01-1: Draft Minutes of April 27, 2026 — original pdf

Backup

PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 27, 2026 PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD REGULAR MEETING MINUTES APRIL 27, 2026 The PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD convened in a REGULAR meeting on APRIL 27, 2026 at 301 W 2nd Street in Austin, Texas. Chair Bazan called the PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD Meeting to order at 6:07 p.m. Board Members in Attendance: Stephanie Bazan, Kathryn Flowers, Luai Abou-Emara, Lane Becker Ted Eubanks, Jennifer Franklin, Nicole Merritt, Pedro Villalobos. Board Members in Attendance Remotely: Shelby Orme, Diane Kearns-Osterweil. Board Members Absent: Kim Taylor. PUBLIC COMMUNICATION: GENERAL Katerina Harris - Support for Garrison Pool John Harris - Support for Garrison Pool Nicholas Littlejohn - Maintenance and litter concerns Patricia Bobeck - Zilker Concession Stand and Parking Lot Heather VanDyke - Support for Garrison Park and Pool Aubrea Rudder - Austin Rowing Club Lee Ann Innmon - Friends of Fairview Park Mark May - Improvements to the Non-Profit Model Daniel Kavelman - Shoal Creek Conservancy Gavino Fernandez - Edward Rendon Park and City employee concerns Janett Iturbe - Water Play Area as a priority in the 2026 Bond APPROVAL OF MINUTES 1. Approve the minutes of the Parks and Recreation Board regular meeting of March 23, 2026. The motion to approve the minutes of the Parks and Recreation Board regular meeting of March 23, 2026 was approved on Board Member Franklin’s motion, Board Member Villalobos’ second on a 10-0 vote. Board Member Taylor absent. DISCUSSION AND ACTION ITEMS 2. Presentation, discussion and approve letters of support for the Austin Watershed Protection salamander team. Page 1 of 4 PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 27, 2026 Nathan Bendick, Conservation Program Supervisor, Austin Watershed Protection gave a presentation and answered questions on historical mentions of Barton Springs Salamanders and Austin Blind Salamanders, and the impact of the building of the pool on the salamander population The motion to approve letters of support for the Austin Watershed Protection salamander team was approved on Vice Chair Flowers’ motion, Board Member Eubanks’ second on a 10-0 vote. Board Member Taylor absent. 3. Presentation, discussion and approve a recommendation to Austin City Council that the Parks and Recreation Board supports the Gus Garcia District Park Vision Plan. Charles Mabry, Project Manager, Austin Parks and Recreation gave a presentation and answered questions on the off-leash dog area, water crossings, and flooding concerns. The motion to recommend to Austin City Council to approval of the Gus Garcia District Park Master Plan as presented was approved on Vice Chair Flowers’ motion, Board Member Abou-Emara’s second on a 10-0 vote. Board Member Taylor absent. 4. Presentation, discussion, and approve recommendations to the Austin City Council regarding the proposed 2026 General Obligation Bond. Alyssa Tharrett, Project Management Supervisor and Liana Kallivoka, Assistant Director, Austin Parks and Recreation gave a presentation and answered questions on whether the $400M scenario is a work in progress, and alternate funding scenarios for the Central Maintenance Complex. The motion to approve the recommendation as posted in the backup was approved with the following friendly amendments on Board Member Villalobos’s motion, Vice Chair Flowers’ second on a 10-0 vote. Board Member Taylor absent. The friendly amendment from Board Member Eubanks was to add the language “Strategic land acquisition to support access to parks for our growing city population”. The friendly amendment from Board Member Becker was to add the language “In advance of the 2026 bond election, look for opportunities and channels to promote to the public the success of the projects that were accomplished by APR as a result of funds brought in by the previous 2018 bond.” The friendly amendment from Vice Chair Flowers was to add the language “While only the $250 million amount can meet all the current needs of the city’s park system, if a lower amount is determined to be required, Council should make every effort to ensure the final amount remains as close to the $250 million level as possible.” 