City removes limbs to save lives

AUSTIN (KXAN) - Parts of Zilker Park next week will be off limits while the City of Austin removes risky tree branches in the Barton Springs Pool area.

The Austin Parks and Recreation Department Urban Forestry group is targeting large, damaged branches and removing dead wood. An assessment taken earlier this year identified these trees as part of a group needing attention to prevent possible injury to the public.

An accident last August sparked the assessment of many of the trees around Zilker Park after a tree limb crushed a man visiting from Temple, Texas when he was walking across the parking lot to use the bathrooms at the Barton Springs Pool. The fallen limb put David Saverse, 28, in critical condition at Brackenridge Hospital.

After a large pecan tree fell July 8 in Zilker Park, appearing to snap in half, greater scrutiny surrounding the limb removals came to the forefront with the city considering another assessment round for the trees in the area.

There is about $190,000 left in the city's coffers to take care of some old trees at Zilker Park, and the city and Austin Parks Foundation officials said it will take most, if not all, of that money to nurse the old trees back to life.

The trees in Zilker park received a large amount of public review, and the Urban Forestry group worked with an independent arborist to ensure an extra layer of review concerning the necessity for this tree maintenance.

Initially, the city said 31 trees needed to come down in Zilker Park. However, only three ultimately needed removal.

The city paid the Davey Resource Group to conduct a thorough assessment of 46 trees around Zilker Park. The analysis included looking at foliage, soil and roots, as well as using radar imaging to determine the internal wood structure, at a cost of $50,000, according to city staff.

Field work began in November 2008 and wrapped up in January 2009, with a final recommendation in March 2009.

The department also met with tree advocate representatives from the Save Our Springs Alliance, Save Our Trees at Barton Springs and the Friends of Barton Springs Pool to inform them of the necessary tree maintenance.

The work will not affect access to the Barton Springs Pool, ZIlker Park playground or summer musical.