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Bastrop elementary school unveils vending machine for books

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:45 GMT

BASTROP, Texas (KXAN) – Lost Pines Elementary has a new vending machine, according to the Bastrop Independent School District. The district posted Tuesday morning that the school unveiled the machine that will vend books instead of snacks. The district said the machine will dispense a book of choice to students when they are "recognized for being safe, respectful, & responsible". Book vending machine at Lost Pines Elementary. (Courtesy: Bastrop ISD)Book vending machine at Lost Pines Elementary. (Courtesy: Bastrop ISD)Book vending machine at Lost Pines Elementary. (Courtesy: Bastrop ISD)Book vending machine at Lost Pines Elementary. (Courtesy: Bastrop ISD)KXAN has reached out to the district for more details about the machine and will update this article when we get the information.

Head of state licensing department resigns

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:45 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) – The head of the Texas state agency in charge of 38 license programs left his job, the agency said Monday. The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation said Executive Director Mike Arismendez resigned. TDLR did not give a reason for the resignation. TDLR said Christina Kaiser, TDLR Senior Deputy Executive Director, has been temporarily designated as Acting Executive Director of the agency. Investigations: New law takes away some Texas veterinary board authority temporarily According to the announcement, Arismendez became Deputy Executive Director at TDLR in 2019 and Executive Director in 2022. Before joining the agency, Arismendez was a member of the Texas Commission of Licensing and Regulation from 2005 until 2019 and served as commission chair from 2014 until 2019.TDLR said Kaiser has worked at the agency since 2000, serving as Director of Enforcement from 2002 to 2019. Kaiser was promoted to Deputy Executive Director in 2019 and Arismendez promoted her to Sen...

Georgetown ISD gets top fiscal grade from state

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:45 GMT

GEORGETOWN, Texas (KXAN) – The Georgetown Independent School District said Monday its financial management got the highest rating from the state's financial accountability system. The district said it got an "A" rating for "Superior Achievement" in School FIRST (Fiscal Integrity Rating System of Texas). According to the Texas Education Agency website, the agency released preliminary 2022-23 FIRST ratings on Aug. 7. The TEA said it would release the final 2022-23 ratings sometime in November after reviewing any appeals to the preliminary ratings. PREVIOUS COVERAGE: Georgetown ISD experiencing growing pains in country's fastest growing city “This rating shows our district’s accountability, not only for student learning, but also for making the most of our tax payer's dollars,” said Dr. Devin Padavil, Georgetown ISD Superintendent in a statement to KXAN. According to GISD, the district’s Chief Financial Officer Jennifer Hanna talked about the fiscal year ending in June 2023 durin...

How to prepare for chilly Halloween in Austin

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:45 GMT

AUSTIN (KXAN) — The KXAN First Warning Weather team predicts temperatures will fall into the 40s Tuesday night, resulting in one of the coldest Halloweens ever in Austin.So how will this affect parents and kids trick-or-treating?Austin-Travis County EMS is advising people to layer up on Tuesday night. Austin neighborhood finds creative ways to trick-or-treat this Halloween amid COVID-19 pandemic This means dressing up little ghouls and goblins in warm costumes; with accessories such as gloves, hand-warmers, scarves and hats that match their costumes.Despite these cold conditions, one man in Southwest Austin can’t wait for Halloween."I am really excited that it's going to be a cold Halloween for once because those rubber masks can get really hot,” Bud Hasert said. “Having that as part of your wardrobe is going to make it more fun."Since 2020, Hasert has been going all out with Halloween decorations in front his house. Southwest Austin home the site of an out-of-this-world Hallowe...

3rd annual Thanksgiving dinner for Waterford residents

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:45 GMT

WATERFORD, N.Y. (NEWS10) -- F.B. Peck Hose Company Waterford will be hosting its third annual Thanksgiving Dinner for Waterford area Residents. Interested recipients are asked to RSVP by Sunday, November 12 by emailing [email protected] or leaving a voicemail at (518) 879-2911. Get the latest news, weather, sports and entertainment delivered right to your inbox! Hot meals will be available for pickup or delivery. The event is expecting an increase in requests this year due to several factors. Donations will also be accepted.

