Check out the new and improved HPWBANA website: 
www.hpwbana.org

Welcome to the Highland Park West Balcones Area Neighborhood Association Website

Website Redesign: THE HPWBANA website is currently being resigned and we hope to see the new design launched soon. If you have suggestions for improvements please contact a HPWBANA Board Member.

HPWBANA Needs You: The HPWBANA Board also needs new Board Members.  Please consider getting involved in neighborhood related issues to help this wonderful neighborhood we all enjoy.

 

Beverly Hood Neighborhood Wildfire Defense Meeting with AFD Personnel Meeting Minutes:

Thanks everyone for attending this HPWBANA sponsored meeting.  About 25 people from the community attended.  Most were from the Beverly Hood neighborhood which is the no outlet area starting at Westview Dr, off Ridge Oak Dr.  Representatives were also there from Bright Leaf to listen to the discussion.

Lt Josh Portie from the Austin Fire Department presented with a focus on what we can all do to protect our homes from fires, regardless of where or how they start.  Since we live so close to preserves and green spaces there was a focus on the wildfire impact from these areas.  

A few notes:

- "Ready, Set, Go" handouts providing details to prepare a personal wildfire action plan were available.  This leaflet is also available on the Firewise.org website, which is another great resource.

- Lt Portie described what is really experienced in these big fires.  The biggest threat is from the ember storms. Embers can travel great distances, land and then ignite a series of fires.  These fires can be in shrubs next to the house, on or under decks, in gutters that have not been kept clean, and so on.  We should all think about reducing the chances of these embers igniting a fire on our home or property regardless of where the fire starts.  The "Ready, Set, Go" leaflet and the Firewise program provide the tools to do this.

- Lt Portie also described the general action of firefighters in these big fires where resources are spread thin.  In essence they are forced to perform triage: the focus is on protecting as much property and lives as possible, and not wasting effort on property which cannot be saved.

- Lt Portie ensured the audience that he is working with individuals and communities, the various park and preserve managers all over the city, the utility companies, and with city departments.

- Many questions were asked about "hardening" our homes from fire.  This included everything from landscaping to attic vents.  There was a handout (available from John Berry, jlbassoc@flash.net) for the 10 top items to do.  Homeowners should do as many as they can, or are willing to do.  It is about reducing the chance of items catching fire.

- This year has been a big year for large fires in Texas and in Austin.  Most people think about the big fires that capture the media attention but we should remember the recent pinnacle fire in south Austin. This was a very large fire in the city of Austin.  It can happen to our area also.

- Lt Portie discussed the "Firewise Community" program and encouraged communities to get organized.  Firewise.org details the program.  Important aspects of this program include community building, assessments of the community for fire threat, assessment of individual homes, funding and grants to help, evacuation discussions with AFD, and a collaborative working relationship with the preserve and green space managers.

The meeting ended with discussions of the next step which is organizing individual Firewise Committees.  The Beverly Hood community is actively organizing one.  Other communities are encouraged to do the same.  HPWBANA is a large area and communities within it need to get organized and involved to help with this issue.

If you live in or near the Beverly "Hood" and are interested in helping with the effort to protect the community against fire, would like information about how to protect your own house, or just want to know what is going on as far as fire safety is concerned, please call or e-mail John Berry.

John Berry Associates
Geology & Remote Sensing
5000 Beverly Hills Dr.
AUSTIN, TX 78731
+1-512-921-1472 (cell)
jlbassoc@flash.net

 

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 Sept 19th Meeting Information:

Highland Park-West Balcones Neighborhood is filled with mid-century homes that both define and distinguish this community from all others in Austin. Mid-century homes are historically significant and efforts in Austin and throughout the country are growing to protect these architectural treasures.

Join us at the September 19th board meeting to hear from Alyson McGee, City of Austin Deputy Preservation Officer, as she presents information on Local Historic Districts and the Landmarking process. Jacqui Schraad, Director of the Heritage Society of Austin, will also attend to talk about the support HSA gives for these efforts.

** Mt Bonnell Update - Request for Input from the  West Point Society of Central Texas:

Update 10/25 - This project has been presented to the Austin Historic Preservation Office for their review.

Dear Neighborhood Leaders and Friends of Mount Bonnell,We are very pleased to inform you that the Covert family has agreed to replace the worn, defaced and broken limestone monument on the pavilion  honoring Frank Covert, Sr.'s gift of the land comprising Covert Park.  We are excited about this and visualize some corresponding opportunities to make several enhancements to the pavilion itself to improve its utility and esthetic display the monument.

