In Lakeway
Trail of Lights
This beloved tradition of holiday lights continues every night through the end of the year, at City Hall.
New Year’s Swim Challenge
Lakeway Swim Center hosts a fun family event on Thursday, Dec. 30, 9am-noon, with snacks, hot drinks, music, plus a heated pool. Registration deadline is Monday, Dec. 20. Contact the Lakeway Swim Center at (512) 261-3000 to register.
Lake Travis Community Library tech assistance is back
LTCL is again offering in-person assistance from their tech coaching team. Just drop in Monday-Thursday, noon to 2pm, with your questions about smartphone, tablet or computer issues (including how to use the library’s Libby app to access materials). This one-on-one tech assistance is on a first come/first served basis. (Masks are requested.)
Lakeway Residents should be aware of coyotes in the area, taking steps to safeguard pets.
The city’s Wildlife Advisory Committee included a discussion of coyotes on the agenda for its Dec. 9 meeting, in response to recent resident complaints about coyotes in the area and attacks on local pets. Some committee members attended Travis County’s Dec. 3 webinar, Co-Existing with Coyotes, and the consensus was that residents would benefit from the helpful information and coping strategies provided in that presentation, summarized below. To watch the one hour presentation by Danielle Gay, City of Austin’s Wildlife Protection Officer, go here–https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=611647003620525
The Travis County Wildlife Protection Officer is Officer Gay’s colleague, Emery Sadkin: 512-978-0514 emery.sadkin@austintexas.gov In addition to Lakeway PD, this is who Lakeway residents should contact about coyotes.
General coyote info:
–Most active at dusk and dawn. But, coyotes are commonly seen in our area during the daytime. This is NOT indicative of rabies. It means they have habituated to the urban environment and find daytime a good time to hunt for food here.
–Coyotes are NOT hunting people. There is a bigger risk of a person getting bitten by a dog than being attacked by a coyote.
–Coyotes eat rodents, rabbits, insects, snakes, fruit, nuts, plants, etc. They will kill unattended pets, as well as fawns and injured/sick deer.
–Size: 25-35 pounds (but their shaggy coats make them look bigger than they are). Roughly 2’ tall and 4’ long, they are about the size of a Collie or German Shepherd.
–Howling exaggerates their number. Their vocalizations make a few animals sound like a dozen or more.
–Native to Texas. There is plenty of food in the Hill Country, in rural and urban areas, plus no predators; wolves used to prey on coyotes, but there are no wolves left here.
–Life cycle: Jan.-March–they mate. April-June—pups (usually 5-7) are born in dens. July-Sept.–pups mostly remain in dens. Oct.-Dec.—pups emerge from dens and soon are sent off on their own.
—Most complaints about coyotes come in the fall, largely due to juveniles newly out on their own.
–Clearing land and massive construction exposes coyotes who have been there all along. Careless and messy humans supply a variety of bountiful food.
–Austin prohibits killing coyotes, instead handling them with public education. Austin has had NO HUMAN ATTACKS.
It is illegal in Texas to trap and relocate coyotes. State law prohibits relocation, because coyotes are a rabies vector species.
Killing is not the answer. Killing 1 or a few coyotes gives humans a false sense of security; other coyotes will soon replace them. (Instead—change the situation that attracted coyotes to your area.) In a stable pack, ONLY the alpha pair mates and produces pups. When a pack loses a member, it destabilizes. Other coyotes join the pack. More adults mate, producing extra pups. As a result, there are more coyotes than ever. Traps are inhumane, grievously harming wild animals, pets, and even kids. Poisons kill indiscriminately. Guns may NOT be discharged within City of Lakeway; this includes high-powered BB guns and pellet guns. (This was confirmed with Lakeway Police Officer Andrea Greig.)
Coyotes are a real danger to pets. Coyotes will snatch small dogs as well as cats. KEEP PETS INDOORS, day and night. Build a secure catio to allow cats safe outside time. Walk dogs on short leashes (4’-6’). Extendable leashes let the dog get too far away for the owner to protect or control it. Also, with a long or extendable leash, the coyote sees 2 smaller prey options instead of 1 larger opponent. Be vigilant on walks; if you or your dog comes too close to a den, the adult coyote will stalk you out of the area, to protect the pups. Even if your backyard is fenced, accompany your dog when you let it outside. Make your fence more secure by adding coyote rollers.
EXCLUDE coyotes by eliminating these attractions in your yard:
–Access to trash and recycling.
