Town Lake Park is essentially the area between South 1st Street and South Lamar. Lady Bird Lake marks the northern edge and Barton Springs Road the Southern boundary. Within the park is the famous Auditorium Shores, Butlers Park Pitch and Putt, the magnificent Alliance Children’s Garden, Liz Carpenter Splash Pad, Doug Sahm Hill Summit, Palmer Events Center, The Long Center for the Performing Arts, Skyline Theatre, Bicentennial Time Capsule Austin, Fannie Davis Town Lake Gazebo, and Auditorium Shores Dog Park.
Town Lake Park is the name for the combined area of Auditorium Shores and Butler Metro Park. And, while today the park is a beautiful place for Austinites and visitors alike to enjoy, it has been a long time coming. The park was initially envisioned by the Town Lake Beautification Committee, spearheaded by Lady Bird Johnson, after whom the lake was renamed. Complicated funding ‘issues’ resulted in a delay of more than ten years, with taxes raised to fund the park being primarily swallowed up by The Palmer Events Centre. If you love an excellent local political scandal, you can read all about it here. Or you can just come and enjoy the park.
For visitors to Austin keen to spend some time enjoying the park the closest hotels to the Town Lake Park are The Carpenter Hotel and Hyatt Regency Austin, although any of these lakeside hotels are close enough.