Massive fire near 'Savers' thrift store in Fairview Heights

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:45 GMT

FAIRVIEW HEIGHTS, Ill. - A tractor trailer parked right outside 'Savers' thrift store on Lincoln Trail caught fire just about an hour ago.Our Bommarito automotive SkyFOX helicopter was above the scene as fire crews from several different departments worked to put out the flames. The fire started in a tractor trailer parked behind the building. Crews were working to prevent the flames from spreading to the store. Surveillance cameras capture dramatic images of Central West End attack At last check, it seemed they were getting the fire under control. We have a crew on the way to the scene to check on their progress.FOX 2 will update this story with more information as it becomes available.

Downtown Denver office vacancy tops 30% for first time in decades

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:45 GMT

Nearly one out of every three floors of office space in downtown Denver is available.At the end of the third quarter, total office vacancy in the city’s core was 30.6%, according to CBRE.The real estate services firm said it’s the first time downtown total vacancy has hit 30% “in the post-2000 era.” A spokeswoman provided quarterly figures going back to 2006, which show vacancy was as low as 9.5% in early 2008 and during the Great Recession went only as high as 17.4%.The rate didn’t top 20% until the first quarter of 2021, as the effects of the pandemic set in on the office market. The 30% mark came just two-and-a-half years later.“Total vacancy” includes both “direct vacancy,” which is space no one uses that a landlord is marketing, in addition to sublease space, which is being marketed by a tenant that wants to vacate. Direct vacancy downtown was 26% at the end of the third quarter.CBRE broker Allison Berry, who represents downtown landlords, noted it’s not as if something changed...

76ers trade disgruntled guard James Harden to Clippers, AP source says

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:45 GMT

By DAN GELSTON (AP Sports Writer)PHILADELPHIA (AP) — James Harden got his trade to the Clippers.The Sixers sent Harden, P.J. Tucker and Filip Petrušev to Los Angeles for Marcus Morris, Robert Covington, Nic Batum, K.J. Martin, a 2028 unprotected first-round pick, two second-round picks, a 2029 draft-pick swap and additional first-rounder from a third team, a person familiar with the trade told The Associated Press.The person spoke on condition of anonymity Tuesday because the final details of the trade are not yet official.Harden, who told the 76ers the Clippers were his preferred team from the moment he issued his offseason trade demand, now joins a loaded roster intent on making a title push. He joined Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Russell Westbrook — Harden’s former teammate in Oklahoma City and Houston — in a veteran lineup that now make the Clippers a heavy betting favorite to win the NBA championship. The 34-year-old Harden vowed he would never pl...

Los Angeles Clippers acquire James Harden in blockbuster trade from Philadelphia 76ers 

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:45 GMT

Things may have just gotten a whole lot scarier for the rest of the NBA on Halloween, as the Clippers pulled the trigger on a trade to acquire James Harden and several other players from the Philadelphia 76ers. P.J. Tucker and Filip Petrusev will follow Harden to L.A. in exchange for Marcus Morris Sr., Nicolas Batum, Robert Covington, Kenyon Martin Jr., a 2028 unprotected first-round draft pick, two second-round picks, a 2029 pick swap and an additional first-round pick routed from a third team, ESPN Senior NBA Insider Adrian Wojnarowski reported.  California illustrator designs Clippers jerseys inspired by In-N-Out Harden, who won the 2018 NBA MVP award and was selected to ten straight All-Star Games, joins the already star-studded Clippers lineup of Kawhi Leonard, Paul George and Russell Westbrook, the latter of whom was teammates with “The Beard” in Oklahoma City and Houston.Russell Westbrook was teammates with James Harden on the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Houston Rockets. ...

Multi-vehicle crash causes massive traffic backup on southbound 101 Freeway

Published Fri, 21 Feb 2025 10:39:45 GMT

After a fatal crash on the northbound side of the 101 Freeway made the Monday morning commute a nightmare, Tuesday morning’s drive is not looking much better after a collision on the southbound span. Footage captured by Sky5 shows crews working to clear debris from the roadway, located at the Laurel Canyon exit, as traffic passed slowly by in the sole open lane.  Bicyclist killed after violent hit-and-run; LAPD searching for driver The crash occurred after “a number of other cars” struck a vehicle that stalled on the freeway before 5 a.m., according to KTLA 5’s Rich Prickett. A crash caused a massive backup on the 101 Freeway on Oct. 31, 2023. (KTLA)A crash caused a massive backup on the 101 Freeway on Oct. 31, 2023. (KTLA)A crash caused a massive backup on the 101 Freeway on Oct. 31, 2023. (KTLA)“We have a few transports that have been happening here,” Prickett said, indicating that multiple victims may have been taken to nearby hospitals. A SigAlert has been...