RESTORE
Spring & Summer 2021 | Ecology Action of Texas | Montopolis (East Austin) TX
Project Team: SPRING: Lauren Boyd; Victoria Carter; Fernando Davila; Amaya Dsouza; Jessica “Guppy” Go”; John Katada; Alex Kelly; Cameron Leigh; Bobby Nolen; Nicole Raskosky: Blair Stingley; Charley Tyeskie; Abigale Winfield; Cameron Young | SUMMER: Adam Bell; Kaavya Chhatrapati; Justin Perkins; Amy Rojas: Kevin Tsao
Because of the COVID-19 pandemic students couldn’t travel to the Gulf Coast this semester. However, the School permitted limited local travel so the semester’s work was with Ecology Action of Texas, a fifteen drive from campus. Since 1969 Ecological Action has owned ten acres, called Circle Acres, once an old quarry and later a waste dump. Located in the Montopolis neighborhood of East Austin, Ecology Action focuses on landfill and waste stream restoration, both locally and for society as a whole.
Montopolis, began as a Freedman’s town after the Civil War but by the early twentieth-century had become a primarily Hispanic neighborhood, one of the poorest in the city and underserved. For decades, the city and private companies used the area—including what is now Circle Acres—as a waste dump for demolished streets and buildings—many containing asbestos, creosote, bituminous materials and other carcinogens. Once purchased, Ecology Action’s began focusing on healing the contaminated brownfield to transform it into an ecologically viable habitat, safe for the community. However, the intention was not to convert the old landfill into a pristine park the public would never imagine was once a waste hazard site. By leaving certain non-toxic materials (concrete culverts, sidewalks and curb sections and brick) where they were dumped, visitors are reminded of the impact that wastefulness and over-consumption has on the land. Remediating the soil with trees, grasses and mycelium proved effective ways to draw poisons from the soil.
Circles Acres mission is to teach the public about its own responsibilities in stewarding the land. An integral part of that is their environmental education program for pre-K through high school students from the nearby neighborhood. For this, Ecology Action asked the GCDL students to design and build an outdoor classroom for up to 35 guests. The original design was to have a roof, with water collection—a central trough to visibly store the water. However, a catastrophic ice-storm struck Texas in mid-February, damaging many structures in the city and overwhelming the local building authority with new applications. With the short time left in the semester and since the student’s project had to be permitted, it quickly became clear this would be impossible. Consequently, the students chose to design two decks that wouldn’t require permits. These were designed at different sizes, heights and shapes for a variety of functions. These decks were relocated further south to a grove of trees that provided abundant shade through mid-afternoon. Temporary structures (as shown in some of the images) for rain protection are used when needed. Between the two decks, native plants were planned as teaching tools. The director also requested an insectarium wall along the east side of one deck for educational needs, doubling as a screen from an adjacent restroom. The finished structure has since served the Montopolis community year-round, along with summer day-camps for kids from other parts of the city.