BHNA - January 1999 Newsletter

Barton Hills-Horseshoe Bend Neighborhood Association Newsletter January, 1999
President's Corner	Dear Neighbor: What will $5 buy for you these days? A couple of slices of pizza, one adult beverage at your favorite watering hole, or one movie rental. Will membership in YOUR Neighborhood Association be worth that much? As I am starting my second (and final) year as president of this Association, I am getting a clear sense that we as a neighborhood can make a difference if we just set our minds to it. I encourage you to get involved in your Neighborhood Association, and encourage you to get engaged individually as well. During this year of closer involvement with many City of Austin officials, my view on city government has grown more positive. I found most city officials to be much more cooperative and responsive than expected. These people actually want to and will work for us as long as we tell them what we want, and as long as we show interest in ongoing projects and issues. These are some of the things our Association did for you in 1998: * planted 70 trees along Barton Parkway * organized 4th of July parade * worked with the NeighborWoods program to plant 110 free trees in neighborhood front yards * worked to ensure that infrastructure improvement projects have a minimal impact on the neighborhood * sent members four informative neighborhood newsletters * supported the oak wilt trenching in the Rae Dell area * brought City Council members and high-ranking city officials to our quarterly meetings You might argue that we did these things regardless of whether YOU were a member or not--but the fact is that the size and strength of our organization has a huge impact on the range of our possibilities. There is clearly strength in numbers--the higher the membership the higher the political clout. If City leaders know that we are a large and involved organization they will listen to us. I would like to discuss Association plans for 1999 with you, and I encourage you to bring in your own ideas. You can do this in three different ways: by indicating your preferences on the back of the membership form, by speaking up at the next membership meeting on February 9 (or at any meeting), or by writing to me. Please send in your membership form and $5 to our treasurer John Bell. We include a self-addressed envelope for that purpose. Best wishes, Peter Hess
Feb 9 Meeting Agenda	Neighborhood Association Meeting Tuesday, 9 February 1999 BBQ Dinner and Social Hour 6-7 p.m. St. Mark's Episcopal Church, 2128 Barton Hills Drive Agenda 6-7 p.m.: Social Hour Barbecue dinner will be served, catered by Green Mesquite, for $5 per plate. This includes 2 meats and 2 side dishes. $1 for cobbler dessert. 7 p.m.: Business Meeting 1) Call to order and approval of the minutes of the October 27, 1998, meeting 2) Membership Report (Pat Whiteside) 3) Treasurer's Report (John Bell) 4) President's Report: discussion of goals for 1999 5) Committee Reports * November 21 Barton Parkway tree planting * Other committees 6) Old Business * Improvements at Barton Springs Road and Robert E. Lee intersection (Toan Nguyen and Nick Naccarado, City of Austin) * Water and wastewater line replacement in Barton Skyway area * Terrace PUD * Tree replacement at Barton Hills Elementary 7) New Business * Old pictures from Pat Oakes * Reorganization of APD * AISD attendance boundaries (speaker t.b.a.)
New officers for 1999	President: Peter Hess (441-2049; phess@mail.utexas.edu) Vice President: Pat Whiteside (443-4879) Recording Secretary: Yates Barreda (448-1276) Corresponding Secretary: Janice and Will Godwin (441-2647; jgodwin@SAMSpecial.com) Treasurer: John Bell (441-4048; johnbell99@aol.com) Delegate to the Austin Neighborhoods Council: Betty Brown (444-5239)
November 21 Tree Planting along Barton Parkway	Our tree planting was a huge success. We got rained out on November 14, but the weather played along on our second try. We had a huge turnout of volunteers, most of them mobilized by TreeFolks. A total of 65 trees were planted along Barton Parkway between Wilke and Arpdale. The five remaining trees will be planted once the bank that was eroded during the October storm will be restored--hopefully soon. Jan Fulkerson and her team from the City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department did a superb job providing us with all the support we needed: planning, getting approvals from all the utilities and other city departments, pre-digging all the holes, and delivering the trees and mulch. TreeFolks had a number of volunteer planting supervisors on hand who taught us how to properly plant trees. Our thanks go to all people who supported this effort!
Tree replacement at Barton Hills Elementary	Joe Winkler and Peter Hess have been meeting with representatives from Barton Hills Elementary and from AISD over the past year to discuss the replacement of the live oak trees lost due to improper pesticide use by AISD staff in 1996. So far, 23 mature trees had to be removed. We received a commitment from AISD to plant 65 trees. Some of them will replace trees that had to be cut down while others will be planted to enhance the beauty of the campus and the park. A number of trees will be planted around the school buildings, along Barton Hills Drive, and along Briarcrest. The tree planting should be complete by Spring Break.
NeighborWoods Program	While we are on the tree planting theme: the NeighborWoods Program that was offered to our neighborhood last fall was a huge success. A grand total of 110 trees were delivered in early November, and in the following couple weeks we could see new trees in many front yards in our neighborhood. The NeighborWoods program has been in existence for 5 years, and this week, they will plant tree number 15,000. Congratulations!
