The city of Woodcreek has a few major improvements coming its way, thanks to a recent $200,000 grant from the Hays County Parks and Open Space Advisory Commission.
Hays County POSAC was established in February of 2020 by the Hays County Commissioners Court to study the viability and community interest for pursuing a potential park, open space, and conservation bond program, according to the county’s website. The result of these efforts was Proposition A, commonly referred to as the Hays County 2020 Parks and Open Space Bond, which called for the issuance of $75 million in general bonds to fund these recreational opportunities. The bond was approved by voters in November of 2020, after which the advisory commission organized a second call for parks projects. It was in this second call for projects that Woodcreek submitted its proposal.
Woodcreek’s plan was for two new parks, referred to as The Triangle and Brookhollow Park, and a significant update to an old one, Augusta Park. According to the plan, each will serve a different purpose: Augusta Park will “build upon the natural beauty and ecological design of the current park while adding other multigenerational opportunities for ages 5-95.”
The Triangle will “create a gathering place for games, art and community events.”
Brookhollow Park will “provide an active play area for ages 2-12 while maintaining a balance with the natural setting.”
The plan also includes a variety of features: playscapes, swings, a gazebo, additional benches and even concrete cornhole and ping pong equipment.
Currently, Augusta Park is the city’s only park with two features: a bocce ball court and two picnic tables. According to Woodcreeks Parks and Recreation Board chair, Pat Rawlings, those are the only park features to exist since the city incorporated in 1984 — something he said the Parks board wanted to change.
“The initiative was initially brought on by Gloria Whitehead, the former mayor of Woodcreek,” Rawlings explained. “We were interested in proposing something, so the [Parks] board came together and started collecting ideas. We really focused on what you could call “urban parks,” and we started talking to Lon Shell (Hays County Commissioner, Precinct 3) about allocating money for smaller projects.”
Woodcreek’s proposal was on the smaller end of the approved POSAC projects, according to Shell. Sitting at just over a square mile, the city of Woodcreek does not have the land for a larger project like Sentinel Peak Preserve, a $10 million project, or Coleman’s Canyon, with a cost between $2 and $3 million, he explained.
“Woodcreek is unique in its size and makeup,” Shell said. “And so, it’s kind of small in the scope of bond projects, although there are other small ones in the city of Buda.”
Woodcreek’s makeup was a longtime factor in its lack of parks, and it was commonly known for being a community of older adults. Some questioned whether Woodcreek had enough families with children to make a park worthwhile, and 2020 Wimberley ISD demographics had put the number of children in Woodcreek a little under 200. That number seemed low to Elizabeth Maurer, a now-member of the Woodcreek Parks and Recreation Board.
“My husband and I moved to Woodcreek two and a half years ago, and since then, there’s been a really big shift in the number of families moving here,” she said. “We had six kids on our block at the time, and none of them went to school in Wimberley ISD. I felt like there had to be more, so I started asking.”
Maurer said she asked everyone she came in contact with in Woodcreek if they had children and, if so, if they attended a WISD school — even while out for walks around the neighborhood. Between children too young for school, homeschooled students and students at private schools, Maurer found at least 120 children that had been previously unaccounted for, all documented in a spreadsheet with names and contact information.
“I even solicited Dripping Springs ISD’s help because there are a lot of teachers in DSISD that live in Woodcreek,” she added. “I found 20 kids that way alone, even more than I was expecting.”
Once she had concluded her research, Maurer took the data to the Parks board and, by her own account, “got involved by chance.” She now sits on the Parks board with Rawlings, helping to plan out next steps.
“There’s a tremendous amount of enthusiasm behind this project,” Rawlings said. “We’ve tried to put something together that supports all different parts of the community: geography, age, ability. We really have tried to listen and consider public comments, and we will continue to do so.”
Rawlings said he expects the project to span the next few years, as the city looks into updated price estimates and contractors.
“We may have to edit some of our plans given inflation, but we’re going to try to adhere to our side of the deal as much as possible,” he said. “We respect that the county awarded specific funds for specific items, and we’re starting as soon as possible to try and make that happen.”
On the county side of things, Shell said he hopes Woodcreek continues to build off this project.
“It’s been shown that opportunities for recreation are in high demand,” he explained. “When moving, people look for that quality of life, opportunities for children. People should see this as an investment in their community.”
