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Advocates pitch ADA walkway and shaded swing at Bowden Point; seek tree-mitigation funding
Summary
Volunteers presented an ADA-accessible walkway and shaded swing set for Bowden Point and asked the parks committee to back a City Council funding request; the updated estimate includes a $78,780 walkway, a $3,000 accessibility add-on and an approximately $17,213 swing, with about $9,000 already approved for a footbridge.
Keep Lago Vista Beautiful volunteers asked the Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee on Wednesday to support a proposal to add an ADA-accessible walkway and a shaded swing set at Bowden Point and to back the groupahead of a City Council appearance.
"We have a a total of, 78,780 for the walkway," Caroline, speaking for Keep Lago Vista Beautiful, told the committee, and said the group had added $3,000 to make the swing area accessible. She said the unshaded swing option was priced at $17,213 and the group was discussing a shaded model; the transcript shows a stated overall figure of about $110,000 (noted in the record as "110,000, $5.28"). Caroline said City Council had already approved $9,000 for a footbridge but not for the remainder of the walkway.
David, the city staff member present, confirmed Bowden Point falls under the city's pocket-park definition because it is under 2 acres and said the city's tree mitigation ordinance permits using mitigation funds for improvements to pocket parks. "My understanding is there is something just under 1000000 dollars in that fund, and there is, at this point, no determination as to how to use that specifically," he said.
Committee members asked whether awarding roughly $100,000 to one park would limit the fund's availability for other projects. "That zero-sum question is a good one," Mark said, noting council preferences and PRAC recommendations would influence allocations. Several members urged a phased approach so the committee and council could support Bowden Point while preserving capacity for other projects.
Safety also drew scrutiny. Committee members agreed that fencing might be appropriate because the proposed swing location sits near busy roads; while staff and Caroline noted fencing is not a federal ADA requirement, several members said a modest fence would give parents greater confidence.
The committee did not take a formal vote; Caroline said the group planned to present the proposal to City Council next week and requested the committee's support going into that meeting.
Next steps: Keep Lago Vista Beautiful will appear before City Council; the committee signaled conditional support contingent on cost and whether using tree mitigation funds would affect other priorities.
