News from the City of Austin, Texas

City’s HEAL Initiative Closes Encampment at Pack Saddle Pass and US Highway 71

The City of Austin and partners helped a total of 60 people with resources to move from an encampment at Pack Saddle Pass and U.S. Highway 71 to temporary bridge shelters as part of the Housing-Focused Encampment Assistance Link (HEAL) Initiative.

HEAL carries out closures of homeless encampments that pose the highest public health and safety risks. People experiencing homelessness on site were offered transfer to shelter, and connection to housing resources. Through a cross-departmental effort, the City has developed a mobile encampment assessment tool that measures over 40 factors to prioritize encampments for HEAL intervention.

“The City’s HEAL Initiative provides a compassionate response to homelessness, a safe move from encampments into shelter, plus a clear path to housing and services. HEAL continues to focus on resolving encampments with the highest health and safety risk factors,” said City of Austin Homeless Strategy Officer Dianna Grey.

Since HEAL began in June of 2021, over 470 individuals have voluntarily moved from high-risk encampments to Southbridge and Northbridge shelters. Successful sheltering and resolution of the Pack Saddle Pass and U.S. Highway 71 encampments was a collaborative effort. The Austin Public Health Department and the Homeless Strategy Division worked closely with the Homeless Outreach Street Team (HOST), Integral Care, Austin Police Department, Austin Public Works Department, Austin Resource Recovery, Sunrise Homeless Navigation Center, the Austin Area Urban League, and other community partners.

Both encampments are now officially closed, and enforcement presence will be maintained while cleanup is conducted.

Returning public spaces to the intended use is an important element of the HEAL Initiative. The Austin City Council recently authorized negotiations with the Texas Department of Transportation to pursue a variety of pedestrian and aesthetic enhancements at the Pack Saddle Pass and U.S. Highway 71 location.

Austin City Council approved the HEAL Initiative in February 2021. The HEAL Initiative is one element of Finding Home ATX, a community-wide effort to dramatically reduce unsheltered homelessness in Austin.

To learn more about homelessness in Austin, please visit www.austintexas.gov/homelessness

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Over $2 Million in Grants Awarded to Protect and Preserve Austin’s Historic Places

The City of Austin Economic Development Department announced more than $2 million in grant funds to preserve historic designated places in Austin through the Heritage Preservation Grant. These grant awards will be used for capital, planning, educational, or marketing projects to promote tourism through preservation activities. Successful projects will restore historic cultural assets and promote history-informing stories associated with Austin’s diverse history. All projects must be frequented by and accessible to tourists and convention delegates.

“The places and stories that represent Austin’s history demonstrate an enduring legacy of community, culture, and history while investing in their physical stability,” said Sylnovia Holt-Rabb, Executive Director of the Economic Development Department. “We are honored to award grantees with the preservation resources necessary to advance these projects.”

Austin City Council approved the grant awards on February 9, 2023. Below is the full list of 2023 grantees and preservation grant projects.

2023 Heritage Preservation Grants

Hillside Farmacy: $29,880

ADA-Compliant Pathways and Parking

Austin Parks Foundation: $30,000

Henry G. Madison Log Cabin Structural Improvements Plan

Downtown Austin Development Corporation: $30,000

Heritage of Republic Square Programming and Events

Pollen Architecture: $30,000

Friends of the Ney Museum Comprehensive Restoration Plan Update

Friends of the Texas Historical Commission, Inc: $40,000

Real Places Conference

Indie Meme.Org: $45,600

Indie Meme Asian American Historical Archival Project at Austin History Center

Housing Authority of the City of Austin: $82,000

Pathways at Rosewood Courts Tourism Kiosks: Amplification of African American History in Austin

Neill-Cochran House Museum: $109,000

Museum Slave Quarters Restoration

Lamberts Downtown Barbecue: $137,293

HVAC Repairs due to water damage and Exterior Site Improvements

Leadership Austin: $138,875

Walk of the Town Multilingual Interactive Tour Development and Promotions Phase II

E4 Youth, Inc & RWHC Historic District: $150,000

Rogers Washington Holy Cross Historic District Mixed Reality Tour Development

Broken Spoke: $175,000

Roof Repair

Flower Hill Foundation: $215,132

Restoration and Rehabilitation Project

Huston-Tillotson University: $217,848

Old Administration Building Restoration

German Texan Heritage Society: $240,684

Historic Staircase and Reconstruction

Austin Theatre Alliance: $250,000

Paramount Theatre Exterior East Wall Rehabilitation

Preservation Austin: $250,000

McFarland House Renovation

Funding for the Heritage Preservation Grant Program, which is managed by the Economic Development Department’s Heritage Tourism Division, comes from 15% of the Heritage Preservation Fund as approved by City Council in Resolution No. 20181004-033. This year’s grant featured new criteria informed by the 2022 Cultural Funding Review Process by the Economic Development Department, which was a three-year public process to center equity and inclusion in the City’s Hotel Occupancy Tax (HOT) investments in arts, heritage, and music. These 17 awardees of the Heritage Preservation Grant represent the first commitments of the Cultural Funding Review Process. The Economic Development Department acknowledges the extraordinary cultural and creative talent that exists in the city contributing to Austin’s economic success and to the city’s identity.

