Downtown - Pacific Plaza Park

[Hannibal Lecter]

Appears to be 1963 or early 1964.

It looks like white cars were definitely a thing back then.

[dfwcre8tive]

Appears to be 1963 or early 1964.

It looks like white cars were definitely a thing back then.

Republic Center II opened in 1964 so you're probably correct. I think there are a lot of pastel cars with white roofs; the lighting and quality make it hard to see the details.

[cowboyeagle05]

One thing I noticed while riding by this morning is they have built a cinderblock structure on the Hardwood side where the food truck/eating area is located. I suspect its a restroom structure but I don't see it in the site plans previously released.

[Tnexster]

One observation about Pacific Park while passing by yesterday is how much they have built the park up and incorporated little hills into it. I wasn't expecting that but was a nice surprise, I can imagine this being even better once the landscaping goes in.

[DPatel304]

Posted to their Facebook page today.

[DPatel304]

More posts from their Facebook page.

[dallaz]

More posts from their Facebook page.

It’s coming along nicely!

[lakewoodhobo]

Looks like they're starting to plant new trees on the corner of Harwood and Elm.

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[dfwcre8tive]

Looks like they're starting to plant new trees on the corner of Harwood and Elm.

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Harwood / Pacific. I wonder if they kept the "Aston Park" dedication marker and will reincorporate it somewhere within the park.

[lakewoodhobo]

Looks like they're starting to plant new trees on the corner of Harwood and Elm.

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Harwood / Pacific. I wonder if they kept the "Aston Park" dedication marker and will reincorporate it somewhere within the park.

Thanks, yes Harwood & Pacific of course. I imagine they won't keep the marker if they're renaming that section of the park "Aston Grove" per their website. Maybe a new marker somewhere will tell the overall story of the park, including the connection to James Aston.

[Tnexster]

Drove by the park today, got a quick look and saw that lots of trees have been planted. Looked good from what I was able to see with some of the trees being fairly large. Can't wait to see how this looks once the trees leaf out.

[itsjrd1964]

Drove by the park today, got a quick look and saw that lots of trees have been planted. Looked good from what I was able to see with some of the trees being fairly large. Can't wait to see how this looks once the trees leaf out.

Good that they're planting larger trees and not a bunch of twigs. I guess that's one advantage Pacific Plaza will have over Klyde Warren. The deck park really can't accomodate trees that will have large/long roots, compared to a park on the full terra firma.

[Tnexster]

It certainly seems to be coming together, hope somebody gets some pics soon.

[DPatel304]

Sorry about the low quality pic. I snapped it really quickly as I was crossing the road, and my camera lens on my phone is a little crack in it, so the pictures come out a bit warped sometimes.

[Matt777]

Where are the new trees? Those are the ones that were existing, right?

[DPatel304]

Sorry, I didn't really get a good look. There isn't really a side-walk where I took the picture from, so I didn't really stand there for too long.

[lakewoodhobo]

My view of the new trees is blocked by One Dallas Center, but this is from today.

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[mdg109]

Thanks for the pics. I really hope the Medusa night club turns into something else once the park is completed.

[Tnexster]

Be nice if that parking lot adjacent to the park sees some new interest.

[exelone31]

Thanks for the pics. I really hope the Medusa night club turns into something else once the park is completed.

For sure. It's kind of surprising (or maybe not) how little street-level retail space exists around the park. The Medusa and maybe one or two other spots are it. Hopefully there will be enough popularity and traffic at the park to entice some conversions of spaces.

[mdg109]

Yeah, depending on how the Sheraton parking garage is constructed, it would be nice if that first level could be turned into restaurant/retail. Not sure what the building on Live Oak & Harwood houses, but that would be a good one to convert as well.

[lakewoodhobo]

Got a closer look at the south corner today and hadn't realized that the shade structure and plaza steps are so far along.

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[itsjrd1964]

Not sure what the building on Live Oak & Harwood houses, but that would be a good one to convert as well.

IIRR, there was a DMN or DBJ article about it being originally an insurance company office building, but that the current owners are making it (or have already made it) into a data center building.

[Hannibal Lecter]

^ It's owned by a company called Source. They converted the building from office to a COLO data center around 2010. They rent out space in it to other companies.

[mdg109]

Thanks for the info!

[lakewoodhobo]

Update from Parks for Downtown.

[DPatel304]

^Thanks for the picture. It's really coming together!

[tamtagon]

Update from Parks for Downtown.

I wonder if The Sheraton would consider a total convention space and parking garage remodel that adds a residential component to the property...? Loading docks and blank walls facing the park are a huge opportunity for sidewalk cafes, bistros, convenience grocery; the park is an perfect backdrop for a lounge & mingling area on a pedestal, below a 50 story addition.... something like that.

[muncien]

If ever Harwood were to be converted to a pedestrian corridor, you could easily reuse ROW of Harwood along that garage for cafe's and such, without needing a change from the Sharaton. The pedestrian pathway would simply merge into the park along this stretch. Lots of potential here...
Also, that little sliver of Live Oak a block east of the park is pointless now. It too should be abandoned by the city, and turned into an apartment tower with retail at the bottom.

