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City Cast Austin

Kelsey Bradshaw

(Jay Janner/The Austin American-Statesman/

Becky Fogel

It feels like all eyes are on Texas for the midterm elections and 

has been off the charts. If you didn’t take advantage of early voting (which ends Oct. 30), Travis County will have 

 on Election Day. The polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. and as long as you are in line by 7 p.m., 

Thundercloud Subs is hosting their 36th annual 

 on Thanksgiving morning on Nov. 26. You can do a five mile run (pass!) or a one mile walk (now we’re talking) that begins at the 

. Registration fees do increase as the deadline approaches from as low as $25 to as much as $45.

,” you’ve got the stamina for the many fun festivals happening in and around Austin in November. There’s the 

 is a free, annual event that gives you a unique window into the work of local artists throughout the city. You can find a beautiful print for your apartment, get a behind-the-scenes look at artists’ studios, and step into unexpected gallery spaces. Need an excuse to explore? Here you go! This year, the Austin Studio Tour is happening on Nov. 14 and 15 as well as Nov. 21 and 22.

Spending Thanksgiving with your chosen family? Prepare to knock everybody’s socks off with a cooking class! 

” class. If the $105 cost of the class is too steep, I’m currently obsessed with these 

. An affordable seasonal treat that’s also a crowd pleaser.

Your Guide to November 2026 in Austin

Find the best of everything that Austin has to offer. 

Austin’s Best

Austin's Best

Not only is voting amazing because of that whole democracy thing, but you can also get a lot of free and discounted stuff! Who doesn’t love stuff?

Early voting runs through Oct. 30 before Election Day on Nov. 3. Here’s your guide to the best deals you can get by showing your “I Voted” sticker:

$1 off Lone Star Tallboys, $3 off frozen drinks,

 on Election Day, but you can bring your sticker if you early voted.

The Best Austin Freebies You Can Get With Your 'I Voted' Sticker

The first weekend of Austin City Limits Music Festival has come and gone and it will go down 

 Zilker Park was coated in gloopy, yucky mud.

Whether you prefer “RainCL” or “Mud City Limits,” the festival was marked by weather. Hair-raising forecasts warned eight inches of rain may fall in some areas of the city, a flood watch was issued, and attendees waited to see if the festival would end up canceled. 

 were recorded between Thursday and Friday, leaving Zilker Park wet for the fest’s first day.

But despite it all, Austinites and visitors filled the park all weekend long. They clomped through the sludge, donned ponchos as steady rain fell on Friday, and some took it a step further with 

 and others straight up rolled around in the goop each day.

Saturday’s opening was delayed by two hours due to the muddy conditions. Festival officials attempted to fix the mud situation on Day 2, bringing in TexasTurf to lay down 60,000 square feet of artificial turf to make it easier to traverse the park. The artificial grass company said they 

got the call to come out at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday

Mulch and pallets were laid over the mud, 

 according to the festival, in some areas, too. Tractors shoved mud into piles that were then cordoned off. Trucks laying down pallets and moving mud around could be seen throughout the day.

Austin City Council Member Ryan Alter, who represents a portion of Zilker Park, released a statement saying the company that puts on the festival, C3, 

needs to be held accountable for the condition

“ACL is a great event for Austin, its residents, visitors, and our economy but the damage we’ve witnessed to the Great Lawn is unacceptable,” he said.

What will happen with the mud for Weekend 2 is yet to be seen. But if you can handle being a little dirty, the mud, which did not smell great, wasn’t too bad. It may have even been preferable — we didn’t walk away from the festival covered in sweat and dust with a sunburn. Instead, temperatures were 

and with the right footwear, at least our feet stayed dry.

As for the music, it was business as usual. Love or hate the lineup, but each artist we saw put on a great show. Charli XCX turned the park into our favorite club ever on Friday night. She captivated the crowd with incredible dancing and pyrotechnics. Australian pop star Troye Sivan made a guest appearance, which was a great treat, and was a highlight of the show.

Young Miko was effortlessly cool and mesmerized the crowd with hit after hit, Bleachers had us nostalgic for the 2010s, and Lorde reminded us that she freaking rules.

All in all, ACL Fest was wonderful. It had its quirks this year, but it was as fun as ever and had us feeling wistful about the city we currently live in. How great is it to live here? Here’s to another 25 years of ACL Fest!

City Cast Austin’s Elissa Castles and Becky Fogel contributed to this report.

A little mud didn't deter festival attendees from having a great time. 