In upcoming months, additional programs will launch to support arts & culture in Austin including Live Music Fund Event Program, Elevate, and Nexus. These new funding programs are structured to encourage new talent, support established cultural producers, and invest in the development of diverse cultural institutions that are rooted in and representative of the communities they serve.

For more information on the Heritage Preservation Grant or other upcoming grant opportunities, visit www.austintexas.gov/edd.  

About the City of Austin Economic Development Department
The City of Austin Economic Development Department supports business growth, creative industries, and local communities. These programs build an equitable, sustainable economy to improve the lives of all Austin residents. To learn more about helpful resources, visitwww.austintexas.gov/eddandsubscribe to our newsletter. Connect with us @AustinEconDev on Facebook, @AustinEconDev on Twitter, and @AustinEconDev on YouTube.

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December 2022 passenger, cargo traffic at AUS & year-end numbers for 2022

AUSTIN, Texas – 2022 was, by all accounts, a record-breaking year for Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (AUS). This past year, AUS experienced an unprecedented growth of passenger volumes as demand for air travel rose far beyond the airport’s busiest passenger activity volumes seen in 2019, before disruptions caused by COVID-19.

AUS passenger volume for December 2022 was the highest December on record with 1,717,601 passengers flying during the month, up 7.63% compared to December 2021. The busiest month of the entire year was May, which welcomed 2,021,747 passengers in a single month and the total passenger count for 2022 was 21,089,289 passengers, up 55.40% from 2021, officially making 2022 the airport’s busiest year ever.

In line with the increase in demand for air travel, AUS welcomed two new airlines, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines and Virgin Atlantic, resumed service with Lufthansa. AUS airlines launched 8 new and 2 reinstated nonstop destinations, giving Austinites and Central Texas travelers over 90 year-round and seasonal destinations to choose from. In 2022, AUS airlines flew nonstop to 97 different destinations.

The Airport Expansion and Development Program, which launched in 2021, officially became Journey With AUS – Austin-Bergstrom’s Airport Improvement Program and received a Finding of No Significant Impact from the Federal Aviation Administration for the program’s Environmental Assessment, denoting federal approval to proceed with the program’s projects. Additionally, the Journey With AUS program secured funding through a $400 million airport revenue bond sale and $15 million from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, paving the way for expanded and improved Security Checkpoints, new restrooms and lounge space, and the creation of three new gates to offset gate closures during construction of the midfield concourse tunnel.

In 2022, construction began on a number of Journey With AUS projects. The East Cargo Facility, the fourth on campus, began construction in April and will increase space for cargo operations at AUS. A second Jet-A fuel facility that will help sustain the increased demand for travel, also began construction this year. Lastly, the installation of the outbound baggage handling system, which will deliver a more efficient, reliable, and easy to use system for airlines processing baggage for departing flights and increase output of checked bags per hour, began in October. 

The year also saw significant recovery and growth for AUS concessions, with new food and vending options available for passengers including Thurman’s, Noble Sandwich, Kome Sushi A Go Go, Zocalo Café, Sprinkles Cupcakes, and Farmer’s Fridge. In 2022, passengers couldn’t get enough of quintessential Austin souvenirs and specialties, purchasing 23,821 t-shirts from Tyler’s, 9,087 Keep Austin Weird shirts, 8,014 boxes of Berdoll pecans, 43,169 boxes of Lammes candies, and 2,567 bottles of Me and the Bees Lemonade.

 

As the choice airport for Central Texas, barbecue remains popular among AUS passengers. Travelers looking to take a taste of Texas home bought 15,451 sauces from Salt Lick BBQ and 14,183 sauces and rubs from Franklin’s BBQ. They also feasted on 104,130 pounds – 52 tons – of brisket from the airport’s very own Salt Lick BBQ. Preference for Texas’ breakfast tacos continued through 2022, with 791,184 tacos enjoyed by passengers at Taco Deli, Jo’s Coffee, Earl Campbell’s Taco Truck and more.  

2022 was also a big year for the AUS Arts and Music Program, which featured over 60 different artists through the permanent and changing art exhibits program, including The Heart Gallery, which displayed professional portraits of foster children in the terminal to connect families interested in adoption. As the live music capital of the world, AUS also brought the music back in full force, with 1,008 live musical performances over the course of the year.

In addition to expansion efforts, new concessions, live music and art for passengers to enjoy, AUS launched several accessibility services for travelers with mobility assistive devices and other accessibility needs. The Mobility Assistance Zone shortens the arrival journey for passengers with limited mobility who need a taxi or rideshare; the Mobility Lounge provides a central waiting area for passengers to meet their wheelchair attendants; the Mobility Assistance Tram provides passengers with rides between the terminal, CONRAC and Red Garage; and SkySquad offers personal airport attendants to help travelers with luggage, wayfinding and more. Accessibility is a top priority for AUS, and the airport strives to provide a comfortable passenger journey for all.

