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Formally called the Oak Parke Brodie Wild Preservation Group, Inc., Keep Brodie Wild is an assumed name of an all-volunteer Texas non-profit corporation whose mission is to protect the environmental integrity of Barton Springs and the Edwards Aquifer (including the enforcement of water quality and land use laws applicable to Brodie Wild and its surrounding property), to preserve the neighborhood quality of Oak Parke subdivision and promote open and transparent government that is responsive to its citizens.
The City is granting developers one exception after another from crucial laws and ordinances intended to protect the Barton Creek Watershed and our water quality. The Watershed drains into the Edwards Aquifer: underground limestone channels that are the sole source of water for 1.5 million people. Our water quality depends on the quality of what runs off the Watershed into the Aquifer.
Part of this delicate Watershed land is called Brodie Wild: a 4.4 acre preserve at the corner of Brodie & Slaughter Lanes in front of the Oak Parke subdivision. The City included Brodie Wild as part of its Water Quality Protection Land program because it recognized that the quality of Brodie Wild's runoff is extremely important to the Edwards Aquifer Recharge Zone.
Also located on Watershed land next to Brodie Wild and the Oak Parke subdivision is Bethany Lutheran Church. The Church signed a contract to sell 21 acres of its land to Walters Southwest, a developer who plans to build a 272-unit apartment complex right on top of the Watershed. By threatening to sue the City, Bethany pressured the City Council into passing a special ordinance that allows Walters to bypass City land use and water quality ordinances and violate state zoning laws. In a meeting with a concerned Oak Parke resident, the City Attorney used the words "threat of a lawsuit" to explain why the City Council gave in and passed the tailor-made ordinance for Bethany leaders and Walters Southwest. No citizen input was allowed before the ordinance was adopted by the City Council.
We believe Austin's clean, clear water is a precious gift, to be cared for and protected. We believe that state laws and city ordinances must be followed so that the neighborhoods like Oak Parke are protected. Therefore we intend to challenge the validity of the Bethany/Walters ordinance in court. We need donations from concerned citizens to fund this work. Please help protect the Aquifer and our precious water supply by contributing through our PayPal link. Then join our email list to receive updates on our fight to save Austin's water quality - before it's too late. ♦