06.20.2024

Today’s Forecast

☀️ Your summer bucket list

Your Austin summer bucket list

You can swim at Austin Motel with a $25 day pass or for free at a summertime event. | Photo by ATXtoday

Today is the summer solstice, aka the longest day of the year and the official start of astronomical summer.

Let’s celebrate with an old-school summer bucket list. Here’s what we think you should do in Austin before summer’s end:

Jump off the diving board at Barton Springs Pool — just don’t take it personally if you get a low score from these guys.
Take a day trip to a nearby Texas town — think Fredericksburg, Wimberley, Gruene, Georgetown, or San Marcos.

What’s better than a burger after a long day at the pool?
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Photo by ATXtoday

Ride the Deep Eddy Pool to Pool Burger to Deep Eddy Cabaret pipeline — we like to call it the Tarrytown Trifecta.
Escape the heat in a local museum — The Blanton Museum of Art has free admission on Tuesdays.
Attend an Austin FC game — the energy in Q2 Stadium is electric.
Listen to live music and take in Downtown views at The Drop-In — don’t forget water, picnic blankets, and lawn chairs.
Swim at the Austin Motel — there are plenty of poolside events to choose from.

multicolored donut floats piled high in san marcos — What color float are you picking?
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Photo by ATXtoday

Float the San Marcos River — and let your cooler full of refreshments float alongside you.
Ride the revamped Zilker Eagle — you’re never too old to enjoy a mini-train.
Eat at Ski Shores Cafe — then rent a paddleboard, kayak, or surfboard from its on-site buoy locker and play on Lake Austin.
Watch a film from your car at Blue Starlite Drive-In — the city skyline is behind the screen at the Downtown location.
Grab your friends and go to happy hour at a local restaurant — use our guide to find your new favorite deal.

Asked

Ready to check off some bucket list items?

Let us know which ATX activities you’ve already done this summer or save this poll to keep track of your progress.

Tick some boxes

Events

Thursday, June 20

PARTY WITH ART | Thursday, June 20 | 6-9 p.m. | Art for the People Gallery, 2801 S. I-35 Frontage Rd., Ste. #130, Austin | Free | Take in the art gallery’s masterpieces after-hours, connect with other art enthusiasts, and shop the artisan market.

Friday, June 21

Full Moon Swim | Friday, June 21 | 5-10 p.m. | Austin Motel, 1220 S. Congress Ave., Austin | Free | Take a dip at one of Austin’s most iconic pools under the full moon, plus, the first 100 attendees will be treated to free pie freezes from Tiny Pies.
Capricorn Full Moon Yoga + Dreamy Sound Bath | Friday, June 21 | 8-9:30 p.m. | Wild Heart Yoga, 5604 Bee Caves Rd., Austin | $40 | Ring in the Capricorn Full Moon with a sound bath and a tarot reading.
Cowgirl Events Presents: The Zoo | Friday, June 21 | 10-11:59 p.m. | Empire Control Room & Garage, 606 E. 7th St., Austin | $15 | Dance your heart out to performances by GRRL, OJC, Tee Vera, Lola Lilac, B2B, and more.

Saturday, June 22

Sign Bar Turns One | Saturday, June 22 | 11-12 a.m. | Sign Bar, 9909 FM 969, Bldg. #3, Austin | Cost of purchase | Celebrate Sign Bar’s first birthday with a caricature artist, live music + a DJ, and a raffle for an ACL Music Festival wristband.
Austin FC Watch Party with Los Verdes | Saturday, June 22 | 5 p.m. | Meanwhile Brewing Co., 3901 Promontory Point Dr., Austin | Free with RSVP | Before grabbing a cold beer and watching the Austin FC game on the big screen, arrive early for a pre-show from the supporter section band.

Events calendar here

Click here to have your event featured.

