Native grasses to be planted on 14 acres of city park land

Published 10:33 am Tuesday, March 17, 2009

The City of Austin is removing 14 acres of park land from its mowing duties and replacing the groomed areas with native grasses.

In an effort to cut costs from the budget, the Parks, Recreation and Forestry Department has designed a native grass project for Wildwood Park and land east and south of the Izaak Walton Cabin in Todd Park.

According to Kim Underwood, director of park and recreation, it would require some burning so the soil can be seeded. The program, to begin May 1, would be maintained for a minimum of 15 years as stated in a contract.

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“We were talking about doing this project in the fall, but we thought we would have a better opportunity to grow in the spring,”

Underwood told Austin City Council members during a work session Monday.

The total cost for the project is $5,740. The park board approved the proposal March 4; the city council will officially approve the project during its next regular meeting, April 6.