Austin, TX

Winter weather: Central Texas businesses, services affected by possible snow, ice

Published

12 months ago

January 20, 2025

Winter weather: Central Texas businesses, services affected by possible snow, ice

AUSTIN, Texas – Central Texas businesses, organizations and government entities are adjusting their operations due to the arctic blast that’s impacting the region.

The backstory:

A Winter Storm Warning has been issued from 6 p.m. today, Jan. 20, to 6 p.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 21. This means snow and sleet are possible and could lead to some travel issues overnight.

FOX 7 Austin’s Zack Shields says that all the pieces of the snow puzzle will come together tonight from midnight to sunrise tomorrow. The highest snow totals will stay east of Austin with 1 to 2″ possible.

Many school districts, private and charter schools, and colleges and universities have decided to close their campuses for Tuesday, Jan. 21 with decisions pending for Wednesday.

What businesses are impacted?

H-E-B

The Texas grocery store chain says they are temporarily adjusting store hours for the following stores:

Greater San Antonio area

Boerne, Bulverde, Fredericksburg, all Kerrville stores, and all New Braunfels stores will close at 8 p.m. on Jan. 20 and open at 10 a.m. on Jan. 21.
All other San Antonio area stores will close at 10 p.m. on Jan. 20 and open at 10 a.m. on Jan. 21.
Central Market will close at 10 p.m. on Jan. 20 and open at 10 a.m. on Jan. 21.

Central Texas area

Kyle, Lockhart, Luling, and all San Marcos stores will close at 8 p.m. on Jan. 20 and open at 10 a.m. on Jan. 21.
Wimberley will close at 7 p.m. on Jan. 20 and open at 10 a.m. on Jan. 21.
All other Central Texas area stores will close at regular hours on Jan. 20 and open at 10 a.m. on Jan. 21.
Central Market stores will close at 10 p.m. on Jan. 20 and open at 10 a.m. on Jan. 21.
Stores in Belton, Harker Heights, Gatesville, Killeen, Temple, and Waco area will operate normal business hours.

For more information, click here.

What services are affected?

CapMetro

CapMetro services are suspended after 9 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 20. Riders are advised to take final trips before 9 p.m. Night Owl buses are canceled.

Due to MLK Day, Rail, UT Shuttles and Express are not in service.

CapMetro says that it expects service will also be impacted on Tuesday, Jan. 21 and will share updates here.

Central Health and CommUnityCare

All Central Health and CommUnityCare clinics and offices will be closed Tuesday, Jan. 21.

Central Health and CommUnityCare team members are contacting patients with information about how the weather will impact their appointments. Patients seen by third-party providers will be contacted by those providers.

Central Health Eligibility Services team members are contacting applicants with appointments to reschedule or provide information about how to apply online and over the phone. An announcement on Wednesday closures will be issued Tuesday.

Central TX VA Health Care System

VA outpatient clinics in Austin, Cedar Park, LaGrange and Bryan/College Station will be closed Tuesday, Jan. 21.

Local VA staff are reaching out to patrons affected by the closures to reschedule appointments either via VA Video Connect (VVC), Telehealth, or in-person appointments.

All clinics are expected to reopen on Wednesday. All other facilities and services remain open for normal operating hours.

Integral Care

Integral Care clinics, administrative offices, and other non-essential programs will be closed on Tuesday, Jan. 21. Psychiatric Emergency Services, all other crisis services and all residential services are continuing normal operations.

Anyone in need of urgent help can call 512-472-HELP (4357), then press 1 for English, then 1 for immediate assistance.

YMCA of Greater Austin

All Greater Austin YMCA centers will be closing all facilities on Monday Jan. 21 at 8 p.m. and expects to reopen facilities at noon on Tuesday, Jan. 21.

What government offices are impacted?

City of Austin

All City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department facilities will be closed on Tuesday, January 21, except those being utilized as Warming Centers.

Austin City Manager T.C. Broadnax announced the City will be under modified operations on Tuesday, Jan. 21, requiring critical employees to telework if they are able.

