The Soul of Austin Reopens Its Gates Next Week
Barton Springs Pool — ten thousand years in the making — returns from seasonal maintenance next week. But the aquifer that feeds it is fighting for its life.
(Editor’s note: Austin Parks & Recreation announced today that the opening of Barton Springs Pool will not be this week, but next Edits have been made to this post to reflect the update.)
On any given summer morning, before the city’s tech campuses hum to life and the highway overpasses begin their daily groan, a crowd assembles at the edge of a three-acre pool in Zilker Park. They range from gray-haired lap swimmers in racing caps to college students wielding iced coffee, parents steadying toddlers at the shallow end, and the occasional musician still carrying last night’s set list. The water that receives them all is a bracing 68 to 70 degrees — indifferent to the Texas heat, fed from the earth itself. This is Barton Springs Pool, and it is, by wide agreement, the soul of Austin.
After several weeks of seasonal maintenance and infrastructure work — including the removal of an unstable 1940s-era bypass structure discovered during routine inspection — the pool is set to reopen later this week. For many Austinites, it cannot come soon enough.
Ten Thousand Years of History
The springs that feed the pool formed between five million and twenty million years ago, as tectonic forces buckled the limestone bed of Central Texas, creating a vast underground reservoir now known as the Edwards Aquifer.
Archaeological evidence confirms that Indigenous peoples — including the Tonkawa — gathered at the springs at least ten thousand years ago, drawn by the reliable, cool water in the midst of the often punishing Texas landscape. Franciscan missionaries visited briefly in 1730. The Mexican government held the territory after 1821.
The name “Barton” arrived in 1837, when frontiersman William “Uncle Billy” Barton settled the land and named its three springs after his daughters. Philanthropist Andrew Jackson Zilker acquired the property in the early twentieth century and, in 1918, deeded it to the City of Austin — on the condition that it remain a public park. The city expanded it in the 1920s, constructing sidewalks and a bathhouse to create what boosters called “the finest municipal resort in the entire southwest.”
The pool was segregated along with much of Austin in 1928 and was officially desegregated only in 1962, following a series of civil rights swim-ins that helped drive the broader integration of the city’s recreational facilities. The limestone bathhouse that stands today was erected in 1946 and is itself a city landmark. The pool was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1985.
A Gathering Place, Then and Now
Barton Springs has long attracted a democratic crowd. Legislators have reportedly drafted state policy in the shade of its grassy slopes. Actor Robert Redford learned to swim there as a child while visiting Austin family. The pool has welcomed free-spirited counterculture, celebrity sightings, and generations of Austinites simply learning to keep their heads above water.
“There’s a strong sense of community among the people who go to Barton Springs regularly. And the newcomers — they always love it.” — Bill Bunch, Executive Director, Save Our Springs Alliance
Today the pool draws well over a million visitors annually, with recent years approaching record attendance. Admission remains remarkably affordable — just a few dollars for residents — preserving its identity as a commons rather than a commodity. Surrounding Zilker Park offers hiking, kayaking on Lady Bird Lake, and the beloved Splash! exhibit, where visitors can learn about the spring system and the Edwards Aquifer that sustains it.
The pool is also a federally protected habitat for the endangered Barton Springs salamander, a species found nowhere else on earth.
Swimmers and salamanders have coexisted for decades, a delicate arrangement that environmental advocates work hard to maintain.
The Aquifer Under Pressure
The same underground system that gives Barton Springs its character is in serious trouble. The Barton Springs–Edwards Aquifer Conservation District has been under Stage 3 Exceptional Drought conditions since October 2025 — only the second such declaration in the district’s thirty-nine-year history — and as of early 2026, the region has been in continuous drought for forty-four consecutive months.
Drought Alert
Currently, the Barton Springs–Edwards Aquifer Conservation District is approaching the threshold for a Stage 4 Emergency Response Period — a declaration that would be unprecedented in the district’s history. Spring flow at Barton Springs is currently less than a quarter of its historical average.
District communications manager Shay Hlavaty described the severity of the situation starkly: since 2022, Austin has received roughly a full year’s worth of rainfall less than normal. “We’re basically missing an entire year’s worth of rainfall at this point,” Hlavaty told the Austin Chronicle. “What we need is long-term, sustained, above-average rainfall, ideally for years.” The current drought, while shorter than the state’s historic 1950s dry spell, has been more intense — and is approaching what could become a new drought of record.
The causes are compounding. Four consecutive years of below-average rainfall, record-breaking heat, and rapid population growth have placed mounting demands on aquifer levels even as recharge slows. La Niña weather patterns through the winter of 2025–2026 have offered little relief. The district warns that without meaningful rainfall in the coming months, a Stage 4 Emergency Response Period — which would impose the tightest pumping curtailments ever enacted — could be triggered as early as late March.
