March Birding Update

Dispatch from our intrepid Bird Survey Leader, Mary Goldsby:

Six of us enjoyed some brisk temperatures on the morning of March 18th and more birds than I initially thought we would with 24 species.  Next Bird Survey is April 15th.

I've shared this link before, but it's a good reminder at this time of year to keep an eye on the migration forecasts. This is a wonderful tool to help maximize your spring birding experience no matter where you're located. 

https://birdcast.info/migration-tools/migration-dashboard

Our next survey will be April 15th at 7:30am and we should see migrants. 

March’s List (for photos and more info check out the Birds page on the FWP website!)

White-winged Dove  3
Neotropic Cormorant  4
Great Blue Heron  2
Great Egret  1
Cooper's Hawk  2
Red-shouldered Hawk  1
Barred Owl  1     (brief look while he relocated from one tree to another but couldn't re-find him)
Belted Kingfisher  1
Red-bellied Woodpecker  2
Downy Woodpecker  2
Blue Jay  6
Carolina Chickadee  1
Barn Swallow  1     FOS
Red-vented Bulbul  2
Ruby-crowned Kinglet  3
Carolina Wren  4
European Starling  1
Hermit Thrush  1
American Robin  2
Cedar Waxwing  300
House Sparrow  1
American Goldfinch  2
Great-tailed Grackle  6
Northern Cardinal  10

Happy birding!

Gaga over Gaga Ball!

First, the mysterious mound of sand arrived in Woodland Park.

Then, Troop 30 Boy Scouts helped shovel the pile into a square shape, soon to be covered by rubber mats.

Finally, on March 14th, a black octagonal shape appeared in the playground -what could it be????? If you guess GAGA BALL, you’d be right!

Thanks to an idea and a generous donation by a Woodland Park neighbor, Charles deLongchamp, Woodland Park has a new play amenity for kids of all ages.

According to Gagacenter.com, “Gaga is a fast paced, high energy sport played in an octagonal pit. The more players the better! Dubbed a kinder gentler version of dodge ball, the game is played with a soft foam ball, and combines the skills of dodging, striking, running, and jumping, while trying to hit opponents with a ball below the knees. Players need to keep moving to avoid getting hit by the ball. Fun and easy, everyone gets a serious workout.”

After Charles approached the FWP Board in 2022, Board Member Pat Rutledge worked with the City of Houston to get approval and obtained all of the foundation materials. Troop 30 Boy Scouts, based at St Marks UMC, helped build the foundation, and FWP added the signage and provided gagaballs to the Woodland Community Center for checkout during community center hours.

Girl Scouts Bring Butterflies and Beauty to the Park

Seventeen enthusiastic Girl Scouts (and 8 of their parents) from Troops 122288 and 122231 worked hard on several weekends in February and March planting 65 native pollinator plants in the new flower bed on the west side of the community building. 

The garden was designed and native plants selected by the Junior Girl Scouts, based at Travis Elementary School. HPARD generously donated the plants, and FWP donated the remaining materials and will install the irrigation system. The girls prepared the beds and completed the planting, and will continue to care for the gardens as part of the adoption agreement between FWP and HPARD. Board members Louise Moss and Beth Fischer guided the Girl Scouts, and Pat Rutledge obtained the City of Houston approvals.

FWP is looking for volunteer groups to plant more gardens, likely xeriscapes, on the north side of the Community Center.

We can't wait for the plants to thrive and bloom and attract beautiful bees and butterflies to Woodland Park.  We thank the Girl Scouts for their hard work and look forward to watching our garden grow!

Loreta & Stanko Bring Music Back to the Park!

Wow! What a night! On March 9th over 80 friends and neighbors enjoyed the inaugural concert of the Woodland Park Concert Series! Longtime master musician, Heights resident and FWP supporter Loreta Kovacic was joined by her brother Stanko Kovavic, cellist and music producer, on his first trip to the US from Croatia. The audience was treated to music crossing all genres from classical to folk to rock in a style that is uniquely Loreta!

