As Austinites brace themselves for nearly a decade of construction on Interstate 35, the Historic Landmark Commission is joining forces with activists resisting demolition of a historic pecan grove in East Austin’s Edward Rendon Sr. Park at Festival Beach.
The pecan grove, which dates back to 1964, sits within the 1.2 acres of Waller Beach Town Lake Metropolitan Park earmarked by the Texas Department of Transportation for construction staging purposes. Commissioners voted unanimously last week to implore city arborists to conduct further research on the area, with hopes that findings could foment a case for resistance.
“As part of early efforts by City Council’s Town Lake Beautification Committee, we believe this grove of pecans rises to the status of a local, character-defining, culturally significant contributing resource to the city of Austin,” said Commissioner Witt Featherston, who brought forth the direction. “We recommend the city arborist identify individual specimens and assess the likely boundaries of the pecan grove in order to facilitate our best efforts at preserving this irreplaceable resource.”
Commissioners are currently eyeing Section 106 of the National Historic Preservation Act, which can trigger a mandated review of federally funded projects that threaten historic resources. While such recourse is traditionally pursued to protect buildings and other human-made structures, activists are hopeful that a more contemporary reading could include natural resources like the East Austin pecan grove.
The Historic Landmark Commission’s direction has been forwarded to both the Planning Commission and City Council for further consideration. Until then, readers can find up-to-date information about TxDOT’s plans at the city’s I-35 Capital Express projects website.
The Austin Monitor’s work is made possible by donations from the community. Though our reporting covers donors from time to time, we are careful to keep business and editorial efforts separate while maintaining transparency. A complete list of donors is available here, and our code of ethics is explained here.
And we’re honored you look to us for serious, in-depth news. You know a strong community needs local and dedicated watchdog reporting. We’re here for you and that won’t change. Now will you take the powerful next step and support our nonprofit news organization?
Historic Landmark Commission: The city’s Historic Landmark Commission promotes historic preservation of buildings and structures. The commission also reviews applications and permits for historic zoning and historic grants.
TxDOT: The transportation agency for the State of Texas.
