By Melissa Hawthorne

The Greenbelt is truly one of the bright spots of living here in Austin. After the hustle of the week, I make time to go wander in the Greenbelt. I see some other folks wandering, as well, and wonder how many people here in the neighborhood take advantage of this respite. If it’s been awhile since you’ve enjoyed this gem in your backyard, now is a good time to go. The maps at the bottom of the page can give you a better idea of where the best access points are.

Depending on your skill level, there are several entrances you could choose to enter the Greenbelt. No matter which access point you use they all lead to the creek. If you are looking for a nice wide “main” trail — really wide and level — take the Greenbelt access through Zilker on the south side of Barton Springs Pool or the Spyglass entrance (from the Mopac side), which is actually across from the Homedale entrance.

The 360 access point is also fairly simple to navigate and, when you get down into the Greenbelt, you can go either south or north. Going south takes you toward the Wilderness Park, a developed trail not quite as large as the Zilker entrance. Going north toward Gus Fruh is stunning in its own way. The Gus Fruh entrance is definitely one of my favorites.

The Barton Hills access point, on Homedale, is a little more challenging, but once you’re there it’s absolutely exquisite. Staying on the neighborhood side on Homedale and Gus Fruh, the trail kind of dead ends; however, since the creek is not flowing now due to drought, you can easily cross to the other side of the creek to get to the “main” trail.

When the water is flowing, Homedale has the “rapids” and “falls” that kayakers love to navigate, as well as a small swimming “pool” beside the rapids, and Gus Fruh has the large swimming hole that families and dogs share. The 360 area has climbing walls just the other side of the creek. Climbing walls can also be found between Gus Fruh and Spyglass on the main trail across the creek from our neighborhood entry trail.

• Barton Creek Greenbelt
• Barton Creek Greenbelt (East)
• Barton Creek Greenbelt (West)

 BARTON HILLS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

MEMBERSHIP MEETING

January 24, 2012

St. Mark’s Episcopal Church Fellowship Hall

AGENDA

6:00   Pizza with our neighbors – Rockin’ Tomato Pizza

7:00   Call to order

7:05   Brief announcements

7:10   Approval of minutes of October 18, 2011 membership meeting

7:15   Treasurer’s report – Kerry Price

Membership Update – Kay Killen

7:25   Committee Reports:

• Neighborhood Watch – John Luther
• Greenbelt Guardians – Glee Ingram
• Membership Outreach Committee – Sunny Luther
• Area Development – Peter Hess
• Emergency Preparedness Committee
• ANC Update – Tom Nuckols

8:15  Announcements related to a Spring Fling BHNA membership event – Sunny Luther

8:30   Briefing from City of Austin Neighborhood Connectivity – Mopac Bicycle Bridge Project and Robert E. Lee sidewalk project.

8:45   Request and briefing on Cyclo-Cross Event proposed in Zilker Park

8:55   Status of nominated neighborhood improvement projects:

• Water fountain at Barton Hills Elementary playground

9:00   Other business, as brought to the floor by the membership

9:15   Adjourn

Fresh off the digital press of Editor Leah Golden, the January 2012 edition of the Barton Hills News is now available for your reading pleasure. Printed versions will be distributed to your doorstep soon. Meanwhile, for those who can’t wait or whose eyes are more accustomed to a backlit surface, you can check out the PDF version now for the latest Barton Hills scoop.

This edition features an update from Amy Moore, President of the Barton Hills Elementary PTA, about events at BHE and details about the district’s recent Annual Academic and Facilities Recommendations and their effect on our neighborhood school. Susan Donaldson, chair of the Emergency Preparedness Committee, explains how to make your home “Firewise” and Leah Golden profiles the Cardio Coffee walkers who have been meeting each month for over 8 years! Plus, check out the latest news about Neighborhood Watch and Greenbelt Guardians and biographies of your new 2012 BHNA officers.

The Barton Hills Neighborhood Association Neighborhood Watch program was featured in a front page story in the Austin American-Statesman today, complete with a color photo of Neighborhood Watch chairman John Luther and several volunteers. The story recognizes the efforts of the Neighborhood Watch program in our community and points out the significant reduction in several categories of crime since its inception.