The monument will be of a much more durable black and white granite rather than pink, to better fit in with the predominantly limestone surroundings.  The enhancements to the pavilion would include a partial terracing of the garden with a limestone surface, the addition of four benches, and the construction of stairs with handrails.  Please go to <http://www.west-point.org/joseph_bonnell/pavilion> where we have posted nine photos.  Click on a photo to enlarge it and click again to get a full screen display.

The first three photos depict the original monument prior to pavilion construction through to today's condition.  The remaining photos are renderings by the architectural/engineering firm of O'Connell Robertson which has been working with us on a pro bono basis acting as designer and general contractor for the monument.  They have applied their very creative collective talents to the tasteful design of the pavilion enhancements as well.

Please note that the overhead view of the enhanced pavilion design shows a curving stone line edging the garden, representing the Colorado River line connecting two partial stars representing the 360 Bridge on the right and the City of Austin on the left, respectively.  The monument itself, representing a cross section of Mount Bonnell, would be repositioned slightly to the right (north) to place it at its relative position on the river line.  Xerophytic plants will adorn the garden.
 

Our plan is this.  The stone monument, its placement on a new base and demolition of the old base, hopefully with some help from PARD, will cost on the order of $26,000.  That along with neighborhood and other contributions will be the basis for a matching grant request to the Austin Parks Foundation (APF) for the approximately $31,000 required to perform the pavilion enhancements themselves.  The grant request is due for submission by the end of September.

We ask four things of you at this point: (1) disseminate this information to your neighborhood constituents, (2) solicit feedback regarding their views on the enhancements, (3) apprise me of the tenor of their responses, and if the general response is positive, (4) prepare and email to me a short letter signed by your neighborhood leadership stating that your neighborhood group supports the enhancements.  The letters are needed to support the grant request.

I am available and happy to personally brief constituencies at general, board and special meetings any time at your convenience.

Sincerely,

Stan Bacon
WPSCT
512/345-5964/7999
 

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MoPAC Sound Wall Workshop meeting:

The MoPac Improvement Project team will host seven sound wall workshops along the corridor this summer (shown below). Workshop participants will be able to view graphic displays and ask questions about the proposed designs, locations, heights, colors, materials, and other information about the sound walls proposed for the build alternatives. The workshops will be held close to the neighborhood where sound walls have been determined to be warranted. Adjacent property owners (generally the first row of residential properties along MoPac) will be notified via certified mail and asked to vote on whether or not they want a sound wall. A sound wall will be constructed in those areas where a majority (greater than 50%) of the voting adjacent property owners are in favor of constructing that section of wall.
 

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Life Scout Andrew Hafermann completed his Eagle Scout project at Perry Park on May 14th.  His project involved upgrading the sandbox to a discovery dino pit.  Lots of dinosaur bones, sharks teeth, shells, and more surprises are fixed/buried under the sand for kids to discover.  He also installed a bench nearby so parents can sit and watch the kids dig.  This is a great project.  Enjoy!

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Check out the Restored Views at Mt Bonnell - Thanks to the West Point Society of Central Texas!

The beautiful scenic views at Mt Bonnell have been opened up and restored thanks to the West Point Society of Central Texas.  This group was awarded a grant from Austin Parks Foundation to help fund part of the cost to raise the canopy and remove dead vegetation at four sites on the summit.  The work was done by Austin Tree Specialists.

Part of the grant was a matching component to demonstrate community support. Many thanks go out to HPWBANA, WANG, The Island at Mt. Bonnell Shores, West Point Society members, and the many individuals in the community that donated funds.

The West Point Society of Central Texas is also working to have the damaged historic stone marker replaced, install a kiosk, coordinate more workdays and they have some great spring events planned.

Contact Stan Bacon at sbacon58@sbcglobal.net with questions.

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Perry Lane traffic update: 
Traffic calming on Perry Lane is progressing. The old speed bumps were removed and several new sets of speed "cushions" added.  Additionally, a traffic circle will be added at the intersection of Perry Lane and Fairview.    The traffic circle will be beautifully landscaped by the   About 100 yards west of MoPAC, a "speed gate" will be added.  (A speed gate is a slim median designed to slow traffic entering a neighborhood.)
 
These changes are being implemented  in an effort to help slow traffic on Perry Lane.  The residents of Perry Lane and the immediate surrounding streets were polled and had an opportunity to vote on implementing the plan.

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Last updated on 01/08/2012

 copyright 2006 HPWBANA