Plans for Auditorium Shores / Town Lake Park	The City of Austin currently is selecting a company that will create a master plan as well as an architectural and engineering firm. There will be further opportunities for public input, probably in March or April. Check the local media for public hearings. The City would like a master plan in place by June.
Plans for the Sunken Gardens	Both the Eliza Springs and Sunken Gardens area will be restored as part of the Environmental Assessment / Habitat Conservation Plan which was approved last fall to protect the Barton Springs salamander. Options for the recreation of these spaces appear to be wide open, and there appears to be at least some funding for the restoration. There are plans to form two separate committees of interested parties with neighborhood participation to discuss the future of these two areas. If you are interested give Peter Hess (441-2049) a call or come to the meeting.
Old pictures from Pat Oakes	Pat Oakes gave me a stack of old b/w photographs of neighborhood people. If you are interested please give Peter Hess a call or help yourself at the meeting.
AISD Attendance Boundary Update	The AISD Board of Trustees announced new attendance boundaries and tracking patterns in mid-January. This plan does not include any changes for Barton Hills Elementary School. The attendance boundaries will be the same, and 6th grade will remain at Barton Hills. If implemented, the plan will change the tracking pattern, however. Barton Hills kids would attend O. Henry Junior High School, rather than Martin. Tracking partners would be Becker, Bryker Woods, Casis, Mathews, Oak Hill (portions), and Zilker. Tracking to Austin HS would remain unchanged. Here is the schedule for the remaining Town Hall meetings: Feb. 1: Mendez Middle School, 5106 Village Sqare Dr. Feb. 2: Anderson High School, 8403 Mesa Dr. Feb. 3: CAC Auditorium, 1111 W. 6th Street Feb. 4: Travis HS, 1211 E. Oltorf (in Spanish) There will be a Public Hearing on Boundary Changes on February 22 at 6:30 p.m. (at CAC, 1111 W. 6th Street). You may also comment at the AISD Boundary Hotline (414-1200) or the AISD web site (www.austin.isd.tenet.edu). Boundary maps may be viewed at the same web site. The AISD Board of Trustees is scheduled to make a decision on February 25 at 6:30 p.m. (at CAC, 1111 W. 6th Street).
Barton Skyway replacement of water and wastewater lines	In case you haven't noticed yet: after numerous postponements, work on Barton Skyway has actually begun. The new wastewater line is in place, and the water line will be replaced next. For that purpose, the open traffic lanes will shift within the next few days. Work on Barton Skyway is scheduled to be finished by late February. After that, the project will move into the feeder streets--the first one being Cedarview. Depending on the number of work crews the contractor will be able to use, the entire project will be completed as early as summer or as late as the end of this year. More updates will follow. The project manager for the City of Austin is Robert Reyna (927-4365); he spoke at our June 1998 meeting.
Robert E. Lee / Barton Springs Road intersection	Robert E. Lee Road was closed for several days in the middle of January. The closure was unplanned, there were no information signs before the closing, and nobody in the neighborhood was informed about it. Apparently, Southern Union Gas closed the road for gas line relocation work without properly coordinating the closure with the city--hence the initial absence of detour signs. Actual construction is scheduled to begin on February 15, but this may turn out to be yet another overly optimistic estimate. From that point on, Robert E. Lee Road will be closed for about three months, so you may want to check out alternate routes. Both Toan Nguyen, the design engineer (440-0455), and Nick Naccarado, the project manager (499-7147), will be at our February 9 meeting to discuss the project and to answer your questions about it. The Barton Springs Road reconstruction project (between Robert E. Lee and Lamar) will not begin until early 2000, according to project manager Richard Kroger (499-7219).
Temporary rerouting of Capital Metro Bus #29	Capital Metro does not know yet how they will reroute #29 during the three-month closing of Robert E. Lee. During the mid-January closing, the bus did not make the Trailside to Barton Hills Drive to Robert E. Lee loop; it proceeded from Bluebonnet directly to Ashby to Kinney. There is no indication that Capital Metro will use the same kind of detour for the long-term closing. If you have any rerouting concerns or questions call Capital Metro at 474-1200.
1999 Barton Hills - Horseshoe Bend Neighborhood Association Membership Form Name(s) (include full names of all 18+ household members) (1) ______________ (2) _________________ (3) _______________ Address: _____________________ Phone: (H) ________ (W) _________ E-mail: ____________________
Please rank these goals for the Association for 1999: (1 is highest) ___ increase membership ___ increase attendance at quarterly meeting ___ increase membership participation in neighborhood projects ___ completion of sidewalk on BH Dr. (from school to Zilker Park) ___ complete Zilker Park loop trail (E. and S. of Barton Springs) ___ improve community policing / police patrol contacts ___ Greenbelt cleanups ___ maintain and upgrade #29 bus service ___ oak wilt education and abatement ___ have more interesting speakers at meetings (suggestions?) ___ other: Return this membership form with $5.00 check, payable to Barton HillsNeighborhood Association, to: John Bell, Treasurer 2315 Farnswood Circle Austin, TX 78704

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