Republic Square Spruced Up In Austin Thanks To Grant

AUSTIN, TX — Republic Square is being spruced up on Wednesday thanks to a grant from the makers of Claritin, officials said.

The Downtown Austin Alliance Foundation announced that Republic Square, which the Foundation maintains, operates and programs, has been chosen by the Clarity Parks Project and Project for Public Spaces (PPS) as one of three public spaces in cities that have been impacted by a natural disaster to receive a $47,000 grant from the makers of Claritin, officials explained in an advisory. The grant will be used to enhance and protect the historic Auction Oaks, as well as improve the comfort and image of the park with new landscaping, plantings and water-resilient features in the area surrounding the park’s celebrated trees.

As a result of the grant, landscaping and planting is scheduled from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Wednesday, officials confirmed. The landscaping will likely be occurring the majority of the afternoon, officials added.

“The Downtown Austin Alliance Foundation is honored and grateful to Claritin, Clarity Parks Project and the Project for Public Spaces for granting us the funds and providing assistance as we intentionally design the area around the Auction Oaks to protect and enhance these 584-year-old trees, ” Molly Alexander, executive director of the Downtown Austin Alliance Foundation, said in a prepared statement. “Republic Square is considered the birthplace of Austin and also became the center of Austin’s Mexican and Tejano communities. The preservation and enhancement of this treasured public space is paramount.”

A collaborative partnership with LBJ Wildflower Center, Bartlett Tree Experts, the City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department and the Project for Public Spaces, the Downtown Austin Alliance Foundation is transforming the condition of this space and providing needed care for the famed trees, under which Austin land lots were first plotted and sold, officials described.

The space will be open, inclusive and teeming with native plant life, according to city officials The goal, officials added, is to provide a beautiful space inspired by the grand trees and native Central Texas plants.

The Clarity Parks ProjectTM helped PPS to connect with local partners at the Downtown Austin Alliance Foundation. Enhancements to Republic Square will demonstrate how social and physical infrastructure work together, strengthening the experience of public space users while simultaneously improving the park’s ability to absorb future storms.

“We are excited to partner with the Downtown Austin Alliance Foundation to enhance, improve and adapt Republic Square to provide the best visitor experience on an everyday basis,” Phil Myrick, CEO of Project for Public Spaces, said in a prepared statement. “Public spaces are part of what makes a community feel like home and Republic Square is a vital part of the Austin community. When it finally comes time to reopen our cities and towns, parks like Republic Square will be where we rediscover the joy of coming together as a community.”

Project for Public Spaces is administering the grants and providing technical assistance to grantees as they tackle their own unique placemaking and resilience challenges. Given the ongoing measures to restrict the transmission of COVID-19, all work will proceed in accordance with reopening guidelines from state and local governments, officials said.

In addition to Republic Square, the Lafitte Greenway in New Orleans, Louisiana, and H.A. Chapman Centennial Green in Tulsa, Oklahoma, were also selected by Project for Public Spaces to be part of the Clarity Parks ProjectTM and receive Claritin® grants totaling $150,000.

About the Downtown Austin Alliance Foundation

The Downtown Austin Alliance Foundation is a 501c3 nonprofit organization created in 2018 to fund and implement key projects that support the community’s vision for Downtown Austin. The Foundation invests in the development and activation of public spaces, diverse cultural experiences, and place-based research to better understand what drives a successful, vibrant downtown. Ultimately, the goal is to make downtown Austin a more vital and livable place for all by bringing together corporate leadership and philanthropic investment to create a lasting legacy in downtown Austin. For more information, visit https://downtownaustin.com/about-us/foundation/.

About Republic Square

Republic Square is an urban greenspace in the heart of downtown Austin. Located between 4th and 5th streets and Guadalupe and San Antonio streets, it is one of the historic squares originally included in Judge Edwin Waller’s 1839 plan for the capital city. Following a tri-party public private partnership formed to complete major renovations in 2017, the Downtown Austin Alliance assumed responsibility for funding, programming, maintenance and operations of the square. We aim to create a vibrant civic space, hosting numerous events and year-round programming for the community. For more information, please visit www.republicsquare.org.

About Downtown Austin Alliance

The Downtown Austin Alliance (Downtown Alliance) works with key downtown stakeholders—property owners, residents, business owners, community organizations and government officials—to advance our collective vision for the future of downtown Austin. The Downtown Alliance is engaged in dozens of projects and issues that contribute to the safety, cleanliness, and appeal of downtown Austin to residents, employees and visitors. As a full-time advocate for downtown, the Downtown Alliance is actively engaged in planning decisions that impact the area. We also advance downtown's vision through direct services supporting safety and cleanliness. For more information, please visit www.downtownaustin.com.