News Notes

Development

Austin is one step closer to kissing the sky. Work on Waterline, a 74-story mixed-use building that will soon be the tallest tower in Texas, is halfway done. The project is scheduled for completion in 2026 — take a virtual tour of the high-rise. (Austin Towers)

Announced

A 3-acre crystalline lagoon is coming to a new hotel in an upcoming master-planned community in Spicewood. The lagoon will be ticketed and open to the public, and the development will also feature residential units, retail space, restaurants, and a concert + event venue. (KXAN)

Civic

Lovebirds have the opportunity to tie the knot for free this month. Travis County officials will celebrate the ninth anniversary of same-sex marriage becoming a constitutional right by offering free marriage ceremonies from Saturday, June 22 through the end of the month. (KVUE)

Edu

St. Joseph Hall at St. Edward’s University has been cleared for demolition by the Historic Landmark Commission. The building, which has sat vacant since 2019, was built on a quarry in 1961 and has been used as a faculty residence, chapel, library, office, and bomb shelter. (Austin Monitor)

Cause

Lend a helping hand, make a lemonade stand. Nonprofit Foster Village has a goal of raising $40,000 for local foster families and children through local lemonade stands this month. If you see one, stop to sip in support, or get your own lemonade stand kit. (Community Impact)

Fun Fact

Don’t forget to say goodnight moon tomorrow night — feast your eyes on the first strawberry moon to coincide with the summer solstice since 1985. Its name doesn’t reflect its color (which is actually closer to orange), but is a nod to strawberry harvest season. (KUT)

Try This

Want to win free oysters for a year? You’ll have to eat more of them than anyone else at Pearl & Fin Oyster Bar’s inaugural oyster eating competition on Saturday, June 22. If you’d rather sit back and watch, expect $1 oysters + margaritas, live music, and special menu items.

Sports

The Dallas Mavericks fell to the Boston Celtics in game five of the NBA Finals — but it was still an incredible season for the team. Get the biggest stories every day from the local experts of the Dallas Mavericks with Locked On’s daily podcasts.

Number

$350 million. That’s how much money The Club at Horseshoe Bay Resort has invested in the property over the past few years to expand + improve its luxurious amenities. Sneak a peek at the improvements making a splash on Lake LBJ (think: a new floating pool, a lake obstacle course + more).*

Correction

A story about Longhorn swimmers in Tuesday’s newsletter said that Jake Foster would be competing in the 2024 Olympic Games. It’s actually his brother, UT Austin alumnus Carson Foster, who made it on Team USA.

Arts

🎭 Cue the applause

5 plays to see this summer at Austin theaters

a bride and a groom stand on a platform with women in colorful dresses to the left and men in suits on the right

This isn’t the new season of “Bridgerton” — it’s a sneak peek of “Emma” at Austin Playhouse. | Photo by Steve Rogers Photography

Summer heat is the perfect excuse to head to a local theater, sit in the AC, and see a show. Here are five plays now showing or coming soon:

“How the Other Half Loves” | Now-Sunday, June 23 | Times vary | Genesis Creative Collective | $15-$27 | Watch married couples attempt to cover up their affairs.
“La Maleta de Maebelle” | Now-Saturday, June 29 | Times vary | The VORTEX | $15-$45 | In this bilingual play, Maebelle learns life lessons from a bird.
“Emma” |Now-Sunday, June 30 | Times vary | Austin Playhouse | $24 | Experience the Jane Austen classic about a matchmaker extraordinaire.
“The Lehman Trilogy” | Now-Sunday, July 7 | Times vary | The Topfer at ZACH | $25 | Follow generations of brothers across 163 years.
“Getting in Bed with the Pizza Man” | Thursday, July 11-Saturday, July 13 | Times vary | Ground Floor Theatre | $40 | This one-woman-show details single life in a post-pandemic world.

The Buy

The Buy 6.20.24 (Affiliate + Six & Main)

A dependable, comfortable running short — like Lululemon’s Hotty Hot High-Rised Lined Shorts (are those fun summer colors we see?).

The Wrap

Today’s edition by:
Morgan

From the editor

I’m excited to meet the DALtoday editors in-person at lunch tomorrow in Dallas. They just launched 6AM City’s newest newsletter this week — tell the Dallasites in your life to sign up if you enjoy ATXtoday and want to spread the love.

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