I'd do it to help save your dg course - please help!

[milow369]

Disc Golf Course Review Community,

I would like to appeal to you for your help in saving one of Austin, TX.'s oldest disc golf courses - Pease Park. I am not asking for much and I'd do the same for your if you were losing your home course. Please help send a message to the heads of our City that the disc golf is a legitimate sport, the community is a legitimate group of good folks and is only growing!

Two things you can do:

1) EASY: I ask that after you get your fill at dgcoursereview.com, you take a quick jaunt over to this SAVE PEASE PARK DISC GOLF webpage:

http://www.facebook.com/pages/SAVE-PEASE-PARK-DISC-GOLF/122199924486174?ref=ts

*** Just make sure you record your visit by selecting "like it" or better yet, leave a message of support to your fellow dg friends in Austin, TX.
*** Then be sure to come right back to dgcoursereview.com

2) A LITTLE MORE: If you are feeling it, please shoot the head of Austin Parks an email stating why you play disc golf, what you get from it, and/or why it is positive for the community to have accessible disc golf courses.

[email protected]

*** Please be respectful. Doesn't have to be a book, one or two lines.
"It's a great way to get exercise while experiencing nature", "cheap equipment allows anyone to have access", etc.

 

[dreadlock86]

just heard about this last week.

joined the group and sent an email. best of luck to us. the disc golf community will have to be a very squeaky wheel to have our way here.

 

[cydisc]

Aren't they developing another park to replace the course at Pease?

 

[tstack10]

Pease need some wok buy it was one of fist courses I ever played. Good luck keeping it around but luckily Austin has soo many great courses near by like east metro, circle c and heard bible ridge is nice too. I sign up and good luck

 

[tmahan]

Emailed the Parks boss, good luck, I love Pease Park.

 

[buzzinb]

Sent a brief email to Sara.
Good luck in the cause--the closing of such a venerable disc golf course would be a terrible a tragedy.
Austin is definately a "DG Destination City" that I would love to visit some day.

 

[billnchristy]

Will do at home, no facey spacey here at work.

Good luck! We as a community really need to rally around ideas and have a voice. We have lawyers, teachers, policemen & women, and every color collar and every economic level in our stable. We represent probably a good majority of ethnic backgrounds and yet we are too quiet to be cared about.

THIS is the kind of stuff that gives the sport a name. Band up! Fight the man.

That being said I understand the environmental concerns the city has and hope that they plan to re-install the course after the work is done or find a way for the work and course to co-exist...maybe go to 9 holes one season and the other 9 the next to do the work?

 

[milow369]

Do you work for the city?

"developing another park to replace the course at Pease" is Austin Park Director's recent argument which is why I ask.

Truth is the "replacement" course is needed just to keep up with growth of the sport and Austin area population - And we're excited about the new course & property which runs right along the Colorado River. This will give access to ACC students, East Austin needs another course nearby - no argument here, but it's not a "replacement for Pease"

Pease is walking distance for thousands of UT students, it's a central Austin course - 10 minutes away for almost everyone, it's a DG icon and part of Austin culture, and it's got some of the best lines I've ever had the pleasure to hit. (sometimes) You always see something weird during your round as well.

This "replacement" idea was just thrown out by the city in an attempt to quickly pull the plug on the Pease DG course so they can get in and complete the Shoal Creek Flood Plane project without dealing with a bunch of disc golfers all over the place - I get that! I agree with that! The DG community gets that. we don't have a problem staying away for awhile, we will respect the very important work that needs to take place, we'd like to contribute.

Pease (entire park if you ask me) has been neglected for years. Development all around the park continues and more runoff is making it's way into Shoal Creek - If you don't believe me, go there after it's been raining for a half day or so - you can literally see the creek rising.

The long term decision to not replace the dg course after the work is completed is the area of concern for the DG Community. We just want to be a part in the recreation of our park, a park that we've been in for 20+ years. Truth is there are erosion measures that can be put into place to ease impact on the soil, along the banks of the creek, bridges over the creek, etc. We could wrap trees in impact locations, etc. We'd probably volunteer to do much of the labor - for free. Austin clubs have devoted thousands of hours of volunteer time at Pease Park.

So, short answer is no, the new Colorado River Park DG Course not a replacement for Pease.
Thanks for bringing this up.

MLow

 

[milow369]

Will do at home, no facey spacey here at work.

