Austin Parks Foundation: Grants

Current Projects

Grants for Neighborhood Parks and Trails

About Our Grants Program

Green for your green space. If you have a great idea for a park improvement project, a park program or even a vision for a brand new park, Austin Parks Foundation grants can help! Every year, Austin Parks Foundation offers Austinites the chance to apply for grants of $500 to $50,000 to improve their neighborhood parks. Grantees are required to match the grant fund with volunteer labor, community fund raising, and in-kind donations.

Our grantees are dedicated, creative in the face of obstacles, and inclusive in building a sense of neighborhood ownership for their parks. “It’s inspiring to see the changes that a group of committed volunteers can make to a neighborhood park,” says McCabe. “We’re proud to be able to lend a hand.”

APF provides grant recipients administrative, technical, and organizational assistance. From 2001 to 2009, the program funded 97 projects totaling over $541,100 in project support.

Grants are funded by ticket sales from Austin City Limits Music Festival, through the generosity of C3 Presents. Austin Parks Foundation also gratefully acknowledges the generous contributions of Mrs. Nancy Bowman and the Shield-Ayres Foundation, founding funders.

Most Recent Grants

Our most recently funded projects were announce July 5, 2011. Grantees were:

Commons Ford Prairie Restoration Organization, $25,000 to restore native grassland
Gaines Creek Neighborhood Association, $5,000 for trail development and habitat restoration
Off Leash Area Advisory Committee to the parks department, $40,000 for informational kiosks to be installed at off leash dog areas citywide
Friends of Patterson Park, $8,000 for a community built mosaic project in the pool area
Pease Park Conservancy, $12,000 for stone, concrete and brick work
West Austin Park, $14,500 for basic repairs to the bathrooms
Austin Heritage Tree Society for tree protection and mulch at Zilker Park Polo Fields

Current Project Highlights

Mary Moore Searight Park: The South Austin Disc Association is working on updating and improving disc golf course at the park. The Friends of Mary Moore Searight Park have been hard at work on trail building projects and restoration. More about the park.

Shipe Mosaic design

Shipe Park: Friends of Shipe Park began a community built mosaic project in the pool area in summer 2011. More about the park.

Mount Bonnell: West Point Society of Central Texas raised funds trim trees and improve sight lines from Mount Bonnell. They have a master plan to restore the monument and pergola. More about the park.

Mary Baylor Park: Friends of Mary Baylor Park are using a 2010 grant to help install a shade cover for the splash pad. The highly-engineered posts are visible in this picture. More about the park.

Slaughter Creek at Baurle Ranch Trail: The Friends of the Slaughter Creek Trail will use a 2010 grant to help better define the main entrance to the trail and stop vehicle entry. More about the park.

Festival Beach at Festival Gardens: The Sustainable Food Center, with help of Austin Parks Foundation, has made significant progress on a community garden. More about the gardens and park.

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