Temporary closure

South Congress seafood restaurant closes after extensive fire damage

The Perla's patio makes it one of the more recognizable South Congress restaurants.

Perla’s Seafood & Oyster Bar/Instagram

A seafood spot on South Congress Avenue in Downtown Austin is temporarily closed after a fire Sunday night.

Perla's Seafood & Oyster Bar updated its Instagram bio to reflect the closure, stating "We will share a reopening date as soon as possible." At the time of this article's publication, the restaurant has not posted about the fire except for an expiring story announcing that it will be closed "due to unforeseen circumstances."

The Austin Fire Department (AFD) said crews responded to the restaurant, located at 1400 South Congress Ave., around 6:14 pm Sunday. AFD said it took about two hours to extinguish the fire, which began in the vent hood system and went through the roof.

AFD said it took extra time in extinguishing the fire due to having to open "void spaces that were concealing flames."

Fire officials said the fire damage was "extensive and affected every floor of the building." One firefighter was treated for a minor heat-related issue and officials said they were able to return to work after receiving fluids.

The restaurant was founded 17 years ago in 2009 and has been located in the same spot ever since.

Read the full story at our news partner KVUE.com. CultureMap has added information to the report.

closings temporary closure

Friends of the Farm

Austin healthy food and farming org seeks help after losing city funds

Photo courtesy of KVUE

Farmshare Austin helps get nutritious food into the communities that need it most.

September is Hunger Action Month, and one Austin nonprofit is asking the community for help after losing hundreds of thousands of dollars in city funding.

Farmshare Austin, which works to make fresh food more accessible to people who face barriers to healthy food, said it is facing a significant budget shortfall that could affect several of its programs.

It operates a 13-acre farm where it grows produce and trains farmers. Through its Fresh for Less program, the nonprofit helps make fresh produce more affordable for Travis County residents, including those who use SNAP benefits, through mobile markets and home delivery services.

“We're economically supporting our farmer network while also getting locally grown, fresh grown, organically grown food to our community members who have the least opportunity to access local food,” said Michelle Akindiya, Farmshare Austin's education director.

But Farmshare said some of those services could be at risk following cuts approved during the city's budget process.

The organization said it faced proposed cuts to funding for two contracts. One social services contract remains under consideration, while another was eliminated.

“There's a lot of people that really care and came out to speak up. It just didn't cover everything, unfortunately,” Akindiya said. “And so we're still seeing quite a significant cut in our budget.”

Farmshare estimates it will lose about $510,000 in funding for Fresh for Less over two years, with the cuts taking effect in November.

Akindiya said that loss comes from cuts to its chronic disease contract with Austin Public Health, which was included in a $400,000 Healthy Food Access line item.

Farmshare said the city previously covered about 64 percent of Fresh for Less. With the cuts, the lost funding represents roughly 30 percent of the program's operating costs.

The nonprofit said its programs help provide fresh food to about 33,000 Austinites. Without additional support, Farmshare said it could have to scale back its mobile markets, reduce home deliveries for people with limited mobility, purchase less produce from local farmers and reduce its staff.

Read the full story at our news partner KVUE.com.

farming health food insecurity