–Access to compost piles.
–Pet food left on porch or in yard.
–Dirty BBQ grills.
–Fruit and nuts fallen on the ground (including birdseed).
–Brush piles (because they harbor rodents that coyotes will hunt).
–Open structures (sheds, decks, etc., where coyotes can shelter, especially sick or injured ones).
Actively DETER coyotes:
–Install motion sensors that produce light, sound and/or water when an animal passes.
–Add coyote rollers to the top of fences to make it harder for coyotes to get into backyards.
–Carry a security whistle when off your property.
–NEVER FEED COYOTES.
–HAZE them.
HAZING: Scare or intimidate coyotes so they leave. Co-existence is NOT blind acceptance. The goal is to share SPACE with coyotes but not TIME; they can be in the area when people are not around. That is mostly at night, so discourage them from coming into your area during the day via hazing.
–Maintain eye contact.
–Make NOISE—whistle, airhorn, yelling, clanging pots and pans, etc.
–Wave your arms, whip a jacket over your head, etc. (to seem bigger).
–Spray a hose at the animal.
–Throw something (NOT food) toward the animal (don’t try to hit it, just unnerve it).
–Be erratic and unpredictable.
–Be aggressive.
–Be persistent. Doing this once won’t be enough; do it every time you see the coyote. Get the whole neighborhood involved.
–Do NOT haze pups, an adult who has pups along, animals around at night, or animals who are far away, cornered, or sick/injured.
–NEVER USE A GUN OF ANY KIND. NEVER USE FIREWORKS TO HAZE AN ANIMAL.
Lakeway Council meets Monday, Dec. 20, 6:30pm at City Hall
UPDATE as of 12/19: Council’s 12/20 meeting CANCELLED. Next meeting as of now set for Jan. 3. I’ll add the city’s cancellation notice below.
As announced 12/19: The City Council meeting scheduled for Monday, Dec. 20, 2021 has been cancelled. The meeting will move to Monday, Jan. 3, 2022 at 6:30 p.m. at City Hall (1102 Lohmans Crossing Road). The updated agenda will be posted on our city website. City Council no longer has a quorum due to health concerns. Additionally, some city staff members were recently exposed to COVID-19. With those details, and out of an abundance of caution for the safety of our residents, elected officials and staff, the decision was made to move the meeting.
Consequential Agenda items include:
ITEM 6: The Consent Agenda includes a schedule for Council meetings in 2022. It ONLY shows meetings on the 3rd Monday, eliminating additional scheduled meetings on the first Monday of each month as have recently been held.
ITEM 9: Also in the Consent Agenda, ZAPCO meetings will be moved from the second Monday of the month to the first Wednesday of the month. The reason is to better coordinate handling of issues first by ZAPCO and then by Council.
ITEM 11: Citizens Participation for items not on the agenda.
ITEM 14: Waste Connections has requested a 2-year extension of its solid waste collection, recycling and disposal services contract, at the current rate, plus discussion of composting programs.
ITEM 16: Lake Travis Film Festival requests $43,000 in Hotel Occupancy Tax Funding.
ITEM 17: Sweetwater Development Agreement. In July, Council repealed a 2008 ordinance and thereby captured within the city’s ETJ property on Hwy. 71 not already claimed by City of Bee Cave. This includes the ongoing Sweetwater residential development. This agreement states Sweetwater can continue construction under Travis County rules and oversight, and Lakeway will not impose its building code.
ITEM 18: Approval of final plat for Hillsong Planned Unit Development, 126 detached single family homes on 22.859 acres and a commercial component with park amenities on 3.09 acres of land, located at the intersection of Flint Rock Road and Wild Cherry Drive.
ITEM 20: Revising the ordinances as to permitting of non-residential fireworks displays. This would bring the code up to date, require 10 days notice to the city, only allow aerial displays, limit displays to 10pm or earlier (except for 4th of July and New Years celebrations), and set a $500 fine for violations.
ITEM 21: Revising the PUD ordinance to require an approved preliminary plan within 12 months or the PUD zoning reverts to the original zoning, and to allow a PUD for less than 8 acres if ZAPCO recommends this and Council approves it.
ITEM 22: Revising the code to make medical offices a permitted use by right in a commercial zoned space (C-1 or C-2).
ITEM 23: Revising the code to make R-5 (condominium) an active zoning designation.