You can check out the story at the Statesman site online or view this PDF version if the online version has been archived.

Residents of a few streets in Barton Hills recently discovered some newly installed fencing in their front yards. The protective chain link fences were placed in front of shrubs and landscaping close to the street to help protect them during upcoming road reconstruction. Trees near the roadway were also boarded for protection and erosion control filters placed in city storm drains.

The streets involved are scheduled for complete reconstruction, not a simple resurfacing.

The project was discussed at the BHNA January 2011 general meeting. Melissa Hawthorne obtained an update from the city which is included below.

The City of Austin Public Works Department has begun work on the Group 10 Collector/Residential Streets project in our neighborhood.  The project is part of the 2006 Bond Street Reconstruction Program and is expected to last for approximately 18 months.  The work includes full depth street reconstruction of the road and updated water lines, wastewater lines and storm drainage improvements.  The project limits are:

• Ann Arbor from Arpdale to De Verne
• Arpdale from Paramount to Bluebonnet
• Cliffside from Wildgrove to Spring Creek.
• De Verne from Rae Dell to Parmount
• Paramount from Rabb Glen to end
• Rabb Glen from Rae Dell to Ann Arbor
• Ridgeview from Barton Parkway to Micheal
• Rockingham from Barton Skyway to Barton Parkway
• Rock Terrace from Barton Skyway to Barton Parkway
• Westridge from Ridgeview to end

A notice to proceed has been issued to Texas Sterling Construction Company.  City of Austin contacts for this project are:

Project Manager:
Demira Wyatt                               512.974.7216

Construction Inspector:
John Rich                                           512.974.8794

Construction Inspector Supervisor :
Phillip Preslar                               512.974.8794

Field Engineer:
Valerie Rockwell                        512.974.1592

Outreach Coordinator
Michelle Frith                                 512.974.2436

If you have any concerns or questions about the project, you should contact one of the persons from the City of Austin.

Your quarterly Barton Hills Neighborhood Association newsletter is now online and will soon be arriving in printed form for residents.

The October, 2011 edition, edited by Leah Golden, includes stories about how neighbors collaborated to keep Barton Hills and the surrounding greenbelt safe during the recent ACL Music Festival, a wonderful feature about the Barton Hills Garden Club, the latest tips from Neighborhood Watch, an update from the Greenbelt Guardians, and much more.

 BARTON HILLS NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION

MEMBERSHIP MEETING

October 18, 2011

St. Mark’s Episcopal Church Fellowship Hall

AGENDA

6:00 Pizza with our neighbors – Rockin’ Tomato Pizza

6:45 Call to order

6:50 Brief announcements

6:55 Approval of minutes of July 26, 2011 membership meeting

6:57 Treasurer’s report – Ellen Pitluk

7:00 Presentation by City of Austin Emergency Management Office on disaster preparedness

8:00 Discussion and possible action regarding a FireWise neighborhood assessment and action plan and other measures related to fire safety – Patricia Wilson

8:15 Election of Barton Hills Neighborhood Association officers for 2012

8:30 Announcements related to a fall BHNA membership event – Sunny Luther

8:35 Discussion and possible action on nominated neighborhood improvement projects:

• Water fountain at Barton Hills Elementary playground
• Dog poop bag dispensers
• Neighborhood disaster preparedness plan

8:45 Discussion and possible action regarding City regulation of short-term rentals in residential areas

9:00 Committee Reports:

• Neighborhood Watch – John Luther
• Greenbelt Guardians – Glee Ingram
• Area Development – Peter Hess

9:15 Other business, as brought to the floor by the membership

9:30 Adjourn

GREENBELT GUARDIANS WORK DAY: SATURDAY, 9/24, GUS FRUH & HOMEDALE TRAILS, 9-NOON

Neighbors,

I wanted to confirm that we will be working at both the Gus Fruh trail area and the Homedale trail area this coming Saturday, which is National Public Lands Day. We’re part of a much larger effort being organized through the Austin Parks Foundation to do work at the Homedale and Spyglass areas, and along the main trail from Spyglass entry upstream to the Gus Fruh trail. A lot of the emphasis will be on invasives removal, now that the nesting birds have completed their mission. At Gus Fruh, the rock wall work will also continue. We will also do some minor trail repairs and clean-up.

