RNA Activities and Accomplishments

In the mid 1970's, a group of Rosedale residents joined together to encourage all Rosedale neighbors to oppose the City of Austin's decision to close the neighborhood fire station located on Hancock. Neighborhood residents were successful in their endeavor. Fire Station #12 is still located on Hancock and its firefighters involved daily in activities that provide for the health and safety of everyone who lives in Rosedale.

Soon after the successful effort to keep the fire station open, this group of neighbors began the process of organizing the Rosedale Neighborhood Association. The goal of the neighborhood association was to preserve the residential character of Rosedale, to save the housing stock, and to maintain the city services and infrastructure in this older mixed-use neighborhood. Ramsey Park was the center of neighborhood activity and everyone wanted to preserve the park as the focal point of social interaction for Rosedale residents. These goals have persisted throughout the thirty years since then as Rosedale residents have joined together to preserve the neighborhood and make it the great place that we call home. Below is a list of some of the activities, issues, and events that the Rosedale Neighborhood Association has been a part of:

Social Activities and Events

• Regularly write and distribute the neighborhood newsletter to all Rosedale residents.
• Established a neighborhood listserv mailing list and a website with information about our neighborhood and neighborhood association.
• Organize the annual 4th of July parade and carnival.
• Arrange for the spring picnic and the end of summer after-dark pool party.
• Sponsor holiday get-togethers at Ramsey Park, such as the Halloween party and the December holiday caroling.
• Sponsored the Rosedale Ramble historical walking tour from 1993 to 1998.

Health and Safety Issues

• Promote the Austin Neighborhood Watch Program and the National Night Out event.
• Communicate on a regular basis with City of Austin staff to ensure that all park ADA upgrades are done in a timely manner.
• Worked with other neighborhoods and groups to stop the medical hazardous waste incinerator from being built at Seton Hospital.
• Worked with the Heart Hospital to replace the penetrating noise from their air conditioning system with the milder hum that it now produces.
• Worked actively with the Austin Police Department and utilized our neighborhood listserv mailing list to help end a crime wave of petty theft.
• Helped bring neighborhood flooding problems to the attention of the City of Austin.

Development and Zoning Issues

• Worked with developers and other neighborhood groups during the development of Central Park to help ensure compliance with the City and State's development standards.
• Mitigated the traffic impact caused by the Central Park development on our neighborhood by working with representatives from the city, state, and developers to get the median built at 40th and Medical Parkway.
• Participated with Seton Hospital and the City to limit medical district development in appropriate commercial areas that would not encroach into residential areas of our neighborhood.
• Interviewed citizens and wrote a city-adopted neighborhood plan when the residential cluster of the Alta Vista region of Rosedale was threatened by commercial encroachment. Without intervention, this entire area would have been converted to medical offices and medical support services.
• Actively participated in the information gathering, planning, and writing of the Austin Plan document.
• Brought about city enforcement of current zoning restrictions to prevent apsychiatric drug testing facility from locating across from Ramsey Park.
• Worked with city staff to enforce zoning restrictions so that the Draught Horse could not sponsor regional music festivals that included loud music, inadequate parking, and insufficient restroom facilities.
• Used compatibility standards to discourage a drive-through bank from locating on seven residential lots on Bailey Lane and Tonkawa Trail.
• Worked toward maintaining residential homes on 39 1Ú2 St. when they were they were threatened by uses other than residential.
• Cooperated with Congregation Beth Israel to develop a mutually beneficial plan for redevelopment of their existing site.
• Participated with the General Land Office to allow only single family residential development on previously state owned property, on the east side of Shoal Creek Blvd. just south of 45th St.
• Using Austin's compatibility standards, worked with other neighborhoods and property owners to discourage a blood plasma center from locating on Burnet Rd. on property adjacent to residential uses.

Neighborhood Improvements

• Worked with several city departments to ensure that Ramsey Pool would be refurbished when it was closed in July 2000 because of severe water leaks.
• Cooperate with the City of Austin Aquatics Division to maintain Ramsey Pool and its programs.
• Raised funds and provided labor in conjunction with the Friends of the Park to purchase and install both the playground equipment and the toddler playscape.
• Worked with the City Forestry Division to re-tree Ramsey Park.
• Assisted in establishing a permanent North Loop Library, now known as the Yarborough Library.
• Prevented the historical log farmstead at 4811 Sinclair from being demolished until a buyer could be found and the property restored.
• Supported efforts to include Shoal Creek Blvd. as part of a $500,000 pilot program to enhance safety for motorists, cyclists and pedestrians.
• Monitor and remove all graffiti markings in the neighborhood as well as participate with the Austin's graffiti task force to discourage graffiti in Rosedale.
• Work with the businesses located in and adjacent to Rosedale to encourage them to limit their employees' parking in the residential areas of the neighborhood. (Our success with this varies but we do keep trying!).