Welcome to our new blog series, “Great Grants!” Every year, the Austin Parks Foundation gives grants of financial support to park-adopter groups in Austin with great park-improvement projects. You can read more about our Park Grants Program here.
The Great Hills Park Volunteer Committee spearheaded a wonderful renovation project in Great Hills Park this year. The Committee was concerned about a large, drought-stricken empty space that had become an unsightly area at one of the trailheads. They felt this could be turned into an advantage for the park, so they applied for a grant to build a landscaped exercise area. In the Committee’s own words:
What difference did your project make to your community?
The exercise equipment will bring more neighbors to use the park. It will increase the community involvement with all the facilities in the park. We expect the equipment area to be a meeting point for the local teenagers to get together and constructively expend their energy. The equipment will also be used by neighbors of all ages to improve their overall fitness.
How has working on this project changed your perceptions of your park?
One of the best aspects of the project was the way the members of the community worked together. We had many meetings to discuss the objectives of the project, to plan the project, to create the fundraising activities, and to agree with APF, PARD, and other interested parties on how to complete the project. During the meetings we had many ideas of how best to meet our objectives, explored various options, and always come to agreements at the end of the meetings.
APF would like to thank the many volunteers who helped with this project – the Great Hills Park Volunteer Committee put in over 300 volunteer hours to make this project a success!
