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Fountain Re-Opens After $1.36 Million Upgrade

The Liz Carpenter Fountain reopened on memorial Day after being closed for renovations since December 2010.
Photo by Jeff Heimsath for KUT news.
The Liz Carpenter Fountain reopened on memorial Day after being closed for renovations since December 2010.

The popular Liz Carpenter Fountain in Butler Park re-opened on Memorial Day after about six months of renovation. The fountain had become so popular that the high number of  children frolicking in its waters strained its filtration system.

A city plan to reopen the fountain, but make it off limits to children, met with opposition last year.

On Tuesday children were back cooling off in the fountain's clear waters. Allison Sugart was among a group of parents watching their children frolic in the water.

"We heard they had reopened the fountain, and we know that public school is not out yet, so we thought would be the absolute perfect day because our kids are out of school, and they’re still young enough to enjoy it,” said Sugart.

The City of Austin says upgrades to the fountain, including a installation of more filtration systems, cost a total of $1,366,191.62. Last summer the fountain drew an estimated 400 to 1000 visitor a day.

 

 

 

 

Mose Buchele focuses on energy and environmental reporting at KUT. Got a tip? Email him at mbuchele@kut.org. Follow him on Twitter @mosebuchele.