Bee Cave calls for disaster declaration ahead of eclipse
The Bee Cave City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a disaster declaration that would allow officials to take immediate action in case of a true emergency during the solar eclipse on April 8.
The declaration gives the mayor authority to request state funding if needed during the eclipse. “We don’t want to cause alarm, but this is an important move to ensure we can use all the tools we have available to be prepared for this influx of people to the area,” said Bee Cave Mayor Kara King.
City officials have said they expect thousands of extra visitors to Bee Cave and tens of thousands on the highways around the city.
"Our police department will be fully staffed and stretched thin and we are taking all the measures we can to ensure emergency services can get where they need to go," officials said on the city's Facebook page. "We ask you help us accomplish this by staying home and avoiding the roads."
The path of the eclipse will be along a southwest-to-northeast line through North America, including Bee Cave and other parts of Central Texas. Scientists say it will be the last total solar eclipse visible to the world until 2044.
King said Bee Cave is expecting gridlock on Texas 71 and RM 620 as people travel through the city to and from Austin, meaning there will be a demand increase on local services, including emergency ones, due to the influx of people.
“By preparing ahead of time, we hope this will simply be a wonderful memory for visitors and residents alike," she said. "Stay home and enjoy getting to live in the totality zone without having to travel anywhere.”
The Lake Travis school district has canceled school for the event.
Bee Cave officials recommend that residents:
Not schedule any appointments for that day unless necessary
Avoid driving on highways
Get gas ahead of that weekend
Make a plan in case cell phone service is disrupted
Call police only in an emergency
Have the Voylent Alert app on phones with location enabled in case the city sends out an emergency message
Chick-fil-A to get drive-thru remodel
Drive-thru speakers and recessed lights in drive-thru canopies are coming to the Lake Travis location of Chick-fil-A after a unanimous vote from the council.
The location of the chain restaurant, because of its construction in 2004, is subjected to an ordinance passed in 2000 forbidding outside speakers due to noise concerns. However, with the recent commercial developments nearby of banks, restaurants and shopping spaces, and having no residential spaces within 1,200 feet, the ordinance should be adjusted to allow outside speakers, said city planner Sean Lapano.
The two proposed speakers, Lapano said, would not exceed 95 decibels, which is 20 points above the city-approved decibel level of 75. Lapano said the restaurant has “recognized” the city’s noise ordinance and will take steps to comply with it to ensure it does not bother local businesses or residences.
“The culture of Chick-fil-A is to do face-to-face orders,” Steve Drenner, the principal founder of land-use law firm the Dimmer Group, who is representing the restaurant during the project, said during the meeting. “That is not changing.”
Drenner said the lighting and speaker additions are meant to ensure worker safety during events like inclement weather and to increase early morning efficiency.
“Chick-fil-A is a model of what we want food service to be,” King said during the meeting. “They’re the most efficient crowded place in town, every single day, and with a smile on their face.”
It was not clear when construction would begin or end at the location, though Lapano said the hours of operation will not change to accommodate the work.
Bee Cave on Ice returning for 2024-25
The council also approved a contract to work with Crown Rink events to host the 2024-25 season of Bee Cave on Ice.
The agreement comes a little over two months after the city’s release of data calling the 2023-24 season a resounding success with almost 23,000 tickets sold. The $316,565 approved contract fits within the approximately $370,000 the city spent for last year’s season.
This upcoming season will be open for 15 fewer days compared to last year, however, because funding will come from the city's budget rather than through the hotel occupancy tax, said Jane Kernen, the administrative manager of parks and facilities. The $0.75 charge for purchasing tickets online, while in operation for the past two seasons, is now officially incorporated into the contract, she said.
Bee Cave on Ice is currently a “feel-good community event,” said Kernen, and that the event was breaking even and not making a large profit for the city. She said this is not a concern as the city wants to keep providing community activities without causing financial stress on residents.
This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Bee Cave calls for disaster declaration ahead of eclipse
