Lake Highlands Park sign. Photo courtesy of Google Maps.
Many neighbors know that there are a few bald eagles nesting at Lake Highlands Park.
The City of Dallas Park and Recreation Department provided an update at Tuesday’s meeting of the White Rock Lake Task Force to discuss how they’re working to ensure the birds remain undisturbed.
The park department met with Texas Parks & Wildlife and a federal agency recently at the site to finalize a protection plan. But staff from different agencies had been meeting as early as November to consider how to safeguard the eagles while allowing the park to be used for sports and other activities.
When it became clear that the eagles would stay in our neighborhood for a while, perhaps through the summer, and might begin reproducing, staff started working on more advanced protection measures.
A 350-foot buffer zone will be allotted around the area where the eagles are nesting, and it will be fenced off with a temporary chain-link fence. Ben Heistein, who works at the park department, said fence installation will begin today.
With the fence, most of the park will be shut down. Athletic leagues have been notified that they will not be able to use the facilities at the park.
“We’re going to basically proceed with the notion that the park is closed, with the exception of the parking lot on Lake Highlands Drive and the playground,” Heistein said.
Signage will also be installed to inform people that they are prohibited from getting too close to the eagles, which are a protected species.
One section around the buffer zone near N. Buckner Boulevard can’t be fenced because of traffic visibility concerns, so the perimeter won’t be completely enclosed.
If the young eagles fly away around June or July, as staff expect, the park can begin to be reopened.
Neighbors are subject to fines if they get too close to the birds, but it’s up to the Texas Game Warden to enforce that.
You can contact the park rangers or our local game warden to report violations.
