Highland Park - June 2022

Highland Park West Balcones Area

HIGHLAND PARK WEST BALCONES AREA NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION VOLUME 18, NUMBER 06 • JUNE 2022 • WWW.HPWBANA.ORG

The Highland Park West Balcones Area Neighborhood Association News - June 2022

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Highland Park West Balcones Area

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The Highland Park West Balcones Area Neighborhood Association News - June 2022

IMPORTANT NUMBERS

Highland Park West Balcones Area

Austin Citywide Information Center... 974-2000 or 311 Emergency Police, Fire and EMS.............................. 911 Non-emergency Police (coyote sighting, etc.)......... 311 Social Services (during work hours)........................ 211

APD REP. - Officer Darrell Grayson........ 512-974-5242

BOARD OF DIRECTORS PRESIDENT Jason Lindenschmidt................ president@hpwbana.org VICE PRESIDENT Bill McMillin.........................................vp@hpwbana.org TREASURER George Zwicker........................ treasurer@hpwbana.org SECRETARY Dawn Lewis.............................. secretary@hpwbana.org NEWSLETTER EDITOR Carolyn Heath........................ newsletter@hpwbana.org WEBMASTER Henry Tang.............................webmaster@hpwbana.org BOARD MEMBERS Bill Hyland...................................... board@hpwbana.org Rebecca Spratlin............................. board@hpwbana.org Shannon McNeil............................. board@hpwbana.org

The HPWBANA Board meets on the fourth Monday of each month except December. Please go to HPWBANA. org for our current meeting location or contact president@ hpwbana.org.

HWPBANA is bordered on the north by 2222, on the south by 35th Street, on the west by Mt. Bonnell Road, and on the east by MoPac and by Bull Creek Road between Hancock Drive and 45th Street. Mail your membership dues to HPWBANA, P.O. Box 26101, Austin, Texas 78755.

The Highland Park West Balcones Area Neighborhood Association News - June 2022

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Highland Park West Balcones Area

LETTUCE RECYCLE

by Dena Houston

CAN RECYCLING ONE PLASTIC BOTTLE MAKE A DIFFERENCE? IT’S A START! One person, recycling one plastic bottle, represents a lifestyle which helps promote a healthier planet. Here is one of the most important ways recycling gives the Earth a healthier future.

RECYCLING REDUCES THE NEED FOR LANDFILLS – A HUGE CONTRIBUTOR TO CLIMATE CHANGE The most pressing environmental concern with landfills is their release of methane gas.

Methane is 84 times more effective at absorbing the sun’s heat than carbon dioxide, making it one of the most potent greenhouse gases and a huge contributor to climate change.

Landfills are very costly. They are designed to bury trash rather than convert and reuse it. When a landfill closes, it must be maintained for at least 30 years to prevent pollution of soil and ground water. It is very costly to protect our natural resources from landfill contamination.

HOW THE AMOUNT OF GARBAGE YOU PRODUCE AFFECTS THE LANDFILL There are four sizes of trash carts available in Austin - 24, 32, 64, and 96 gallons. If you fill up a 96-gallon cart every week, you will add almost 5000 gallons of garbage to the landfill every year. This is equal to filling a small in-ground swimming pool. If you fill a 24-gallon cart every week, you will add only 1248 gallons of garbage to the landfill every year Continued on Page 5

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The Highland Park West Balcones Area Neighborhood Association News - June 2022

Highland Park West Balcones Area Continued from Page 4

The picture to the left tells a chilling story. How easy it would be to get The City of Austin to Zero Waste by 2040 if we all composted and recycled. IT ALL STARTS WITH RECYCLING ONE PLASTIC BOTTLE! Below is a list of how long it takes for items to decompose in a landfill: Plastic bags – 10 to 20 years Glass bottle – 1 million years Plastic Bottles – 500+ years Wool socks – 1 to 5 years Leather shoes – 25 to 40 years Styrofoam cup – 100 years (Source: UK Department of the Environment) ALL OF THE ABOVE ITEMS CAN BE RECYLED IN AUSTIN!

QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS: HOW DO I RECYCLE METAL SCREENS? Metal (not fabric) screens are accepted at the Recycle & Reuse Drop Off Center.

WHAT DO I DO WITH THE PLANT POTS AND TRAYS FROM THE GARDEN CENTER? Most of them have a recycling symbol on them. If they do, they go into the blue recycling cart.

Please shake the dirt off first.

WHAT DO I DO WITH PLASTIC BAGS THAT CONTAINED FERTILIZER, COMPOST, SOIL, AND MULCH? Due to contamination, they cannot go into the plastic bag collection bin at the grocery store. These must go into the trash cart. The Recycle & Reuse Drop Off Center used to accept them, but no longer have a buyer because of the contamination issue.

Here is a very informative City of Austin recycling website: http://www.austintexas.gov/what-do-i-do Stay tuned for future tips that will include creative ways to recycle or reuse. If you have any questions or recycling ideas, please send them to: recycling@hpwbana.org

The Highland Park West Balcones Area Neighborhood Association News - June 2022

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Highland Park West Balcones Area

THE LAND

by Trey McWhorter

This is the second in a series of history articles about our great neighborhood.