In preparation for this work day, John Cook, PARD’s Barton Creek Greenbelt manager, met with a fire safety expert to get advice on how to best safely manage our work during this severe drought with accentuated fire hazards. Many trees are desiccated and dying from lack of water. John asked about the safety of our practice of creating windrows to deal with the large amounts of biomass produced by cutting down the large invasive trees. The advisor said that as long as the windrows are packed tight, close to the ground, and with minimal air flow potential, they are a practical and safe solution. He said it is safer to cut them down than to leave them standing with their dried leaves, which can act a bit like roman candles, sending the flames upward into the canopies. In working with smaller stems, limbs, and canes, he advised defoliating them and splitting the forks, and scattering them about on the ground to decompose rapidly. Where we can do so, he supported our efforts to chip the trunks and large limbs into mulch and spread it near the cleared area. It was reassuring to hear his positive assessment of our practices.

For this work day, we will have help from E-Corps and some of our experienced volunteers in using chainsaws to remove large invasive trees, and we will have volunteers working alongside them to immediately form tight windrows. We will also be hauling some of the large trunks and dried wood to the main trail near Spyglass to stockpile for chipping later next week. The chipped wood/mulch will decompose more rapidly and when it is spread, will help hold moisture in the soil (whenever we get it!) and reduce soil temperatures.

In the spirit of fire preparedness, we would like to invite our neighbors who back up to or live near the greenbelt to work in their own backyards or adjacent greenbelt areas this Saturday to clear out deadwood and reduce the risk of fire. The City picks up yard waste every week if it is left at the curbside, either in tied bundles or in trash cans. If you RSVP here, we will add you to our workday list and you can sign in at the Gus Fruh trail entry between 8:30 and 9:00, enjoy a breakfast taco and the group camaraderie, then return to your yard to do your own clearing work. If you need to borrow some tools, let us know right away, so we can have them available for you at the trailhead.

REGISTER for National Public Lands Day projects at the Barton Creek Greenbelt

We’re looking forward to another good work day, and thank you for your support!

Glee Ingram
Greenbelt Guardians Coordinator
(512) 443-7522

Barton Hills Elementary PTA 5 Year Plan Focus Group Sessions

(Coordinated and sponsored by the BHE PTA in response to the May 2011 PTA Survey Results)

Our intention: to gather the input of our savvy neighborhood, community partners, passionate parent community and dedicated Staff at Barton Hills Elementary.

Your input will kick-off a process to develop a PTA 5 Year Plan addressing collaborative uses of our PTA budget as well as other revenue sources.

Please join us to brainstorm ideas on how to best utilize and enhance our facility, school grounds, and programs.

Wed. Sept 28, 7-9pm St Mark’s Parish Hall
Wed. Oct 5, 7-9pm St Mark’s Parish Hall
Thurs. Oct 6, 7-9 pm BHE Library 

Please RSVP at http://doodle.com/m8wmzte9bbebb29m or 

KXAN’s Reagan Hackleman reported live from Zilker Park again last night during the evening news with a story about preparations by Austin Fire Deparment for the crowds expected for the Austin City Limits Festival that runs today through Sunday.

Our own Neighborhood Watch chairman John Luther was interviewed and included in the story, describing actions residents of Barton Hills are taking to heighten awareness of the fire danger. Luther said “The fire danger is extreme The greenbelt is rugged. It would difficult to get fire equipment in there, if not impossible.”

City officials held a press conference Thursday morning at Zilker Park where Austin Police Lt. Todd Smith stated “This is about the most dangerous place in Austin where a fire could start and it could really cause a lot of damage.” Fire Department Chief Rhoda Mae Kerr said ,”Yes we are concerned. Yes we are prepared. We’re staffing up additional brush trucks.”