By Robert Taylor
Boerne’s parks and green spaces are celebrated for their beauty and quality, a legacy greatly shaped by decades of dedication from Assistant Director of Parks and Recreation Donnie Bergmann.
Bergmann has been with the City of Boerne since January 1990, and in that time, he has been instrumental in quite literally laying the foundations of some the most beloved public spaces in town.
Street Department
He first joined the Street Department as a “grunt,” as he recalls, feeding residents’ brush into a woodchipper for about two weeks out of each month as a service to the public. The other half of his time, he and his crew sealed cracks in roads with sand and tar. And twice a year they would go around with a shovel and clean every curb in the city of debris.
As he progressed in the department and worked his way to foreman, he and his team of three, including himself, started pouring concrete for sidewalks across Boerne, often in places where none had existed before. This work included sidewalks on Blanco Road, Main Street, Bandera Road, and others.
“I used to see people on their wheelchairs, electric wheelchairs, and even bicycles not being able to get anywhere or having to be in the street,” he said. “So, I was pretty excited about putting in those sidewalks and getting people out of the street. It meant a lot to me.”
They also rebuilt several streets from the ground up, including Cottonwood, Old Aransas Pass, Rosewood, W. Blanco around Main Plaza, and others.
Many Boerne residents will remember a time when powerlines ran up and down Main Street. Bergmann and his team worked hand-in-hand with Boerne Utilities when the City moved the lines underground in 1995.
“We did one storefront a week. We’d break up the pavement on Monday, most of the time with a sledgehammer, and throw it in the back of a dump truck,” he said. “On Tuesday, we’d put the base layer down and form it all up, then pour concrete on Wednesday. Then put all the pavers in on Thursday, clean up and repaint everything on Friday, and have the store back open for the weekend.”
Parks and Recreation Department
In 2003, Bergmann transitioned to the Parks and Recreation Department just as the City was gearing up to revamp many of its parks. His previous construction and project management experience would play a crucial role in the success of these projects.
At that time, the Parks maintenance team of six officed out of the breakroom at the Electric department. One of his first projects after moving departments was building the Parks maintenance office at Northrup Park, giving the team a home and space to operate and expand.
Bergmann and his team redid the soccer fields, including placing the culverts under the fields, installing irrigation lines, and planting the grass. They overhauled City Lake Park, establishing park roads, dedicated parking areas, and installing new amenities. They built the Skate Park and established the Parks recreation office on Adler Road.
In 2014, his team completed a renovation of Veterans Plaza with the addition of plaques recognizing those killed in combat during the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as the installation of a Walk of Honor. They also oversaw a complete makeover and renovation of Kinderpark in 2016, formerly known as Optimist Park.
Maybe the biggest project of his time at the City has been the work to make Northrup Park what it is today – a destination for baseball, softball, and other recreation opportunities. From paving the parking lots to installing irrigation and planting the grass, Bergmann is proud of the fact that his team, working alongside other City departments, did most of the work.
“Driving by and seeing thousands of people down there, that’s a pretty good feeling knowing they all wanted to be in your park,” Bergmann said.
Before the park could be completed, though, the access road of I-10 had to be extended to give parkgoers a way to get there. Boerne became one of only a handful of municipalities at the time to be awarded a TxDOT contract to complete the project. Bergmann coordinated the project, and the team did the work of placing culverts, laying steel, pouring concrete, and ultimately tying the extension into the main access road.
Today, Bergmann leads a team of 17 Parks maintenance employees who keep our parks a welcoming and clean space for all. They mow all the trails and parks, take care of the cemetery, hang banners and seasonal decorations along Main Street, operate the Municipal Pool, maintain City facilities, and much more.
Beyond that, the Parks and Recreation Department also spearheads the City’s tree planting initiatives each Arbor Day, leading to Boerne being named a Tree City USA 13 years in a row with 2,000 trees planted in that time.
Retirement
After 35 years making Boerne beautiful in service to the public, Bergmann is set to retire in December. His legacy is one of hard work, integrity, and a true passion for enhancing the quality of life in our community.
“I’m glad to have been a part of so much. I look around and see everything I had a hand in, and I’m grateful to be a part of it,” Bergmann said. “There are a lot of good people in this town. Them being who they are makes you want to do good things.”
He was recognized by City Council at the December meeting, where he received a plaque.
“Donnie has truly been the foundation of the Parks and Recreation Department, as well as the Steet Department, leaving a mark on every project he touched,” Parks and Recreation Director Lissette Jimenez said. “From building our streets to creating and maintaining the beautiful parks we all love and enjoy, his commitment to public service and his unwavering dedication have shaped the landscape of our community.”
He is looking forward to spending more time with family, traveling, and fishing.
