Austin is continuing its expanded outreach and enforcement of public encampments that ramped up this spring and has since cleared dozens of sites across the city.

The details: Earlier this year, Austin Homeless Strategies and Operations announced it would be sending out more city crews on a regular basis to address encampments in public areas. That new Homeless Encampment Management, or HEM, program started in May and led to hundreds of site visits citywide in its first month. Dozens of people were connected to shelter or services in that time.

The first 30 days of HEM cost just over $719,000, the majority of which went to city employee and contractor pay. Those costs largely fell under ongoing camping enforcement, officials said, and the program doesn't represent significant new spending.

A new public mapping tool is now live online allowing residents to see where encampments are being cleared and monitored, and the city will share more data on the program later this year.

Several transportation projects across the Austin metro are moving forward, with new construction, funding and schedule updates.

The details: Hays County secured more than $39 million in federal funding for a planned $49 million Centerpoint Road overpass over the Union Pacific Railroad crossing. The project is in the right-of-way acquisition and final design stages.

In Pflugerville, construction on Parkway Drive is expected to begin in mid-September following City Council’s approval of a $3.1 million construction contract. Work is scheduled through July 2027.

The MoPac South expansion in Austin is now estimated to cost $1.3 billion, an increase of more than $400 million. The project would add express lanes and shared-use paths between Cesar Chavez Street and Slaughter Lane.

Meanwhile, Round Rock’s Red Bud Lane North widening remains on schedule despite weather delays. Construction also continues on Cedar Park’s Toro Grande Boulevard improvements. In Buda, final asphalt paving has begun on Middle Creek Drive following substantial completion in August.

Salt Traders Coastal Cooking is celebrating its 10-year anniversary in September.

On the menu: Salt Traders offers a variety of seafood dishes including a raw bar with oysters, crudo and nigiri.

To celebrate the anniversary, the restaurant will be offering a $10 special Sept. 8-17. The special includes a select drink and an item from the “bar snack” menu, such as fried oysters, hush puppies and kettle chips.

The details: The restaurant has two locations, one in Round Rock and the other along South Mopac.

• Austin: 1101 S. Mopac, Austin
• Round Rock: 2850 N. I-35, Round Rock

Three candidates are running to lead the Texas Department of Agriculture in the Nov. 3 election.

The details: Libertarian Austin R. Kelly, Republican Nate Sheets and Democrat Clayton Tucker are vying to become Texas' next commissioner of agriculture. The commissioner's duties include regulating agriculture, administering nutrition programs and providing rural economic development assistance.

How we got here: There is no incumbent in this race after Sheets beat sitting Agriculture Commissioner Sid Miller in the March Republican primary. Tucker ran uncontested in the March Democratic primary, while Kelly was selected as the Texas Libertarian Party's candidate during an April nominating convention.

The winner of the November midterm will be sworn in to succeed Miller in January.

Looking ahead: Early voting runs from Oct. 19-30 in the midterm election, and Election Day is Nov. 3.