BHNA - November 1999 Newsletter

Barton Hills-Horseshoe Bend Neighborhood Association Newsletter November, 1999
President's Corner	Dear Neighbor, While I have thoroughly enjoyed my two years as President of our Neighborhood Association, I am glad that I will have more time again for other pursuits. I feel very honored by the amount of trust you showed me, and I would like to thank all those people who helped us make this a better neighborhood--particularly Roberta Preston and her team who organized a wonderful Independence Day parade. I am leaving this position with a better opinion of city government than the one I had two years ago. I found the vast majority of city officials very competent, responsive and cooperative. But government only works well if the citizens stay involved--both individually and through organizations such as the BHNA. So stay involved, and continue to support your Neighborhood Association! With best wishes for the Holiday Season, Peter Hess
November 15, 1999 Meeting Agenda	Neighborhood Association Meeting Monday, 15 November 1999, 7 p.m. 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 Grill, 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 June 29 meeting. 2) Membership Report (Pat Whiteside) 3) Treasurer's Report (John Bell) 4) President's Report 5) Election of officers for 1999 * Report by Nominations Committee (Ferne Mizell) 6) Committee Reports * Independence Day Parade (Roberta Preston) * Other committees 7) Old Business * Barton Skyway replacement of water and wastewater lines * Town Lake Park update (Larry Akers) 8) New Business * Barton Creek cleanup * Gotham Lofts 9) Presentation: Robert Hansen, Endangered Species Biologist, Watershed Protection Department, City of Austin "Renovation of Sunken Gardens" 10) Presentation: Mark Kapner, Senior Manager, Austin Energy "Renewable Energy"
Election of Officers	At the November 15 meeting, we will elect our officers for 2000. The Nominations Committee will present their nominations for all six Executive Committee positions. If you want to recommend someone (including yourself) call Ferne Mizell, the Committee Chair, at 441-9658; e-mail wfmizell@io.com.
Sunken Gardens Presentation	Robert Hansen to speak about plans for Sunken Gardens As you know, the Sunken Gardens area in Zilker Park just east of lower Barton Creek has been fenced in for a year as a result of the disputes around the Barton Springs salamander. The Sunken Garden area, designed and built in 1935 as an area for contemplation and picknicking, now is in disrepair. There is an opportunity to restore the area and to create a living classroom. The City wants our Neighborhood Association to play a major role in the creation of the master plan. Robert Hansen will give a presentation at our meeting. If you are interested in this project and would like to serve on a committee give Peter Hess a call at 894-3315.
Membership For 2000	Your current membership will expire at the end of this year. If you think that all our activities of our neighborhood association and all the information you have been receiving is worth $5 to you please renew your membership now. This way there won't be a lapse in membership, and you will be guaranteed full voting rights at our January 2000 meeting. Starting next year, you will be able to choose between an electronic and a paper newsletter--or both. This year, we have been using our e-mail list to send out time-sensitive information between newsletters, and I assume that this practice will continue next year. Some of the information you might be receiving is updates on neighborhood projects, crime alerts, meetings that affect our neighborhood, etc. So please mail your $5 membership for 2000 to John Bell, Treasurer, 2315 Farnswood Circle. The membership form is at the bottom of this page. You also may pay your dues at the upcoming meeting.
Barton Skyway Replacement of Water and Wastewater Lines	This project seems to have gone on for an eternity. But in fact it is getting done within a month of the scheduled completion date. At this point, work is still going on at Cedarview (south of Barton Skyway), Oak Park, and Oaklane. Most of the heavy construction will be done within a couple of weeks. All the main water and wastewater lines are in; crews still are working on connecting all the residences to the new water and waste water lines. Project manager Robert Reyna thinks that the entire project will be completed around Thanksgiving. Work still to be done includes the paving of the three streets being worked on now and general restoration work. The city also will repave Crestvale off Rae Dell and High Chaparral Cove where all the construction materials and machinery were deposited. If you believe that your property (driveway, landscaping, etc.) was damaged during the construction you need to let Mr. Reyna know now. He can be reached at 927-4365. Now the Barton Skyway issue: Mr. Reyna thinks that he can fund 50% of the cost to repave Barton Skyway out of his budget. The rest will have to come from Street and Bridge. Given the fact that Barton Skyway still is used by heavy construction machinery it probably makes no sense to repave it now. But we will try to find a way to get the job done early next year.
