Dallas Fort Worth Urban Forum

LongonBigD wrote:I realize now that it’s, alas — not a park extension. It’s a primarily a private fundraising space.

I guess I can live with that so long as it means they have a way to drive future donations to keep the park maintained.

Yep, my thoughts exactly. I think it's a fine development, my main issue is they are trying to sell it as a 'park extension', when it isn't that at all. I'm totally okay with that, and I'm actually glad they are finding a way to generate some revenue. It's significantly better than what is there today which is a massive highway that is diving our city. This will help cover up even more of that highway, and connect Uptown to Downtown a bit better.

How are they so sure this will raise money? lark on the park wasn't a success. What makes them so damn sure this will be? Because it has parkin'? Sorry, not only are they parading this as a park, when it isnt, it also involves shady visitdallas, an unorganized institution that needs to be gutted. It also involves a federal agency that is so out of touch with anything remotely urban. Stay away from this project Dallas.

Lark wasn't on the park, but Savor makes a killing inside the park and it is across the street from where Lark was. They will fill that place with fundraisers and events just simply by throwing out words like "unparalleled views" and offering valet parking for the people coming in from Plano or Highland Park.

tamtagon wrote: I would suggest Perot make real nice with El Fenix folks and work out a collaboration to extend the Natural History Museum over/under Field....

Here's the big chance!

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/real-estate/2019/04/02/whole-enchilada-el-fenixsuptown-dallas-property-sale

The whole enchilada: El Fenix's Uptown Dallas property is for sale
Written by Steve Brown

...The El Fenix building — along with two other popular restaurants on the same block — are on an almost 4-acre development site being offered to buyers by brokers at Dallas-based HFF.

...Based on recent development site sales in Uptown, the El Fenix tract could fetch as much as $50 million for just the land.

CEO: Kit Sawers, Klyde Warren Park

https://www.kera.org/2019/03/29/kit-saw ... rren-park/

Built over a busy downtown Dallas freeway, Klyde Warren Park offers visitors over five acres of green space to eat, play and relax. President of Klyde Warren Park, Kit Sawers, joins host Lee Cullum this April on CEO to discuss the park’s future expansion and how the nonprofit plans to fund a growing number of events from yoga to concerts to films – all free to the public.

Klyde Warren Park expansion update from WFAA

https://youtu.be/U72WcDh-Gxk

Looks like they are shooting for a completion date of late 2023 (possibly early 2024).

I wasn't initial a huge fan of this project, but it's really warmed up to me. I could see the event space being extremely popular which will bring in some nice revenue, and this will the pedestrian experience on the western side just a little bit more.

So... this is all being done with 100% private funds?

DPatel304 wrote:Looks like they are shooting for a completion date of late 2023 (possibly early 2024).

I wasn't initial a huge fan of this project, but it's really warmed up to me. I could see the event space being extremely popular which will bring in some nice revenue, and this will the pedestrian experience on the western side just a little bit more.

I'm not a fan of the garage. But at least they've improved the design. The whacky staircase to Perot seems to be dead. Which is good.

Kelcy Warren Gives $20 Million to Klyde Warren Park

(This features the actual video rendering)

https://www.dmagazine.com/frontburner/2 ... rren-park/

This is all mostly really good news. The children's area expansion has been drastically needed... The fountain looks great, and the west 'lawn' area, while not particularly inviting will be a great place for private events without hogging up the prime park space.
What I don't get are the 'fins' on the building itself... Why are they not deck space? What exactly is the purpose of them other than to provide shade below? It just seems an aweful waste of what could be some great deck space.

Very good news, looks like its a done deal now with the private funds, and i like the new design of the building better. Plus no highline to perot which would be stupid.. I think this park will only continue to grow and really be a catalyst for the city.

Really loving that Pearl Street fountain addition!!

Kelley USA wrote:Really loving that Pearl Street fountain addition!!

I believe the original KWP plans had a fountain. For whatever reason, they left it out. Good to see the fountain idea was revisited.

