City officials encouraged residents to sign up for the Nixel alert system by texting their ZIP code to 888777 and to download the Athens Ohio City Source app from Google Play or the Apple App Store for city alerts and service requests, the mayor said during the weekly update.

"You can text. Our area code or zip code. Really, 457001 to 888777," the mayor said, describing how residents can receive customized alerts via Nixel. The mayor also said the Athens Ohio City Source app is free and available on major app stores.

The mayor announced that the Athens City Council will meet Oct. 27 at 7 p.m. in Council Chambers. No agenda details were provided in the weekly update.

The mayor said weekly updates will pause for a short time while the mayor attends meetings later in October and will resume later in November.