ACTION ALERT – Support the Boardwalk at Lady Bird Lake

Austin area cyclists:

The City Council will vote on this Thursday, March 5th, on a resolution to approve the Riverside Boardwalk Trail’s current alignment as presented by the Parks and Recreation Department. Join us at a press event Thursday morning, and show Council your support moving forward:

• Email the City Council to urge them to vote yes on Agenda Item #10 and move the process forward.
• Join us at a press event in support of the Boardwalk Trail project at 9:30 a.m. on the City Hall plaza this Thursday.
• When you come to the press event, be sure to go inside and sign up in favor of the Boardwalk agenda item. You can sign up “in favor, not wishing to speak” and you don’t have to stick around and wait for the item to come up. The Council will see that you’ve registered your support and will read it into the record.

Approval of this route will allow for the detailed planning and design phase of the project to commence. The draft resolution also directs City staff to maintain active communication with, and seek input and feedback from, stakeholders and interested parties throughout this planning and design process. Staff will have flexibility to pursue alternative routes that meet essential design standards including:

• a 14′ width to allow for two-way multi-modal use,
• a gentle, ADA-accessible slope,
• routes recommended by city, state and federal environmental permitting agencies.

The current route runs on land through currently inaccessible parkland west of IH-35 and across easements negotiated with some of the private property owners along the lakefront. The Trail Foundation, Save Town Lake, neighborhood groups and the Parks Department helped negotiate those varied easements for primary trail and neighborhood access paths over the last three years. The route will be over water only where steep slopes, sensitive environmental or private property conditions make it necessary.

Completing this design process is the next stage towards substantially completing the Trail, bridging a gap between East and West Austin and allowing public and safe pedestrian and bicycle access to all of the waterfront.

A broad coalition of civic leaders and non-profit organizations support the Boardwalk Trail in addition to BikeTexas, including The Trail Foundation, the Austin Parks Foundation, Paul Carrozza of RunTex, and Austin Metro Trails and Greenways. The coalition is committed to a Boardwalk Trail that provides safe pedestrian and bicycle access for users of all abilities.

Please ask your City Council to take the next step towards completing our lakefront Trail.

will.wynn@ci.austin.tx.us
lee.leffingwell@ci.austin.tx.us
mike.martinez@ci.austin.tx.us
randi.shade@ci.austin.tx.us
brewster.mccracken@ci.austin.tx.us
sheryl.cole@ci.austin.tx.us
laura.morrison@ci.austin.tx.us

No construction funding is being requested or provided as part of the vote on March 5th. The search for funding from the private and public sector will begin after a design is finalized.

Thank you for helping to Complete the Trail!

Please forward this to cycling (and running, and walking) friends!