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Board of Trustees News
Neighborhood web site Please visit
our new neighborhood web site at gww.zpgraphic.com (please note that
the prefix is gww, not www).
The site is 90% complete, and the designer is requesting feedback
from the community on the usefulness and usability of the site.
Comments may be emailed to the webmaster.
We hope our residents will be pleased with this new resource as
it continues to be developed.
Dogs Still a problem in our neighborhood, barking dogs are greatly
troubling some of our residents. We earnestly request all dog owners
to keep their pets from disturbing their neighbors. Your barking
dog may be seriously affecting the comfort of young children and
their mothers, our elderly residents, and those suffering with severe
illness. Please be considerate pet owners.
Dogs who leave their property to chase or bark at pedestrians must
be controlled. Everyone in Goldenwood West has the right to enjoy
walks in our beautiful area without worrying about dogs bothering
them. If you do have a negative experience with a dog, please consider
approaching the dog’s owner first to acquaint them with the
fact that their pet is causing you distress. This is the neighborly
thing to do, and most people are very apologetic when they discover
their pet has troubled someone. If the injured person can’t
bring themselves to approach the owner, or has not received a satisfactory
response, please call Hays County Animal Control at 512-393-7896.
For the purpose of educating our residents, we will be presenting
information from the Hays County Animal Control Ordinance in three
parts, beginning with this newsletter. The first topic is dogs running
at large and public nuisance:
| The Hays County Animal Control Ordinance prohibits dogs from
running at large and animals creating a public nuisance. The
animal may be impounded for 72 hours, not counting weekends and
holidays. Subject to citation for violation of this order and
approval by the Animal Control Officer of a plan to eliminate
any public nuisance caused by the animal, an owner may claim
the animal within the 72 hour time period after paying in full
all incurred costs and impoundment fees. Upon failure of the
owner to contact the Animal Control Officer during the 72 hour
time period, the Animal Control Officer may order the animal
destroyed without compensation to the owner. Any person who violates
a provision of Section 8 (of this order) shall be guilty of a
Class C misdemeanor. |
Sodding for the Pool Area The
improved area around our community pool has been protected from
erosion during the winter through
the generous efforts of local volunteers. However as the weather
warms
up, this winter rye grass will begin to die off. In order to protect
our investment in improvements to the common area, sod will need
to be laid around the pavilion. We have funds set aside for purchasing
the sod, but would like to save money on installation by asking
our members to volunteer some of their time for this purpose. The
sod
will be laid in early April, possibly on the weekend before Easter.
If you can spare an hour or two for this good cause, please contact
the webmaster. Volunteers
will be notified once a firm date has been set.
Firearms A resident reported hearing gunshots during the night
near the mailstation a few weeks ago, and saw evidence that someone
shot
a deer there and took it away. Please be aware that our bylaws
strictly prohibit discharging firearms of any kind in the neighborhood.
Stray
shots could endanger our residents. For the safety of our children,
please report any use of firearms in Goldenwood West to the sheriff’s
office promptly.
Oak Wilt Since Oak Wilt has been identified as a potential problem
in our area, members are encouraged to visit the following web site
for information on this important subject: plant pathology.tamu.edu/Texlab/oakwilt.html
Welcome Wagon There has long
been interest expressed for establishment of a Welcome Wagon committee
to greet new residents. We are happy
to announce that Elizabeth Dunk has graciously volunteered to be
the contact person for this committee. Volunteers who are willing
to bake a cake or cookies for the committee to bring to the new
neighbor, as well as people interested in actually making the visit,
are invited
to contact the webmaster.
Attention Book Lovers Several residents are interested in starting
a neighborhood book group in which all participants read the same
book and then get together to discuss it. We will probably
meet monthly at a regularly set time. If you are interested
in participating, please call Karen Hayward at 894-4002 or email:
khayward@austin.rr.com.
Other Clubs Residents have expressed interest in forming several
clubs. Please contact the following people if you are interested
in participating. If you have another idea for a local club or
if you would like to lead a group, contact the editor. Clubs forming
at this time: Bunko Group (Lisa Boyer–858-1707), Garden Club
(need a leader), Mom’s Group (need a leader), Naturalist Group
(this group will meet to hike around the neighborhood looking at
our flora and fauna, Tom Watson–twatson11@austin.rr.com).
