PARD’s Parkland Dedication Team is committed to making the Austin parks and recreation system even better by planning new parks, building connections to existing parks, and working towards an interconnected network of parks.
On a bright, cool morning, PARD employees engaged in some community research as they explored Davis Spring Special Park, the department’s newest park and disc golf course. Justin Stewart, a Planner Senior with the Parkland Dedication Team at PARD, worked closely with a developer who deeded this land to the city to satisfy the Parkland Dedication requirements for the apartments that were built nearby.
Justin and the developer worked closely with John Houck, a renowned disc golf course designer, to plan and develop this course. The result is a nine-hole course that is challenging for seasoned pros, but still accessible for amateurs.
More than just a disc golf course, Davis Spring Special Park represents the flexibility of the 2016 Parkland Dedication Ordinance to meet recreation needs as Austin’s population continues to grow. This park symbolizes a successful partnership between the City of Austin, community members, a private developer, and Austin’s disc golfers.
The City of Austin passed its first Parkland Dedication Ordinance in 1985 and it was later updated in 2007 and 2016. Currently, all subdivision and site plan applications are required to dedicate parkland to the city or pay a fee. Revenues from fees can be used to buy land and develop new park facilities.
When developers dedicate land, PARD works with them to design new parks on the sites of residential, hotel, and mixed-use developments. This provides plazas, pocket parks, bark parks, trail connections, and more in areas of rapid growth and increasing density. For cases that involve fees-in-lieu, the department looks for opportunities to acquire and develop new parkland in underserved areas of Austin.
We invite you to throw a few discs at the new course and check out all six of PARD’s courses!
Davis Spring Special Park
9819 Neenah Ave.
Austin, TX 78717
Opened December 2019
Nine Holes
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