Austin Police Chief of Staff Brian Manley[/caption]1. Austin City Council on Thursday unanimously approved the appointment of Brian Manley as interim chief for the Austin Police Department while Austin conducts its search for a permanent police chief. The approval comes two weeks after interim City Manager Elaine Hart named Manley as her choice to temporarily fill the vacancy left by former Chief Art Acevedo, who resigned after nearly a decade as Austin’s top cop to take a job as Houston’s police chief.
2. On Dec. 1 the U.S. Department of Justice appealed a preliminary injunction granted by U.S. District Court Judge Amos Mazzant against the U.S. Department of Labor overtime rule. The appeal was filed in the U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit on behalf of the DOL. Mazzant granted the preliminary injunction Nov. 22 against the federal rule that would update the overtime threshold across the U.S., extending overtime protection to more than 4 million salaried workers nationwide.
3. A carbon emissions analysis may become a necessary step for future land development projects in Austin. City staff on Wednesday introduced a rough outline for a plan being put together that, if implemented, would require a “Carbon Impact Statement” to be produced on future land development and capital improvement projects in the city.
Green Bird Fitness to host grand opening for Hwy. 290 location on Dec. 6[/caption]4. Green Bird Fitness will hold its grand opening Tuesday, Dec. 6 for its new location at 9300-C W. Hwy. 290, Austin. Owner Lauren Whitehead said the local business, which moved in November from its previous location a few doors down, offers Pilates, yoga and barre fitness classes. Every class is intended for all levels of fitness and experience, she said.
5. The region’s toll authority is eyeing a bond funding mechanism that would allow it to develop up to eight new Park & Ride facilities in the Austin area. The board of directors for the Central Texas Regional Mobility Authority—owner of toll facilities 183A, 290 Manor Expressway and the MoPac express lanes—gave approval Wednesday for the agency to submit an application for the Qualified Energy Conservation Bond program. These bonds are part of a federal bond interest subsidy program.
6. Abigail Aiken, an assistant professor at the LBJ School of Public Affairs at the University of Texas, could become the next member of the board of managers for Central Health, Travis County’s health care district. The Travis County Commissioners Court voted 3-1 on Nov. 29 to recommend appointing Aiken to the board as its first choice and recommend local attorney Fred Lewis as its second choice. Commissioners did not approve a prior motion to approve Lewis, who has led efforts to call Central Health’s financial transparency into question, as their first choice. The next entity that will weigh in on the appointment is the city's Health & Human Services Committee, which will interview candidates Monday.
7. An Austin ISD school has closed. It has yet to be determined where the 360 students who were displaced from T.A. Brown Elementary School will attend during the 2017-18 school year, but they will not return to Brown, Austin ISD Superintendent Paul Cruz informed to the board of trustees last week. On Nov. 4, Brown Elementary was closed indefinitely after an assessment of the building’s crawl spaces uncovered extensive damage to the concrete floor beneath the classroom wings, cafeteria and administrative offices. As a result, students in pre-K and kindergarten were relocated to Reilly Elementary School, and students in grades one through five were placed at Allan Elementary School for the remainder of the school year.
