Austin is moving forward with a pilot program aimed at reducing pool fees as a way of increasing access this summer. The city will eliminate fees entirely at Walnut Creek Pool in North Austin and offer two free days at Bartholomew Pool near the Mueller Development and Garrison Pool in South Austin. Bartholomew Pool’s first […]
Parks
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Council members are looking into need for increased funds for parks maintenance
Austin’s parkland acreage is growing along with the population – however, staffing for maintenance of those parks has not kept pace, according to a report discussed Wednesday among City Council’s Audit and Finance Committee. After comparing the number of parks maintenance workers in 2014 to the current number, analysts at the Parks and Recreation Department […]
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Travis County will turn family’s ranch into 1,500 acres of public parkland
Travis County commissioners plan to add about 1,500 acres to the county’s wilderness parklands, protecting the pristine land from development and setting it up as a future destination for hikers and bicyclists. The $90 million deal to purchase a privately owned ranch in southwest Travis County was made possible by voters passing a bond proposition last […]
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ACL Fest shows $499M economic impact, with $8.1M donated to parks improvements
The 2023 edition of the Austin City Limits Music Festival generated nearly half a billion dollars in economic impact for the area, according to results of an analysis released Monday. The fest’s $499.9 million in financial activity represented a 12 percent increase over the impact of the 2022 festival, with that figure equaling 3,766 full-time […]
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PARD updates plans for new Dougherty and for cultural center expansions
The city is moving forward with plans to replace the Dougherty Arts Center with a new multiphased facility located in the Butler Shores Park area. The Parks and Recreation Department plans to begin the permitting process for the new arts center soon, while also conducting community engagement sessions and getting support from relevant boards and […]
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Council approves renaming bathhouse in honor of Joan Means Khabele
City Council on Thursday approved the renaming of the bathhouse at Barton Springs Pool in honor of the woman who, as a teenager, led the first “swim-in” at the segregated pool in an act of civil disobedience. With the unanimous vote, the facility officially becomes the Joan Means Khabele Bathhouse at Barton Springs Pool. The […]
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Austin’s giant troll is finally finished. Here’s where you can find her.
Pease Park’s newest art installation is tucked away in the woods, but she’s hard to miss. Malin is an 18-foot-tall troll made of local and repurposed wood. And in her hands is an offering: a basin full of water to nourish the wildlife. But the water is there only if humans remember to pour it. […]
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Council approves changes to environmental protections to upgrade Butler Trail
With little discussion, City Council last week approved amendments to environmental protections to clear the way for capital improvements on the popular hike-and-bike trail at Lady Bird Lake. The code changes allow for exemptions from critical water quality zone rules protecting Lady Bird Lake, thus giving the Trail Conservancy the ability to make upgrades to […]
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There are two big trolls in neighboring Austin parks – and they might be in love
Pease Park will soon get an 18-foot-tall wooden troll sculpture. But ahead of its opening, Austinites can find a similar (if slightly more disheveled) troll at a miniature park just a few blocks away. “When I heard that the Pease Park was going to be installing that incredible troll as part of a big, large art […]
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Debate intensifies over code changes to Butler Hike and Bike trail
Austin’s Parks and Recreation Board drew a crowd this past Monday, gathering to debate a number of code amendments targeting the Ann and Roy Butler Hike and Bike Trail at Lady Bird Lake. The amendments, prompted by City Council direction last spring, would eliminate the existing 12-foot cap on the trail’s width and mandate a […]
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Parks board blesses bathhouse renaming
More than 60 years ago, Joan Means Khabele jumped into Barton Springs Pool, launching a movement that led to its desegregation. Austin is now set to remember her legacy by renaming the Barton Springs Bathhouse after her. After being denied entrance due to the racist rules in place at the time, Khabele is known as […]
Posted inParks
City breaks ground on the Barton Springs bathhouse
Many years in the making, rehabilitation of the Barton Springs bathhouse is scheduled for a groundbreaking ceremony at 10 a.m. today. While the majority of attendees will surely cheer for the improvements the city promises under the Barton Springs Pool Master Plan, which City Council approved in 2009, there will be a few swimmers protesting […]