City of Georgetown

City of Georgetown facilities will be closed to the public on Tuesday, Jan. 21, in response to winter weather. Tuesday’s closures include:

Art Center, 816 S. Main St.
Animal Shelter, 110 Walden Drive
City Hall, 808 Martin Luther King, Jr. St.
Council and Courts Buildi,.ng (including Municipal Court), 510 W. Ninth St.
Garey Park, 6450 RM 2243
Georgetown Municipal Complex, 300-1 Industrial Ave.
GoGeo paratransit services
Grace Heritage Center, 817 S. Main St.
Parks and Recreation Administration, 1101 N. College St.
Planning Department, 809 Martin Luther King, Jr. St.
Public Library, 402 W. Eighth St.
Public Safety Operations and Training Center, Police Records and Fire Support Services offices, 3500 D.B. Wood Road
Recreation Center, 1003 N. Austin Ave.
Tennis Center, 400 Serenada Drive
Visitors Center, 103 W. Seventh St.

Board and Commission meetings scheduled for Tuesday have been cancelled. The Georgetown Executive Airport will remain open.

Solid Waste and Recycling Collection

As of 3 p.m. on Monday, Texas Disposal Systems was planning to collect landfill trash or recycling on Tuesday, Jan. 21. If you are on a Tuesday route, please put your carts out by 7 a.m. as per usual. Residents should leave their cart at the curb until it is collected, as TDS may run late or decide to delay routes until the following day. The Transfer Station, 250 W.L. Walden Drive, will remain open on Tuesday.

City of New Braunfels

The City of New Braunfels is making operational changes to city services due to the weather:

Das Rec will close at 6 p.m. Jan. 20
All non-essential City services will delay opening until 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Jan. 21st. This includes City Hall and other administrative offices, Municipal Court, the Public Library, the Westside Community Center, Das Rec, the Civic & Convention Center, and the City Municipal Building.
Garbage and Recycling collection will have a delayed start and will resume normal operations when roads are determined to be safe.
The Landa Park Golf Course will be closed through Wednesday, Jan. 22 and will re-open on Thursday, Jan. 23 at noon.
Restrooms, water fountains, and other similar facilities in all city parks are temporarily closed.
The Downtown Advisory Board meeting scheduled for 8:30 a.m. on Jan. 21 has been cancelled and will be rescheduled for a later date.

Travis County

Travis County Judge Andy Brown announced Travis County’s non-essential offices, services, and facilities will be closed on Tuesday, Jan. 21.

Essential emergency personnel will continue to report for duty. Travis County employees who have questions about their department can reach out to their immediate supervisor.

The Travis County Commissioners Court voting session scheduled for Tuesday, Jan. 21, at 9 a.m. is cancelled.

Williamson County

Williamson County offices will be closed on Tuesday, Jan. 21.

The Source: Information comes from various governments, businesses and organizations

Winter WeatherSevere WeatherBusinessConsumerCapital MetroAustinSan AntonioKyleLockhartSan MarcosLulingWimberleyTransportation

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Austin, TX

Environmental experts say Texas data centers come with uncertainty

Published

12 hours ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

Environmental experts say Texas data centers come with uncertainty

article

The main switchyard at a Midlothian power plant. The federal government is sending Texas more than $60 million to strengthen the state’s power grid. Credit: Shelby Tauber for The Texas Tribune

Texas is home to approximately 400 data centers — some currently operational, others still under construction and a number that are still in the planning stages. Experts say the boom comes with a lot of uncertainty.

Texas data center power demand

What they’re saying:

“Data centers are a relatively large power demand in a small area, something like, you know, 100 or 200 megawatts of power. That’s more than a small city or a small town would be consuming itself,” said Carey King, a research scientist with the Energy Institute at the University of Texas at Austin.

Over the past year, the Electric Reliability Council of Texas has received more than 200 gigawatts worth of large load interconnection requests, approximately 73% of which are from data centers. That has led to questions about whether the state’s grid is up to the task of supplying power to the facilities.

“Many of us who suffered through winter storm Uri still have PTSD over, you know, fears that the grid won’t be able to meet demand,” said Luke Metzger, the executive director of Environment Texas, a local nonprofit working to safeguard the state’s natural environment.

