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Adams-Hemphill Neighborhood Park – Concept Planning

The City of Austin is finalizing a concept plan for Adams-Hemphill Neighborhood Park. The effort was initiated because we are proposing to install two stormwater detention basins in the park as part of Phase 1 of the Guadalupe St. Flood Risk Reduction Project. The Guadalupe project would reduce the risk of flooding in residential areas between 47th and 33rd Streets. The concept plan will guide us in the design of the basins and is meant to maximize the enjoyment of the park for those who live and work nearby.

Survey

The survey has closed. We will provide results in December 2024 or January 2025. Thank you to everyone who participated.

Public Meeting

Thank you to everyone who attended the public meeting. 

Proposed Concept Plan

In developing this concept plan, we tried to be responsive to the feedback from previous surveys. A clear majority of respondents preferred to have more amenities in the park, but there is also a desire to keep the park unprogrammed with a lot of open space. To try to meet both goals, we have kept most of the proposed amenities but removed some seating along a slope and one of the proposed fitness areas. We have also changed the locations where stormwater will enter the basin to be along the edges of the field.

Map of park showing concept plan features

The proposed concept plan features:

  1. A grassy, open field, with a backstop. The proposed field is slightly smaller than the current one, but also slightly more level.
  2. A new basketball court that is the same size as the current one. It is located a little higher up, so should have fewer issues with debris covering the court after storms. Dark-skies compliant lighting will be around the court.
  3. An expanded play area with both traditional play equipment and nature-inspired play features.
  4. An ADA-accessible concrete walking trail around the perimeter of the park.
  5. A small pavilion, available on a first come, first served basis.
  6. A pedestrian bridge over the fenced water quality pond between East and West Drives.
  7. A fitness area
  8. Pollinator gardens to both improve water quality downstream in the creek and increase wildlife habitat.
  9. Benches, picnic tables and a water fountain that will serve both people and dogs.

View a plan profile and the 2023 survey results. We are anticipating being able to install all the elements of the concept plan with the proposed detention basins.

Proposed Detention Basins

We are proposing to build two stormwater detention basins in the park as part of Phase 1 of the Guadalupe St. Flood Risk Reduction project. The basins would be dry most of the time, but would fill with stormwater during heavy rainfall to reduce flood risk. They would drain within 24 hours after a storm.

The larger basin would take up a large part of the current grassy area in Adams-Hemphill Neighborhood Park and contain the proposed grassy field, the basketball court, the climbing wall, the backstop and the pollinator garden.

The smaller basin would be fenced off for safety reasons and be located between East and West Drives. 

Why the Detention Basins are Needed

Other Locations for Detention Basins

Our consulting engineers tried numerous variations of detention basins, channel modifications and culvert improvements, without finding any other feasible alternatives for flood mitigation. The proposed detention basins need a large space, in a low spot where they can collect sufficient stormwater. The park is the only location that meets these criteria. This part of town is almost fully developed with very little open space. Open areas tend to be too small, privately owned and in an unsuitable location for collecting stormwater. We also considered buying and demolishing homes to make space for a detention basin, but ruled it out.

Next Steps

We need to find external funding for this project and are in the process of applying for a loan from the Texas Water Development Board to fund Phase 1. At the same time, we are finalizing the concept plan. Concept plans are approved by the Director of the Parks and Recreation Department. To use parkland for detention basins, we must also seek a recommendation from the Parks and Recreation Board. We will then seek approval from the Austin City Council

Documents

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