Tivo_Kenevil wrote:

Kelley USA wrote:Really loving that Pearl Street fountain addition!!

I believe the original KWP plans had a fountain. For whatever reason, they left it out. Good to see the fountain idea was revisited.

The money, they ran out of money. It was canceled due to money being spent on other projects in the park. It wasn't the only detail they changed...

I don't see space for parking cars, did they get rid of that too? Hope so.

Oddly if you look at the photo in D magazine it shows a car leaving the building to the street. Not sure where they would even park there they can't go underneath a freeway is down there.

https://www.dmagazine.com/frontburner/2 ... rren-park/

Is anyone going to go to that Visit Dallas center? Seems odd.

Cbdallas wrote:Oddly if you look at the photo in D magazine it shows a car leaving the building to the street. Not sure where they would even park there they can't go underneath a freeway is down there.

https://www.dmagazine.com/frontburner/2 ... rren-park/

Here is the supposed layout for the building.

So may be they just have some parking for catering and staff etc.

Cbdallas wrote:So may be they just have some parking for catering and staff etc.

If these drawings are still accurate, it looks like they'll squish as many spaces in there as possible with this double-parking situation:

I am so opposed to this proposal. It's not a crime to build a ballroom they can charge thousands of dollars for weddings and lord knows I would rather them be able to pay for maintenance but still seems like an overpriced project where we get less park. The biggest sad part is the last section is so disconnected at least they got rid of that god awful NY High Line imitator flyover to the Museum of Nature and Science.

The new fountain yes, the larger childrens park a definite yes but a visitor center/parking garage/ballroom not so much.

No way that fountain makes the final cut.

THRILLHO wrote:If these drawings are still accurate, it looks like they'll squish as many spaces in there as possible with this double-parking situation:

I always thought this would just be valet parking and that sure looks like valet parking.

Nobody goes to a visitors center when they travel. Lol

“Fountain To Replace Dog Park at Klyde Warren Park
But don't worry, My Best Friend's Dog Park is moving to a bigger location.”

Sounds like a good development.

https://www.dmagazine.com/business-econ ... rren-park/

They are moving it across the street actually to the corner where they wanted to build that overpriced pedestrian bridge on the Downtown side next to the highway off ramp.

You can see it and the other projects visually laid out on the Klyde Warren website. They have an updated video with visuals. https://vimeo.com/394298886

https://www.klydewarrenpark.org/about-t ... ase-2.html

The confusion I have is they say they need the space of the current dog park for the iconic fountain yet the fountain in all previous visuals including this one above doesn't encroach on the dog park. Are they planing an even bigger water fountain and not pictured even in their current renderings? Construction staging area for all the construction maybe?

I wonder if the Covid pandemic will delay this expansion for a year or two at least.. I couldn't remember did they fundraise the full amount they needed or were they still a ways away..

clcrash19 wrote:I wonder if the Covid pandemic will delay this expansion for a year or two at least.. I couldn't remember did they fundraise the full amount they needed or were they still a ways away..

The last I heard, they didn't specify that they had all the $$$, but they were shaking their pom-poms about it for sure.

It was 60 mil private and 40 public right for the total 100mil cost?

Looking at the renderings again, it pains me to be reminded of how ugly the backside of that visitor's center is going to be
I get that it needs to be functional for trucks and parking, but it doesn't have to make that small bit of Akard feel so much like a wide alleyway. Hopefully they spruce up the sidewalk a bit.

I think it looks terrible from both sides like a deflated condom but hey that's just my interpretation but there is no use spending too much time complaining since I cant vote on the project anyway.

Hopefully during the delay, they reconsider this building. The way it is designed relative to its placement is obstructive IMO. if they were going to put anything that big anywhere, it should have been at the opposite end of the park near the opera house. Ideally it should have been part of one of the neighboring buildings.

