Austin leaders are preparing for the arrival of new advanced aircraft like electric vertical take-off and landing, or eVTOL, vehicles.

The details: Under a new Federal Aviation Administration program, the vehicles are now being evaluated for passenger and cargo transportation as well as emergency response. The Texas Department of Transportation-led Project Nexus aims to eventually extend air taxi networks between Austin, Houston, Dallas and San Antonio.

As the FAA manages airspace, Austin officials noted the city will likely have little authority over eVTOL operations. However, Austin's transportation, aviation, public safety, land use and legal departments will be involved in a local response to the arrival of the aircraft in town.

The city and LIFT Aircraft had previously partnered on an unsuccessful application to the FAA's eVTOL testing initiative. That proposed "Project AMP" would've used LIFT's fleet for air taxi operations cross Greater Austin, according to the 2025 project application obtained through a public records request.

The AT&T Hotel and Conference Center, located on The University of Texas campus, recently underwent renovations totaling over $35 million. Construction on the project began in the spring to modernize guest rooms and meeting space.

Learn more: The hotel is equipped with 297 guest rooms, 85,000 square feet of meeting space, 53 meeting rooms and its in-house restaurant, The Carillon.

What’s new: The interior redesign blends Texas culture and modern luxury, according to a news release. Owned by the university, the hotel features memorabilia highlighting the school's history. New additions include:

• Updates to the presidential suites

• A new junior ballroom

• Updated foyers

• Advanced AV technology for high-tech meetings and conferences

Something to note: Individuals interested in visiting the conference center can inquire about reservations online.

Travis County election staff are working through more than 35,000 voter registration records that the Texas Department of Public Safety failed to send to the county, including some submitted nearly a year ago.

What happened: DPS said in a Sept. 24 statement that a third-party vendor whose software handles the daily batch files to the state updated its software in October 2025, cutting off parts of some records and leaving the state unable to process them.

What voters should know: Registrations count from the day of the DPS transaction, so anyone who registered through DPS on or before Oct. 5 is eligible for the November election even if the county processes the record later, according to the Secretary of State's office.

Anyone missing from the rolls after registering online through DPS can still vote a provisional ballot, which officials will count once they confirm the DPS transaction, according to the Secretary of State's office.

Voters can check their status at votetexas.gov or with Travis County.

Check out six Austin-area stories trending Sept. 28-Oct. 2.

1. Round Rock OKs alcohol sales in The District

2. GFiber breaks ground in Georgetown, plans 2027 service launch

3. Lammes Candies returns under new owners, with holiday preorders open now

4. Bastrop County property tax rate to rise 6.2%

5. 1,000 apartments cleared for MoPac site in Southwest Austin despite Circle C residents' traffic, safety concerns

6. Pflugerville to gain 2 restaurants, plus other business news