Mission

Barton Springs Conservancy honors, preserves, and enhances the Barton Springs experience for everyone through education and park improvements.
Newsletter at a Glance
I. Halloween Greetings
II. Barton Springs Conservancy Update
III. Zilker Park Vision Plan News
I. Halloween Greetings
With the spooky colors and even spookier view of Austin's looming downtown skyline, we send Halloween greetings to all with this morning view down the length of Barton Springs Pool looking toward the downstream dam. Can you believe how much Austin has grown over the years? It's scary at times, but we can't be paralyzed with fear of change, and our responsibility for stewarding our treasured Barton Springs Pool will best be met by dramatically increasing our public outreach and education for new Austinites about the threats to the Edwards Aquifer and Barton Springs, and how we as a community can protect it for future generations.
II. Barton Springs Conservancy Update
Since our mid-year report, Barton Springs Conservancy has been busy on many fronts in support of our mission to honor, preserve, and enhance the Barton Springs experience for everyone through education and park improvements.
On the education front, we visited Mills Elementary during their Community Engagement Day to tell the students about the environment and history at Barton Springs Pool and how they can volunteer to help protect the Springs. After our visit, we were delighted to receive nearly 20 hand-written "thank you" notes with adorable messages and decorations. In keeping with the theme of this Halloween message, we're including one of the cards showing a Salamander-zilla climbing over the city skyline.

We've also been monitoring the design efforts for the new Splash! education exhibits which are being finalized for inclusion in the Bathhouse Rehabilitation project, and are excited to see the great work on the exhibits.
We also had a successful education and outreach event with the Huston-Tillotson IDEAL Summer Academy Visit to Barton Springs Pool on July 9. An annual tradition, this is a great opportunity for new Austinites to learn about one of the the most important (and refreshing) places in ATX. In addition to providing free admission to the pool, we welcomed the students to the Splash! exhibit with drinks and popsicles before providing a short introductory talk at the pool overlook.

Special thanks to Clark Hancock from Save Barton Creek Association and Rich DePalma from the Austin Parks Board for helping as "tour guides".
Behind the scenes, Barton Springs Conservancy was busy promoting the park experience for our community, including:
  • Providing input to the Parks Board touting the Zilker Park Natural Resource Inventory and Management Guidelines that was commissioned by Barton Springs Conservancy to inform the upcoming Zilker Park Vision Plan.
  • Working diligently with the Zilker Collective Impact Working Group to coordinate input to the Zilker Park Vision Plan process from the 16 nonprofit organizations, event producers, and vendors operating in Zilker Park.
  • Writing to the City Council in support of the Commercial Parkland Dedication Ordinance in order to improve Austin’s park system in proximity to where people live, work, and play
  • Requesting that the City Council, City Manager, and Austin Police Chief address the alarming increase in violent offenses at the pool and park area by taking action to enhance public safety in our city parks, including especially Zilker Park.  
  • Explored seeking "America the Beautiful" grant funding to acquire watershed protection lands.
III. Zilker Park Vision Plan News

The public input process for the Zilker Metropolitan Park Vision Plan began in March, 2021 and continued with extensive community engagement through the "Design Concept" presentation meeting in early 2022. Having assembled and digested the voluminous public input, the project team will present the first "draft" of the Vision Plan at the next "Community Meeting" (hopefully in November). Rest assured, this is Austin, so there will more opportunity for public feedback, including the review, board and commissions, and city council meetings that will happen in early 2023 as part of the plan adoption process.

For our part, Barton Springs Conservancy has been working with our board, members, and other Zilker Park stakeholders to ensure that the Vision Plan will guide the restoration and future development of Zilker Metropolitan Park by prioritizing the natural environment of the park with focus on sustainable systems and innovative methods for maintenance and increased park use, while at the same time integrating educational components that engage the public and convey the rich environmental, cultural and historic aspects of the park and also incorporating multi-modal transportation and parking solutions that would allow for reduced parking/impervious cover, provide improved interior circulation throughout the park, and provide transportation solutions that facilitate park use by all residents of the city. 

Thank You For Your Love of the Springs

As always, we appreciate your support in these crazy and challenging times for our city, our community, and especially our parks and open spaces. Thanks for supporting our work to honor, preserve, and enhance the Barton Springs experience.
Click Here to View a List of Our Supporters.
 Barton Springs Conservancy | 512-284-1784| bartonspringsconservancy.org