Subject: Wildfire protections, upcoming D10 events, and more

Happy May!
This is Wildfire Preparedness Month, and I’m happy to share that my office is prioritizing efforts to protect District 10 residents from wildfires and coordinating our endeavors with partners such as the Austin Fire Department, the Austin Parks Foundation, and my fellow Council Members.

Read on for the rest of this month’s updates. I hope to see you at one of our community sessions, a D10 park, or at another event before June!

Sincerely,

Contents: The Wildfire Issue

May is Wildfire Awareness Month

WUI Wins

Our Work on Wildfire

Great Hills Park “Dead and Down” Pilot Program and Cleanup

Also in this issue

Council Considerations: I-35 “Cap and Stitch”
2024 Austin Water Quality Report

Event Recaps
On the Horizon

JOIN US!
Upcoming Event

Wednesday May 14, 2025 | Older Adults Town Hall
Co-hosted by Council Member Marc Duchen and Mayor Pro-tem Vanessa Fuentes

I’m excited to share that I’m teaming up with Mayor Pro Tem Vanessa Fuentes to bring you a joint town hall for older adults and seniors!

This is a great opportunity to hear about the City's work to support older Austinites, share your experiences, and connect directly with your local leaders. Food, drinks, and interpretation services will be available. We hope to see you there!

WHEN: Wednesday, May 14th, 3 - 5 PM

WHERE: Galaxy Cafe, 8127 Mesa Dr #100

Help us order the right amount of food by registering today: bit.ly/437nHNz

WUI Wins

I’m thrilled to share that the Austin City Council unanimously passed a major update to our Wildland Urban Interface code, better known as the WUI (pronounced “Woo-ee”)! The update helps protect our community from wildfires by ensuring that new buildings and major redevelopments are hardened against this growing threat. Structures built using WUI guidelines survived the recent California wildfiresat a far greater rate than those constructed under older standards.

It’s important to note that the update does not impact existing homes and structures unless they undergo a major redevelopment.

The redrawn WUI map is divided into zones based on a structure’s proximity to wildlands. Wind can spread embers over a mile and a half, and most parcels in Austin are now included in this dangerous “embercast” zone. The WUI update also addresses the density of structures, fire-prone vegetation, expanded the city’s overall risk map, and more.

Homeowners can also expect insurance benefits. Home insurance rates have soared over the last several years, and some homeowners have been quietly dropped by their providers. Reducing the risk of wildfires makes homes more insurable, and the insurance industry views changes like our WUI update favorably.

I encourage you and your neighbors to continue to take steps to harden your homes, build FireWise adopted communities, and take other preparedness steps like signing up for emergency alerts.

Ongoing Wildfire Work

Passing the WUI is just the beginning. Our office is also:

Encouraging residents to sign up for free Structure Ignition Zone Evaluations (SIZEs) from the Austin Fire Department
Working with AFD on the update to our Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP)
Attending community and regional events related to wildfire preparation and preparedness
Anticipating Homeland Security Emergency Management’s rollout of their regional evacuation plan this summer

We're also working with the Austin Parks and Recreation Department, the Austin Parks Foundation, and the fire department’s Wildfire Division on a pilot project to clean up “dead and down” brush (a major cause of wildfires) in Great Hills Neighborhood Park.
Sign up here to help out!

Volunteer Day: Great Hills Neighborhood Park Brush Cleanup Pilot Project

Thanks to all of you who invited me to tour your neighborhoods’ parks and greenbelts, many of which are in need of some tender loving care. Our office visits at least a couple of greenspaces per month, and the tours tend to take place on weekends. Many still have fallen trees left over from Winter Storm Uri. Dead and down is a significant wildfire risk and typically needs to be removed, especially when it’s close to structures.

If you’d like to walk us through a park in your area, please reach out to Annie at district10@austintexas.gov.

Our office is working with the Austin Parks and Recreation Department, the Austin Parks Foundation, and the fire department’s Wildfire Division to pilot a dead-and-down cleanup at Great Hills Neighborhood Park at the end of May. This is a community project where our volunteers help us haul the vegetation to the street to get chipped. Those chippings either help create trails or get collected at Hornsby Bend for “Dillo Dirt.”

Our goal is to evaluate how we can economically remove vegetation and build community engagement. A success in Great Hills will mean we can expand the project to other parks that need attention, so we need as much help as possible. Please sign up today and share the link with your friends and neighbors!