ACL Fest Was Glorious This Year, Both in Mud and Music

It’s hereeee! The first weekend of Austin City Limits Music Festival kicks off today at noon. Here’s our best tips and recommendations for the weekend:

arrive earlier than you think you need to

. Entrances have a tendency to get clogged up when gates open and later in the day, around 3 or 4 p.m., as bigger and bigger acts start to perform. Check the 

festival’s list of what you can and can’t bring

 to speed things up, too. And if you somehow manage to breeze through security, which I hope you do, you’ll have plenty of time to fill up your water bottle, check out the merch, maybe grab a snack, and find a good spot!

Do you have a Type A friend? ACL Fest is the best time to employ their skills because you need to 

. Phone service gets spotty as more people arrive at Zilker Park, meaning you might not be able to text your friends information on where you’re sitting or eating. Designate a time and meeting spot so you can stay together! 

The Main Guest Services Tent also serves as an official festival meeting place

 if you get lost or separated. You can also 

. Festival officials will share any weather updates 

, with thunderstorms expected today and tonight. That means you need to pack a little more than just your usual 

hand sanitizer, bandana for the dust, and toilet paper

. (You should definitely pack those, by the way!)

, and if you don’t have those, wear a pair of shoes you don’t care about as Zilker Park will likely end up very muddy. Bring an 

, because there’s nothing worse than wet socks! 

 will come in handy, too. Now is the time to invest 

 of some kind. You don’t want your stuff getting wet. Umbrellas are 

. So many great local restaurants pop up and you don’t have to deal with pesky reservations! Here’s what I’m eyeing this year:

will be all over the festival with spots in the ACL Eats section and VIP East, among others! Sign me up!

🍧 It may be raining this weekend, but temperatures will still be in 80s during the day and that’s the perfect temperature for a snow cone. You can find 

 for a while now and I’ll be looking for them in the ACL Eats section. The sandwiches sound so good!

 is going to be at the festival’s ACL Eats section this year?! Their bahn mis are so dang good.

🌮 Looking for an old faithful? Don’t worry. 

The Best Tips for ACL Fest 2026

Austin City Council members adopted a $6.6 million budget for the 2026-27 fiscal year. It went into effect today and 

includes a roughly $113.76 jump in property taxes

 for Austin homeowners. The budget also includes 

$3 million to keep operating a temporary emergency shelter

, $6 million for Austin Fire Department overtime costs, and some cuts to social service contracts.

Pumpkins are back! The gourds are in season for all your cooking needs, along with other seasonal favorites 

, and for your pumpkin patch needs! Austin has plenty of really great pumpkin patches. Tarrytown United Methodist Church’s 

, and Bethany United Methodist Church’s 

early voting starts Oct. 19 and runs through Oct. 30

Waiting until Election Day to vote may leave you stuck in a long line and that is not the best! 

 to cast your ballot during early voting, which runs from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily. Some locations will have extended hours, too, so you have no reason to not get out and vote, y’all!

Yes, it seems Austin-Bergstrom International Airport is always in its busy season these days, but things really do ramp up this month with events like ACL Fest and Formula 1. October 2025 was the airport’s busiest month ever before it 

. More than 2 million people traveled through the airport last October, with more than 

45,000 passengers on the Monday after Formula 1

. You know what to do: Arrive earlier than you think you need to!

Día de los Muertos, or the Day of the Dead, runs Nov. 1-2, but Austin’s Mexic-Arte Museum is throwing its big celebration on Oct. 24. 

 is free to attend and includes a parade and festival! The event starts at noon at the intersection of Fourth Street and Congress Avenue. Art activities, traditional food, local artists, shopping, a low-rider exhibition, and live performances are all part of the fun!

Your Guide to October 2026 in Austin

What’s fun about “Brothers,” the new Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson 

It has Holland Taylor playing “Ma Mac” and wearing either a lot of bronzer or hastily applied self-tanner. She knows how to wield a gun and a motorcycle. You get doppelgängers of McConaughey and Harrelson’s real-life families, a peek into what a McConaughey run for governor might look like, and enough Central Texas references to keep you fed for weeks.

But if you’re looking for prestige television, the kind that can pull you away from your phone games while watching, this probably isn’t it. It’s a goofy, easy watch — a show my dad would call “chewing gum” AKA just something to have on.

The show premiered on Apple TV on Wednesday with two episodes. Six more episodes will be released weekly. The show boasts in the opening credits that it’s based on “a true rumor” that McConaughey and Harrelson may be related. McConaughey’s mother once 

 she knew Harrelson’s father around the time the actor was conceived. This is the basis of the show. But there’s a key difference in the made-for-TV version: Taylor tells Harrelson, who has so far kept the possible family relation a secret from McConaughey.

