ATX-NCA: Impact 11/10/2025

The city of Austin is partnering with the Military Veterans Empowerment Network to host the 69th annual Veterans Day Parade.

The details: The parade will start at Congress Avenue bridge and end at the Capitol building, beginning at 9 a.m. Tuesday, Nov. 11.

In addition to the parade, the city will also host a Veterans Day celebration Nov. 10 at the City of Austin Permitting and Development Center, where participants will be able to connect with grassroots organizations, city officials and veteran service groups.

The event requires an RSVP for admittance, and due to high demand and limited space, the event is at capacity.

Austin-born coffee shop Jo's Coffee is now open in West Campus near The University of Texas at Austin.

The details: This is the ninth location of the coffee shop, which was founded in 1999 and is managed by Bunkhouse Hotels.

The location is housed within the Union on 24th apartment building and features both indoor and outdoor seating as well as an exterior window for pick-ups and online orders.

On the menu: Jo’s has a new signature drink exclusive to this location, The Longhorn Latte, made with maple, peach, cinnamon and topped with whipped cream.

Patrons can also order tacos for breakfast or lunch, sandwiches, snacks and pastries from Texas French Bread.

• 701 W. 24th St., Austin

The income-restricted housing complex Libertad Austin opened this fall with 198 affordable apartments in East Austin.

The details: The Vecino Group-developed Libertad features a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom units for tenants earning up to 30%-60% of the local median family income, or MFI. A share of the complex's nearly 200 units is also reserved for tenants exiting homelessness with 50 project-based housing vouchers for permanent supportive housing units from the Housing Authority of the city of Austin. On-site supportive services for residents will include case management, financial planning, life skills and health classes, employment counseling, food distribution and children’s programming.

Libertad is located on land acquired by the Austin Housing Finance Corp., the city's strategic housing nonprofit, and received $4.5 million of anti-displacement funding from the Project Connect transit system. The project was also awarded housing tax credits by the Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs.

Check out the top trending Community Impact stories in the Austin metro from Nov. 3-7.

1. New high-rise height limit now in effect for downtown Austin

2. Austinites reject Proposition Q tax hike

3. New Indian grocery store in the works in Pflugerville

4. Lucky Claw Mania now open in Pflugerville

5. Austin ISD to hold off on 3 school closures, delay boundary changes

6. Pflugerville mayoral race heads to runoff; Coffman wins open council seat

More than 20 months after wildfires swept through the Texas Panhandle in early 2024, burning over 1.2 million acres of land, state lawmakers questioned if Texas has the tools needed to tackle another major fire.

The context: Texas is always a fire-prone state, according to the Western Fire Chiefs Association. The association’s website reports that annual wildfire risk is most severe from February-April, when dry grasses and high winds can cause fires to spread, and August-October, when high temperatures and droughts contribute to fires.

“Our purpose today is to figure out—what is our response going to look like next February and March?” Rep. Ken King, a Republican representing Canadian and other Panhandle communities, said during a Nov. 3 committee hearing. “Are we better prepared … or are we in the same position we were in 2024, when our response was lacking?”

The details: Officials said Texas owns just two firefighting aircraft, with others "essentially [subleased] through the federal government."

During peak wildfire season, this means Texas may have access to limited resources.