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The Zilker Eagle has landed: Mini-train will return to Zilker Park this fall with new name

Austin Parks Foundation Chief Mission Officer Ladye Anne Wofford, at podium, and CEO Colin Wallis announced the Zilker Eagle's new name on Friday, near the miniature train's starting place at Zilker Park. (Emma Freer)
The Zilker Eagle will open this fall after a restoration project helmed by the Austin Parks Foundation. The miniature train, previously called the Zilker Zephyr, shut down in May 2019 due to storm-related erosion and a contract dispute.
Since 1961, the train has taken children on a scenic route around Zilker Park, past Lady Bird Lake and the great lawn, first under the Zilker Eagle name and then as the Zilker Zephyr. Last year, the Austin Parks Foundation began a restoration project that is slated to end this fall, in time for the train's 60th anniversary.
The Zilker Eagle first opened in 1961 and later ran under the name the Zilker Zephyr. (Austin History Center)
The new, old name arose from a robust community engagement process. After receiving more than 750 name submissions, a committee of APF staff, children and others chose seven finalists. More than 7,000 Austinites voted, with the Zilker Eagle prevailing.
Austin businesses, including the Austin Motel on South Congress Avenue, welcomed the Zilker Eagle. (Austin Parks Foundation)
The train's new name earned a spot on the most coveted sign in town: El Arroyo's. (Austin Parks Foundation)
The restored train will be all-electric, which APF CEO Colin Wallis said felt appropriate given the route's location in an environmentally sensitive public park, near Barton Springs. It will also include wheelchair-accessible passenger coaches and a new tie-dye design.
"I think that tie dye really pays homage to old Austin charm," APF Chief Mission Officer Ladye Anne Wofford said. "In the '60s and '70s wearing tie dye was really considered a way to publicly display your solidarity with progressivism and also a way to be solid with the human and political revolutions of the time."
The Zilker Eagle's new design pays homage to old Austin. (Emma Freer)
In another nod to the past, the Zilker Eagle was designed to look like an old passenger train, similar to the Texas Eagle, which ran on the Missouri Pacific Railroad, with a stop in Austin, during the 1940s and '50s. (Amtrak announced last month that it will resume daily service to Austin via the Texas Eagle, which travels between Los Angeles and Chicago.)
APF will operate the train with proceeds benefiting Zilker Park. The restoration was funded in part by donations from Capital Metro, Kendra Scott and the ACL Music Festival. "We're full speed ahead and thrilled to have our community designed for the ride," Wallis said in a statement.
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Come later tonight, Texans will officially know who will be on the ballot for the November general election.
In Texas, candidates must win at least 50% of the vote to be elected. In the March primaries where the top candidate only received a plurality of votes, a runoff is being held. Voters will decide on the candidates to represent their party in the November general election. Just like the March primaries, voters will choose which party they'd like to vote in. Then based on location, each ballot will show which races are in a runoff.
Here's everything you need to know before heading to the polls.
Know before you go
The registration period for this election has passed; check if you're registered to vote here.
The polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. As long as you're in line by 7 p.m., you can vote.
You'll need a valid photo ID to present once you're at a polling location.
Here is where you can vote in Travis County.
View wait times at polling locations here.
Races to watch in Travis County:
Statewide
Lieutenant Governor
- Republican: Incumbent Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick won his primary in March.
- Democratic: Mike Collier and Michelle Beckley are vying to be the Democrat candidate on the ballot.
- Republican: Incumbent AG Ken Paxton is fighting for his seat against George P. Bush.
- Democratic: Rochelle Garza and Joe Jaworski will face off to be the Democratic candidate in this race.
View all the statewide races on the ballot here.
U.S. House of Representatives
View the district you live in here.
District 21
- Republican: Incumbent Chip Roy won his primary in March.
- Democratic: Claudia Andreana Zapata and Ricardo Villarreal are hoping to secure this vote.
- Republican: Dan McQueen and Michael Rodriguez are going head to head to be the Republican candidate in this race.
- Democratic: Former Austin council member Greg Casar won this race in March.
District 19
- Republican: Ellen Troxclair and Justin Berry are vying to be the Republican candidate in this race.
- Democratic: Pam Baggett won her primary in March.
A $6,000 cockatoo named Lemon Grab was stolen from a pet store Sunday afternoon, owner Kelsey Fernandez said. (Kelsey Fernandez)
A big-money bird has been stolen from a northwest Austin pet store.
Kelsey Fernandez, the owner of a $6,000 sulphur and citron-crested cockatoo named Lemon Grab, said the emotional support animal was taken from the Gallery of Pets store, around closing time on Sunday.
"I've struggled with mental illness my entire life, and ever since I got him I've been doing so much better," Fernandez told Austonia.
The $6k cockatoo is young and will starve unless he is fed by hand, Fernandez said.
In a surveillance video, a man appears to have something under his shirt as he and two others exit the business around the same time the store believes that Lemon Grab was stolen.
Fernandez said a report has been filed with the Austin Police Department with an $1,000 reward for his return.
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