Since 2002, Friends of Patterson Park (FoPP) has worked closely with the community to improve their beloved green space. From planting trees to a new playscape, FoPP works hard to provide a park experience for varying hobbies and interestes. You'll often see birthday parties, gardeners, pickup basketball games and much more making Patterson Park a great destination for an afternoon outdoors.
Austin Parks Foundation is proud to partner with FoPP. Multiple ACL Music Festival Grants have been awarded to projects at Patterson Park over the course of almost a decade. Our work together began in 2011 with the painting of the mural at Patterson Pool and housing for the purple martin birds that live nearby.
Planting the Roots of an All-Organic Vegetable Community Garden
In 2014, Patterson Park Community Garden Task Force was awarded a grant from Austin Parks Foundation to build the infastructure of the brand new Patterson Park Community Garden. The garden was first proposed in 2012, and after a lot of hard work, the garden was finally completed in 2016.
Now, the community garden offers locals the opportunity to grow their own produce. The all-organic vegetable garden is sponsored by the Sustainable Food Center, and has 68 plots. Into gardening? Check out their membership details!
Bringing More Local Art to Patterson Park
In 2016, Friends of Patterson Park and Fisterra Studios worked together to bring art to Patterson Park as part of XYZ Atlas: the Hedonic Map of Austin. The piece, Dance of the Cosmos, is a kinetic and solar powered sculpture made of concrete and steel.
The artist, Jennifer Chenoweth, was inspired by the color wheel and the Tibetan lotus mandala. The piece was previously displayed at the Elisabet Ney Museum, but is now on permanent loan from Fisterra Studios.
In 2017, we partnered with FoPP to update benches and tables by the pool. Friends of Patterson Park identified the need for these updates, and applied for a grant from APF. They were awarded $4,910, which allowed for two new tables, 6 benches and a trash can. The following year, APF made its biggest invesment in Patterson Park to date.
New Playscape at Patterson Park
In the Fall of 2018, Friends of Patterson Park stepped up once more by applying for a $50,000 ACL Music Festival Community Grant, which they were awarded to improve their park. Now, there is a new modern playscape for both younger and older children, added seating throughout the park, new steps that connect the playground to the restrooms and some natural play elements near the toddler playscape.
With the help of many community groups, neighborhood associations and APF, we can see the fruition of what a community can do when working together. Check out these photos from the ribbon cutting ceremony on September 7th, 2019:
Support Parks Like Patterson Park Through Austin Parks Foundation
Piece by piece, year after year, these projects came together to improve Patterson Park. Austin Parks Foundation is proud to help improve and maintain this and all the parks around Austin. Head out to your favorite park this weekend and think about what could be improved! Here at APF, we love to see Austinites take ownership of their favorite parks, trails and green spaces.
Ready to help Austin Parks Foundation complete more projects like Patterson Park? Consider making a donation that fits your comfort level or volunteering in the parks! Thank you for taking interest in APF and our work in Austin's parks.
