The development of Town Lake Park began in the 1960’s following the completion of the Longhorn Dam. Prior to the dam being built, the southern edge of the Colorado River was barren and eroded from floods that plagued the river south of Tom Miller dam. The stabilized lake edge provided by the Longhorn Dam made a public park space viable in this area. A visionary team called the Town Lake Beautification Committee was formed and spearheaded by Lady Bird Johnson. Lady Bird and her colleagues sought to beautify the lake edge with a trail and park improvements so that residents and visitors could enjoy nature in an urban setting for years into the future. See more history here.

In 1998, City of Austin residents voted in favor of a bond proposition (prop 11) which allocated tax dollars from car rentals towards the creation of the Town Lake Park Master Plan. Since the adoption of the master plan in 1999, two phases of construction have been completed.   Palmer Auditorium was built in Phase I and Phase II work resulted in the green space known as Butler Park (hill, pond, and water element due west of Palmer). Remaining space to be redeveloped is the area known as Auditorium Shores and the Bottomland Woods.

Funding update...August 25, 2011 - Auditorium Shores Gets $1 Million Grant For Improvements - Better restrooms, an educational water feature, and maybe a few more parking spaces could come to Auditorium Shores in the future. The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department has awarded the City of Austin a $1 million urban park grant to make improvements to the Austin's most popular trailhead.

October, 24 2011 - Stakeholder Meeting 1, Butler Park and Auditorium Shores - The attached PDF summarizes comments and discussions in the first stakeholder meeting on October 24, 2011 at the Mexican Center in Austin, Texas. The stakeholder meeting was held by the Austin Parks and Recreation Department and directed by Marty Stump.

For more information and an in-depth of the twists and turns of the redevelopment history, read "Whatever Happened to Town Lake Park," by Larry Akers