With increasing challenges in maintaining grounds within Austin’s busy parks system, the Parks and Recreation Board voted Monday to recommend that City Council allocate an additional $2.62 million to the Parks and Recreation Department budget for the new fiscal year.
Of that amount, the board requested that $2.24 million be allocated toward parks maintenance, including $1.5 million in ongoing funding and $740,000 in one-time funding to support 16 full-time employee positions. The board also asked that $385,000 of the recommended total go to the Homeless Encampment Response Team, with $375,000 designated as ongoing funding and $10,000 in one-time funding for four year-round full-time employee positions, operations and supplies.
Parks and Recreation Board Chair Pedro Villalobos said he brought the resolution after attending his District 2 budget town hall and hearing concerns about parks maintenance.
“This is when I decided that … I should probably do something about it since I have the ability to do something about it,” he said.
Acknowledging the public testimony from residents concerning various budget needs for parks, including the need for more full-time lifeguards and additional pay for bilingual lifeguards, he said his resolution is only a start toward a long-range goal.
“This is just the bare minimum that we can ask for in order for us to adequately maintain our parks,” he said. “I think that all of us would like to see that our parks and parks facilities be well maintained, whether it’s making sure that trash cans are getting emptied out and that litter is being picked up or, additionally, making sure that we’re adequately funding the Homeless Encampment Response Team.”
The response team is a cross-departmental group that monitors encampments for health and safety risks and manages cleanups of the camping areas.
Even with the additional full-time positions – assuming Council adopts the recommended maintenance funding into the new budget – the parks department would still lag behind national best practices for the number of parks maintenance employees recommended by the National Recreation and Park Association, which Villalobos said would be closer to 90 full-time positions.
City Council will hold its first work session on the budget today, followed by a public hearing starting at 3 p.m. at City Hall. Council Member Ryan Alter indicated on the City Council Message Board he would like parks maintenance to be added to today’s discussions.
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city budget: The city’s plan for expenditures based on income.
City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department: The city department responsible for the city's park system, rec centers, and associated infrastructure.
Parks and Recreation Board: The city’s Parks and Recreation Board members deal with the acquisition, development, improvement, and maintenance of Austin’s parks and playgrounds.
