Water quality plan draws opposition from Reed Park neighbors

A water quality improvement project slated for a West Austin neighborhood park has sparked controversy among Tarrytown neighbors opposed to the prospect of losing an informal ball field to a biofiltration pond for stormwater runoff.

Reed Neighborhood Park, given to the city in the 1950s by the late Roberta Crenshaw, an Austin environmental doyenne for much of her life, is located within the Taylor Slough Watershed, which drains into the Colorado River.

The Watershed Protection Department is overseeing the planned project, which neighbors hope can be accomplished without removing a cherished green space in the park. James Page and Cameron Campbell, members of Friends of Reed Park, presented their arguments to the Parks and Recreation Board on Monday, noting they’ve collected over 760 signatures “in a matter of weeks” from residents opposed to the project.

“This is the only open-space playfield that we have in the neighborhood, and so it’s really important that we have this flexible area for kids to play, for families to gather and for events to take place,” Campbell told the board.

He cited a similar water quality project at Battle Bend Park in South Austin that eliminated an open-space area of the park.

For the watershed department’s part, the team overseeing the project appears willing to take a second look at the Reed Park plan to determine if the project can be modified and still achieve the desired water quality improvements.

“We’re retooling,” Janae Spence, assistant director of project design and delivery, told the board. “I’m hoping we can find a solution that can do double duty.”

According to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality, Taylor Slough is one of four Austin creeks classified as impaired, along with Waller, Walnut and Shoal creeks.

In a memo to the board prior to the meeting, Spence further explained the need to improve the water quality at the park.

“Poor water quality can contribute to problems downstream like toxic algae that can make spaces unsafe for swimming and other recreation,” Spence wrote. “Swimming in water with high E. coli can also lead to sickness (such as vomiting and diarrhea). This project, in conjunction with other strategies, is meant to reduce pollution in the creek by cleaning stormwater runoff and offsetting the impact of continued urbanization on our streams. In addition to improving water quality, the project intends to maintain recreational use, replace an old wastewater line that runs through the park, stabilize stream erosion, and improve wildlife habitat.”

Board Member Holly Reed introduced a resolution that sought to engage City Council in the conflict to help circumvent the possibility of a loss of parkland.

“Fundamentally there is an issue here that is a little bit larger, which is about taking public designated parkland to serve as a treatment for stormwater runoff – and that is not an appropriate use of public parkland when planning could have been done, or should be done, for greater urbanization,” she said. She added that other factors, such as climate change, City Council’s loosening of land development regulations and the state Legislature’s curtailment of Austin’s parkland dedication authority all combine to make parks and open space even more critical.

“We need to preserve every inch of parkland for our citizens,” she said.

Chair Pedro Villalobos suggested that Reed’s resolution could be “putting the cart before the horse” given that the watershed department was still in the process of finding an alternative solution. Other board members expressed similar remarks, noting that the department was acting in good faith.

With only six members present, Reed’s resolution ultimately failed on a vote of 4-2.

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Posted In: Water, District 10