ITEM 24: Revising the code to designate R-8 zoning (multifamily residential, 12 units per acre maximum) as medium density, and to create R-9 zoning as high density multifamily residential (20 units per acre maximum).
ITEM 25: Discussion of communications strategy and social media use policy.
ITEMS 26-28: Executive sessions on “Legal Issues Relating to Former City Attorney,” police department, and economic development. Go here for the Agenda, Meeting Packet and Presentation— https://www.lakeway-tx.gov/archive.aspx
To send comments to Council beforehand (by 3pm Monday) about any agenda item, go here and create a Public Comment Form– https://lakeway-tx.civicweb.net/Portal/CitizenEngagement.aspx
Go here to watch the Council meeting online (live or later)— https://www.lakeway-tx.gov/1062/Videos—Meetings-Events
Texas elections
Two more candidates filed for the Governor’s race—a political novice and some guy named Rick Perry:
—Former Austin public radio reporter Joy Diaz launches campaign for Texas governor 12/8/21 https://www.kvue.com/article/news/politics/vote-texas/joy-diaz-launches-campaign-for-texas-governor/269-b61b58d0-23fa-4d5c-bc20-6dd988521801
–A Rick Perry — no, not that Rick Perry — files to run for Texas governor 12/13/21 https://www.texastribune.org/2021/12/13/rick-perry-texas-governor-springtown/
One candidate withdrew from the Lt. Gov. race and another jumped in:
— Democrat Matthew Dowd ends campaign for Texas lieutenant governor, citing need for “greater diversity” 12/7/21https://www.texastribune.org/2021/12/07/matthew-dowd-texas-lieutenant-governor/
— President of Texas Democratic Party reportedly running for lieutenant governor 12/13/21 https://www.kvue.com/article/news/politics/vote-texas/carla-brailey-texas-democratic-party-lieutenant-governor/269-4959eecf-af46-4e00-a318-9bd51032109a
Paxton ran unopposed for AG in the 2018 primary. Not this time. Republican primary for attorney general heats up, with challengers taking aim at Ken Paxton’s legal troubles 12/15/21https://www.texastribune.org/2021/12/15/texas-ken-paxton-republican-primary/
Daring Mighty Things
NASA announced a new class of 10 astronauts, who will train to go to ISS and eventually the moon. NASA Selects New Astronaut Recruits to Train for Future Missions 12/6/21 https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/nasa-selects-new-astronaut-recruits-to-train-for-future-missions
Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa and his production assistant recently flew on a Russian rocket to become the first tourists to visit the International Space Station in over a decade. During their 12-day stay, they will record daily life on the ISS. In the future, Maezawa also plans to ride a SpaceX craft to visit the moon. ‘Dream come true’: Japanese billionaire blasts off for ISS 12/8/21 https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/dec/08/dream-come-true-japanese-billionaire-blasts-off-for-iss
Back to me….
Plan your holiday recovery now. One way is with a whole month of FREE daily ONLINE YOGA, to do AT HOME and on your own schedule, with Austin’s Adriene Mishler and her very Zen doggie, Benji. Sign up now for January’s MOVE program. I have done this with her several years now, and it is a fabulous way to start the year! https://do.yogawithadriene.com/move
My garage beautification project continues. The ceiling, walls and storage all looked so great with fresh paint that I decided to tackle the floor. Turns out that painting a concrete floor to withstand tire tread is NOT simple…. So far, half is painted navy blue, and I’m letting that cure for a week while I park my car on the unpainted side. But, I’m determined to wrap this up before 2022.
Here are some recent photos of our deer, taken on my morning walks.
The Coronavirus
Worldwide, as of Dec.18 and according to the World Health Organization, Omicron has been detected in nearly 100 countries. The new variant’s cases are doubling every 2-3 days.
Per research conducted to date, experts say Omicron is far more contagious than other variants, even Delta; when Omicron enters a community, the new case metric becomes a vertical line. This means that the UNvaccinated are even more at risk than before, making it imperative to get vaccinated—and boosted—ASAP. This also means, we are warned, that even the vaccinated are impacted by Omicron, with a sharp increase in breakthrough cases. But, these breakthrough cases in vaccinated people tend to be mild, indicating that even against Omicron the vaccines are doing their most important job—guarding against serious disease and death. The only goodish news about Omicron is that, so far, the disease it causes seems to be no more severe than what we get from other variants. The problem is—MANY more people will get Omicron than we experienced with other variants, and hospitals are already overwhelmed.
