Great Informational Signs about Non-native tree/plant removal

These signs are starting to appear where the Parks Dept and volunteers are doing invasive species removal and restoration projects.  We are working on getting more of these produced with our phone number and website and placed in active areas where we are doing projects. Thanks to Rene B for all of his great work.

 

New BMX/Skate Park Taking Shape

One of the most anticipated (well, by me) projects from 2006 bond election is the combination BMX/Skate Park that is now under construction across from the Austin Recreation Center and House Park.  It’s coming along nicely, it has a bowl area and a separate more urban area, along with a pedestrain observation center in the middle of the urban area.  I took these photos on my way home from the Greenbelt Guardians workday at Homedale Access Trail (Barton Creek) from the fourth floor of the ACC parking garage which gave me a good view of the work underway (yes, I climbed the stairs and didn’t drive up there.)

The park was designed by New Line Skateparks, Inc. and is under construction under contract to the City of Austin Parks and Recreation Dept by Prism Development and California Skateparks.

Barton Creek Trail Corps @ Loop 360

Yesterday, the Barton Creek Trail Corps, plus another crew were out at Loop 360 Access.  They were finishing up a set of steps begun a few years ago at the 2009 National Trails Day Event that we and Hill Country Conservancy co-hosted and that former Barton Creek Parks staffer Matt Scales was working on before he returned to the midwest (Hi Matt, please come and visit!)

The other crew was cutting up a big pecan that fell over and along the trail during one of our rainstorms last summer.

The weather was amazing.  If you can (and I wish I could) get outside today and tomorrow.  It’s look like we going to get another shot of winter early next week.

Update: Barton Creek Trail Corps – Week 3

Stairs under construction as of 1/25/11

We visited our Barton Creek Trail Corps team this morning and they are well into week 3 of their efforts.  The first week was focused on corridor clearing – removing leaning trees, snags and any invasive species from the Zilker Access Trailhead up to the split at the New Wall, about 1.3 miles south.  Last year, they began their work on a new rock stair area (actually it’s two separate sets of steps) at the base of Homedale Access Trail at Campbell’s Hole, by hauling some very big rocks using rigging techniques.  Work is nearing completion on this first rock work effort, so check out the photos.  More rock work and corridor clearing will be happening this week and next.

We have another volunteer workday coming up this Saturday, Jan 29th from 9 am to 1 pm at Homedale Access Trail (behind Barton Hills Elementary School)  This workday is being organized by the Greenbelt Guardians and you can RSVP to Glee Ingram at gleeful@earthlink.net.

It’s My Park Day – Projects, Leaders, Sponsors & Yard Signs

Here at It’s My Park Day HQ (aka the Austin Parks Foundation office) we’re working away on a number of different It’s My Park Day projects, but we wanted to remind you of a few important items:

1) Project Registration is Open. We now have nine projects with a total of 780 Volunteer opportunities.  Our goal is 60-70 projects with 3,000 volunteers needed.  So, if you’ve led a project before, it’s time to register. If not, but you’re interested, please plan on attending a Feb 5 information meeting for first time Project leaders.

2) If you’re interested in being a project leader, but have no specific project in mind, let us know at apf@austinparks.org.  We’ll find you a spot!

3) Our Sponsors.  We love them and you should to.  As of today, we like to thank our presenting sponsor, Wheatsville Food Co-op.

We’d like to thank our major sponsors CTK | Community TecKnowledge, Jackson Walker LLP and Texas Gas Service.

We’d like to thank all of our other sponsors – MFI Foundation, Backwoods, BMC Software, URS, Hill Country Outdoors, Enviromedia Social Marketing, Austin Simply Fit, Texas Rowing Center, Advanced Organic Products, Ivy Block, Technu, Clif Bar, and REI.

We are welcoming sponsors through Feb 4th, a sponsorship of $1,000 and above gets your logo on the back of 3,400 volunteer T-shirts.

4) And how about that yard sign?  Pretty cool, eh?  We’re grateful to Enviromedia Social Marketing for their design of the t-shirt and associated graphics, including the yard sign.