For now, the springs keep flowing, and Barton Springs Pool prepares to welcome another season. But the officials, scientists, and longtime swimmers who know this place best understand that the pool’s magic is inseparable from the aquifer’s health. Every gallon conserved is, in a very literal sense, a gallon preserved for the commons — for the legislators and musicians, the toddlers and lap swimmers, the salamanders and the people of Austin who have shared these waters for ten thousand years.
Sources
City of Austin, About Barton Springs Pool. AustinTexas.gov.
AFAR Media, “In Austin’s Barton Springs Pool, History Lives On.” February 8, 2024.
ATXtoday / 6AM City, “A Brief History of Austin’s Beloved Barton Springs Pool.” January 17, 2024.
Wikipedia, Barton Springs Pool.
Mic, “The Sacred History of Barton Springs Pool.” October 4, 2017.
Living Springs Austin, About Barton Springs.
KUT Radio, “Edwards Aquifer Reaches ‘Historic’ Low Levels Amid Drought.” May 27, 2025.
Barton Springs–Edwards Aquifer Conservation District, Drought Update: November 2025. December 2025.
Austin Chronicle, “Edwards Aquifer Nears Emergency Drought Conditions.” March 6, 2026.
Hays Free Press, “BSEACD Nears Stage 4 Drought Declaration.” February 4, 2026.
Drought.gov / NOAA, “Drought in 2025 in 14 Graphics.” January 15, 2026.
Austin ISD is considering a partnership with a Dallas-based nonprofit specializing in International Baccalaureate (IB) programs to manage three North Austin middle schools. Facing the threat of a district-wide state takeover due to low performance, the district hopes this external management will provide the campuses more time to improve academic outcomes. The Texas Council for International Studies will be charged with boosting test scores at Dobie, Burnet and Webb middle schools. (Austin American-Statesman)
Pflugerville is in Stage 3 Emergency Water Restrictions due to a break in the existing raw waterline that delivers water to Lake Pflugerville, resulting in historically low water levels.
A newly filed lawsuit offers fresh details about an alleged assault last December involving Ndiaga Diagne, the man now accused in last week’s Sixth Street shooting in Austin. According to attorney Bob Hilliard, his client — 65-year-old Lillian Brady — was arriving for her shift at Tesla’s Gigafactory when she encountered Diagne praying on the ground near the entrance. Hilliard said Brady attempted to walk around him, but Diagne suddenly attacked her.
Austin City Council Member Zo Qadri said life-saving programs like the Counter Assault Strike Team, or CAST, and the Downtown Area Command (DTAC) program ultimately kept their funding during the most recent budget process, EMS’ DTAC was flagged for possible cuts in a prioritization exercise the city told KXAN “asked departments to identify programs that were farthest from their core mission.”
A Travis County judge on Monday formally dismissed all charges against an Austin woman, clearing her of a murder conviction that sent her to prison for the scalding death of an infant more than 20 years ago.
Austin Police issued information on several pending cases Monday.
An arrest has been made in a 2024 homicide.
A Travis County man is facing multiple charges following a reported sexual assault that occurred at a spa business located at 11011 Domain Drive.
APD authorities are seeking the public’s assistance in identifying several individuals believed to be involved in a series of vehicle burglaries and auto thefts occurring in the Northwest area of Austin.
Police are looking for a suspect connected to a robbery that occurred at the Target store located at 9500 S IH 35 on February 25th.
Police in Lakeway chased and apprehended a fleeing suspect who turned out to have a long list of pending criminal charges.
ICE activity was seen early Monday morning along southbound 183 passing the exit to Burnet Road.
Service providers across the country have reported immigrants delaying or avoiding medical treatment and other essential services out of fear of immigration enforcement operations at those clinics. While the Department of Homeland Security has thus far spared Austin from the large-scale immigration raids seen in urban areas in Democratic-led states, local leaders have reported an increase in Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations throughout Central Texas in recent months. (KUT 90.5)
Bexar County commissioners are expected to approve a resolution tonight expressing strong opposition to an ICE processing and detention facility in San Antonio. (Texas Public Radio)
A fatal wreck in Travis County Monday evening.
Another fatal wreck overnight in Leander.
PODCAST
The City of Austin is ending its rental assistance program.
The Austin Transit Partnership teased a little glimpse into what’s coming down the tracks.
🚨 Reminder! Rail & Trail upgrades are coming to East 5th St.
— CapMetro (@CapMetroATX) March 9, 2026
Join us and @austintexasgov to see final designs and talk with staff about improvements.