Dallas engineering giant Jacobs gives $8 million to Klyde Warren Park’s second phase
The Jacobs Lawn will provide event space and a winter ice rink about the size of the one in Rockefeller Center.

https://www.dallasnews.com/business/phi ... ond-phase/

The gift is the single largest donation to the $100 million expansion project by a corporation and the largest corporate gift in downtown Dallas since the AT&T Performing Arts Center opened in 2009.

That's awesome! Thank you to Jacbos for the philanthropy. I am curious as to how the ice rink will work.

This is just what we needed to reenergize the urban core when Covid restrictions end along with the other parks going in and around downtown. I still think we can use more living around this entire area especially on the downtown CBD side.

This project is such a big win! We're expanding the hugely popular Klyde Warren, reducing the 'wall' created by Woodall, and creating a revenue generator for the city. I'm sure this will also encourage even more development in the surrounding area as well.

I'm also wondering how this ice rink will work. I know some years ago, Klyde Warren had a mini 'ice' rink they set up which actually wasn't ice at all, but some sort of plastic-y surface. It seemed pretty lame, but I guess we can't expect much else when we live in Texas. I hope they find some practical way to actually give us a real ice rink.

DPatel304 wrote:I'm also wondering how this ice rink will work. I know some years ago, Klyde Warren had a mini 'ice' rink they set up which actually wasn't ice at all, but some sort of plastic-y surface. It seemed pretty lame, but I guess we can't expect much else when we live in Texas. I hope they find some practical way to actually give us a real ice rink.

I'm in Houston every Thanksgiving and Houston, for several years now, puts an ice skating rink in Discovery Green downtown every year, starting the weekend after Thanksgiving. I'm not sure about this year, but the park and the ice skating rink stay packed the entire time. I'm not sure what material is used, but I know it seems like the skating has to be halted for the "ice" to be cleaned constantly. But if they can pull this off in Houston, where many Thanksgiving weekends are sunny and warm, it can definitely work here, where the after turkey day weather could actually be cold.

I wasn't aware of that, but that's good to know! As long as they don't go with that fake plastic stuff, I'm definitely on board with this!

The Nancy Best Fountain at Klyde Warren Park



From The Dallas Morning News:

Nancy Best, a longtime board member of Klyde Warren Park, and her educational entrepreneur husband, Randy, are giving the park and the city a $10 million Christmas gift unlike anything the world has ever experienced.

And it’s expected to be ready for a holiday unwrapping next year.

The Dallas couple’s foundation is paying for a next-generation, interactive, “super fountain” that will shoot jets of water up to 95 feet into the air — higher than any other immersive fountain in the world.

It will be one of the most distinctive free water parks in the country.

The fountain is actually happening!! And it is way more "Dallas-y" than initially planned, which I mean in the kitschiest, complimentary way possible. I love how this city has so many different lighting features.

exelone31 wrote:The fountain is actually happening!! And it is way more "Dallas-y" than initially planned, which I mean in the kitschiest, complimentary way possible. I love how this city has so many different lighting features.

Haha, well said and I definitely agree about it being "Dallas-y" in a good way. We definitely like to go way over the top here in Dallas, but this is a project I am fully on board with!

Game changer.. will draw so many more people to that side of the park as well, curious with how this will work with the dog park so close but interesting to see the fallout

clcrash19 wrote:Game changer.. will draw so many more people to that side of the park as well, curious with how this will work with the dog park so close but interesting to see the fallout

I thought they were moving the dog park across the street.

clcrash19 wrote:Game changer.. will draw so many more people to that side of the park as well, curious with how this will work with the dog park so close but interesting to see the fallout

Wonder who will keep up the maintenance going forward. They are expensive to own and operate. Probably will need to axe the dog park unless someone wants to rename it for their wife as well.

clcrash19 wrote:Game changer.. will draw so many more people to that side of the park as well

Indeed. With this project and the expansion, I wonder if they might consider closing off Olive St. even if it's only in the evenings and on weekends.

I really have no idea how feasible or realistic that is to expect, but this park can certainly use all the space it can get.

Dazzling Dallas.