On a sunny spring day in Central Austin, cars whiz past a vibrant orange archway, adorned with Katakana calligraphy. Brilliant floral displays hug the gate’s exterior as a miniature fountain burbles in the background.
To some, it might just be a well-decorated pedestrian island and traffic median. But to Austinites at large as well as residents surrounding the Baylor, Enfield and Parkway intersection, it’s the site of the tiniest park in Austin, cultivated and nurtured for nearly a decade.
Neighborhood resident Gary Schumann is the mastermind behind the miniature greenspace oasis now known as BEPI Park. Back in 2017, Schumann said he walked outside his front door and saw a mound of asphalt in the roadway, alongside a slew of city personnel marking the ground. Crews were preparing to install a pedestrian traffic island as a way to provide safer access for people crossing the intersection…