🗓️ March 10
📍 Terrazas Branch, Austin Public Library
⏰ 6 – 7:30 p.m.
🔗 https://t.co/CmG2pcHGt3 pic.twitter.com/9KcsbcFu0A
South by Southwest and a busy Spring Break season means high passenger volumes at Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.
Heads up, AUS travelers:
— Austin-Bergstrom International Airport (@AustinAirport) March 9, 2026
While we’re not expecting delays, the partial federal government shutdown remains in effect, so there is a chance that unanticipated delays could occur.
Please monitor your flight status and check directly with your airline for the latest updates. pic.twitter.com/E23PRYHy9W
ABIA saw its third-busiest year ever in 2025 with more than 21.6 million passengers passing through. (KXAN-TV)
TxDOT will continue repairs to the 290 flyover tonight.
From the Austin American-Statesman.
Alert: Texas A&M Forest Service is responding to a request for assistance in Gray County on the #Gray2299Fire. The fire is an estimated 200 acres and 0% contained. #txfire pic.twitter.com/MWBsn7jUPi
— Incident Information – Texas A&M Forest Service (@AllHazardsTFS) March 9, 2026
UPDATE: The wildfire in Gray County is now 2000 acres and is 25% contained.
WEATHER
MONDAY’S HIGH / LOW TEMPERATURES
AUSTIN-BERGSTROM INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
CAMP MABRY
5-DAY FORECAST / AUSTIN, TEXAS
Two teenage brothers who were brought to Capitol Hill last June by a Texas Republican congresswoman were released from U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody after the GOP lawmaker faced backlash over their family’s detention. (Austin American-Statesman)
Today I joined my colleagues in MALC and the RGV Delegation to celebrate the release and reunification of the Gámez-Cuéllar Family. Power to the people! Thanks to God and to everyone that came together to do what was right. #HD40 #TxLege #956 #MALC pic.twitter.com/qRlR9ENGen
— Terry Canales (@TerryCanales40) March 10, 2026
The Gámez-Cuéllar family has been released from Dilley! We just picked them up. pic.twitter.com/GFTBNvsM1G
— Joaquin Castro (@JoaquinCastrotx) March 9, 2026
The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that more than $126 billion in emergency tariffs were illegally collected, and the U.S. Court of International Trade said the Trump administration must refund them. (Houston Public Media)
Officials at Texas airports are warning travelers of long TSA lines due to the partial government shutdown and spring break travel.
Customers at some Buc-ee’s locations are noticing a change when it comes to buying fuel — and the policy is already drawing mixed reactions online. (My San Antonio)
Gas prices are skyrocketing in the wake of the war in Iran. Texas production could eventually stabilize the oil market.
President Trump had been prepared to quickly endorse John Cornyn after the Texas senator outperformed expectations and finished ahead of Ken Paxton, Texas’ attorney general, in last week’s primary. But Paxton managed to at least forestall that outcome when he announced that if the Senate passes the SAVE America Act bill he would drop his campaign. (Politico)
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(Episode from March 9, 2026)
Nine men and women are on trial, facing a variety of federal charges, accused of being part of a “North Texas antifa cell.” According to court documents, the group attacked the ICE facility, setting off fireworks, vandalizing property, and shooting at police officers who responded. The prosecution in the case is set to rest.
Texas Lottery officials are reminding players that tonight’s MegaMillions jackpot has surpassed a half billion dollars.
SPORTS
COLLEGE BASEBALL: Weather permitting, the Texas Longhorns are on the road this evening for some non-conference action.
the climb continues 📈#HookEm pic.twitter.com/LldEX08lTD
— Texas Baseball (@TexasBaseball) March 9, 2026
COLLEGE BASKETBALL: Texas leads the series against Ole Miss, 10-7. Last meeting: Texas 79-68 (Feb. 7, 2026; Austin)
A full preview. (Texas Longhorns)
COLLEGE FOOTBALL: Texas football held its first spring practice on Monday and quarterback Arch Manning was a limited participant.
NBA: A quiet Monday for the Mavericks, Rockets and Spurs.
Tonight, Dallas is on the road while Houston and San Antonio play at home.
NHL: The Dallas Stars are basically a freight train heading into the postseason. They have won 12 of their last 15 games. They’re at home tonight.
(Episode from March 9, 2026)
The latest episode of Texas Parks & Wildlife features:
A birding team exploring the Texas coast in a race to spot the most species during the Great Texas Birding Classic.
Accessibility is taking center stage at new camping sites under construction at the Albert & Bessie Kronkosky State Natural Area.
Enjoy a throwback performance of a Texas Hill Country classic.
