City shares update on parks-nonprofit relationships

During a special called meeting of City Council’s Audit and Finance Committee on Oct. 9, three speakers stated their concerns about the relationship between the Parks Department and its nonprofit partners, specifically regarding special events and the Trail of Lights. This public testimony was the latest chapter in a recent ongoing dialogue about the relationship between Austin Parks and Recreation Department and its nonprofit partners, and there are strong opinions on both sides.

Diana Prechter, one of the speakers, told committee members she was concerned that there wasn’t enough transparency around revenue and ticket sales with the Trail of Lights. Prechter said she believed that in previous years, Council had erroneously waived park use fees for the event. Prechter added that event organizers could be earning profits that exceeded the value of fee waivers and event costs, without enough clarity on where the money was going.

Notably, the Trail of Lights originally transitioned from being a city-hosted event to the current partnership configuration due to financial challenges. More on that here.

Two other speakers, Chris Flores and Mark May, echoed Prechter’s concerns, raising additional questions about the relationship between Austin City Limits and the Austin Parks Foundation, and asked for more scrutiny and transparency around these partnerships.

The discussion about PARD’s nonprofit partnerships dates back to well before the recent Audit and Finance meeting, becoming more contentious in recent years with discussions of the Zilker Vision Plan, the formation of Rewild ATX, and the recent departure of Austin Parks Director Kimberly McNeeley to the Trail Conservancy. Interestingly, several sources were hesitant to speak with the Austin Monitor on the record because the public dialogue has become so polarized. The one point everyone seems to agree on is that our parks need more funding and maintenance.

In 2020, Council approved a resolution directing the city manager to create more parks-nonprofit partnership opportunities, and to outline roles and responsibilities between these groups and the city. As part of some of these partnerships with nonprofits, the city waives certain park use fees for special events, under the reasoning that they expand community reach and provide programming that aligns with PARD’s goals. The fee waivers enable event organizers to generate revenue, which is re-invested into Austin’s parks and trails. Nonprofits may be less constrained in their processes and spending, and may have more agility and creativity when it comes to implementing improvements or maintenance.

On the other hand, members of Rewild ATX and other advocates have indicated their distrust for this system, calling for an audit of these relationships. Their concerns include a lack of transparency around the overhead and revenue generated by special events, and a lack of oversight around how private organizations prioritize parks maintenance needs or select vendors. Advocates also seem concerned about the consequences if a partner falls behind on its obligations or does not meet the expectations of an agreement. “Nonprofits do not have halos,” said Chris Flores, another speaker at the Audit and Finance Committee meeting. “They must be scrutinized just like any other city contractor.”

PARD staffers have provided several updates on the 2020 Council resolution encouraging these partnerships. According to this annual report from 2023, PARD has over 135 community partners. There are several common configurations for city-private partnerships (more on this here). Most recently, the department issued a memo from interim Director Angela Means on Oct. 16. Notably, the memo stated that the department was partnering with Austin Public Health’s internal auditors to review current agreements, and that contract audits could include reviewing “pricing, deliverables, timelines, and performance metrics.” Means also highlighted a  web page  launched in 2021 with more information on “PARD PARKner” configurations.

The memo also mentioned the ongoing negotiation of several multi-year agreements, in collaboration with the city’s Law Department: “Agreements in development include the Zilker Botanical Garden Conservancy, Fruitful Commons, and the Austin Parks Foundation. … A new progress update will be issued in February 2025 and is expected to include details on fully negotiated and signed partnership agreements.”

These announcements from PARD were circulated one week after the speakers raised concerns at the Audit and Finance Committee meeting, although the department told the Austin Monitor via email that the announcement had already been in progress before that meeting. The department also confirmed that the findings of the audit would be shared publicly, adding: “This audit will help to ensure compliance, identify opportunities for improvement, and strengthen trust and relationships with partners and the community.”

As of now, there has not been a collective public response to the memo from the advocates supporting an audit of parks nonprofits. Diana Prechter told the Monitor she had plans to discuss her concerns with the city manager.

Photo made available through a Creative Commons license.

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