News from the APC
The open position on the APC has been filled. Currently your committee
members are Julie Richards, Charlie Seligman and Al Vargo. The
committee would also like to welcome Eric Russell as a new sub-committee
member.
Most
Beautiful Yards The APC would like to announce that Spring Yard
Recognition will be taking place in April. The best yard will be
recognized in
the May newsletter.
News from the GWW Water Board
The next water board meeting is March 24 at 7:00 p.m. at the
Pavilion. This meeting will include a Public Hearing to discuss
the 2003 rate study and
proposed water rate increase that will be effective April 01,
2004. Remember that meeting dates and times appear at the bottom
of members’ bills
each month.
The TCEQ (Texas Commission on Environmental Quality), who permits
and monitors our wells, is concerned about surface contamination
of our best well (which has the highest volume output, recharge
rate, and water quality) and issued a warning to us to improve
the treatment
process or face closure of the well. The water in this well contains
organisms that normally occur on the surface (mostly microscopic,
unicellular organisms other than bacteria) and not in subterranean
waters. Our well(s) do NOT have E. coli or other bacteria which
would indicate sewage contamination. The present chlorination
process kills
all the known organisms in the water; but, the TCEQ is concerned
about the potential for contamination by the enteric protozoans
Microsporidium and Giardi (a common contaminate in ponds and
streams). While chlorination
kills the cells of these protozoans, the process will NOT kill
the thick-walled, reproductive cysts formed by Microsporidium
and Giardi.
The water tests conducted by the TCEQ on our well(s) have NOT
indicated the presence of these protozoans, however the potential
for contamination
by them exists and the TCEQ has thusly forced the water board
to take corrective action. The new filtration system, recently
purchased
and now being installed, will remove not only the protozoans
but also their cysts. The water will continue to be chlorinated
in order
to kill any micro-organisms (e.g., bacteria) that are not removed
by filtration.
Neighborhood History: Friday Mountain
“
The sights, sounds, odors, and especially the feel of the place stimulate
in me memories so warm and intimate that taking up residence here
seems more like a homecoming than an escape.” This is how famous
Texas author, Roy Bedichek, describes Friday Mountain Ranch in his “Adventures
with a Texas Naturalist.” Friday Mountain, now also known
as Barsana Hill, got its name because the surveyors arrived to
record
its height of 1060 feet above sea level on a Friday.
The ranch, consisting of 630 acres along Bear Creek, was the
site of the Johnson Institute. Thomas Jefferson Johnson, born
in Virginia
in 1805, founded the boarding school in 1852, originally for
boys only, but soon girls were admitted. It may have been the
first secondary
school in Texas, west of the R. Colorado. By the time of his
sudden death in 1868, there were 200 students.
Johnson was a colorful character, a strict disciplinarian, but
well loved by his students. His hair, resembling an overgrown
flat-top in a photograph in Bandera’s Frontier Museum, earned him the
nickname of ‘Old Bristle Top.’ The school was a family
affair, with Mrs. Johnson and four of their six children on the
teaching staff. Son Benjamin kept the school going until 1872
when Friday
Mountain Ranch was sold. It passed through several hands before
Lewis Cass Kemp bought it in 1908. Like his neighbor, Role Christal,
the
twice-married Kemp had a large family. His 23 children were all
of an age with the 22 Christals. The Kemps had a little more
space in
the L-shaped Johnson Institute with its 10 rooms, 2 halls, and
2 bathrooms, albeit unplumbed!
The young Kemps loved to stand outside hollering, listening to
their voices echoing off the bluffs. They made even more noise
at Christmas
time, blasting dynamite on top of Friday Mountain, to the consternation
of those living within a fifteen mile radius.
The Kemps grew cotton, corn, and sorghum, and raised cattle,
horses, mules, and hogs that fended for themselves in the woods
in the
fall and winter. Rattlesnakes were a problem, there being a den
of them
under Mr. and Mrs. Kemp’s bedroom floor. Son Willie Kemp said, “When
a rattlesnake was discovered, especially under the bed, it had Pa ‘treed’ till
he could work out a plan to get out of bed.” Sometimes, the
children were ordered to remove it with a hoe or a rake until Pa
could take over! The Kemps made no special effort to get rid of the
snakes. As Willie said, “… one thing, we were never
plagued with rats!”
