With Mayor Steve Adler and District 3 Council Member Sabino Renteria in Mexico and District 8 Council Member Ellen Troxclair absent from the dais, the Austin City Council gathered on Thursday for their first regular meeting of December. The agenda items for approval include an additional $5 million for the new Central Library project, awarding the $26 million contract for the Parmer Lane interceptor, official confirmation of an interim police chief, two affordable housing projects and an expansion of the city’s bike-sharing program. Council postpones release of additional $5.5 million for the new Central Library Council was expected to authorize the release of $5.5 million for the continued construction of the new Central Library, but the authorization was postponed at the request of the city’s public works department. The $5.5 million would have brought the project’s total expense to $126.6 million. The 200,000-square-foot, six-story library, located at 710 W. Cesar Chavez St., has been under development since 2006 when voters authorized the city to fund the construction. According to Courtney Black, a public information officer with the Department of Public Works, the $5.5 million on today’s agenda was not additional money, but part of the funds already allocated toward the project. She said with big projects like these, the city releases the money in increments. The library was slated for completion in 2016, but construction has run into several setbacks along the way, from weather delays to design errors. The project is also more than just the library. It includes the construction of a 2^nd Street bridge; roadway and Shoal Creek Greenbelt improvements; and construction of the Seaholm Substation Art Wall. Decision on 4^th Street Cap Metro Rail Station, two-way traffic on 5^th Street is postponed The council was supposed to decide whether or not to execute an agreement with Capital Metropolitan Transportation Authority that would authorize the development of a public plaza and permanent downtown rail station on 4^th Street, between Red River and Trinity streets. Included in the agreement was a process to establish two-way traffic on 5^th Street between I-35 and Brazos Street. The decision was postponed until the Dec. 15 council meeting. Speed limit ordinances on two main corridors postponed until Feb. 9 The City Council is looking for a way to change traffic behaviors in the city on two main corridors—Parmer Lane and N. Lamar Boulevard—to make them safer. New speed ordinances for the two roads were set to be introduced on Thursday, but will be postponed until Feb. 9 in favor of further discussion with the Texas Department of Transportation. District 7 Council Member Leslie Pool said she would like to have a conversation with TxDOT officials before changing the speed limits. District 4 Council Member Gregorio Casar said he did not want to see speed traps and people getting tickets, but rather wanted to see driving behavior change. Pool said she believed that a speed limit change would not solve all safety issues, but would be a first step in changing the behavior of drivers on certain roads. Council approves appointment of Brian Manley as interim Police Chief The Austin City Council unanimously approved the appointment of Brian Manley as interim police chief 8-0. Manley has been a member of the Austin Police Department for over 25 years. He served as assistant police chief for several years before his appointment as chief of staff in 2015. Following former police Chief Art Acevedo’s Nov. 17 announcement that he would be leaving Austin to take over as police chief in Houston, interim City Manager Elaine Hart named Manley as her pick for interim police chief. “He has my highest level of confidence in his ability to do the job,” Hart said on Thursday.