A number of fitness stations are located along a trail that winds throughout Dick Nichols Park in Southwest Austin.[/caption]
Dick Nichols Park at 8011 Beckett Road will see some updates as a result of Austin City Council Member Ellen Troxclair allocating $30,000 from her personal office budget to the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, according to a Sept. 24 news release.
City Council passed a resolution recently allowing council members to make direct funding transfers for such projects, Troxclair said. The funds, which represent about 10 percent of Troxclair’s total office budget, will be spent on replacing fitness stations at Dick Nichols Park that were added sometime in the 1980s, as well as to improve the condition of the park trails overall. Residents in the area have said the
equipment is outdated.
“There are different kinds of trail exercise equipment now than there were 30 years ago,” Troxclair said.
The funding would have gone toward office supplies and other expenses, Troxclair said, noting donating those unused dollars to the park is one way for her to provide a return on investment to the voters.
Southwest Austin resident Rich DePalma said he is grateful for Troxclair’s effort.
“Replacing the system with a working, modern system will go a long way in helping all Southwest Austin residents stay fit and healthy while also providing a visible improvement to our well-loved district park,” DePalma said in the release.
Troxclair said she is also working on
other ways to fund park improvements and maintenance, including advocating for keeping funds generated by parks within the parks department rather than sending it into the city’s general fund.
A number of fitness stations are located along a trail that winds throughout Dick Nichols Park in Southwest Austin.[/caption]
Dick Nichols Park at 8011 Beckett Road will see some updates as a result of Austin City Council Member Ellen Troxclair allocating $30,000 from her personal office budget to the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, according to a Sept. 24 news release.
City Council passed a resolution recently allowing council members to make direct funding transfers for such projects, Troxclair said. The funds, which represent about 10 percent of Troxclair’s total office budget, will be spent on replacing fitness stations at Dick Nichols Park that were added sometime in the 1980s, as well as to improve the condition of the park trails overall. Residents in the area have said the equipment is outdated.
“There are different kinds of trail exercise equipment now than there were 30 years ago,” Troxclair said.
The funding would have gone toward office supplies and other expenses, Troxclair said, noting donating those unused dollars to the park is one way for her to provide a return on investment to the voters.
Southwest Austin resident Rich DePalma said he is grateful for Troxclair’s effort.
“Replacing the system with a working, modern system will go a long way in helping all Southwest Austin residents stay fit and healthy while also providing a visible improvement to our well-loved district park,” DePalma said in the release.
Troxclair said she is also working on other ways to fund park improvements and maintenance, including advocating for keeping funds generated by parks within the parks department rather than sending it into the city’s general fund.
