Restoration of moontower at Zilker Park

Austin Energy is restoring the moontower out at Zilker Park as the city gets ready for the Zilker Tree's 50th birthday.

The Zilker Moonlight Tower is being taken down so it can be disassembled and sandblasted in order to remove dirt, paint and corrosion.

The city's doing this so the tower can be restored in time for the Zilker Tree's milestone birthday celebration.

The Zilker Moonlight Tower is one of the original 31 towers that provided Austin its first urban lighting system in 1895. Only 17 of the towers remain.

The towers became state landmarks in 1970 and have been added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.

The last time the towers were restored was i the mid 1990s. 

Once the latest restoration project is complete the Zilker Moonlight Tower will be reinstalled later this summer.