The Gillespie County Eclipse Task Force held its final meeting on Tuesday, March 19, at the Fredericksburg Fire/EMS South Station in preparation for the April 8 Great North American Eclipse.
At the meeting, various entities gave updates on preparation and anticipated operations for the day of the event, highlighted below.
General Updates
- The official website for the event in Fredericksburg and Gillespie County is EclipseInFBGTX.com with information for residents, visitors and event information.
- Eclipse glasses are currently available to CTEC customers at their headquarters and to residents and visitors at the Visitor Information Center at 302 E. Austin St.
- The city and county’s hotels, RV parks and short-term rentals are at an 83 percent occupancy level at last check by the Fredericksburg Convention & Visitor Bureau.
- The task force organized for additional trash bags, trash receptacles and portable restroom locations to be spread throughout the county. Those locations can be found at EclipseInFBGTX.com.
City of Fredericksburg
- City Hall will be closed on Monday, April 8, but staff will be reassigned to work at public viewing areas.
- Residents with garbage collection on Monday, April 8, will be rescheduled for Tuesday, April 9.
- The city’s public viewing areas will be at Marktplatz and at Lady Bird Johnson Municipal Park. Both locations will have eclipse glasses on the day of the event, while supplies last.
- Many city-controlled lights around the public viewing areas will be turned off, but traffic control lights and other entity’s lights may still come on during the event.
- A media workspace will be available on Marktplatz with designated media parking adjacent to that spot.
- Most city staff members have undergone CPR training in advance of the event.
Police Department
- All staff will be working, supplemented by private security companies.
Gillespie County
- County offices will be closed, but crews will be available to respond to road issues.
- The airport is about half full, but inquiries are picking up.
Methodist Hospital Hill Country
- Extra staff during the event with training for employees leading up to the event.
National Weather Service
- Starting in April daily webinars to update the weather forecast for the event.
Schools
- All schools and their parking lots will be closed, including the Hill Country University Center, Fredericksburg ISD, Harper ISD, Ambleside School and Heritage School.
State, National Parks
- Enchanted Rock State Natural Area is sold out for the event with over 2,000 people expected.
These parks are first come, first served for parking…
- Lyndon B. Johnson State Park – not opening until 8 a.m.
- Lyndon B. Johnson National Historical Park – 500 cars allowed on the airstrip
- Old Tunnel State Park
Hill Country Wineries
- Most wineries will be hosting events with many still reporting availability.
Created in 2021, the task force has met regularly over the last three years, working to coordinate Fredericksburg and Gillespie County businesses, government entities and emergency services in advance of the anticipated influx of visitors for the eclipse event.
Officials made the decision to not actively promote Fredericksburg and Gillespie County as a destination to view the eclipse, but rather to work to manage the expected crowd.
Gillespie County Emergency Management Coordinator Justin Calhoun and the City’s Special Events Coordinator Jennifer Krupa have served as co-chairs of the task force.
