Around Pease Park This Fall, the Finished Work Sits Along Lamar Boulevard

If you live in Pemberton Heights, you've probably noticed that the Pease Park area looks different this fall. The new pavement, the new crossings and the new bike lane are all along North Lamar Boulevard, beside the traffic. The trail along the creek and the clearing where Malin's Fountain stood are still closed, still being repaired, or still waiting for someone to decide what comes next. That changes how a walk or a guest visit from the west side of the park works for the rest of the year.

The clearing where Malin stood

Malin's Fountain, the troll sculpture by Danish artist Thomas Dambo, was destroyed by fire early on May 21, 2026. In a statement two days later, Pease Park Conservancy said Malin had been built "with the help of hundreds of volunteers with mostly reclaimed materials." It also said, "It is too early to say what will happen next," and that it was working with the City of Austin on next steps.

The Conservancy held An Evening for Malin at the park on June 24. The Austin American-Statesman reported that, for now, the spot is marked by a gravel circle and Malin's original bowl. CBS Austin's coverage of the gathering said the Conservancy thinks another troll is unlikely and wants a different artwork in that spot. On June 29, the Austin Free Press reported that the Conservancy "is in conversation with the insurance company and the artist about bringing something else to the space."

That is the most recent concrete news. No design, schedule or fundraising campaign for the site has been announced. Dambo's own page for Malin's Fountain still lists the piece as a 2024 work at Pease Park. In July, the Conservancy put out a general survey asking for ideas about the park's future. It didn't present a proposal for Malin's spot. Through the fall, you'll find a commemorated clearing there, not a construction site.

Four trail segments, four different situations

North of Pease Park, the Shoal Creek Trail is being rebuilt one piece at a time, and the pieces now open are the ones beside the road. Here are the four segments near the park as of mid-October 2026.

The 29th to 31st segment is the newest. Construction started in November 2025 and was expected to take about a year. The Shoal Creek Conservancy says the work finished in July 2026, three months early. Besides the trail and the bike path, the project added a southbound left-turn lane on Lamar at 29th Street, a new pedestrian crossing on the north side of 31st Street, and ADA accessible sidewalk upgrades. KUT reported the project's cost as $1.25 million. The City and the Conservancy celebrated the finished segment on August 22, along with the connected neighborhood bikeway improvements.

The other two segments are what you would have used to walk north from the park along the water. The creekside stretch from 24th to 29th was damaged by a landslide. Austin Parks and Recreation lists it as closed indefinitely and says it is working with Austin Transportation and Public Works on the detour east of the creek. That listing was last updated June 11, 2026. The City tracks the longer-term plan on its Shoal Creek Trail Connectivity Gaps page.

The closure up to Janet Fish Bridge is a repair, and it ends sooner. The Shoal Creek Conservancy describes the stretch from Gaston Avenue to the bridge, just south of 29th Street, as "substandard" for years, with rough surfaces and manhole covers that are hard to get around. The repairs are meant to make it part of the city's All Ages and Abilities trail network. The City lists the closure as running through November 2026, with an update dated September 9. When it reopens, the shaded creekside route will be smoother than it has been in years.

Until then, a loop north from Kingsbury Commons runs mostly along Lamar. The pavement there is new and wide, and you'll have traffic noise beside you. Closure dates do change, so check the City's closed parks and trails page before you take guests.

Inside the park, the pieces are back on limited terms

The Treehouse closed for repairs in January 2025. The Austin Monitor reported that supply problems had delayed the replacement netting. It is back in use. The Conservancy's fall calendar scheduled a sound bath inside the Treehouse with ATX Yoga Girl on October 21, and another with Sona Shala on November 10.

The Pease Park Splash Pad has had shorter hours since August 3, 2026. It now runs from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. until further notice. It also closed for maintenance on the morning of October 12, then went back to the shorter schedule. An after-school splash won't work this fall. A morning visit will.

The Conservancy's vision plan page, based on a plan by Wallace, Roberts & Todd, lists Kingsbury Commons as Phase 1 and complete. It describes Phase 2 as in planning, with areas labeled Lamar Terrace and the Martin Luther King Jr. Gateway, and gives no construction start date. Kingsbury Commons is the one place in the park that is fully built. That's why the fall calendar centers on it.

Where the fall calendar puts you

The Conservancy announced its fall season on August 27. The programs are grouped under art, learning, wellness and conservation, and include puppet shows, honky-tonk dancing, history tours, birding, toddler yoga and beginner biking. Here's what's still ahead:

• Mothing at Pease Park, October 23. A field moth study with Dr. Curtis Eckerman, held during the Texas Parks and Wildlife Texas Pollinator Bioblitz.
• Becoming the Wind, October 25. A free community movement workshop with Morgan Teel of Dance Waterloo.
• Pease Corps volunteer shifts at Kingsbury Commons. The calendar runs three series: Restoration Thursdays and Foliage Fridays from 9 to 11 a.m., and Saturation Saturdays from 9:30 to 11 a.m.
• Luminarium: Phases, Friday, November 6. The Conservancy's evening fundraiser, 6 to 9 p.m. at Tudor Cottage, 1100 Kingsbury Street.

The Conservancy calls Luminarium its biggest night of the year. This year's theme is "the phases of change—in life, in nature, and in the park." The theme fits a year when the park lost its best-known sculpture and gained a finished trail segment just to the north. Event tickets went on sale with the September 10 announcement. Raffle tickets are sold separately: $100 for one or $250 for three.

The volunteer shifts are the one way to work on the park directly while the bigger decisions wait. Restoration and planting at Kingsbury Commons go on whatever happens with the clearing where Malin stood or the closed creekside trail.

For many Pemberton Heights homes, Pease Park works as a shared backyard, and how easy it is to reach is part of what makes a street feel the way it does. If you're considering a move in or out of the area and want to know how the park, the trail work and the Lamar improvements affect specific blocks, Lillian Singh is happy to talk it through with you. Let's Connect.