Good luck! We as a community really need to rally around ideas and have a voice. We have lawyers, teachers, policemen & women, and every color collar and every economic level in our stable. We represent probably a good majority of ethnic backgrounds and yet we are too quiet to be cared about.

THIS is the kind of stuff that gives the sport a name. Band up! Fight the man.

That being said I understand the environmental concerns the city has and hope that they plan to re-install the course after the work is done or find a way for the work and course to co-exist...maybe go to 9 holes one season and the other 9 the next to do the work?

Agree with everything. Even if you hate Pease Park Disc Golf Course, this type of action by the city sets a dangerous precedent that the DG community needs to get out in front of and get ready for.

It could be any city in the country, it could be any park that has had DG there for 25+ years. There are organized groups of dog walkers who show up at neighborhood meetings and city council meetings to protect their right of way - do you do the same for disc golf? Maybe a group that thinks DG is bad for trees, maybe they have the ear of the Mayor...

As for ideas about how to make it work, we've got them - we just want our seat at the table.

 

[tmahan]

Milow, restoration of the course (with environmental enhancements) after the renovations are completed are what I suggested in my email. As a non-resident I stopped short of promising volunteer labor but I pretty much followed your line. I did mention that Pease is truly unique among the almost 100 courses I've played across much of the country and was a model for an urban disc golf course. I hope you guys get the push you need.

 

[milow369]

Thanks for taking the time tmahan to do your part for the Disc Golf community in Austin and in general. We're going to do our best to highlight some of the great erosion measures we put into place (see Circle C renovation) and we're going to get bodies to the various public meetings on the subject. It is possible to have a multi-use park that can accommodate all types of park goers.

Pease has been one of those parks that has needed work for years. The city put nothing into it, everything done on the dg course can be attributed to locals getting out and volunteering. We're hoping that we can make the argument to complete the creek improvements then re-design the course, or parts of the course accordingly.

Thanks again for your support

 

[AequitasVeritas]

joined the group and fired off an email as well. Pease park is on my wish list

 

[X06X]

Done and done. Joined group, sent short, sweet, and nice email. Good luck!!!

 

[volklgirl]

Done and done.

 

[Todd Wiley]

done and done

 

[therealbigtrav]

done and done

This

 

[surgeflx87]

I have sent a nice long email explaining how wrong this is. I would love to see a reaponse back.

 

[skurf]

I just sent an email.

This is taken from the thread about Pease Park closing:

I don't know if any of you are from the Austin area, but there is a public meeting on June 17th, at the Senior Center at 6:30, the discuss the future of Pease Park. A bunch of golfers are planning on showing up to support the course, and make sure that it isn't taken down in December. I had a long conversation with Mr. Moody yesterday while I was playing at Pease, (Don't know if you are familiar with him or not, he owns Moody's DG course in Red Rock,TX) and he seems to think that we have a very good chance at keeping the park if we all show up to defend it. Apparently there is a large group of wealthy lawyers who play Pease allot, and they said they would show up and defend it. And I believe he said there are a few Texas Congressmen who frequent Pease, and are willing to support the park as well.
Overall, if we all go up against this together, we could keep the Pease Park disc golf course, a real jewel, remaining for many more years.

I'm planning on getting off work early to attend this meeting and hopefully add my voice to the people that support re-installing the course after the construction is complete and will willingly volunteer man-hours to help with re-installation and future erosion prevention.

 

[AequitasVeritas]

I got an email back from her.

Dear XXXX,

Thank you for contacting our department about Pease District Park. The Austin Parks and Recreation Department is currently assessing the deteriorating conditions of this historic park and the potential for its recovery as a lasting public asset for future generations. Pease District Park experiences heavy use from a large variety of park patrons. Unfortunately, all these activities have taken a serious toll on the landscape and jeopardize its ultimate survival. The alarming conditions were confirmed by an ecological site assessment by the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in 2006. This site visit confirmed that the park is suffering from soil compaction and trampling of vegetation; invasion by non-native plant species; and reduction of the capacity of the soil to absorb flood waters. Our department is also concerned that there are few young trees growing in the remnant woodlands to take the place of the older and, in many cases, dying trees.

