TEMPORAL ANALYSIS OF IMPERVIOUS COVER

Area of Manor Road, East Campus Drive and Red River
By Suran Wije

     This section of the University of Texas at Austin campus is encompassed by Manor Road, East Campus Drive and Red River. Now known as the area C parking lot, it is perhaps the most extreme example of The Paving of a Watershed. Between 1880 to 1919, the area contained primarily vegetative ground cover and six non-university buildings. The major impervious cover of the time was the four roads Hancock, Hamilton, Pelham, and Sabine. From 1920 to 1939 the number of non-university buildings grew to 23, and Hancock, Hamilton and Pelham became Manor, East 21st Street, and East 20 1/2 Street, respectively. During the time of 1940 to 1959, development extending into the area decreased the vegetative ground cover as 73 non-university buildings and a swimming pool were constructed. The addition of the first parking lot at this time period was the turning point for the area from a residential section of student apartment buildings to its present state. Soon after, between 1960 and 1989, all the houses and apartments west of Sabine were demolished for more parking spaces. Finally, from 1990 to 1997 the remaining 21 non-university buildings to the east of Sabine were replaced with pavement. As a result of the slope of the area toward Waller Creek and the near zero permeability, elevated levels of runoff enter the watershed due to this transformation from vegetative ground cover to parking lots. 
 

TRANSFORMATION FROM 1880 TO 1997

All data were collected from the Sanborn Map Collection and reproduced by free hand and heads-up digitizing using Microstation; therefore, a 1 to 3 foot error in coordinates should be expected.