BMX/Skate Park Update 2/25/11

We posted a set of photos one month ago showing the progress of the BMX/Skate Park, being built by the Austin Parks and Recreation Department with funding from the 2006 City Bond Election.  Here’s a new set from Friday, 2/25, taken from the third floor of the ACC parking garage. A lot more of the ramps and special features have been poured and more are being formed.  Getting much closer.  The BMX/Skate Park is located next to House Park and the Austin Recreation Center just off of N. Lamar Blvd.  This will be one of the most popular new parks in the city when it opens.

 

Turkey Creek Trail Re-Route Visit 2/25/11

We headed out to Turkey Creek Trail again this morning to catch up on the progress of the 1,000 feet of new trail that will replace the straight up/down the hill slippery path.  Our E-Corp crews are cranking away and have about one week of work left.  The Friends of Turkey Creek will be doing a big set of  It’s My Park Day projects there on 3/5/11 and will officially help switch over to the new trail.   Help them out by signing up!

The Barton Creek Trail Corps is out working at Turkey Creek for a few days, installing a retaining wall where the new trail crosses the old.  Here’s a great photo of  4 members out of the 5 person crew, with Chris (head of E-Corps) as well as Paul and Seth (Field Coordinators) consulting on placement and layout.

Lots of amazing rock work on this trail segment (as Seth pointed out, there was a lot of rock already there.) The first photo shows the view from the side, the second is looking down at the top surface.  the goal here to convey and shed water when it rains…

Another great view of the trail….

Bull Creek Greenbelt

A picture from a tour a few weeks back.  One of the sites of several It’s My Park Day projects!   Please volunteer if you haven’t yet.  We have 1,300 people signed up, but still have 1,700 spaces left!

 

Downtown Dallas: Main Street Garden

Another set of photos from our weekend trip to Dallas – Main Street Garden is a new park developed by the Dallas Parks and Recreation Department and operated by Downtown Dallas.  It has a large lawn area, moveable seating, a cafe, wifi, piped in music, a small playscape and a gated off-leash area.  On Saturday evening around 9 pm, there were about 50 people at the cafe, in the off leash area, sitting on benches and walking around.  Good sign I’d say.

Meanwhile in Dallas – Woodall Rodgers Park Under Construction

We took a quick trip up to Dallas to visit a friend on the mend from a big injury and surgery and I visited the currently under construction Woodall Rodgers Park, also known as The Park in Dallas.  It’s a 5.2 acre deck park over a portion of the Woodall Rodgers Freeway that will connect Downtown Dallas at the Arts District with the booming uptown district.

The Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation is building and will operate the park, raising funding and working closely with both TXDOT and the City of Dallas Parks and Recreation Department, the latter through a public/private partnership.

Barton Creek Trail Corps Work at Loop 360

A few weeks ago, the Barton Creek Trail Corps finished a set of steps as well as resurfacing a portion of the trail at the foot of the Loop 360 Access Trail.  This project was begun by PARD staff (Thanks Matt!) and the Corps was assisted by the ever-hard working PARD staffer John Cook.  Good job everyone!

Your Choice for Sat 2/19: Tree Planting or Invasive Tree Removal

Two more workdays to tempt our volunteers for Sat, 2/19.  At Pease Park from 9 am to noon, volunteers will plant 65 trees.  Meet at Kingsburg end of Pease Park.  At West Bouldin Creek from 8:30 am to 1 pm, Invasive Species Removal efforts will continue.  Meet at the S. 6th St entrance.  Both parks will have big It’s My Park Day events, you can volunteer here for Pease Park and here for West Bouldin Creek on 3/5.

 

Have You Registered for It’s My Park Day Yet?

It’s time!  March 5th @ 9 am will be here before you know it.  We have 68 projects with 3,000 volunteers needed.  Opportunities are available on a wide variety of projects and park locations across the city.  Sign Up Here!

Turkey Creek Trail Reroute Underway

 

A long planned (and delayed) project is a new section of the 2.5 mile Turkey Creek Nature Trail at Emma Long Park.  The Friends of Turkey Creek raised funds, including a grant from the Austin Parks Foundation, and at logn last, construction began in late January and we’re hoping to complete the re-route in early March.  We took a field trip today to check with the American Youthworks Environmental Corps Crew, led by Field Coordinator Seth Van Horn.  The re-reouted trial is about 1,000 feet long and will replace a dangerous and severely eroded “fall-line” trail that goes straight up and down the hill.

It’s Time to Love Your Park!

Join us for the 9^th annual It’s My Park Day on March 5^th.

Registration is now open for Austin Parks Foundation’s ninth annual It’s My Park Day. 3,000 volunteers are expected to attend to spend a half a day at one of over 60 improvement projects in parks across Austin.

Visit www.austinparks.org to sign up to volunteer.

And what do you get?  The satisfaction that you’re working with friends and neighbors. The knowledge that you are helping our parks department by planting trees, rebuilding trails, removing non-native trees and plants, cleaning up creeks and mulching trees. You’ll also get a great looking t-shirt with our slogan “love your park.”

In 2010, we had over 2,500 volunteers work at 68 park improvement projects donating 8,750 hours to our amazing parks system in a single day.  We are working to top that in 2011.

So join us at Zilker Park to plant trees, at several Barton Creek Greenbelt locations to work on trail restoration projects or in many parks across Austin to spread mulch, paint play scapes, pick up trash and much more.

www.austinparks.org is the place to find out more about It’s My Park Day and to sign-up to volunteer.

Our thanks to our key partner for It’s My Park Day, the City of Austin’s Parks and Recreation Department, for their tremendous support in organizing this year’s event.  More information about Austin’s amazing park system is at www.ci.austin.tx.us/parks/

Our thanks to our presenting sponsor, Wheatsville Food Co-op, our major sponsors CTK | Community TechKnowledge, Texas Gas Service and Jackson Walker LLP.  Our thanks to our ever-growing list of sponsors: MFI Foundation, BMC Software, Backwoods, URS, REI, CA Technologies, Frost Bank, HS&A, Alamo Drafthouse Cinema, 12 Oaks Dental, Cisco Systems, Hill Country Outdoors. MWM Design Group, Austin Simply Fit, DWG Landcape Architecture, EnviroMedia Social Marketing, Texas Rowing Center, The Garden Club of Austin, Clif Bar, Ivy Block, Advanced Organic Materials, Randalls, and Tecnu Extreme.