WHAT: Great Hills Neighborhood Park Cleanup

WHEN: 9:00 AM - 12:00 PM on May 31, 2025

WHO: Council Member Marc Duchen, PARD, Austin Parks Foundation, AFD

WHERE: Floral Park Trailhead at Great Hills Park

COUNCIL CONSIDERATIONS

I-35 "Cap and Stitch"

On May 22, the City Council will vote on the I-35 “Cap and Stitch” project, which is a series of proposed freeway decks that would cover a rebuilt portion of the highway. The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) is forcing the city to decide whether to fund the necessary support structures by the end of May so that the agency can initiate the project.

Doing so would be incredibly expensive: Fully built, the Cap and Stitch plan will cost roughly $1.25 billion dollars, with nearly $50 million in yearly operating expenses. This presentation highlights the project’s potential costs and opportunities, and I welcome your thoughts and feedback as we consider the plan.

Austin’s finances are already looking grim. Sales taxes are down, federal funding has been lost (including $105 million that Cap and Stitch supporters had hoped for), and tens of millions of grant dollars that the city relies on for programs related to public health and other initiatives may not be renewed. I am very wary of committing our city’s scarce resources when we have other priorities that need attention.

I am also concerned that the city is viewed as one of the sole “piggybanks” for major projects like these. Other communities have taken different directions. For example, when Dallas built Klyde Warren Park (its equivalent to Cap and Stitch), it did so via a private-public partnership involving just $20 million in public dollars. The rest of Dallas’s funding was provided by individual donors and state and federal grants. Even if we just built out the most modest Cap and Stitch scenario, Austin taxpayers would be paying 20 times as much as Dallas residents paid

The City Council is split on the Cap and Stitch plan, with both supporters and skeptics. If you share my concerns, I urge you to contact Austin Mayor Kirk Watson and the rest of my colleagues no later than May 21 and let them know your thoughts. Then register to attend the May 22 Council meeting, where you’ll have an opportunity to speak out.

Mayor Kirk Watson 512-978-2100

District 1 Council Member Natasha Harper-Madison 512-978-2101

District 2 Council Member Vanessa Fuentes 512-978-2102

District 3 Council Member José Velásquez 512-978-2103

District 4 Council Member José “Chito” Vela 512-978-2104

District 5 Council Member Ryan Alter 512-978-2105

District 6 Council Member Krista Laine 512-978-2106

District 7 Council Member Mike Siegel 512-978-2107

District 8 Council Member Paige Ellis 512-978-2108

District 9 Council Member Zohaib “Zo” Qadri 512-978-2109

District 10 Council Member Marc Duchen 512-978-2110

Austin Water releases 2024 Water Quality Report

For over 100 years, Austin Water has been committed to providing safe, reliable, high quality drinking water with a focus on sustainable and affordable services to our customers. State and federal regulations require Austin Water to provide a water quality report annually to customers. The 2024 report provides information about your drinking water including sources, water quality and treatment processes, as well as summarizes the data collected in the preceding year.

You can find the report online at austinwater.org/waterquality
or call 512-972-0155 to receive a copy by email or mail.

OUT & ABOUT

2025 HEB Excellence in Education Awards
Congratulations to all of the outstanding educators who were honored at the HEB Excellence in Education Awards on May 4th! I was proud to be one of the many statewide elected officials attending in support of public education in Austin and all of Texas. I want to especially extend my heartfelt congratulations to two finalists from Austin, Mr. Wendell Norris Marquez from Lively Middle School and Ms.Karen Terry from Bertha Sadler Means Young Women's Academy. Shout-out to my own public school district, Spring Branch ISD, also represented at the awards!

Eeyore's Birthday Party 60th Anniversary

I had a great time helping Eeyore's turn 60 years old in April! This vibrant event highlighting Austin's creativity and playfulness is still going strong!

Bright Leaf Preserve Tour

Last week the D10 office enjoyed a tour of Bright Leaf Preserve in District 10, a 200 acre natural area that's home to abundant wildlife, including the Golden-Cheeked Warbler. Our guides helped us understand the complex environmental role this area plays in Austin and the Hill Country.

OUT & ABOUT

ON THE HORIZON

Community Listening Session

Our next community listening session will be lakeside! I'm looking forward to meeting District 10 residents on the deck at beautiful Mozart's Coffee Roasters on Lake Austin.

Date and time to come, so stay tuned!

Budget Town Hall

This August, Council will approve a new budget for fiscal year 2025. Our office has already begun carefully reviewing budget proposals, and your input is important to us! Watch your inbox and our social media for announcements.

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Subject: Wildfire protections, upcoming D10 events, and more

Volunteer Day: Great Hills Neighborhood Park Brush Cleanup Pilot Project