2008 Neighborhood Beautification Grant Recipients

Keep Austin Beautiful awards Dillo Dirt, Austin Energy native trees, and $10,000 to nine outstanding community improvement projects. Now in its fourth year, the KAB beautification grants program has funded 33 diverse projects, investing over $40,000 to support public space beautification and community involvement.

Special thanks to our panel of judges for donating their time and talents to the selection process. 

2008 Recipients

• Casa Marianella (Gunter Street, 78702)– will plant 40 native trees: Texas Persimmon, Pecan, Mexican Plum, and Live Oak in the neighborhood surrounding their immigrant and refugee shelter to foster a sense of community pride.

• EcoTexas (multiple locations)– A group of young energetic volunteers will continue their work fighting invasive plant species in parks, preserves, and greenbelts around Austin.

• French Legation (802 San Marcos Street, 78702)– Volunteers from the Native Plant Society, Master Naturalists, NWF Habitat Stewards, and Wildlife Austin will collaborate to transform an uninspiring landscape into a vibrant habitat demonstration garden.

• Friends of McKinney Falls State Park (5808 McKinney Falls Parkway, 78744) – will enhance their habitat garden’s pond with natural stone edging, native plant border, and native aquatic plants.

• Homewood Heights Neighborhood Association (2606 Sol Wilson, 78702)– will accent their new community garden with two beautiful Bigtooth Maple trees.

• Northeast Walnut Creek Neighborhood Association (900 Plaza Drive, 78753)–The NEWCNA Garden Club will add native trees to the North Oaks Park to add shade and seasonal color.

• Northfield Neighborhood Association (400 W 55th St, 78751)– will continue their work to transform an overgrown abandoned lot into a community gathering spot by building a stone sitting wall, path, and patio out of locally quarried donated stone.

• People Organized in Defense of Earth and her Resources (3160 Oak Springs Dr, 78702)-  PODER will continue their restoration work at Oak Springs by increasing the number and diversity of native plants, creating stone edged planting beds, and installing educational signage.

• University of Texas at Austin Graduate Program in Landscape Architecture (tbd: South, East, & North Central) – students will design bus stops emphasizing the culture and energy of the stops' location in the city, sustainable and recycled materials, and native drought tolerant plantings.