Onion Creek Metropolitan Park
In the late 1990s, the City of Austin purchased 555 acres along 2.5 miles of Onion Creek to create the Onion Creek Metropolitan Park, one of the city's largest parks. Due to limited resources, the park remained mostly undeveloped for about 15 years. To address this and develop more usable parkland in east Austin, Senate Bill 1872 was passed in 2013. This established a special taxation district, the Onion Creek Metro Park District (OCMPD), to fund recreational improvements and pedestrian pathways.
The OCMPD provides stable funding to maintain and improve recreational spaces and trails. It has the authority to issue bonds for major projects and is governed by a board of at least seven voting members.
In 2014, the Consent Agreement was signed, and updated in 2020, to further support the partnership between the City of Austin, the Onion Creek Metro Park District (OCMPD), and Goodnight Ranch LP. This agreement covers the following:
- District Governance
- Agreements related to financing and management for the Onion Creek Metropolitan Park between the three parties
- The creation of the Master Park Plan
- In-District improvements related to streetscapes and reclaim water use
- Operations and Maintenance Manual for In-District improvements and Base Park Improvements within Onion Creek Metropolitan Park.
The Onion Creek Metro Park District currently operates and maintains a portion of the Phase I Base Park Improvements which includes the following parkland and amenities:
- (3) acres of irrigated open space
- ½ Mile Loop Trail + additional crushed granite trail
- (2) 20’ x 30’ covered pavilions
- (8) picnic tables
- (2) BBQ pits
- (5) Park benches
- Trash recycling, and pet waste receptacles Read more about possible future park projects in the links below.