This fall, Tarrytown's two biggest outdoor landmarks look the way they always have. Lake Austin stays at its usual level through November, and Lions Municipal is closed only for routine turf work. Both things are true because of decisions that are still open. The City canceled this season's lake drawdown and has no date for the next one. Muny is still operating without a long-term lease, and it now has a deadline in state law that falls less than eight months from today.
Muny's fall schedule
Muny's 2026 fall closures are all ordinary maintenance. The Muny Conservancy's calendar shows the course closed for overseeding on Tuesday, Oct. 6, and Wednesday, Oct. 7, 2026. The same calendar shows full-day maintenance closures on Monday, Oct. 19, and Monday, Nov. 16. The City's GolfATX page also lists an Oct. 6 overseeding closure but gives no year, so the Conservancy's two-day 2026 listing is the one to plan around.
Through November, the Conservancy calendar shows only closures and no public events at the course. This season's big Muny event happened downtown. The fifth Imagine Muny gala was held Sept. 10 at ACL Live at the Moody Theater. Tanya Tucker headlined, with Jack Ingram, Wade Bowen and Asleep at the Wheel on the bill. Dale Watson and The Copa Kings made surprise appearances. The night passed its $1 million fundraising goal for the Muny Conservancy.
What the $1 million can and can't do
The size of that number makes more sense next to the cost of the land. The course sits on part of the Brackenridge Tract, a roughly 500-acre parcel owned by the University of Texas. Muny has run on 140 leased acres since 1936, and the City pays about $500,000 a year for the lease, according to Golfweek's Sept. 16, 2026 report.
For years, the Conservancy led by Ben Crenshaw and Scotty Sayers hoped to buy the land from UT at fair market price. Golfweek reports that this became harder and harder as Austin's land values climbed. The group has since moved to working with the university on maintenance and stewardship while it keeps pushing for a long-term lease.
So the gala money goes toward a different goal than buying the course. The Conservancy says donations support preserving and restoring the acreage, improving the course, and opposing development. Its published vision includes a history and teaching center in a restored historic clubhouse plus a separate new clubhouse. That plan is still a proposal, and nothing in the current calendar shows construction starting this fall.
Crenshaw described the situation at the gala this way:
"I think some people object to it, mostly because of where it is. It's right in the heart of the city. But it binds this city. And it's the most peaceful place."
The date in state law
In August, the Austin Business Journal described "years of 5-month rolling leases" and said the question of Muny's future "may finally be answered soon." No later public reporting describes a finished deal. The most recent account, from mid-September, still describes lease negotiations as ongoing.
The firmest date comes from the Legislature. The enrolled text of HB 2421 from the 89th Legislature changed the Save Historic Muny District's dissolution date from 2025 to May 31, 2027. The district has to dissolve by then unless it has reached an agreement with the landowner. That agreement must either buy the land or preserve it as a public golf course, public parkland, or both. The bill applies the same deadline to the district's ability to enter certain contracts with the City.
Counting from Oct. 4, 2026, that leaves a little under eight months. The district has already had its deadline extended once.
The lake stays full this fall
The second open question is on the water. In August, the City and the Lower Colorado River Authority announced a Lake Austin drawdown for this fall. On Sept. 24, 2026, the City canceled it. The drawdown had been set for Oct. 12 through Nov. 30. Stakeholders raised concerns about lakeside businesses, the fall wedding season, UT football games and Formula 1.
The City's release also explains why there is no replacement date. Stakeholders asked about January and February 2027. LCRA has said that since Winter Storm Uri in 2021, it no longer lowers the lakes in winter. It keeps the hydroelectric generators on the Highland Lakes dams available to support the Texas power grid during cold weather. Assistant City Manager Mike Rogers said staff will keep evaluating "potential future drawdowns." The release gives no date for the next one.
For anyone in Tarrytown who keeps a dock, bulkhead or boat slip on the lake, the cancellation pushes back the maintenance window a drawdown provides. The City's release says drawdowns give owners better access to shoreline structures for repairs and for clearing sediment and debris. Any work that was waiting for this fall's low water now has no scheduled window, and the City's release rules out the winter months.
This and the Muny situation have the same shape. The lake and the course look the same this fall because a decision was postponed and no one has set a new date.
Dates worth keeping
Here are the rest of the fall dates, many of them close to Muny along Enfield Road, West 35th and Lake Austin Boulevard:
- Oct. 6–7, Muny. Course closed for overseeding.
- Oct. 18, Laguna Gloria. The Contemporary Austin's all-ages Very 'Rary runs 2 to 5 p.m. at 3809 West 35th St., with sponsor entry from 1 to 2 p.m. Expect eco-themed art-making and performances. Food and drink are included this year for the first time. The ticket page confirms the date and address.
- Oct. 19, Muny. Full-day maintenance closure.
- Last Friday of October, Laguna Gloria. The Contemporary's free toddler Arty Party runs from 10 to 11 a.m. on the last Friday of each month. The museum is promoting a Día de los Muertos program with bilingual musician Tío Tóto.
- Oct. 31, Deep Eddy Pool. Last day of the City's posted 2026 schedule, which started March 14. The pool has closed every Tuesday for cleaning since April 21, and no November hours have been posted.
- Nov. 16, Muny. Full-day maintenance closure.
- Through Jan. 17, 2027, Laguna Gloria. Laura Lit's outdoor sculpture installation stays up in the Betty and Edward Marcus Sculpture Park as part of the museum's fall 2026 program.
Parking on Oct. 18 is the main logistics issue. The Contemporary says there will be no on-site parking for Very 'Rary and plans to run shuttles from the Austin State Supported Living Center and Camp Mabry. Expect shuttle traffic along West 35th that Sunday afternoon.
Nearby projects that are also on hold
Several other nearby projects are moving slowly too. The City's Watershed Protection department lists the Reed Park Water Quality Improvements as on hold indefinitely after community feedback. That puts the proposed biofiltration, field and trail work off this fall's calendar. The Redbud Trail Bridge project is still in design and permitting. Construction letting is forecast for spring or summer 2027, and construction is expected to run from summer 2027 through fall 2031.
The Eilers Neighborhood Park plan at Deep Eddy is the one place where residents can weigh in this season. The plan is in concept planning on a timeline from summer 2026 into early 2027, and preliminary concepts and community engagement rounds are scheduled for fall. The pool itself is outside the plan's scope.
On Windsor Road, Fabrik is in its first fall at 3108 Windsor after moving from East Austin on July 14. The all-vegan tasting room's summer eight-course menu was $105 per person, and its menus change with the seasons.
The lake drawdown has no new date, and Muny's future depends on a lease that hasn't been signed yet. The firmest date in the neighborhood is May 31, 2027.
If you own property along Enfield, near the Brackenridge Tract, or on the Lake Austin shoreline and want to know how dock maintenance timing or Muny's outcome could affect your plans, Chris Krueger can walk through it with you. Twenty years in homebuilding means the shoreline and construction questions get practical answers. Let's Work Together.