South Africa continues to report rapidly escalating numbers of Covid cases, both Delta and Omicron. Its president has tested positive. Africa as a whole is seeing a huge rise in cases, with Omicron spreading across most countries on the continent.
The UK is now seeing more new cases than ever before during the pandemic. The government reinstituted restrictions; face masks are again required indoors in public places, and a vaccination pass must be shown to enter nightclubs, sports stadiums and other large venues. The country has a strong genome sequencing program and reports Omicron cases doubling every 3 days; at that rate, half of its cases will soon be caused by Omicron. (Scotland already reached that milestone.) The UK started recording deaths from Omicron as of Dec. 13.
France closed night clubs for 4 weeks, hoping that other internal restrictions won’t be needed to stem its surge. However, as of Dec. 18 it will allow entry by people (vaccinated or not) from the UK only for essential travel—not tourism or business purposes; those allowed in must provide a recent negative test and quarantine upon entry.
Denmark closed schools, restaurants, bars and nightclubs until after Christmas, to try to control its rapid Covid surge. Norway announced a massive rise in Covid cases, as well. Both countries project Omicron becoming the primary variant within days.
Canada has urged its citizens not to travel internationally and reinstituted domestic Covid restrictions and border controls.
In the US, in the last 2 weeks, cases have increased 20%, hospitalizations are up 18%, and deaths increased 15%. We are averaging 125,000 new cases per day. 68,000 Americans are currently hospitalized with Covid, and the death rate averages 1,300 people per day.
As of Dec. 14, the CDC announced Omicron is nationwide, and its infections are rapidly escalating. Rates vary, but the percentage of Omicron cases is doubling every 2 days in the northeast; Omicron could take over from Delta as the dominant variant next week. Experts predict a heavy winter surge hitting America soon, with booster shots the best defense.
The US instituted stricter rules for international travelers on Dec.6, requiring proof of a negative test no more than 1 day old.
The official tally of confirmed Covid cases in the US exceeded 50 million last week.
Another huge and awful milestone has been reached. Covid has killed over 800,000 Americans. The toll on our elderly has been horrific: 75% of the deaths (600,000 people) were age 65 or older. Of that age group, 1 in 100 have died of Covid, so far. We went from 700K to 800K deaths in just 71 days.
California has reinstated a state-wide mask requirement, for all indoor public spaces.
Michigan’s surge continues to worsen; the state is now reporting the most new cases and the most hospitalizations, of the entire pandemic. Ohio, Illinois, Pennsylvania and Indiana are also experiencing a heavy Covid surge.
New York City last week reported a strong surge of cases, with its positivity rate tripling in 3 days. Restaurants are closing due to sick staff. Theaters there just recently re-opened, but frequent Covid outbreaks have forced many Broadway productions to cancel shows (despite an industrywide vaccine mandate for audiences and workers and requiring patrons to wear masks). The Radio City Rockettes cancelled all its shows through the end of the year. The city’s recovery is further hampered by countless businesses indefinitely postponing the return of their workers to offices for in-person work; having a large segment of the workforce continue to work from home hurts a myriad of businesses that support office workers—everything from lunch counters to dry cleaners. Plus, many companies are cancelling holiday parties, due to the winter surge. The latest triumph for Scrooge is that Saturday Night Live cancelled its live studio audience for tonight’s show.
New Jersey, Maine and Connecticut are also experiencing explosive Covid surges.
Sports leagues are postponing or cancelling games due to Covid outbreaks among players. The NBA is considering having teams hire a roster of replacement players, in order to be able to play games as scheduled.
More and more, experts are suggesting people pay less attention to new case rates and instead watch HOSPITALIZATIONS in their area, in calibrate their Covid concern. This is because—particularly among the vaccinated—cases are often mild and of little concern. As a practical matter, with continued vaccine recalcitrance and repeated variants emerging, waves of cases seem to be our future. On the other hand, hospitalization for Covid indicates serious disease; it also results in general medical mayhem, with staff and facilities not available for other health concerns from auto accidents to heart attacks to cancer treatment.
In Texas, the current positivity test rate is 11.5%, up from 9% as of 2 weeks ago. We are averaging 4,800 new cases and 63 deaths daily. As of now, there are 3,700 Texans hospitalized for Covid-19. In the last 2 weeks, cases have increased 22%, hospitalizations rose 5%, and deaths are down 12%.