Barton Creek Trail Corps – First Rock Work Project

Winching the rock up the creek bank, using rockbars to guide it.

Today the Barton Creek Trail Corps (Allen, Brian, Joe, Kristin and Sara) began their second week of work, working with Field Coordinator Paul S. on building a new set of steps for better access to the Campbell’s Hole area from Homedale Access Trail.  First up was moving some rock out of the way, then setting up the winch and cable to move three or more 500-600 pound rocks up the side of the creek bank.  The crew hauled several when we visited this morning.

This Year’s Model

and by that we mean this year’s T-shirt design for all It’s My Park Day Volunteers.  Yup, it’s got the “love your park” theme again and is a nice deep red.  Definitely going to stand out when volunteers are wearing them!  On the back will be all of our sponsors logos. (There’s still time to become a sponsor and get on the T-shirt – visit our Sponsors page)

MLK Volunteer Workdays Updates

WE have two workdays scheduled for this weekend at Spyglass Access on Barton Creek Greenbelt. One for Sat, and the other for Mon, both 9 am to noon.

We’ve been watching our weather forecast and now with a better than 70% chance of rain, we are going to cancel the workday for Saturday (tomorrow)  However, please consider coming to our workday on Monday, Jan 17th from 9 am to noon if you can at the same location.  We know that some of you have the day off, the weather promises to be much better and we welcome your help.

Here’s a recap on how to get there, what to bring and the work we’ll be doing.

1) Work that we’ll be doing.  We’ll be working along a one mile segment of the Barton Creek Greenbelt trail. We’ll meet at Spyglass Access, just off of Barton Skyway (exit off of Mopac 1, head east downhill to dead-end at SpyGlass and Trailhead.  Park on the street.)

2) We will provide – tools, gloves, 5 gallon jugs of water and instruction.  We’ll be working on removing and processing non-native trees and plants using weed wrenches, saws and shovels.  We’ll show you how to do it.

3) What you should bring – wear long pants and closed toed shoes (sneakers), a water bottle and hat.  We’ll walk about 1/3 to 1/2 a mile down the trail and will be working alongside the trail.   It’s fairly shaded and definitely scenic.

4) If you got lost or need directions – call Charlie – 965-1960.

 

2 Months to It’s My Park Day!

What do the following companies have in common: Wheatsville Food Co-op, Jackson Walker LLP, Community TechKnowledge, Texas Gas Service, BMC Software, URS, MFI Foundation, Technu Extreme, REI, Clif Bar, Hill Country Outdoors and Texas Rowing Center?

They are all sponsors of the 2011 edition of It’s My Park Day, which is coming up on March 5, 2011.

Our sponsors make It’s My Park Day possible, helping us provide tools, supplies, water jugs, T-shirts, and snacks.  They allow us to provide truckloads of mulch, 30 shovels, big piles of compost and more more to the 60 to 70 volunteer projects we expect to see on a single day.

Sponsorships can be a combination of cash and in-kind donations and there are different levels of sponsorship that come with different levels of benefits.  Sponsorships of $1000 or more get your organization’s logo on the backs of 3,400 volunteer t-shirts and on our website and in email and newsletters.

The deadline for sponsors to get on the volunteer T-shirt is Friday, Feb 4th, 2011.  More information is our website or you can call and speak with Charlie at 512-477-1566 ext 2.

Project registration will open Wed, Jan 12, 2011.  We’ll announce it here.

Barton Creek Trail Corps Starts Next Week!

We dropped by American Youthworks E-Corps training the other day, they were on day two of a rock rigging and splitting workshop.  Included in the training were our five person Barton Creek Trail Corps who will be beginning efforts officially next week.  Their first task is to work through the entire trail corridor (8.5 miles) and clear any snags, dead trees and other coat hooks / eye pokers (as we call dead limbs sticking out into the trail)

Our tremendous thanks to our funders including Impact Austin, Hill Country Conservancy, Bicycle Sport Shop and several individual donors for their amazing support of the Trail Corps.  Our thanks too to REI for their support of volunteer workdays (Sat, 1/15 and Mon, 1/17)