Parks board delays request for traffic study, shuttle service for Zilker Park

The Parks and Recreation Board has further delayed a transportation impact analysis of Zilker Park that was originally suggested by City Council two years ago because of concerns the study could draw money away from other parks programs and budget items.

At this week’s meeting, the board voted down a recommendation from the analysis working group that would have asked the Transportation and Public Works Department to conduct the study beyond the time frame of the Barton Springs bathhouse rehabilitation. The recommendation also would have requested Council allocate the appropriate budget for the study and asked TPW to implement an interim shuttle system throughout Zilker Park during the study period.

The study was first called for in 2022 by former Council Member Ann Kitchen and former Assistant City Manager Gina Fiandaca, noting that nearby developments such as the planned unit development on the former Austin American-Statesman property downtown will lead to substantial changes in visitation patterns to the park.

Parks board members seemed in agreement that the study and shuttle system are necessary for the well-being of the park but were concerned that the recommendation could stall at Council or draw money away from other priorities if it didn’t include a possible funding source.

“I’m generally pro doing this sort of study, but I do have some concerns about understanding the cost structure,” Board Member Lane Becker said. “It would probably be useful to specify that we would want this done by an independent third-party source or third-party consultant. It’d be helpful for me at least to understand the cost structure … especially if we’re talking about something that’s intended to go for over a year.”

Members of the transit study working group asked parks staff about the likelihood that TPW would be responsible for the funding of any transportation study and said how to pay for the study and the shuttle service would ultimately be Council’s decision.

Board Member Holly Reed said the high usage of Zilker Park by tourists makes it possible the city could fund the recommendation using money from the local portion of Hotel Occupancy Tax collections, which by state law have to be spent on initiatives that support tourism.

“Because the basis for needing a (transportation impact analysis) and transportation demand mobility study is that we have so many tourists coming to Barton Springs and Zilker Park during the summer, and we would expect that that will increase in the summer of 2024 and 2025, some of this funding could be coming from the (hotel tax) fund if the Council proposes that,” she said. “Or it could be budgeted through Transportation and Public Works. That would be up to them. And I hope that the Council will come up with a resolution to recommend these studies get started as soon as possible.”

The board voted to refer the recommendation to its working group dedicated to funding requests for the 2024-25 budget, which could delay the start of any action by the city for roughly a year.

“I feel like it would be helpful to have a more detailed cost breakdown of how much these studies would cost,” Board Member Jennifer Franklin said. “I am concerned about where the money would be coming from if it would be taken from some other projects.

“I’m concerned about, again, what the cost would be. Is it going to be $50,000 to complete a report? I think having those hard numbers and being able to present that might help.”

Photo made available through a Creative Commons license.

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Posted In: Parks, District 5