State authorities announced on Dec. 6 that the first Omicron case was found in Texas, in Harris County. The patient was a woman in her 40s who had not traveled recently, so Omicron was already passing via community spread.
On Dec. 13, it was announced that Omicron was detected in at least 3 people in Travis County, specifically in the University of Texas community. None had recently traveled, so they caught the variant via community spread. By Dec. 16, UT was reporting a record number of new cases, 7 times the number reported just 1 week earlier.
Vaccinations–the safe path to herd immunity
Worldwide, 8.4 billion shots have been given, with nearly 46% of the planet’s population fully vaccinated.
Austria announced plans to make vaccination compulsory for everyone age 14 and older.
Germany mandated vaccinations for health care workers, after projecting a winter surge worse than anything seen in the pandemic to date.
In the US, 61% of the entire population is fully vaccinated; 71% of adults are fully vaccinated. We are averaging around 1,600,000 shots per day, including boosters. About 58 million booster shots have been given.
As of Dec. 10, 200 million Americans were fully vaccinated. That is amazing, considering the first shot was given less than 1 year back, on Dec. 14.
While roughly 60% of the population is fully vaccinated, coverage varies wildly across the country. Some counties (in the west and south and populated by Republicans) are less than 30% vaccinated, making those areas highly vulnerable to surges.
The CDC now advises that Americans get the Phizer or Moderna vaccine, instead of the J&J vaccine. This is due to the J&J vaccine being associated, in very rare cases, with a blood clot side effect. (So, people should get a Phizer or Moderna booster, even if they originally had a J&J shot.) Both the Phizer and Moderna vaccines are readily available nationwide.
New York City is requiring all private employees working in-person be vaccinated by Dec. 27. About 90% of NYC adults are already vaccinated, but officials say this step is needed to combat a winter surge made worse by Omicron.
Philadelphia will require proof of vaccination for people to eat or drink at indoor public spaces, as of Jan. 3.
The Air Force gave an administrative discharge to a grand total of 27 members for refusing to get vaccinated; over 97% of its members are vaccinated. The Army and Navy both report 98% vaccination and will be discharging the few holdouts soon. Over 95% of Marines are vaccinated.
Kroger has removed benefits and imposed a surcharge on UNvaccinated workers.
Google is requiring all workers to be fully vaccinated by Jan. 18, or they will be put on leave and ultimately fired. Many other large tech employers have issued similar mandates, including Uber and Facebook.
The NFL is experiencing a surge of cases among its players and as a result is mandating booster shots.
While numerous groups are trying to sue their way out of vaccine mandates, they are losing. In a crucial development, the US Supreme Court on Dec. 13 refused to take a case by medical workers complaining that New York state’s mandate violated freedom of religion by not allowing a religious exemption. Also, a federal appeals court upheld OSHA’s nation-wide mandate that companies with 100 or more workers require vaccination or regular testing.
Finally, Phizer announced its low-dose 2-shot trial for kids age 2-4 did not produce sufficient immunity. It will start a trial for a 3-dose regimen. The result is delay in getting vaccine ready for kids in this age group.
In Texas, only 56% of all residents and 67% of adults are fully vaccinated.
Recent Covid articles I recommend….
–CDC recommends mRNA Covid vaccines over J&J shot amid blood clot risks 12/16/21 https://www.politico.com/news/2021/12/16/cdc-covid-vaccine-johnson-525153
–Expecting a Surge–We look at the latest on Omicron 12/16/20 https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/16/briefing/omicron-update-spread-vaccines.html
–‘A terrible tragedy’: US passes 800,000 Covid deaths – highest in the world 12/15/21 https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/dec/15/a-terrible-tragedy-us-tops-800000-covid-deaths-highest-in-the-world
–Covid’s deadly trade-offs, by the numbers: How each state has fared in the pandemic 12/15/21 https://www.politico.com/interactives/2021/covid-by-the-numbers-how-each-state-fared-on-our-pandemic-scorecard/
–As U.S. Nears 800,000 Virus Deaths, 1 of Every 100 Older Americans Has Perished 12/13/21 https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/13/us/covid-deaths-elderly-americans.html
–A Scientist’s Guide to Understanding Omicron 12/12/21 https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/12/opinion/covid-omicron-data.html
–The Coronavirus Attacks Fat Tissue, Scientists Find 12/8/21 https://www.nytimes.com/2021/12/08/health/covid-fat-obesity.html