Cedar Park City Council members will discuss automated license plate readers, or ALPRs, which include Flock Safety cameras, at a specially called City Council meeting Oct. 13.

Before you go: The meeting will take place at 7 p.m. in the multi-purpose room in Building Three at City Hall, not in the City Council chambers. The meeting agenda lists discussion only, meaning no immediate action is set to be taken regarding the city's Flock Safety contract.

Some context: Flock Safety makes ALPRs that photograph all vehicles passing by. The company uses artificial intelligence to interpret the photos, tagging them with data such as license plate numbers, vehicle color, make and model, and other identifying characteristics, Flock Safety representative Ian Leslie said at an Aug. 26 Liberty Hill City Council meeting.

Several area cities, including Leander, Liberty Hill and Pflugerville, have ended their contracts with Flock and shut down the cameras in recent months.

Blue Agave Tex Mex restaurant in far Northwest Austin is permanently closed, according to the restaurant's website.

The details: The restaurant's owner announced in a social media post Oct. 7 that it would be shutting down.

"Despite our best efforts, we have had to make the difficult decision to stop operations of our restaurant," the post reads. "We genuinely valued every person who walked through the door, whether you were a first-time guest, a repeat guest [or] one of our many regulars."

The restaurant's remaining food will be donated to a local charity, the post states.

• 14900 Avery Ranch Blvd., Ste. B100, Austin

Round Rock ISD voters will decide on Nov. 3 whether to approve an increase to the district's property tax rate to fund staff raises. The proposed rate is six cents higher than it would be without the voter-approval tax rate election.

The details: The higher rate would generate funds needed to provide a 2% general pay raise for all employees, increase starting teacher pay to $58,000 and address pay compression throughout the district.

If passed, it would result in a tax bill roughly $219 higher annually for a home of average taxable value, according to the district.

Why it matters: Because of rising operational costs, the district cannot raise employee pay without more revenue. If the election fails, teachers not included under House Bill 2 and other employees will not receive raises, and the district would need to reduce headcount to free up funds for raises.

Check out the latest transportation project updates across the Austin metro.

Upcoming projects

Centerpoint Road Crossing Overpass

Project: Crews will construct an overpass over the Union Pacific Railroad crossing on Centerpoint Road in San Marcos. The project will feature a widened roadway with a median and shoulders and shared-use paths on both sides.

Update: The project secured a $39.23 million federal award through the Federal Railroad Administration.

• Timeline: 2026-30

• Cost: $52.9 million

• Funding source: Hays County, FRA, UPR

Completed projects

I-35 Capital Express Central: MLK Jr. Boulevard Bridge Segment

Project: The project included reconstruction and widening of the MLK Jr. Boulevard bridge over I-35 in East Austin, adding sidewalks, shade structures, a safety barrier, and rebuilding I-35 entrance and exit ramps in both directions.

Update: The bridge is now fully operational, as two lanes reopened in each direction in early August. Crews are finishing shared-use paths and wider sidewalks this month.

• Timeline: 2024–26

• Cost: $34.4 million

• Funding source: TxDOT and Capital Area Metropolitan Planning Organization