Eighteen public parks are on a preliminary list of 45 possible locations for city-sanctioned encampments to shelter Austin s homeless population.
City staff members prepared the list and presented it Tuesday to the Austin City Council. The list of city-owned properties builds on the council s desire to urgently get people off the streets and into lawful encampments after voters chose to reinstate the public camping ban on May 1.
The parks include Walter E. Long, Commons Ford, Mary Moore Searight, Bull Creek, Roy G. Guerrero, John Treviño Jr., Circle C and Dick Nichols. Five recreation centers also made the list: Parque Zaragoza, Givens, Northwest, South Austin and Austin.
Coronavirus cases, daily hospital admissions and intensive care unit use in the Austin area are all down since last week, and the area remains in stage 3 of Austin Public Health’s risk-based guidelines.
Numbers have declined the most among older populations, since they are more likely to have been vaccinated by now. But hospitalizations in the area for people ages 10 to 19 rose over the past week.
After the Food and Drug Administration expanded eligibility for the Pfizer vaccine to kids ages 12 to 15 on Monday, Austin’s chief medical director is encouraging parents to find a vaccine for their children.
“I can tell you that last night and this morning I’ve been looking for Pfizer vaccines for my 15-year-old son,” Dr. Mark Escott told a joint meeting of Travis County commissioners and the Austin City Council on Tuesday.
Escott sheds Travis County health authority role to become Austin s chief medical officer full time
Interim Austin-Travis County Health Authority Dr. Mark Escott is moving on from his role as the county s top doc and is set to work full time as the chief medical officer for the city of Austin, according to a letter addressed to Mayor Steve Adler.
The letter, which is also addressed to Austin and Travis County elected officials, states that Escott will end his interim role as county health authority so that he can fully engage in my new role as the chief medical officer.
Medical Director/Health Authority
The City of Austin has identified Desmar Walkes, M.D. as the City’s next Medical Director/Health Authority. Dr. Walkes will begin her new duties on May 31, 2021.
Dr. Walkes has 33 years of experience in health care as a family practitioner, medical authority, medical director, and in administrative medicine. She received a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology with honors from Acadia University in Nova Scotia, Canada and her Medical Doctor degree from the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas. Dr. Walkes completed a surgical internship at Baylor College of Medicine and, for many years, has participated in medical mission trips to Central and South America, Asia, and Africa.