Other Completed Neighborhood Projects	The grounds around Barton Hills Elementary present themselves in a new look. The effects of the oak poisoning finally appear to subside. After much neighborhood lobbying, AISD planted about 70 new trees all over the park and installed an irrigation system for the new trees. During the summer, the City of Austin completely renovated the playground. Go check it out! Work on Barton Parkway at Homedale finally has been completed as well. As you may know, part of the embankment eroded away during a storm a year ago. The City built a rather attractive new spillover and limestone wall to correct the problem.
Longhorn Pipeline	Many South Austinites are concerned about the safety of the 50-year old Longhorn pipeline that runs through South Austin. Plans call for its reuse to carry gasoline and other refined petroleum products to West Texas. The only public hearing in the Austin area will be held on November 16, at 7:00 PM, at Bowie High School.
APD Neighborhood Crime Web Site	The Austin Police Department recently set up a web site that lists crime information by neighborhood association and apartment complex. Check under the heading "Neighborhood Crime Statistics" on the APD web site: http://ci.austin.tx.us/police
Is Your City Ready for Y2K--and Are You?	If you are concerned about Y2K readiness in Austin, you may want to check these two web sites that also contain a lot of useful information on how you can prepare yourself: http://www.ci.austin.tx.us.y2k/ http://readiness2000.state.tx.us/
St. Mark's Episcopal Church Fall Festival	St. Mark's invites you to their 28th annual Fall Festival on Saturday, November 13, 1999, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. It will feature handmade arts & crafts, home-cooked treats, a silent auction, and much more. Proceeds benefit El Buen Samaritano, Ronald McDonald House, a seminarian scholarship fund, and other church and outreach programs. The St. Mark's Day School Carnival, with petting zoo, face painting and more, will be held on the same day from 9:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. St. Mark's is located at 2128 Barton Hills Drive. For more information, call the church at 444-1449.
Ribbon-Cutting at Robert E. Lee Road	The completion of this 3-month public works project--which had been pursued by our neighborhood for over 20 years--was celebrated on July 28 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Peter Rieck, Director of Public Works and Transportation, welcomed the guests and described the project. Both Mayor Kirk Watson and Mayor Pro Tem Jackie Goodman applauded the project as an example of how citizens working with city government can accomplish good things. Mayor Kirk Watson and former Neighborhood Association President Betty Brown who had fought hard to secure the funding of the project then cut the ribbon together. Dr. Toan Nguyen, the project engineer, then conducted a tour of the site.
Barton Springs Road Improvement Project	The City of Austin currently is acquiring the right of way for the widening of Barton Springs Road between S. Lamar and Robert E. Lee. Construction will not begin until April 2000, and maybe months later.
Camp Craft Greenbelt access	Our resolution opposing the closing of the Camp Craft Greenbelt access at our June 29 meeting was very timely. Peter Hess went to the Planning Commission meeting in progress right after our meeting and introduced our resolution. The compromise reached is this: The Camp Craft access will remain open until the City built a different access trail at the upper end of the Greenbelt. At that point, the issue will be revisited.
Have a block party for fire ants this fall	Broadcasting is the process of applying fire ant bait to your entire yard with a hand-held spreader, as opposed to hunting for individual mounds. This method is particularly effective if entire neighborhood blocks apply fire ant bait on the same day. For free information contact Lisa Lennon at the Travis County Agricultural Extension office at 708-4797. Also visit this Texas A&M web site: http://www.fireant.tamu.edu
Officers for 1999	President: Peter Hess (894-3315) phess@mail.utexas.edu Vice President: Pat Whiteside (443-4879) pagwcpa@aol.com Recording Secretary: Yates Barreda (448-1276) webarreda@earthlink.net 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)
Web Site URL	Visit our Neighborhood Association web site at: http://community.austin360.com/BHHBNA/
Your membership for 2000	Your current membership will expire at the end of this year. If you think that all our activities of our neighborhood association and all the information you have been receiving is worth $5 to you please renew your membership now. This way there won't be a lapse in membership, and you will be guaranteed full voting rights at our January 2000 meeting. Please mail your $5 membership for 2000 to: John Bell, Treasurer, 2315 Farnswood Circle, Austin, TX 78704
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: ____________________ I/we wish to receive the newsletter: ___ in paper form ___ by e-mail ___ both Return this membership form with $5.00 check, payable to Barton Hills Neighborhood Association, to: John Bell, Treasurer 2315 Farnswood Circle Austin, TX 78704

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