The Brentwood Park Playground Improvement Committee officially met for the first time in November 2016 after hearing from community members who wanted to see our playground become a destination for all ages, not just the the younger kids that the playground currently caters to. Our committee became a sub-committee of Friends of Brentwood Park (FoBP) and has been working together since that initial meeting, coordinating with the Austin Parks and Recreation Department (PARD), Austin Parks Foundation (APF), Brentwood Neighborhood Association (BNA), Crestview Neighborhood Association (CNA), Violet Crown Community Works (VCCW), local businesses, and neighbors to create a plan for our future playground. Our committee members all wear several hats, and we work together on grant writing, fundraising, community outreach, and playground design.

 

Using FoBP’s master plan (2011) as our guideline, we brainstormed with community members and a landscape designer to create a blueprint for a playground overhaul that would keep to the integrity of the master plan. Outreach efforts have been varied and include town hall meetings, social media updates, door-to-door canvassing and surveys. The results of this outreach have proven widespread support for playground updates.

 

After presenting the new playground design to the community and getting approval from the aforementioned groups, committee efforts have focused on fundraising, grant writing, and continued outreach efforts. With a renovation price tag of almost $400,000, these later tasks are keeping the committee very busy. Fundraising efforts so far have included grant applications, yard signs, promised donations from local businesses, and various community building events and fundraisers. In addition, our neighborhood associations and non-profit partner, Violet Crown Community Works, have promised their support.

 

As park adopters, we strive for transparency, and we thereby make every effort to keep our neighbors engaged and informed on every stage of this renovation process. Look for updates and communications on this website and via social media outlets such as NextDoor, Yahoo listservs, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.

 

Thank you for your interest in our project, and we hope to see you on the playground soon!