In 1922, Lewis Kemp sold the Institute to his son, Tom, who remained
there until 1942. Because of heavy infestations of horehound
and other noxious weeds, he ran a large flock of sheep and goats.
He
also raised corn and feed crops. Cotton was no longer important
because of the boll weevil infestation.
Dr. Walter Prescott Webb, professor of history at UT Austin,
was the next owner. He wanted “to preserve the building and to
restore it as nearly as possible to its original state” and
was “determined to restore its depleted grassland and water.” Throughout
the drought-ridden 1940s and 1950s, Dr. Webb cut down the encroaching
juniper to allow the oaks and grass to flourish, and broadcast
grass seed and fertilizer.
It was during this period that Dr. Webb encouraged authors, including
Roy Bedichek and J. Frank Dobie, to visit Friday Mountain for
lively literary discussions. Bedichek went into seclusion there
for a
year to write his book, “Adventures with a Texas Naturalist.”
In 1946, Webb encouraged his friend, Rodney J. Kidd, to run a
boys’ summer
camp at the Institute. Then, from 1949 until 1956, sixth-grade
students would come out from Austin for five day stays, stressing
nature study,
self-reliance, and the pioneer spirit. Webb sold the ranch in
1963 to Kidd, who kept the buildings in good order. The following
year
the Texas Historical Commission designated the Johnson Institute
a Recorded Texas Historic Landmark.
By 1991, only 105 acres of Friday Mountain Ranch belonged to
the Kidd family. Two hundred acres, including the Johnson Institute,
had been purchased by the International Society of Divine Love,
becoming Barsana Dham. Friday Mountain was said to be reminiscent
of Barsana
Hill in the holy land of Braj in India. In 1995, the Temple of
Shree Raseshwari Radhi Rani, the largest Hindu temple in the
United
States,
was dedicated. But, by 1992, the Texas Historical Commission
had voted to revoke the Johnson Institute’s Recorded Texas
Historic Landmark designation because of the extensive alterations
that
had been made to the building.
“
The sights, sounds, odors” that attracted Roy Bedichek half
a century ago are very different today. Friday Mountain still stands
sentinel, overlooking “billowy rise after rise growing evermore
purplish and smoky in the distance,” now dotted with ever
increasing signs of human habitation.
• J. Marie Bassett
Helpful Information
Area Churches
Driftwood Methodist Church.
Located on the corner of RR 150 and
County Road 170 (Elder Hill Road) in beautiful Driftwood, Texas.
Services
are:Sunday School/Bible Study 9:30 a.m., Sunday Worship Service
10:45 a.m., Sunday.
Dripping Springs United Methodist ChurchRev. Andy Smith, Pastor28900
Ranch Rd 12, Dripping SpringsWorship Services Sunday at 8:30,
9:45, & 11:00
a.m.Sunday School at 9:45 a.m.
Holy Trinity Episcopal Church
1700 Woodland Ave. Austin, Texas
78741
512-444-5311
www.holytrinityaustin.org
A Community of Disciples
Making Disciples in the Midst of Joyful
Contemporary Worship with Biblical Teaching and Preaching in the
Episcopal Tradition. Located on Woodland Ave. 1 block
from I-35 in Austin.
St. Martin de Porres Catholic Church
1012 Post
Oak (just north of RR 12, one mile east of Hwy 290
)
Dripping Springs,
TX 78620
(512) 858-5667
Fax (512) 858-1467
Email: stmartindripping@email.msn.com
Masses:
Saturday, 5:00 p.m.; Sunday, 8:30 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. (English),
2:00 p.m. (Spanish)
Weekday masses on Monday, 10:00 a.m.; Tuesday
through Friday at Noon
If you would like to have your church represented on this list,
please send the information to the editor and we will gladly
publicize your
church’s services and location.
Goldenwood West News is published by:
ZP Graphic
Margaret Paine, Graphic Designer and Editor
www.zpgraphic.com
gww@zpgraphic.com
Please send comments, articles, email subscriptions and inquiries
regarding advertisements to the above address.
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