This week Travis County extended the Order on COVID-19 Community Restrictions through February 16, 2021. The Order continues to prohibit gatherings of no more than 10 people, with some exceptions outlined by the State Order. It also continues to require face coverings when around others not in your immediate household. Click here to read the Order. Additionally, Governor Abbott gave an update on vaccine distribution yesterday. About 95,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccines have already been delivered to sites across Texas. It's estimated by the end of the month, more than one million vaccines will have been distributed to a variety of providers. Click here to read more.

Cases and hospitalizations rose again this week. There have been a total of 44,381 cumulative cases in Travis County, which is up from 2,862 compared with the same time last week and 2,252 compared with the week before that. Here is a further breakdown of the numbers:

ACTIVE CASES IN TRAVIS COUNTY

LOCAL (78734, 78738, 78669 ZIP CODES)

HOSPITALIZATIONS IN REGION

ICU PATIENTS IN REGION

Click here to review the COVID-19 case dashboard, which includes an interactive map to see cases by your zip code. Click here for more details on hospitalizations.

Travis County is currently in Stage 4 on the risk-based guidelines. This level recommends businesses operate within a 25% to 50% capacity and those in a high-risk group limit gatherings to no more than two. Non-essential travel should also be avoided. Please continue to social/physical distance between individuals not in your household, wear a proper face covering, and wash your hands regularly. Thank you for continuing to follow these guidelines during this unusual time.

Ruth Sandoval is the city's Court Administrator and last week became a Certified Court Manager through the Institute for Court Management. She has been with the City of Lakeway for 15 years, first working with the police department and then quickly moving to the Lakeway Municipal Court. She has been the city's Court Administrator for 11 years now. There are 3,053 active Municipal Court Clerks and 1,294 active Municipal Court Judges in the State of Texas. Out of those individuals, 75 are Certified Court Managers. There are 2,355 Certified Court Managers across the U.S. Congratulations Ruth! Click here to learn more about the Lakeway Municipal Court.

The official ribbon cutting for the Little Free Library location at the Activity Center will take place at 2 p.m. this coming Monday, December 21 at 105 Cross Creek. Book donations are welcome at the celebration. This new 'library' is actually an old refurbished ice box from the Swim Center that was repurposed to be able to hold books instead of popsicles. Residents are now able to visit the 'library' and go through a collection of donated books, pick one they like, and take it home to read. There's also a chance to drop off a book for others to enjoy. This service is free for Lakeway residents and will be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. There are four Free Little Library locations throughout Lakeway, including this newest one now in front of the Activity Center. Click here to learn more.