations, Elizalde said she does not expect a mass return of students to campus.<br/></p><p>"I do not believe that on Nov. 2 we will be anywhere near 100% of students reporting to campus," she said.</p><p>As of Thursday, 36% of elementary students, 12% of middle school students and 4% of high school students are attending in-person class. Although in-person attendance among elementary students has nearly doubled since mid-October, attendance among middle and high school students has remained relatively flat.</p><p class="shortcode-media shortcode-media-rebelmouse-image">
<img class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="fad0a3a30d9ec6e66e0bc7a1fe241e8e" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="27561" type="lazy-image" data-runner-src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDYwMTIxMy9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYyNTIwMDAyNX0._8DslF33i5NezTN5tkq086DdihJJgXt25fzgteMzNqY/img.jpg?width=980"/>
<small class="image-media media-photo-credit" placeholder="Add Photo Credit...">(Austin ISD)</small></p><p><strong>Funding concerns</strong><br/></p><p>This is likely to change, however, because the TEA guidelines also stipulate that middle and high school students must offer face-to-face instruction—"making it necessary for students to transition between class periods," <a href="https://www.austinisd.org/openforlearning/news/nov2-faqs" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">according to the district's website</a>—as of Nov. 2 to receive state funding. </p><p>This compounds the district's financial woes.</p><p>Chief Business Officer Larry Throm told the board <a href="https://austonia.com/austin-isd-enrollment" target="_self">on Sept. 28</a> that an enrollment drop could lead to a state funding shortfall as great as $51.4 million and require layoffs of as many as 232 teachers, among other cost-cutting measures. </p><p>Although enrollment numbers improved slightly from late September to mid-October, it remains around 5,000 students shy of its enrollment of 80,621 students last year. </p><p>Elizalde has attributed the drop to virtual learning and emphasized that this trend is not unique to AISD.</p><p><strong>Teacher accommodations</strong> </p><p>Since AISD reopened its campuses on Sept. 8, the district has reported 58 confirmed COVID cases. Of those cases, 34 were among employees, 18 among students and six were not attributed. </p><p>At the board meeting, Elizalde also addressed concerns about COVID-era accommodations provided to staff. </p><p>As of Monday, AISD has granted accommodations to 1,201 staff members. Of those, 756 are teachers.</p><p>Elizalde <a href="https://austonia.com/austin-isd-enrollment-2648193236" target="_self">said earlier this month</a> that AISD has granted accommodations to more teachers than either Dallas ISD or Houston ISD, both of which are significantly larger. </p><p>These accommodations expire on Dec. 31, Elizalde said, adding that she will share information about the number of accommodation requests for the spring term on Nov. 9. </p><p>Education Austin, a union that represents 3,000 district employees and has encouraged its members to pledge not to attend in-person classes, took credit for this in a tweet on Tuesday.</p><div class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="2a58f3c993f8eecf91c465ee3b7d75c5" id="bf047"><blockquote class="twitter-tweet twitter-custom-tweet" data-partner="rebelmouse" data-twitter-tweet-id="1321122180403499015"><div style="margin:1em 0">After public pressure, the district has now committed to keeping all approved accommodations in place through the e… https://t.co/SVOHtbdcKr</div> — Education Austin (@Education Austin)<a href="https://twitter.com/EdAustin_TX/statuses/1321122180403499015">1603815047.0</a></blockquote></div>
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(Austin Bergstrom International Airport)
Zack Morgan playing the piano during his set at the airport.
Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is keeping the tradition of live music at the airport alive.
