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(HEB)
Local elected officials announced food and water are en route to Austin as residents face concurrent power and water crises.
"Food and water is the highest priority that we have," Austin Mayor Steve Adler said during a Facebook live hosted by Travis County Judge Andy Brown on Thursday evening.
City officials ordered one million gallons of water in 16-ounce bottles from six states in the Southeastern U.S. that is due in the next couple of days. "Trucks are on their way," Brown said.
Additionally, the Texas Department of Emergency management is due to deliver two 18-wheelers full of water from a FEMA site in Fort Worth Friday morning.
National Guard members are also helping to get a "flotilla of delivery trucks" full of food from H-E-B storehouses in Temple and San Antonio to Austin, Adler said.
Freezing temperatures have left Austin roads coated with ice and snow, making supply chain distribution processes difficult. The winter weather and power outages have forced many area grocery stores to close; those that have remained open have been wiped bare by customers in need of provisions.
A surge in demand for water coupled with a power outage at the city's largest water treatment plant led Austin Water to issue a boil water notice on Wednesday evening, which remains in effect. Tens of thousands of customers are also facing water outages, Director Greg Meszaros said during a press conference earlier in the afternoon. Those who still have water may not have electricity to boil it for safe use and are encouraged to take conservation measures.
Although it will be a "multi-day process" to restore the water system, Meszaros said, there have been improvements in the city's ongoing power outage. As of 5:34 p.m., 40,231 Austin Energy customers were still impacted—or just under 8%. This is a significant improvement from Wednesday evening, when around 27% of customers were still facing outages.
Although the Electric Reliability Council of Texas, which maintains around 90% of the state's power grid, is no longer mandating outages, local utilities such as Austin Energy have to restore power incrementally to avoid overloading the system. Additionally, some outages are due to damage from the winter weather, which will require on-site maintenance.
In addition to these updates, Austin Mayor Steve Adler also reminded residents that the COVID-19 pandemic is ongoing. Although Austin Public Health does not yet know when it will be able to resume vaccine appointments, the department and hub provider will be increasing its hours and the number of vaccine clinic locations to ensure vulnerable residents get their second shots, Adler said.
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- Austin Water: Most customers should have service by Monday - austonia ›
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- Water distribution plan continues as Austin Water works to restore service - austonia ›
- Warmer weather brings better road conditions to Austin - austonia ›
- Central Texans now eligible for emergency aid through FEMA - austonia ›
- Drinkable water begins trickling in as the city plans next move - austonia ›
- As reservoirs begin to refill, two zones regain water supply - austonia ›
- As reservoirs begin to refill, two zones regain water supply - austonia ›
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- Water and food distribution sites in Austin - austonia ›
Popular
(Project Connect)
Designs for stations along Project Connect’s Blue Line were presented this week, giving a detailed look at what part of the rail system extending from downtown to the airport could look like.
The planned stations that have gotten the latest focus include Waterfront, Travis Heights and Lakeshore stations past Lady Bird Lake.
At the Waterfront station, the preliminary design aims to prevent visual obstructions and save on costs. This is accomplished by a transit guideway that will lower from the bridge to a level station.
Heading onto East Riverside Drive, the light rail faces a curve requiring a slow down to about 10 miles per hour.
The Travis Heights station could involve relocating a pedestrian crosswalk zone at Alameda Drive to Blunn Creek. Since light rails can't effectively operate on a steep grade, this allows the transit guideway to avoid that.
From there, the rail will extend to the Norwood Park area, and though it will reach along the right-of-way zone, the park will be able to remain open.
A view of the Blue Line by Lady Bird Lake. (Project Connect)
The line involves some coordination with the Texas Department of Transportation. That's because the department is working on an intersection that will have to be built before the phasing of the section of the Blue Line involving an I-35 crossing.
When it comes to the safety of cyclists and walkers, design ideas include a pedestrian hybrid beacon by East Bouldin Creek that would provide a protected signal to cross. And for the intersection TxDOT is carrying out, Project Connect is working with them on pedestrian access across the intersection. It could involve shared use paths along the street and crossings beneath it.
This summer, the public can expect 30% of design and cost estimates to be released. Though the project was $7.1 billion when voters approved it in November 2020, the latest estimates factoring in inflation and supply chain constraints show it could ultimately be upwards of $10 billion.
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(Amazon/Facebook)
Plans for an Amazon warehouse in Round Rock—a $250 million project slated to be a large distribution center—are on hold.
This comes just after the tech giant had its worst financial quarter in seven years.
The details:
- Late last year, it announced an expansion at the Domain adding 2,000 more corporate and tech jobs.
- Amazon still owns the site in Round Rock. Plans for it are unclear.
- Early this week, the Wall Street Journal reported that Amazon is aiming to scrap warehouse space as it faces a slowdown in its e-commerce operations.
Part of that effort involves exploring the possibility of ending or renegotiating leases with outside warehouse owners. Another aspect is a plan to sublease warehouse space.
“It allows us to relieve the financial obligations associated with an existing building that no longer meets our needs,” an Amazon spokeswoman told the Wall Street Journal. “Subleasing is something many established corporations do to help manage their real estate portfolio.”
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