Austin ISD is planning to hold off on future school closures while moving forward with adopting new attendance boundaries.

What's happening: District officials discussed potential changes for the 2027-28 school year as AISD faces a $181 million budget shortfall and considers potential staff layoffs for fiscal year 2026-27. AISD Superintendent Matias Segura confirmed his decision to pause additional school closures in a letter posted to the district's website April 26.

“I am very much committed to moving forward the boundary process but have concerns around taking on consolidations,” Segura said at an April 23 board meeting.

The update: AISD will begin discussing districtwide rezoning at community meetings in May and June.

What else? AISD is weighing $117 million-$132 million in budget cuts for next fiscal year, which could include laying off staff and reducing academic programming. The district’s projected budget shortfall has increased from $49 million in FY 2025-26 to $181 million in FY 2026-27 due to a decrease in property values, drop in enrollment and the delay of a $26 million property sale.

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center’s café is temporarily closed for remodeling since early January, according to a representative from the center.

Learn more: After 40 years, the center is remodeling the cafe extensively, Scott Simons, Director of Marketing & Communications, told Community Impact. The cafe will be closed for several months, Simons said 

Dig deeper: The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center notified guests in late March that Ike n Aves and Dulce Frida food trucks will be onsite every weekend. 

Some snacks and drinks are also available inside the wildflower centers in the shop and gallery.

In their own words: “We’re excited to improve the café experience and will share updates here as the project unfolds, including information about temporary food and drink options during the closure,” according to the center’s website”

• 4801 La Crosse Ave., Austin

Barton Springs Nursery has been a dedicated green space in Austin for four decades, with an equally dedicated staff to maintain it. Five years ago,  couple Amy Hovis and Greg Thomas bought the nursery and have since been transforming it into a space that’s “presentable, welcoming and centering in on education and community,” Hovis explained.

More details: Barton Springs Nursery specializes in native and adapted plants. Barton Springs grows its own hard-to-find native plants and is the only retail nursery in Texas to grow and sell its own, Hovis said.

What’s special about it: Hovis and Thomas also strive to create a people-centric space, designed for visitors to enjoy the space without the pressure to purchase anything. The business also offers free coffee.

A new chapter: Hovis and Thomas recently expanded the nursery to include a new location on North Lamar Boulevard with a focus on architectural design and installation. 

“That's my roots from how I started, and now it's coming full circle,” Hovis said. 

• 3601 Bee Cave Road, Austin

Following hours of emotional testimony April 28, Texas lawmakers grilled state health officials about why they had not suspended the operating license of a Hill Country summer camp where 25 campers and two counselors died in a July 4 flood.

The details: Jennifer Shuford, commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services, said her team was reviewing Camp Mystic’s application for a renewed license and investigating multiple complaints against the camp, noting that the agency did not have the unilateral authority to suspend or revoke a camp’s license.

Rep. Drew Darby, a San Angelo Republican who authored camp safety legislation during a special session last summer, disagreed.

"The Legislature acted with specific intent to establish nonnegotiable safety standards, eliminate agency discretion and ensure no procedural mechanism could be used to keep a dangerous camp operating," Darby said April 28.

The background: State law requires that all Texas summer camps develop and annually update comprehensive emergency plans, set up warning systems to notify campers if something is wrong, Community Impact previously reported.