<p>The airport has reinstated its in-terminal music program with AUS Live and Instrumental bringing live music back to passengers waiting for their flights and continuing to provide paid gigs for local musicians in light of COVID-19. </p><p>The program has undergone some changes due to the pandemic: musicians are now required to play only instrumental music while wearing a mask for the duration of their performance and maintain safe distance, the equipment is sanitized in-between uses, performing areas are stanchioned off with plexiglass and musicians must use a virtual tip jar. The switch to only instrumental music is due to singing being a high-risk COVID-19 activity. </p><p>The airport said it hires exclusively Austin musicians, and has one of the most robust music programs in the country—matching the city's title of live music capital of the world. </p><p>Zack Morgan, a local keyboardist, said he enjoyed playing at the airport recently because he got to share his music again in a safe way.</p><p>"First and foremost, it felt safe and well-thought-out," Morgan said in a press release. "On top of that, I was able to make good money and bring some smiles to the travelers who are so accustomed to live music at our airport. I was also able to live stream my performance and share the music even further."</p><p>Before COVID-19, Michael Pennock, AUS music coordinator, booked around 30 musicians per week, but now only about three are booked a week. The airport plans to bring back live music to the Asleep at the Wheel main stage and various restaurant locations in November.</p><p>Pennock said people often tell him that they missed the music at the airport.</p><p>"With the music industry being decimated by COVID-19, this is our first step forward to bringing live music back at AUS and supporting local musicians," Pennock said. "Music brings people joy and will help bring some small sense of normalcy back. We all need that right now."</p><p><br/></p><p><strong>More on the airport: </strong></p>
<h2><a href="https://austonia.com/austin-airport-traffic" target="_self">Austin airport shows disturbing trend with passenger traffic still way down from last year</a></h2>
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDUxODg2NS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTYzNTY3NDU2MH0.IC5mMqTVVn5bTG59L0-0PtL8xSfksd7-PxzEN0P7zAM/img.jpg?width=980" id="88082" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="68a46843667660945e6a73f00174518f" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />Austin airport shows disturbing trend with passenger traffic still way down from last year(Dion Hinchcliffe/Flickr)
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(Anna Moneymaker/Pool via REUTERS)
By Abby Livingston
WASHINGTON — With the support of Texas' two senators, the U.S. Senate approved the nomination of Judge Amy Coney Barrett to the U.S. Supreme Court in a 52-48 vote Monday evening.
<p>U.S. Sens. <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/directory/john-cornyn/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">John Cornyn</a> and <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/directory/ted-cruz/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Ted Cruz</a>, both Republicans, were <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/09/18/ted-cruz-john-cornyn-supreme-court/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">early and robust backers</a> of President Donald Trump's nomination of Barrett. She will fill the seat of the <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/09/18/ruth-bader-ginsburg-ted-cruz-john-cornyn/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">late Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg</a>, who died last month. The confirmation process was one of the swiftest in recent memory, and Barrett's ascension is expected to move the court in a <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/09/20/supreme-court-justice-texas/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">more conservative direction</a>.</p><p>But it will not come without political and policy consequences. Barrett will be in place to hear the state of <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/09/25/texas-affordable-care-act-supreme-court/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Texas' challenge to the Affordable Care Act</a>, which is scheduled for oral arguments after the Nov. 3 election. And her ascension to the court will likely have <a href="https://www.texastribune.org/2020/09/20/supreme-court-justice-texas/" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">long-term implications</a> for legal fights over abortion, immigration, voting rights and many other issues.</p><p>Democrats have firmly opposed Barrett's nomination, noting that Republicans in 2016 refused to hold hearings or a vote to confirm President Barack Obama's nomination for the court in an election year. The 2016 opening, Democrats note, came several months earlier in the election cycle than the death of Ginsburg.</p><p>Democrats raised hundreds of millions of dollars after Ginsburg died, and millions of campaign dollars poured into the campaigns of down-ballot candidates in Texas, including that of Democratic Senate nominee MJ Hegar, who is challenging Cornyn for the Senate seat he has held for 18 years.</p><p>Barrett is Trump's third confirmed nominee of his first term. Cornyn called her "exceptionally qualified" for a seat on the high court.</p><p>"I have faith in Judge Barrett's ability to fairly interpret the law and apply it to cases before her," Cornyn said in a statement. "Nothing more and nothing less."</p><p>Cruz said Barrett's confirmation "comes at a critical time" for America.</p><p>"Confirming Justice Barrett to the Court is a great victory for every American who cares about the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, and our fundamental liberties," Cruz said.</p><p><strong>More:</strong></p>
<h2><a href="https://austonia.com/austin-rbg-mural" target="_self">East Austin gains new Ruth Bader Ginsburg mural with community help</a></h2>
<img lazy-loadable="true" src="https://assets.rebelmouse.io/eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJpbWFnZSI6Imh0dHBzOi8vYXNzZXRzLnJibC5tcy8yNDUwNzMzMS9vcmlnaW4uanBnIiwiZXhwaXJlc19hdCI6MTY1ODAwNDMwMX0.-oUbVBYHj8KGhwfekVOHU0P4qcgpXlP3GNMem_oc9J0/img.jpg?width=980" id="26710" class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="2f31ee1f96ee702cb04c0c25b544e5e8" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" />East Austin gains new Ruth Bader Ginsburg mural with community help
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