This area was truly the frontier, and long before the area was settled by our early pioneers, it was the hunting grounds and a passageway for a variety of Native American tribes. Countless artifacts have been discovered in the hills of this neighborhood. Balcones Park developer David Barrow accumulated an extensive collection, later donating over 4,000 pieces to East Baptist University in Marshall, Texas.

The earliest history of ownership of the land here starts with Thomas J. Chambers, a land surveyor and speculator who received land grants (~1835)1 from Mexico along the Colorado River in present day Austin, Texas, including the area in which these neighborhoods were later developed.2 It became known as the Thomas Jefferson Chambers survey.

It was a pie-shaped tract of land extending north from the Colorado River with an eastern border roughly following Interstate 35 and a western border approximately where the Pennybacker (360) Bridge is today, extending up to just east of I-35 almost to Williamson County.

But the title for this grant from Mexico did not come into the General Land Office until January of 1840. Since the title was filed with the Land Office until very late, it was considered vacant and unappropriated land, and the headrights, bounties and donation grants had been patented to other settlers. So the land on which this neighborhood (and the city of Austin)was developed was disputed. Ultimately a lawsuit settled the matter and in 1925 the Texas Legislature appropriated $20,000 to compensate the Chambers heirs for settlement of their right, title, interest, and claims against the state related to this land.

This 1861 map shows the original TJ Chambers land grant and the conflicting landowners that had filed with the General Land Office. So the earliest property owners (those in conflict with Chambers) appear to be George W Spear, Daniel J Gilbert and A Silsbee. An 1894 map adds one more property owner in the area: CJ Strother. https://s3.glo.texas.gov/ncu/SCANDOCS/archives_webfiles/arcmaps/webfiles/landgrants/PDFs/1/0/3/4/1034715.pdf William Chambers, Sketch of the Life of General T. J. Chambers of Texas (Galveston: Galveston News Book and Job Office, 1853). Llerena B. Friend, The Life of Thomas Jefferson Chambers (M.A. thesis, University of Texas, 1928). Vertical Files, Dolph Briscoe Center for American History, University of Texas at Austin.

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The Highland Park West Balcones Area Neighborhood Association News - June 2022

AUSTIN PARKS AND RECREATION, NEARBY FACILITIES

Highland Park West Balcones Area

Northwest Rec Center, 2913 Northland Dr.

Offers year round activities and programs for youth and adults. The center was remodeled in 2011 and contains: full court gymnasium, fitness studio, arts and crafts room, meeting room, multi-purpose room, teen room and a lobby with free wifi, ping pong, chess and foosball. Located on the grounds are: playscape, large grassy field, sand volleyball court, five disc golf baskets, horseshoe pit, and picnic tables.

Hours: Monday - Thursday 9:00am - 9:00pm, Friday 9:00am 6:00pm, Saturday 8:30am - 2:30pm

Northwest Pool, 7000 Ardath St Opens June 6.

Hours: Weekdays: 9:00 am - 4:00 pm recreational swim, 4:00 pm - 8:00 pm lap Swim and swim lessons.

Weekends: 12:00 pm - 7:00pm recreational Swim Closed Thursdays

FREE JUNE EVENTS AT LAGUNA GLORIA

3809 W. 35th St. Free advance ticket reservations are encouraged and available online.

11 am -3 pm Saturday, June 11th SECOND SATURDAYS ARE FOR FAMILIES: PAPER PERSONALITIES Celebrate the beloved bunny sculpture, Miffy Fountain by Tom Sachs. Sachs created this sweet sculpture using foam board and hot glue. Let his process inspire you and spend a day bonding with your loved ones and exploring the art of sculpture. All the paper, cardboard, foam, and more that you need to crunch, twist, fold, and sculpt your own unique character to life will be provided.

Open until 9 pm Thursday, June 30 LAGUNA GLORIA OPEN LATE All ages are invited to self-guided lantern tours and Happy Hour specials available all night.

Experience Laguna Gloria under the stars during extended open hours! You’ll enter a magical world of illuminated sculptures, gently lit pathways, hooting owls, and moonlight reflected on the waves of Lake Austin.

Bailey Splash Pad, 1201 W. 33rd St. Hours: 9 am- 8 pm daily

The Highland Park West Balcones Area Neighborhood Association News - June 2022

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Highland Park West Balcones Area

PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE

PO Box 1148 Round Rock, Texas 78680

PAID

PEEL, INC.

HP

instant curb appeal COMING SOON

Let me plant something green in your yard this summer.

TREY MCWHORTER 512.808.7129

Trey McWhorter REALTOR® 512-808-7129 cell trey.mcwhorter@moreland.com

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The Highland Park West Balcones Area Neighborhood Association News - June 2022 If you’re currently working with another Realtor®, this is not intended to solicit your business.