Community pushes back against development in East Austin park

Under the warm glow of the setting sun, Edward Rendon Sr. Park buzzes with the sounds of Cumbia music drifting from a family’s stereo, bike tires rolling over gravel and neighbors exchanging warm greetings. Local residents who have been visiting the East Austin staple for years feel anything but peace, however, as a proposed 10,000 square feet concession dock on Lady Bird Lake threatens to disturb the park’s tranquility.

“This is a form of gentrification in our parks,” said Bertha Rendon Delgado, president of the East Town Lake Citizens Neighborhood Association.

A surprise 2019 ordinance passed by former city council member Sabino “Pio” Renteria allowed the Expedition School — a watercraft rental service for the general public with a nonprofit component that “offers adaptive outdoor programming to individuals with disabilities,” according to its website — to move forward with a plan to build a boating dock and storage facility at the park’s lagoon. The ordinance goes against the outlined Holly Shores/Edward Rendon Sr. Park at Festival Beach master plan and was passed without the community’s knowledge. 

Since taking leadership in 2012, Delgado has worked with both community members and city officials to create the park’s master plan, which was meant to serve as a guide for best uses of new and existing parkland and facilities. Upset that the company bypassed proper approval channels such as the Environmental Commission and the Parks Board, community members have taken action to put this project back on the city’s radar and prevent it from coming to fruition.

“The neighborhood doesn’t feel like they benefit from it in any way,” said Tanya Payne, vice president of communications for the Zilker Neighborhood Association. “On top of that, the lagoon has some real environmental sensitivities because of its role in the Colorado River.”

Among other problems, community members are concerned with overcrowding caused by the Expedition School’s canoe and kayak rental services. A December 2022 study on overcrowding at Lady Bird Lake conducted by researchers at Huston-Tillotson University concluded from boat census results that the lake’s recreational carrying capacity is exceeded during peak periods such as weekends and holidays.

“While carrying capacity is not being exceeded every day by every definition, the results in this report highlight the need for proactive intervention, both to address current patterns of crowding and mitigate the impact of increased human pressure on the lake,” the study said.

The Expedition School currently provides a boat rental service at the Nash Hernandez spillway inside the park’s boundaries. Delgado said that its operation on the site has led to an increase of recreational watercraft users in the area, disrupting the park’s serenity and potentially the lake’s wildlife.

“It has turned into a huge lake party east of (Interstate) 35,” Delgado said. “We have finally said ‘enough is enough’ as a neighborhood, as longtime residents and natives and generations behind them.”

Delgado, who is also the granddaughter of the Chicano activist the park is named after, wrote an open letter in opposition for a permit and concession to the Expedition School, along with other East Austin organizations including Hispanic Advocates Business Leaders of Austin, Raza Roundtable and the League of Latin American Citizens. The letter recommended city officials to issue the Expedition School a cease and desist order “until all parties are given an opportunity to further negotiate the termination or relocation” of the proposed expansion.

“It has taken a very long time for it to be enacted, but it’s happening,” Payne said. “(The Parks Board) was not pleased with the idea of a nonprofit — no matter how well meaning — running a commercial enterprise against the will of the neighbors.”

On August 26, Austin’s Parks and Recreation Board released a recommendation to City Council to examine the 2019 ordinance to determine if it violates Austin’s City Charter and Municipal Code.

“We are not going to stay quiet like they want,” Delgado said. “We’re going to continue the momentum of asking them to relocate their boating concession.”