Question of infrastructure

That’s not the only question. King points out that there is also a question of whether all the proposed data centers will actually be built. He says if they don’t end up materializing, it could spell trouble for anyone making investment decisions based on the projections. And if infrastructure is built to accommodate the needs of projects that never come to fruition, those costs could be passed off to consumers in the form of higher rates.

Experts say these speculative data center projects have led to uncertainty around how much power will actually be needed to meet the demands of the state’s data centers.

Senate Bill 6, which was signed into law last June, outlined new requirements for data center projects, including stipulating that data centers put up more capital up front for things like transmission studies and interconnection fees. The bill is, in part, intended to reduce some of that uncertainty around speculative power loads.

Potential environmental impact

But concerns still remain around the potential environmental impact of the state’s data centers.

“There are an estimated 130 new gas-powered power plants that have been proposed for Texas, in part to meet this demand for data centers, and if they’re all built, that’s going to have as much climate pollution as 27 million cars,” said Metzger.

Above all, Metzger says the biggest uncertainty is water, as there is no central entity in the state that collects and compiles information on those needs.

On average, a single data center consumes millions of gallons of water annually, according to researchers with the University of Michigan. Metzger says that’s of particular concern here in Texas, where water supply is already being pushed to its limits.

“Texas is a very drought-prone state, and already, you know, you know, according to the Water Development Board, you know, we don’t have enough supply to meet demand,” said Metzger. “There is no way to make more water. And so, I think ultimately, you know that that could be the greatest concern for the state.”

Over the past year, residents across Central Texas have spoken out about data centers in places like Round Rock and Taylor, citing additional concerns including falling property values, noise, and health impacts.

What’s next:

Moving forward, experts recommend that local leaders undergo long-range planning to determine whether they’re able to allocate limited resources to data centers in the long run prior to approving these projects.

The Source: Information in this article comes from FOX 7 interviews with experts.

TexasTechnologyEnvironment

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Austin, TX

Silver Alert issued for missing 73-year-old man in Austin

Published

24 hours ago

January 10, 2026

Press Room

Silver Alert issued for missing 73-year-old man in Austin

AUSTIN, Texas — The Texas Department of Public Safety has issued a Silver Alert for an elderly man who has been missing since Friday afternoon in Austin.

The Austin Police Department is looking for Charles Evans, a 73-year-old man diagnosed with a cognitive impairment. Evans was last seen at 5:37 p.m. on Jan. 9 in Austin.

Silver Alert issued for missing 73-year-old man in Austin

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Police describe him as a 6’3″ tall white male, weighing 225 pounds, has gray hair, hazel eyes, and who uses a walker.

Law enforcement officials believe his disappearance poses a credible threat to his health and safety.

Anyone with information regarding his whereabouts is urged to contact the Austin Police Department at 512-974-5000.

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Austin, TX

Man arrested, charged for deadly shooting at downtown Austin hotel

Published

1 day ago

January 9, 2026

Press Room

Man arrested, charged for deadly shooting at downtown Austin hotel

article

AUSTIN, Texas – A 20-year-old was arrested and charged with murder for a deadly shooting at the Cambria Hotel in downtown Austin, police said.

What we know:

Police said on Monday, Jan. 5, around 6:55 a.m., officers responded to a report of a gunshot at the Cambria Hotel at 68 East Avenue #824. The caller said a person had been shot.

When officers arrived, they found a man with injuries. He later died at the scene. He was identified as Luke Bradburn.

The investigation revealed that Bradburn drove and crashed a car that belonged to 20-year-old Maximillian Salinas. After the crash, Bradburn and the other people in the car left and went to the Cambria Hotel.

Salinas went to the hotel and shot Bradburn.

On Jan. 6, Salinas was arrested and charged with murder.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the Austin Police at 512-974-TIPS. You may submit your tip anonymously through the Capital Area Crime Stoppers Program by visiting austincrimestoppers.org or calling 512-472-8477.

The Source: Information from the Austin Police Department

DowntownCrime and Public Safety

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