“Maybe it’s not a total coinkydink that you and Matthew are always scrapping like brothers,” Taylor’s character says.

The pair of actors are playing themselves in the show and at several times when watching you might wonder if they just asked a camera to follow them around in their daily lives. I am assuming a lot of their actual friendship is portrayed in the show — Harrelson is a little bit of a hippie who lives his life in a loosey-goosey kind of way. Next to McConaughey’s more structured self, it does bring out a few laughs.

I did like that the show alluded to some real Harrelson family history. Harrelson in the show says his father, Clive V. Harrelson, was in prison his whole life. That’s not far from the truth. Harrelson’s real father, Charles Harrelson, was found guilty of 

assassinating a federal judge in San Antonio in 1982

The show also pokes fun at its characters — shots and mentions of Lincolns, the vehicles McConaughey has long done commercials for, abound. (Never forget this 

As for the local references, you’ll hear McConaughey say something about going to Whisler’s, so you know he’s really an Austin local, of course. Mentions of Lockhart, including a fictional bar called the Saddle Saloon, are included.

The second episode has McConaughey taking his oldest son on his first deer hunt. I found the whole storyline to be a bit clunky. McConaughey keeps calling the event “the hunt” and I don’t know if I’m just being annoying, but in my whole life I have never heard my Texas-born father call going deer hunting “the hunt.” It felt like a parody of Texans, despite McConaughey and Harrelson being Texans themselves. (Maybe I’m being dramatic! Please watch and let me know if you agree!)

My favorite part of the first episode is when Joe Rogan is mentioned by a TMZ reporter driving McConaughey and Harrelson. Maybe Rogan will run for governor, Harrelson says. That’s when McConaughey hits us with what might be a wink to his future:

“Texans want a real Texan in the mansion,” he said.

McConaughey played with running for Texas governor a few years ago. Is “Brothers” just a vehicle to make that happen? I’ll be tuning in for the next six weeks to find out!

McConaughey and Harrelson’s ‘Brothers’ Is a Mindless, Fun Texas Time

Natalia Aldana

The month celebrating the experiences, cultures, and contributions of Latina/e/o/x and Hispanic communities in the U.S. began Sept. 15 and runs through Oct. 15. Hispanic Heritage Month was 

Why does this heritage month start in the middle of September? It marks 

a significant period in the region’s liberation from its colonizers

, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua declared independence from Spain on Sept. 15, 1821. Mexico celebrates independence on Sept. 16 and Chile on Sept. 18. Belize declared independence from the United Kingdom on Sept. 21, 1981.

Here are some ways you can celebrate this month:

Día de los Muertos: Coleccionando Memorias

Club Cumbia with Flor de la Frontera & The Cumbia Cunh + Free Dance Class

Centennial and Latino Heritage Celebration

 at the Southeast Community Branch - Austin Public Library

🖼️ Sept. 19-20 & Sept. 26-27 (and beyond): 

Anthropos All-Stars Present: Cumbia Dance Part

 at Emma S. Barrientos Mexican American Cultural Center

 at the Little Walnut Creek Branch - Austin Public Library

Changarrito Residency: Sandra C Fernandez

Taino Harvest - Casabe Workshop & Ceremony

Plus, even more events for children and adults at 

no shortage of Latin American restaurants

 — perhaps too many to list here. But our favorites include: 

. Order the seasonal chiles en nogada if they’re on the menu!

 has tons of cute T-shirts, socks, tote bags, hats, keychains, books, pins, patches, puzzles, greeting cards, and more in its store.

💅 Get your nails done or acquire a tooth gem at 

, a Latina-owned salon in South Austin. The salon also sells jewelry, nail care items, and more online.

, a Latina-owned brand offering up great accessories, candles, jewelry, flower crowns, and literally anything else you can think of.

Hispanic Heritage Month runs through Oct. 15. 

Where to Celebrate and Dine During Hispanic Heritage Month in Austin

The Best Ways to Celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month in Austin

Miles Bloxson is the new host of City Cast Austin and will make her podcast debut on Sept. 22. Bloxson is a native Austinite, who grew up on the East Side and attended LBJ High School. She is a Longhorn and seventh generation Central Texan with family ties to Bastrop, Smithville, and Manor.

Bloxson comes to us from KUT where she served as a midday host and producer. She will continue producing “Black Austin Matters” and co-hosting “Pause/Play” at KUT. She will also keep hosting her podcast “Miles To Mogul.”