As stewards of our public lands, the Parks Department is responsible to both today's park users and the future generations that rely on us to manage and preserve our precious green spaces for our children and grandchildren. As Austin grows, balancing these two important needs with limited resources becomes more and more of a challenge. Unfortunately, hindsight has shown us that the rocky slopes and narrow configuration of Pease Park is not an ideal location from a management standpoint for a heavily used disk golf course. The park must rest if it is to survive. We want to assure you that we are making it one of our top departmental priorities to replace the disc golf course at Pease with a well-designed and more sustainable course in a different central location, at the earliest possible date. We are proud to say that PARD has been collaborating for the past three years with neighbors and park advocates in a restoration program at Pease that has resulted in the planting of over 300 trees, along with other park projects aimed at bringing the park back to life. Likewise, we look forward to further collaboration with disk golf clubs to provide and maintain a new course we can all be proud of and enjoy.

A Pease Park capital improvement initiative will be taking place in 2011 to improve the water quality in Shoal Creek, repair significant stream bank erosion, and restore healthy soil and vegetation on the creek. The project area encompasses the creek and its floodplain in the parkland adjacent to Shoal Creek from a point just south of Gaston Avenue to 15th Street. The department has been in dialogue with all Pease Park stakeholders through a series of community meetings held over the last 12 months. The public process efforts have focused on listening to concerns and ideas, and informing stakeholders about the upcoming work in Shoal Creek and how it affects parks users and our plans to locate a new disc golf course.


The Department will hold a another public meeting on Thursday, June 17th at the Lamar Senior Activity Center located at 2874 Shoal Crest (off Lamar/29th Street). We invite you to join our staff for a discussion about Pease Park and disc golf.

Thank you once again for contacting us and for sharing your concerns.

Sincerely,

Sara L. Hensley, CPRP
Director, Parks and Recreation Department

 

[skurf]

I got an email back from her.

Dear XXXX,

Thank you for contacting our department about Pease District Park. The Austin Parks and Recreation Department is currently assessing the deteriorating conditions of this historic park and the potential for its recovery as a lasting public asset for future generations. Pease District Park experiences heavy use from a large variety of park patrons. Unfortunately, all these activities have taken a serious toll on the landscape and jeopardize its ultimate survival. The alarming conditions were confirmed by an ecological site assessment by the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in 2006. This site visit confirmed that the park is suffering from soil compaction and trampling of vegetation; invasion by non-native plant species; and reduction of the capacity of the soil to absorb flood waters. Our department is also concerned that there are few young trees growing in the remnant woodlands to take the place of the older and, in many cases, dying trees.

As stewards of our public lands, the Parks Department is responsible to both today's park users and the future generations that rely on us to manage and preserve our precious green spaces for our children and grandchildren. As Austin grows, balancing these two important needs with limited resources becomes more and more of a challenge. Unfortunately, hindsight has shown us that the rocky slopes and narrow configuration of Pease Park is not an ideal location from a management standpoint for a heavily used disk golf course. The park must rest if it is to survive. We want to assure you that we are making it one of our top departmental priorities to replace the disc golf course at Pease with a well-designed and more sustainable course in a different central location, at the earliest possible date. We are proud to say that PARD has been collaborating for the past three years with neighbors and park advocates in a restoration program at Pease that has resulted in the planting of over 300 trees, along with other park projects aimed at bringing the park back to life. Likewise, we look forward to further collaboration with disk golf clubs to provide and maintain a new course we can all be proud of and enjoy.

A Pease Park capital improvement initiative will be taking place in 2011 to improve the water quality in Shoal Creek, repair significant stream bank erosion, and restore healthy soil and vegetation on the creek. The project area encompasses the creek and its floodplain in the parkland adjacent to Shoal Creek from a point just south of Gaston Avenue to 15th Street. The department has been in dialogue with all Pease Park stakeholders through a series of community meetings held over the last 12 months. The public process efforts have focused on listening to concerns and ideas, and informing stakeholders about the upcoming work in Shoal Creek and how it affects parks users and our plans to locate a new disc golf course.


The Department will hold a another public meeting on Thursday, June 17th at the Lamar Senior Activity Center located at 2874 Shoal Crest (off Lamar/29th Street). We invite you to join our staff for a discussion about Pease Park and disc golf.

Thank you once again for contacting us and for sharing your concerns.

Sincerely,

Sara L. Hensley, CPRP
Director, Parks and Recreation Department

I got the exact same response. Makes me wonder if they actually read my e-mail. Anyway, I am curious as to what this other central location could be. The only other centrally located park big enough for a disc golf course is Waterloo Park, but it would probably only be big enough for a 9 holer unless you take up every square inch and make the course compact and short.