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Barton Springs closed at least through the weekend
Barton Springs Pool, the iconic Central Austin swimming hole, will be closed for a few days while the city clears away debris that washed into the pool during the recent rains.
City officials could not say when the pool will open. But Jodi Jay, acting program manager of the city’s aquatics division, said it will be a matter of days.
“We’ll try to get it open as soon as possible,” Jay said.
In the meantime, the city will keep nearby Deep Eddy Pool open a few more hours a day to accommodate Barton Springs patrons, Jay said. Deep Eddy hours will run from 6 a.m. to 9 p.m. Saturday, 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Sunday and 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday.
Only half of Deep Eddy Pool is open, though. The shallow end has been closed since late August because of low water levels in the two wells that feed it. The shallow end will remain closed through the winter, as it typically is for maintenance, Jay said. The deep end, separated by a concrete wall from the shallow portion, remains open.
Spokeswoman Lynn Lightsey said the city is still collecting data on the wells. A proposal should be ready in a month or so for keeping the pool full, Lightsey said.
The city should also be unveiling a plan soon for repairing major structural damage at Barton Springs Pool. City engineers have determined that Barton Springs will probably have to be closed at some point up to six months at some point to repair a tunnel that runs parallel to the pool on its north side. The damage poses no immediate safety risks, according to the city.
City spokeswoman Stephanie Lott said the $2.5 million-$3 million repair job is tentatively planned for fall 2010 and a formal proposal will be released in the coming weeks.
During heavy rains, the tunnel shunts excess dirty water from the creek that feeds Barton Springs Pool. The tunnel is about 6 feet high and 10 feet wide, and is filled with cracks that allow water to seep in. It’s now almost full but blocked off at the downstream end.
A third popular recreation area, the Zilker Park Great Lawn, remains closed as it slowly emerges from the mud that covered much of it during the Austin City Limits Music Festival earlier this month. City spokesman Victor Ovalle said he expects the Great Lawn to re-open at the end of October or early November.
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By D
October 23, 2009 4:41 PM | Link to this
Ill go ahead and get it out of the way prior to some wingnut: It’s all ACLs fault.
By gerorgw
October 23, 2009 9:43 PM | Link to this
No it’s the republicans fault. I think I have notciced them peeing in the spring.