Thanks for reading. Have a look below for some timely action alerts that we need your help with!

Keep Austin Beautiful Day Recap

Thanks to everyone who came out to the Red Line Parkway to help clean up our trail and creek! Though we couldn't get to everything, our effort did have a huge impact, as shared by a few neighbors who pass by regularly, including from Katharine Wagner:

"I regularly bike my daughter to school down airport bike path (Lamar to 51st). I just wanted to say thank for the trash pick up last week. It made a huge difference to us on our ride this morning, and my 4 year old wanted to say a big thank you!"

Action Alert: East 5th Street Rail and Trail Improvements

CapMetro and the City of Austin are close to sharing their latest design for the East 5th Street Rail and Trail Improvements along the Red Line Parkway. This project includes Red Line rail double-tracking and new Plaza Saltillo Station platforms, plus improvements to pedestrian and bike mobility in the area. We need your help with two important actions:

1. Please show your support for using local parking district funding to improve pedestrian mobility as part of the larger project. This funding would support a new rail track crossing at Chalmers St., improvements at Onion St., and new sidewalks. Visit this survey, and show your support for the question under "Infrastructure improvements in the East Cesar Chavez neighborhood." (Though there is no official survey close date, we recommend completing it within the coming several days.)
2. Save the date so that you can attend the upcoming project open house on Tuesday, May 20th 6:00-7:30pm.

The proposed new rail track crossing at Chalmers St. would provide new walk & bike connectivity on this long block, and would help end the desire to break through the fence, as shown in this photo:

Renewing The Pillars

If you've visited the Red Line Parkway as it goes through the Boggy Creek Greenbelt, you've surely noticed The Pillars near Rosewood Neighborhood Park. The Pillars Project was an effort led by Austin Parks Foundation and the Mueller Foundation and produced and curated by Public City with several community collaborators several years ago. The fifteen murals draw inspiration from collected oral histories of East Side residents' lived experiences to create this unique community space.

We encourage you to take this survey to express what the space and project mean to you. The information collected will help support renewing the lease of the space for the murals.

Mission Capital Board Summit 2025

Have you ever wanted to be in a leadership role in one of the most transformative projects in the Austin area? Don't take for granted that someone else is stepping up—you may be just the board member that we're looking for! You can learn more about our board positions and those of our peer nonprofits at the Mission Capital Board Summit next Tuesday, May 6th 4-7pm. Learn more on the Mission Capital website.

Mueller Fundraiser on May 10th

Join fellow Red Line Parkway supporters for a Mueller fundraiser on Saturday, May 10th 3-5pm! You don't have to live in Mueller to attend, but if you do live in Mueller, there's no reason to miss it! Our goal is to raise $5,000 for the Parkway and we're asking guests to consider a donation of $100 or more. 

You can RSVP via email, or you can donate now via this link.

TxDOT Public Meeting on Drainage Tunnel and Pump Station, and Impact to Boggy Creek Watershed

The TxDOT project to expand I-35 through Central Austin will have a profound impact on the surrounding community and geography. Since the Boggy Creek Greenbelt plays such a large part in the most popular section of the Red Line Parkway, we recognize that it is important for our audience to understand the I-35 project's impact to Boggy Creek itself. After completion of the I-35 project, Boggy Creek will no longer flow from west of I-35 to east of I-35. In other words, our watershed maps will need to be updated and what most of us know as Boggy Creek will have less water flowing in it.

The upcoming TxDOT public meeting, "Community Connectors #3: Drainage Tunnel and Pump Station", on Tuesday, May 13th 6-7pm at Kealing Middle School will be your best opportunity to learn more from TxDOT staff and ask your questions about the I-35 project's impact to the Boggy Creek watershed. We encourage you to share this event with others in the Boggy Creek watershed. City of Austin Watershed Protection staff will also be attending. 

More Brief Parkway Updates

• The final phase of the 46th-47th Streets and Bennett-Middle Fiskville-Clarkson Neighborhood Bikeway project is near completion in Hyde Park. Read more in this recent newsletter from the City of Austin. This project provides bike & walk connectivity with the Red Line Parkway.
• Rutland Drive safety improvements are complete and the City of Austin is continuing with improvements to Neils Thompson Drive and Longhorn Boulevard in North Burnet. Read more in this recent newsletter from the City of Austin. This project extends the Shoal Creek Trail to the Red Line Parkway and provides connectivity to North Lamar.
• We are continuing to work among a broad coalition to support the first construction investment in the I-35 caps. Two of the caps will provide land bridges over I-35 for the Red Line Parkway, helping to provide respite from car traffic and create a welcoming place to be. Show your support for the I-35 caps funding by sending an email to Austin City Council Members. Council will decide in late May whether or not to provide the initial "Roadway Elements" funding to future-proof the caps and stitches. You can also sign up for additional alerts from our coalition partners at FUNDtheCAPS.com.

You have just a few more weeks before the summer heat ramps up. Take a look at our interactive map to find a place along the Red Line Parkway to visit this weekend.