Friends of Woodland Park and Houston Parks partnered to "bring music back to the park" by initiating a free concert series - inspired by Loreta's offer of a musical performance with her brother celebrating his trip to Texas. Historically, music has been a regular feature of the Woodland Community Center with dances every Friday night in the 1950's and 60's and even regular performances by Kenny Rogers who was a local resident and student at Northside High School. Many people attending commented on how great the acoustics were in the center and how beautiful the evening was overall. We agree and can't wait to host the next concert! If you are interested in lending your musical talents, please contact info@friendsofwoodlandpark.org.

Music Comes to Woodland Park as FWP Launches Community Center Concert Series

FWP is excited to announce the launch of the Woodland Park Community Center Concert Series on Thursday, March 9th! This FREE family-oriented event will open at 5:30 pm and feature FREE popcorn and lemonade, with the FREE concert starting at 6:00 pm. The event will finish by 7:30 pm.

The March 9th inaugural concert will feature local resident Loreta Kovacic - a master musician, former concert pianist, and current singer/songwriter/pianist - and her brother on his first trip to the US from Croatia, cellist and music producer Stanislav Kovacic. Per Culturemap, “Croatian-born Houstonian Loreta Kovacic moves between the classical and pop milieus as fluidly as her fingers dance around the ivories.” She holds a Doctorate Degree in music from Rice University and can be found performing anywhere from McGonigel’s Mucky Duck and Cafe Adel in Houston to Carnegie Hall in New York.

Siblings and musicians Stanislav and Loreta Kovacic.

Loreta has been an ardent supporter of the park, and she kindly offered her talents with her brother as a possible musical event. FWP leapt at the opportunity and realized that a series of concerts could work as a unifying event for the greater community, drawing more people to the park and into the community center itself. This opportunity seemed very much in alignment with the FWP mission of “preserving and improving Woodland Park's natural habitat along with its unique historical significance to the City of Houston, and to providing for the enjoyment and education of all who visit.” FWP worked with the staff at Houston Parks Department (HPARD) to sponsor and gain support for this new music appreciation effort in the community.

Firefly Field sculpture at Woodland Park, by artist Dylan Conner.

“Music is such a common language…and we hope that a variety of music and styles will be offered by other artists and supporters so that this will grow into a well-regarded and supported FWP and HPARD event,” said Pat Rutledge, FWP Treasurer and Civic Liaison. Kelli Fereday, FWP President added “Art and Nature are both respites for the soul. Woodland Park has and continues to add visual art for park users to contemplate and enjoy; it’s such a wonderful opportunity to bring music into the park as well, and especially into the community center which for many years has been under-utilized by the local area.”

Update and Call for Action on B-Cycle Stations in Heights

See this link for the most recent hot-off-the-press update from Houston B-cycle!

The “quick take” is that rapid decisions were made to close 50% of stations (which included all stations in the Greater Heights) in the face of rising operating costs/declining revenues and, on Jan 26th, METRO voted to step in temporarily. We have asked Houston B-cycle for usage data and for the immediate re-opening of our station until a forward plan is agreed. It looks like that any re-opening would not happen prior to March 2023.

Funding: The annual cost of running the stations is about $7500. FWP is pleased that one objective of the closer integration with METRO is to lower operating costs. Another important request is that METRO include contributions to bikeshare funding from the 1% of sales tax that METRO receives to operate in the city/county, thereby providing bikeshare a source of consistent funding.

Please contact Houston Bikeshare at info@houstonbikeshare, our District H Councilmember Karla Cisneros at districth@houstontx.gov, and the METRO board at boardoffice@ridemetro.org to advocate for retaining this amenity in our park and as a key “last-mile” transit solution across our area.

Letter from our Board Chair, Maya Ford (Updated January 27) — Houston BCycle

Woody the Turtle Update!

Woody the Turtle is under fabrication in the shop of artist Dylan Conner! He has been making the curved pipe sections, which are being matched up to a 12-foot full-scale drawing on the studio floor with turtle body parts carefully laid in a grid.

Dylan has shared an image of one of the bending processes in use. Next step: Manipulate the curved pipes to define the outermost edge of the giant turtle shell.

Current forecast is to finish and install Woody at the end of February. This piece is going to be a special one! :)