The Austin Parks and Recreation Department is seeking community input on additional funding sources for parks management, land acquisition, amenities, facilities, and maintenance in alignment with City Council Resolution No. 20241121-072.
Background
Over the past decade, the City of Austin has acquired 96 additional parks and more than 1,500 new acres of land, for a total of roughly 15,200 acres maintained by the Parks and Recreation Department (PARD). Funding for park planning, development, and maintenance has not been able to keep up. The need for additional parkland will continue to grow as the City’s population does. Recognizing the increasing gap, Austin City Council passed Resolution No. 20241121-072 on November 21, 2024, directing the City Manager to convene a team of City staff that may include members from the Parks and Recreation Department, Financial Services Department, the Law Department and other departments in the City Manager' s discretion, to explore additional funding sources for parks management, land acquisition, amenities, facilities, and maintenance. In addition, Council recommended enlisting the assistance of external consultants with expertise in park system funding to advise the staff team on funding methods to sustain and expand the available funding for Austin's parks, as well as establishing a means of comparing funding methods used by other park systems in Texas, and in other states, and providing financial scenarios to compare funding options along with any opportunity costs.
Project Description
This project was broken into three phases. Phase 1 researched comparable Parks and Recreation Departments, within Texas and nationally, to determine best practices related to Department funding and operations. Phase 2 analyzed gaps in Austin PARD funding and the total budget shortfall, quantified the economic benefits of parks and recreation, and identified funding opportunities. Phase 3 developed recommendations regarding potential revenue sources for PARD. As the Resolution recommends enlisting the assistance of external consultants with expertise in park system funding, consultants PFM and the Trust for Public Land were selected to assist in data collection and analysis.
Final Report and Deliverables
- PFM and Trust for Public Lands Reports
- Supplemental Department Reports
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Park Funding Questionnaire Report
Citywide Land Assets and Amenities Report
Parkland Dedication Fund Report
Park Partnership Impact Report (corrected August 6, 2025)
- Other Documents
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Letter from former Parks and Recreation Board Chair Member, Richard DePalma
Project Schedule
- March 2025: Phase: 1 Research
- April 2025: Phase 2: Analysis
- July 2025: Phase 3: Develop Recommendations and Memo to Council
- Memo Dated July 24, 2025
Community Engagement
- Parks Funding Exploration Questionnaire (closed April 14): View Report
- Small Group Discussions
- Presentation (PDF)
- April 22, 2025: Zoom recording | attendees and chat (PDF)
- April 24, 2025: Zoom recording | attendees and chat (PDF)
A briefing on the scope and project goals was given to the Parks and Recreation Board on March 24, 2025.
A follow-up presentation was given to the Board on May 19, 2025.
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