City to limit parking at Deep Eddy Pool lot

Instead of charging people to park at the free lot at Deep Eddy Pool, Austin’s Parks and Recreation Department plans to limit parking to two hours beginning this summer in hopes of turning over more spaces — at least for now.

The change marks the first restrictions on parking at one of the last remaining free parking areas that visitors use to access the pool, nearby parks and businesses.

As Austin’s population has increased, so too have parking problems at the city’s most popular parks, venues and attractions. In October, the city raised parking meter prices to $2 per hour throughout the city. Parking used to cost $1.20 per hour in the downtown area and $1 per hour outside.

A 2017 parking strategy report from the Downtown Austin Alliance found the old rates did not match demand or parking behavior, saying drivers were encouraged to circle around in search of a metered spot instead of a garage because of the price difference. For example, parking in the lot beneath City Hall costs $5 for one hour, and goes up to $25 for three or more hours.

Deep Eddy Pool, which is just west of MoPac Boulevard (Loop 1), is nestled on a dead-end street surrounded by a few small businesses and popular trails that often keep the nearby lot and metered parking full.

“The problem is that the Deep Eddy parking lot is one of the last free parking lots of the area, and it's supported by the Deep Eddy Pool, Eilers Park, the Butler hike and bike trail and many other private businesses in the surrounding area,” Austin Parks and Recreation assistant director Anthony Segura said.

Some people park cars for hours at a time, filling up spaces the city hopes more people can access throughout the day.

Over the past few years, the problem has led to complaints from the public and pool staffers who have a hard time finding parking, and sparked several efforts from the city to clear the lot of cars that aren’t supposed to be there.

The city installed signs in 2018 to discourage long-term parking for purposes other than using the pool or nearby trails, but a city memo from September says that didn’t work.

“Instead, city staff saw an increase in the use of the parking lot by the public when visiting surrounding businesses, as well as by delivery trucks,” the memo says.

Park rangers followed that effort in April with a campaign to educate the public that the free lot was only for pool users. That also failed.

“Unfortunately, this strategy did not deter the community from parking at Deep Eddy and in fact, the situation has only become worse,” the memo says.

Last fall, parks and recreation officials recommended placing parking meters at the lot. The city has opted not to do that, at least for now.

“After collaborating with our board and commission members, they were real adamant about us seeing if there were alternative means rather than simply going to the meters,” Segura said. “They felt that it was going to prohibit people coming to the swimming pool and using the lot.”

The signs will go up May 25, and the Parks and Recreation Department will monitor the lot through Sept. 7 to see whether they had any effect on vehicle turnover or deterring people not using the pool from parking there.

In addition to the signs, Segura said city staffers will again have park rangers explain to drivers how the lot should be used. However, without meters or any city rules allowing ticketing or towing at the lot, the new change isn’t something that can be enforced.

Segura said he hopes people comply with the rules voluntarily. If they don’t, the city could still install meters.

Segura said the parks department would seek to keep parking free for pool patrons, even if meters are eventually installed at the pool. He said parking passes could be given to people using the pool for a day, or to those with season passes. But visitors parking for other reasons would be charged.