(C) El Paso Matters.org This story was originally published by El Paso Matters.org and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Here’s where to find free summer meals, how to get an enhanced library card and the latest on the Rio Bosque Wetlands and Northeast amphitheater [1] ['El Paso Matters Staff', 'El Paso Matters', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow', 'Class', 'Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus', 'Display Inline', '.Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar', 'Where Img', 'Height Auto Max-Width', 'Vertical-Align Bottom .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Coauthors.Is-Layout-Flow .Wp-Block-Co-Authors-Plus-Avatar'] Date: 2024-06-07 This is your weekly news roundup, which takes a quick look at some developments in government, politics, education, environment and other topics across El Paso. Free Summer Lunch Program in El Paso Schools El Paso schools will offer free breakfast and lunch to children ages 18 and younger as part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture summer meals program. The meals are provided at no cost to any child, regardless of what school they attend or whether they live within a district’s boundaries. The El Paso Independent School District will serve meals Monday through Friday from June 12 to July 12 for high schools and through June 28 for elementary and middle schools. The Socorro Independent School District will distribute meals Monday through Thursday, June 3-27. The Ysleta Independent School District will serve meals Monday through Friday from June 6 to June 28. Other school districts also offer the program. Find the nearest location near you through the Summer Meals Site Finder at the U.S. Department of Agriculture. A wetland cell at Rio Bosque Wetlands Park provides a habitat for fowl and plant life, May 13, 2024. (Corrie Boudreaux/El Paso Matters) El Paso Water Approves Easement at Rio Bosque El Paso Water plans to reserve unused land next to the Rio Bosque Wetlands Park, where the utility will clear invasive trees and plant native vegetation. The Public Service Board, which governs the utility, last month voted to establish a conservation easement at the Lower Valley wetlands that prevents most kinds of development on the parcel. The goal is to plant enough trees at the site to suck a sizable amount of carbon dioxide out of the El Paso region’s air. Gilbert Trejo, the utility’s vice president of operations, said they’ll run the numbers on how much carbon new trees at the site may be able to remove from the air over time. Documents from the city’s climate office suggest the utility will begin tree-planting after a year of land assessment and planning. Learn more The quest to save El Paso’s diminished wetlands Environmentalists want to protect Rio Bosque Wetlands Park in El Paso, but the Texas Department of Transportation may extend the border highway along the forest to ease traffic concerns. El Paso Water’s easement, however, would not prevent the Texas Department of Transportation from going forward with a potential highway expansion adjacent to Rio Bosque if the state agency decides it’s essential to ease or improve traffic flow. El Paso Water said it opposes a new highway at or next to the wetland park, but TxDOT’s eminent domain – or the power to seize private property – would supersede the utility’s conservation easement, according to the Texas Land Conservancy. El Paso Water is the largest landowner in the area and holds over 20,500 acres within El Paso County. City Enhanced Library Card Launches Friday The city’s enhanced library card program opens at four El Paso Public Libraries during regular business hours Friday. The program offers a full-service library card to all El Paso County residents 18 and older that will also serve as a form of identification for those who cannot obtain a Texas driver’s license or a state-issued ID. Though not an official state ID, the card can be used as a supplemental form of identification at all city and county offices and will be accepted by organizations that sign up with the city as partners, including the El Paso Police Department and El Paso County Sheriff’s Office. The card will include a photo and contain information such as name, address, height, weight, age and gender. To qualify for a card, residents have to present proof of residence in El Paso County. A list of acceptable proof of residence documents can be found by clicking this link. A points-based system will be used to evaluate documents. The cards can be obtained at various library branches: Jose Cisneros Cielo Vista Branch, 1300 Hawkins Blvd.; Irving Schwartz Branch,1865 Dean Martin Drive; Westside Branch, 125 Belvidere St.; and Sergio Troncoso Branch, 9321 Alameda Ave. The card is free, though a $5 replacement fee will apply. Information: El Paso Public Library. Planned Amphitheater Land Sale Postponed The City Council on Tuesday postponed public hearings that would have been the next steps for the development of a 12,500-seat amphitheater at the Cohen Entertainment District in Northeast El Paso. A first public hearing would have allowed the city to convey 17 acres of land to Notes Live – now named Venu – for the amphitheater. The company, based in Colorado Springs, promises to invest $80 million for the outdoor facility. See Also An amphitheater is planned for Northeast El Paso. What does that mean for the Downtown arena? The planned Cohen Entertainment District venue comes after the City Council delayed voting on a site for the Downtown arena – last pitched as an amphitheater in Union Depot. The second public hearing would have amended the Tax Increment Reinvestment Zone boundaries – where tax increments within the zone help fund public improvements in the zone itself. The city and Venu agreed to postpone the items until a parking and traffic study for the site is finalized, said Karina Brasgalla, director of the city’s International and Economic Development. The study will allow the city to confirm the exact acreage of the land conveyance and better estimate the cost of parking improvements prior to executing final agreements. The public hearings were postponed for four weeks. 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