Parks & Rec Officials Nix 'Condom Tree' Safe Sex Campaign In North Austin

NORTH AUSTIN, TX — A tree that appears to be growing condoms isn't something one sees every day. Yet that's precisely what those visiting Walnut Creek Park saw this week, the fruit of a creative method of spreading the word on protection.

The Austin American-Statesman learned the oddity was the brainchild of Austin Public Health officials in an effort to safe sex.

“It’s just something creative, something unique and we are actually evaluating to see the effectiveness because we want to make sure the access is easy,” Akeshia Johnson Smothers, HIV/STD program manager for the department, told the newspaper.

But the folks at the Austin Parks and Recreation department didn't get the memo. And, while they acknowledged the uniqueness of the awareness campaign, they took down the bags filled with condoms and literature on avoiding HIV infection that were hanging from the trees' limbs.

Because, technically, it's potentially littering, they said. The contents of the bags could potentially fall from the tree, creating debris, officials said.

As the newspaper noted, Austin Public Health often uses a variety of outreach techniques to get the message out about practicing safe sex, including a roving mobile unit and offering regular testing at the Connelly-Yerwood House off 12th Street.

KXAN reported that health officials had abandoned the tree-centered campaign. In a post on Reddit Friday afternoon, city officials shared a response from the health department: “Condom bags have been removed from the park and we are no longer engaged in this particular outreach effort. While we will continue to engage in both traditional and non-traditional outreach efforts, we are no longer engaged in this particular type of outreach.”

While the arbor idea didn't fly with Parks & Rec officials, health officials weren't barking up the wrong tree. The number of HIV cases in Travis County is on the rise, with 288 people diagnosed last year — the highest recorded number in at least the last decade, the Statesman reported.

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