5. Discussion and approve an amendment to the Parks and Recreation Board by-laws to remove the Contracts and Concessions Committee. Board Members discussed transparency around concessions contracts, whether the Contracts and Concessions Committee is an appropriate venue, and the Committee not meeting for more than six months. Page 2 of 4 PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 27, 2026 The motion to approve an amendment to the Parks and Recreation Board by-laws to remove the Contracts and Concessions Committee was approved on Board Member Becker’s motion, Chair Bazan’s second on a 10-0 vote. Board Member Taylor absent. 6. Discussion and approve a recommendation to Austin City Council that City staff should conduct community engagement related to Perry Park prior to renewing the park use agreement with North Austin Soccer Alliance. Board Members discussed how the public speaks about its desires as it relates to these contracts, unstructured recreation, a recent recommendation on soccer approved by the Board, signage, the length of these park use agreements, and postponing this item so that it could include all soccer and baseball fields. The motion to approve a recommendation to Austin City Council that City staff should conduct community engagement related to Perry Park prior to renewing the park use agreement with North Austin Soccer Alliance was made by Board Member Eubanks and seconded by Board Member Abou-Emara. Board Member Villalobos motioned to amend the recommendation to read “approve a recommendation to Austin City Council that City staff should conduct community engagement related to any City of Austin owned soccer and baseball field prior to renewing the park use agreement.” This amended language was determined to be out of compliance with the Texas Open Meetings Act as the public was properly noticed that the Board would consider this action. Board Member Eubanks withdrew the motion. 7. Conduct officer elections for Chair and Vice Chair of the Parks and Recreation Board. Board Members discussed that the person serving of Chair should have time to understand the role. The motion to elect Stephanie Bazan to the officer position of Chair of the Parks and Recreation Board was approved on Board Member Villalobos’ motion, Board Member Merritt’s second on a 10-0 vote. Board Member Taylor absent. The motion to elect Lane Becker to the officer position of Vice Chair of the Parks and Recreation Board was approved on Board Member Villalobos’ motion, Board Member Merritt’s second on a 10-0 vote. Board Member Taylor absent. STAFF BRIEFINGS 8. Staff briefing on the Barton Springs Road bridge replacement project. This item was tabled by the Chair 9. Staff briefing on the Austin Parks and Recreation Community PARKnership Program. Christine Chute Canul, Community PARKnership Program Manager, Austin Parks and Recreation gave a briefing and answered clarifying questions on park adoptions, how APR will respond to community questions, shared language, and Partners vs. PARKners. No action was taken on this item. Page 3 of 4 PARKS AND RECREATION BOARD MEETING MINUTES APRIL 27, 2026 10. Staff briefing on the All Abilities Playground at Onion Creek Metro Park. Charles Mabry, Project Manager, Austin Parks and Recreation and Katie Robillard, Chief Design & Implementation Officer, Austin Parks Foundation gave a briefing and answered clarifying questions on restrooms with adult sized changing tables and music. No action was taken on this item. 11. Staff briefing on Parks and Recreation Department community engagement events, planning updates, development updates, maintenance updates, program updates and administrative updates. Jesús Aguirre, Austin Parks and Recreation Director gave a briefing. No action was taken on this item. FUTURE AGENDA ITEMS Becker – Appointments to the Joint Sustainability Committee. Bazan – Other committee openings. The motion to waive the rules and allow the Parks and Recreation Board to meet after 10:00 P.M. was approved on Chair Bazan’s motion, Board Member Becker’s second on an 8-2 vote. Those voting aye were Chair Bazan, Board Members Abou-Emara, Becker, Eubanks Franklin, Kearns- Osterweil, Merritt and Orme. Those voting nay were Vice Chair Flowers and Board Member Villalobos. Board Member Taylor absent. Chair Bazan adjourned the meeting at 10:36 p.m. without objection. These minutes were approved at the DATE Parks and Recreation Board meeting on Board Member NAME motion, Board Member NAME second on a VOTE. Page 4 of 4