Finally, Austin-Bergstrom successfully maintained a Level 3+ Carbon Accreditation for its 2021 operations through Airports Council International – North America’s Airport Carbon Accreditation Program for the second year in a row, a milestone as the airport returned to pre-pandemic passenger volumes. In 2021, AUS became the first medium-sized airport to earn this distinction, and is now the fourth overall airport in North America to achieve Level 3+ carbon neutrality.

December 2022

Passenger Activity: Total passenger traffic for December 2022 was 1,717,601, up 7.63% compared to December 2021. December 2022 enplanements totaled 879,932, up 8.78%. Southwest Airlines passengers totaled 619,484, up 10.1%; American Airlines passengers totaled 464,265, down 0.2%; United Airlines passengers totaled 194,199, up 9.3%; Delta Air Lines passengers totaled 191,793, up 9.3%; Alaska Airlines passengers totaled 79,245, up 29.6%; Spirit Airlines passengers totaled 50,977, up 13.3%; Allegiant Air passengers totaled 33,898, up 3.4%; JetBlue Airways passengers totaled 29,457, down 30.5%; British Airways passengers totaled 13,552, up 137.2%; Frontier Airlines passengers totaled 8,686, down 46.1%; KLM Royal Dutch Airlines passengers totaled 6,554; Hawaiian Airlines passengers totaled 6,342, up 26%; Lufthansa passengers totaled 5,434; Aeromexico passengers totaled 5,043, down 2.1%; Virgin Atlantic passengers totaled 4,352; Air Canada passengers totaled 4,144, up 153.5%; and Sun Country Airlines passengers totaled 176. 

December 2022 air cargo totaled 24,964,218 lbs., down 3.19% compared to December 2021. International air cargo totaled 1,739,071 lbs., up 244.35%. Air Transport International carried 8,311,960 lbs., up 17.7%; Federal Express carried 6,925,542 lbs., down 6.1%; United Parcel Services carried 4,243,086 lbs., down 7.1%; and Atlas Air carried 1,277,537 lbs., down 18.1%.

Air Services transferred 269,785 lbs. of mail, down 64.93%; and 3,005,438 lbs. of belly freight, up 42.89%.

Aircraft Operations: General Aviation operations totaled 3,603, down 10.93%. Combined operations (including commercial and military) totaled 21,013, up 0.04%.

January – December 2022

Passenger Activity: Total passenger traffic for January – December 2022 was 21,089,289, up 55.40%, compared to January – December 2021. January – December 2022 enplanements totaled 10,571,208, up 55.41%. Southwest Airlines passengers totaled 8,068,999, up 72.9%; American Airlines passengers totaled 5,465,093, up 67.3%; Delta Air Lines passengers totaled 2,438,324, up 34.0%; United Airlines passengers totaled 2,193,853, up 36.7%; Alaska Airlines passengers totaled 939,789, up 38.9%; Spirit Airlines passengers totaled 591,398, up 6.8%; Allegiant Air passengers totaled 419,924, up 81.4%;  JetBlue Airways passengers totaled 342,138, down 20.6%; British Airways passengers totaled 147,701, up 929.4%; Frontier Airlines passengers totaled 125,478, down 40.7%; Hawaiian Airlines passengers totaled 69,575, up 86.7%; Air Canada passengers totaled  69,178, up 814.6%; Aeromexico passengers totaled 59,933, up 102.3%; KLM Royal Dutch Airlines passengers totaled 53,690; Lufthansa passengers totaled 47,727; Virgin Atlantic passengers totaled 33,897; Sun Country Airlines passengers totaled 20,368, up 12.1%; Qatar Airways passengers totaled 575; VivaAerobus passengers totaled 491; Omni Air International passengers totaled 471; Swift Air passengers totaled 301, down 84.6%; Qantas Airways passengers totaled 233; and Global Crossing Airlines passengers totaled 153, down 83.6%.

January – December 2022 air cargo totaled 310,338,322 lbs., up 29.71% compared to January – December 2021. International air cargo totaled 18,138,331 lbs., up 288.69%. Air Transport International carried 90,459,584 lbs., up 246.5%; Federal Express carried 85,222,922 lbs., down 6.7%; United Parcel Services carried 39,841,897 lbs., up 10.6%; Atlas Air carried 32,742,959 lbs., up 491.7%; and Amerijet International Airlines carried 10,174,997 lbs., down 39.7%.

Air Services transferred 6,644,941 lbs. of mail, down 20.40%; and 34,054,988 lbs. of belly freight, up 144.93%.

Aircraft Operations: General Aviation operations totaled 50,989 for January – December 2022, up 8.75%. Combined operations (including commercial and military) totaled 268,830, up 32.18%.

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For more City of Austin news releases, visit AustinTexas.gov.