[Tnexster]

I believe the Sheraton is either considering or already has plans to do some kind of opening towards the park. I remember hearing about that when I toured their event space several months ago. Not sure how that would look since the dock obviously has the best location to open towards the park.

[Cord1936]

Aerial of Pacific Plaza Park showing progress over the last year ...


Pacific Plaza Park, 04-18-19


Pacific Plaza Park, 04-18-18

Images courtesy of Instagram post by Pacific Plaza Park.

[lakewoodhobo]

The whole thing is starting to look very squid-like, which I dig. Also noticed how the circular driveway at One Dallas blends in with the other circles in the design.

My office building is just one block away from the north corner of Pacific Plaza, so I'm really looking forward to this one.

[DPatel304]

Credit goes to Sean Buckley‎ of the Downtown Residents Council (Dallas) Facebook group.

[jsoto3]

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[NdoorTX]

looking good!! thanks for the update...

[cowboyeagle05]

I like that I am seeing a lot of varied tree sizes so it won't all be little sticks right out of the gate. This park looks like it will have a nice tree coverage around the outside to help filter traffic noise.

[Tnexster]

This looks better every time I drive by, what is the expected opening date?

[DPatel304]

It's really coming together.

[cowboyeagle05]

So if you have driven or walked past this park as its taken shape I find it quite striking how much of a hill they built up from the Saint Paul side of the park. Kinda hard to tell that was their plans in the renderings but this site does have a significant elevation from the North to the South so it makes sense.

[willyk]

They’ve put some turf down now.

[mdg109]

I'm excited for this park as it will help connect the KWP side of downtown to EMC. The downtown parks always look good when they open, but I worry about the maintenance. Belo Garden still looks relatively good, but Main Street Garden isn't doing that great IMO. I just walked by today and the lawn is looking pretty ratty, the dead/cleared out landscaping should be replaced with some hardy low-maintenance plants, and looks like the downtown residents aren't picking up after their dogs at the dog park area. The playground is a hit though – saw several kids playing on the equipment and having a blast.

[willyk]

What’s next for Parks for DTD—Carpenter or the West End? I think Harwood is last.

[exelone31]

What’s next for Parks for DTD—Carpenter or the West End? I think Harwood is last.

I would think Carpenter, but considering all the development going on in the East Quarter, I could see Harwood jumping up in line.

[lakewoodhobo]

What’s next for Parks for DTD—Carpenter or the West End? I think Harwood is last.

I think it might be West End Square. If you look at their website, the last public input meetings that took place in September of last year were based on pretty detailed renderings and not just conceptual designs.

The plaza seems to be designed for the co-working/innovation crowd, but I hope they're taking into account the number of field trips coming to visit the new Holocaust museum.

[DPatel304]

Decherd said he'd ideally like to complete Carpenter Park within a year of Pacific Plaza's completion. He believes Harwood Park will take 18 months to two years after that. The West End park, he said, is "the wild card" because it's the smallest site and could conceivably be done simultaneously with others.

https://www.dallasnews.com/news/downtow ... -bond-vote

This was their original plan with the parks. It likely could have changed since then, but, if we are going by this, then it looks like Carpenter Park could potentially be next. I say potentially, because they noted the West End park was considered the 'wild card', so perhaps they could squeeze that one in there as well.

[lakewoodhobo]

Meticulous Attention to Detail: How the Pacific Plaza Pavilion References Morse Code and the History of Dallas
https://parksfordowntowndallas.org/meti ... S5TiAHlvtQ

This large, shade-providing structure reaches out toward the corner, wraps around the event and lawn space and ultimately create an iconic sense of place that showcases generations of architectural heritage. It will be constructed from bead-blasted stainless-steel panels, with small round holes that filter sunlight during the day and create a dappled shadow-display on the landscape below.

But this is no ordinary perforation. The visual pattern on the panels is actually an abstracted version of American Morse Code, a nod to the rich history of Pacific Avenue, Pacific Plaza’s namesake. Beginning in the late 19th century, this road was a rail line in the Texas and Pacific Railway that ran from 1871 to 1976, providing service from El Paso, Texas, to New Orleans, Louisiana. During its operation, conductors and engineers communicated by telegraph using American Morse Code to map out the tracks, train stops and elevation. Historical information related to this route, such as train stops and track elevation, was translated into American Morse Code for use as the perforation pattern for the Pacific Plaza panels.

To help bring these Morse Code patterns to life, HKS conducted numerous studies exploring spacing, hole size and expression of the pattern to get every detail just right. These studies eventually led designers to create a gradient pattern. At the lowest of point of the pavilion, the pattern will be solid stainless steel and then will slowly become more perforated toward the top.

Not a bad idea.

[lakewoodhobo]

7/18 update

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[DPatel304]

Credit goes to Dave Hartman from the ‎Downtown Residents Council (Dallas) Facebook group.

[lakewoodhobo]

Credit goes to Dave Hartman from the ‎Downtown Residents Council (Dallas) Facebook group.

Looking good. Hope it's ready by October when my parents come visit since they've been asking for an updated downtown tour.

[Tnexster]

Wow, that is a splash of color! This park is turning out very nice so far.