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Community Corner

🌱 Spring Fest Season Preparations + SXSW Downtown Traffic Plans

The quickest way to get caught up on the most important things happening today in Austin.

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Gabriela Cantu Couvillion, Neighbor
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(Patch Media)

Morning, neighbors! It's me again, Gabriela Couvillion, your host of the Austin Daily.

First, today's weather:

Sunny, pleasant and warmer. High: 75 Low: 43.

Here are the top stories in Austin today:

  1. Preparations are underway for Austin's in-person Spring Festival Season. City representatives and event organizers are working hard "to implement safety plans to support a safe experience for both community members and visitors" to the city. Individuals are encouraged to look at the Spring Festival Season webpage for help on planning event routes.
    Brydan Summers, Austin Center for Events consumer services manager, said, "We are thrilled to be here in person today... we look forward to a safe and successful Spring Festival Season." Details and updates on the Spring Festival Season can be found at www.austintexas.gov/springfestivalATX. (Press Release Desk)
  2. An Afghan translator named Wali who "served alongside the U.S. military in Afghanistan" had just returned to Austin with his family on Feb. 22, but last August they almost "didn't make it out of Afghanistan as U.S. troops pulled out and the Taliban took over. That is, until Congressman Lloyd Doggett intervened." After their story came out, all kinds of donations began to pour in, but unfortunately the family didn't have a place to store the donated items as they didn't have a house. Milt Clark, a retired social worker, reached out to KVUE Defenders, and in 2 days he raised over $5,000 from his church and parishioners to hopefully help the family find a permanent home soon. If you have available housing for them, please contact the Refugee Services of Texas and to donate to the First Presbyterian Church's Afghan Refugee Support Fund, please click here. For more information on this story, please visit: (KVUE.com)
  3. South by Southwest (SXSW) 2022 starts on Friday, March 11 and goes on until Sunday, March 20. During that time, "there will be more traffic and less parking" and "some downtown streets will be barricaded from noon until early in the morning" throughout the entire film festival. Robert Spiller, director of the Austin Transportation Department, said, "We're asking people, even with the excitement of the city opening up again and SXSW, to choose not to drive, if possible, to downtown." He added, "We need to make room on our streets. We need to have those people who live here try to use a different mode or stay away from downtown." For more information and videos regarding the festival preparations visit: (KEYE TV CBS Austin)

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Today in Austin:

From my notebook:

  • "Each household can order a total of eight COVID-19 self-tests, so if you ordered four in January when the program launched, you are eligible to order a second batch of four more tests. Order your free at-home COVID-19 tests from the U.S. government at COVIDtests.gov." (Facebook)
  • "In 2021, Literacy First joined the Greater Austin Reading Coalition (GARC), a diverse group of literacy advocates convened by United Way for Greater Austin to increase the number of children in our community reading on grade level. Literacy First is excited to continue building on the success of GARC's first year, with a particular focus on the strategic goal of providing high dosage tutoring to more students. Learn more about the work of GARC and fellow coalition members at https://www.unitedwayaustin.org/greater-austin-reading-coalition/." (Facebook)
  • "Initially the county said it could accept housing assistance program applications through September, but unfortunately staff now said that they will likely have to close the program this month, as they have received too many applications." (Facebook)

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Alrighty, you're all caught up for today. See you all tomorrow for another update!

— Gabriela Couvillion

About me: I'm an active mom of two grown sons and lifelong San Antonio resident. I received a BA in Spanish from the University of Texas at San Antonio, and in my free time I immerse myself in creative writing. Thanks for reading Patch, and feel free to reach out if you have any news and happenings you think may appeal to our readers!

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