Bloxson has a specific vision for City Cast Austin: It’ll be like getting the inside scoop from your bestie. Listeners can expect a fun, conversational podcast with the news you both 

Whether you’re a news junkie or you try to avoid the daily barrage, City Cast Austin is going to be for you, Bloxson said.

“I’m here for everybody,” she said. “I want to have fun! I want news to be fun.”

The podcast will feel comfortable, enjoyable, and like it’s coming from someone who loves her city. As a born-and-raised Austinite, Bloxson is curious about what’s happening to her hometown as it changes and changes and changes. Fun fact: Being curious is like half the work of being a journalist!

“I’m just so passionate about what’s happening in my city,” Bloxson said.

Austin’s identity can often be hard to pin down. Are we hippies or tech bros? Is this city weird anymore? Who can even afford to live here these days? Enter: Bloxson.

Austin is is a guiding question for our new host.

“I’m really out here. I’m always checking the pulse of the city, talking to community leaders and entrepreneurs. I want to bring you the insight that I’m getting when I’m in these different rooms and different spaces,” she said.

Bloxson plans to focus on underrepresented voices in the Austin community and hopes the show truly reflects the fabric of the city and the people who live in it.

“It will be something for the newcomers, the natives, and the longtimers,” she said. “I hope that everybody gets something from this show regardless of what bucket you fit into.”

 we needed some rapid fire questions to get you more acquainted with Bloxson! Let’s do it:

Baby A’s, Mr. Catfish, Juiceland, and the Pappadeaux Seafood Kitchen on Interstate 35. “I’ve been skipping class since I was 15 to go to Pappadeaux,” Bloxson said.

 Rihanna and Austin’s Anastasia Hera and J Soulja

“It’s such a sweet city. Everybody is doing their thing and everybody is nice about doing their thing. There’s no stranger here.”

“There was a time I could go from my house to the University of Texas at Austin in a whopping 14 minutes. I could leave at 7:45 a.m. and make my 8 a.m. class. Not anymore!”

This wouldn’t be a local podcast if I didn’t ask Bloxson what the weirdest things about her are! Her answers are great:

“The only hot sauce I like is Tabasco,” she said. Do with that information what you will.

Bloxson’s nickname growing up was “Gizmo” after the main gremlin in the 1984 movie “Gremlins” and its sequels. “People said I laughed like Gizmo,” she says.

A Gemini, Bloxson was born on the same day as her favorite rapper: Tupac Shakur.

The City Cast Austin Podcast Is Back. Meet the New Host.

News and updates about the City Cast Austin podcast, newsletter, and team.

City Cast Austin In The Press

In The Press

Austin Trivia: How Much Do You Know About Local Civics?

What's being decided in Austin City Hall and why it matters. We monitor local elections, political news, and Austin City Council. 

Austin Election and City Hall News

Local Civics

The city of Austin is asking for feedback on renaming Cesar Chavez Street following sexual assault accusations made against the labor leader 

The street runs east from MoPac Boulevard (Loop 1) to U.S. 183. Previously named Water Avenue and then First Street, it was renamed for Chavez after 

. El Concilio Mexican-American Landowners de East Austin, a local nonprofit, originally organized a call to rename First Street to honor Chavez. Now, the group is among several Austinites who want the street changed back to its original name or renamed completely.

 for residents to take about the possible renaming. The survey includes questions about a person’s relationship to Cesar Chavez Street and what factors the city should consider in renaming it.

Two names the city is considering because of their historic ties to the road are La Primera Street and First Street. You can also submit your own ideas for what the street should be named, with a couple of rules:

Cannot contain numbers, complicated words, or unconventional spellings

No offensive, libelous, derogatory or copyrighted words can be used

Only characters of the standard English alphabet are allowed

Updating the current street signs and highway signs, and notifying impacted businesses and residents would cost between roughly $413,700 and $1,223,700, 

In addition to the survey, the city is hosting 

 to gather community feedback on the renaming:

Aug. 11 at 5 p.m. at Austin Public Library’s Central Library

Aug. 15 at 2 p.m. at Sanchez Elementary School

Austin Wants Your Feedback on Cesar Chavez Street

More than 1,300 students living within the Austin Independent School District’s boundaries have received education savings accounts, or 

, in 2025 to give families taxpayer money to help pay for private school or homeschooling.

Here’s the latest on what it could mean for AISD:

More than 200 private schools in the Austin area are eligible to accept state funding.

Local Civics

Austin Trivia: How Much Do You Know About Local Civics?

Kelsey Bradshaw

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