$325 million plan unveiled for Harold Simmons Park along the Trinity River » Dallas innovates

The vision of a river running through what could be a crown jewel near downtown Dallas is finally becoming a reality.

The Trinity Park Conservancy this week announced plans for the $325 million Harold Simmons Park, a 250-acre park along the Trinity River near downtown. A game-changing river park has long been a dream for the city, but making it a reality has proven difficult since voters approved the initial plan in 1998.

Tony Moore, CEO of Trinity Park Conservancy, made the remarks in his opening remarks about the park's planned groundbreaking in 2024.

“When I first came to Dallas, I heard a lot of different conversations about this park being built for 10, 20, even 100 years,” Moore said. “And the park we have today is very different than the park we started with. But nonetheless, it's an exciting time for us.”

Rendering of Harold Simmons Park. [Image: Trinity Park Conservancy]

“Building green infrastructure in the built environment involves a lot of pivoting and adjusting, acquiring land, finding the right location for a park, and working with the community to make sure this park resonates with the community. “It's a very complex job that requires a lot of people,” Moore pointed out. “And we will continue to work with cities and all civic organizations from a funding standpoint and from a support standpoint.”

“However, Harold Simmons Park is in a good position today, and we are pleased to share this unveiling with you.”

Before that, he thanked Gail Thomas, former chief executive of Trinity Trust, Mary Cooke, former chair of Trinity Trust, and Brent Brown, former CEO of the conservancy. expressed his intentions. You can build on it. ”

Overlooking the levee that makes the river the “heart of the park”

A rendering of Harold Simmons Park with a bike and skate park in the foreground. [Image: Trinity Park Conservancy]

Harold Simmons Park, named after the late billionaire businessman whose wife, Annette Simmons, donated $50 million for the park in 2016, is located just west of downtown Dallas in Margaret McDermott. It will be located between the bridge and the Ronald Kirk Bridge. The Trinity River winds through downtown, held back by large levees on both sides, creating a critical floodplain overseen by the Army Corps of Engineers, which has long resisted plans to change what lies between the levees.

“Regardless of what you may have heard, the river and green spillway are truly the heart of our park,” Moore said. We plan to incorporate it into our park plans when the time is right. The Army Corps of Engineers is hard at work adjusting the levees along the Trinity River, and their work ranges from flood safety to public safety.and after what happened [Hurricane] with Katrina [Hurricane] Harvey, they are doing meaningful flood mitigation safety work. We are excited to see how this develops as the time comes and the corps reaches the area where it is concentrated around our park. But the river is an important part of it, and we're excited about the types of programs the greenway will bring to Dallas. ”

In fact, the river greenway and future “nature preserve” will occupy 200 of the park's 250 acres. The remaining 50 acres, and what is currently envisioned as the park's primary destination, will include a series of “observation decks” atop the levees on either side.

Matt Urbanski, a partner at the park's architect, Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates, said these overlooks will be part of what ties the city together.

“With its connections to the area and to the east and west sides of the city, this space is ripe and ready to serve,” Urbanski said in the announcement. “Our idea is to create an often-overlooked park at the edge of the spillway, bringing people right up to the spillway, up to the top of the levee, and connecting to the spillway. This joiner replaces a partition. ”

San Antonio-based architecture firm Lake Flatt is also working on the park, designing a two-story event pavilion and other buildings.

“Where Nature Meets Dallas” – Visited by up to 6 million people a year

A rendering of Harold Simmons Park's “Play Cove.” [Image: Trinity Park Conservancy]

“This will be a nature-focused park with the tagline 'Where Nature Connects Dallas,'” Moore said.

And the natural convergence of West Dallas, Oak Cliff, and downtown Dallas could generate big numbers. Moore said the park is expected to have an estimated $6 billion in economic impact over 30 years and annual attendance of 4 million to 6 million people.

“This is going to be an important transformation for Dallas,” he said, noting that voters recently approved another major change nearby. It's a major expansion of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in Dallas as part of a $1.2 million master plan. “Convention attendees will be excited about the park being literally a short walk away,” he predicted.

The project's first construction site will be in West Overlook, an approximately 22-acre site. North of the West Overlook is the Felix Lozada Gateway. The Gateway is an additional six acres and is named after the late barber and baker who was a tireless representative of West Dallas.

Two acres of the Ron Kirk Bridge will be incorporated into the park, and the Continental Gateway at the park's East Overlook will connect the park to the Katy Trail.

South of Continental Gateway is a 20-acre site that connects to Reunion Tower.

“Further enhance the cultural appeal of Dallas”

A rendering of the playground planned for Harold Simmons Park. [Image: Trinity Park Conservancy]

The conservancy has big plans for what the park can offer Dallas beyond its natural environment.

“This is a park that will have a huge impact on the cultural appeal of Dallas,” Moore said.

The West Observation Deck alone is divided into 20 different “unique experiences.” There will be a playground with six towers and four slides (as shown above and at the top of this article). Just one acre of event lawns will be the venue for “large-scale events and cultural festivals,” allowing him to host more than 3,000 visitors at a time.

The large shed structure currently used by builder Iron & Steel will be “reimagined” and used in a variety of ways, from flea markets to community activities, fresh produce markets, educational classes and art tours. is.

“We're not just building parks,” said Dee Dee Rose, president of the Trinity Park Conservancy. “We are transforming cities.”

2-acre bike and skate park

A rendering of a portion of the two-acre bike and skate park at Harold Simmons Park. [Image: Trinity Park Conservancy]

One of the key attractions is the “largest in Dallas” 2-acre bike and skate park located near the Commerce Street Bridge. There will also be a dog park overlooking Trinity and two sand volleyball courts, Moore said. The lawn provides a place to rest with views of the downtown skyline and nature preserve below.

See a variety of wildflowers on the Prairie Walk. There are 280 parking spaces nearby, all of which are accessible to visitors.

“Water factory” where you can have fun and irrigate

A rendering of the splash pad that will be part of Harold Simmons Park's “Water Plant.” [Image: Trinity Park Conservancy]

Kids and green thumbs alike will want to know about this feature.

“We will establish a community-led and community-designed ‘water factory.’ This will be a cooling splash pad, and the water used for the splash will also be reused to irrigate the factory,” Moore said. said. It will be incorporated into the planned green elements of the park.

“There are over 1,500 trees, over 3,000 shrubs and over 100,000 plants that will help alleviate the effects of the urban heat island,” he said of the project. “Additionally, we also have a ‘picnic grove’ and several buildings for our community gatherings.”

Mayor: “A greener, greater Dallas for everyone”

A rendering of Harold Simmons Park's “Great View Lawn.” [Image: Trinity Park Conservancy]

Mayor Eric Johnson gave his thoughts on the conservation group's announcement.

“Dallas loves its parks,” the mayor said. “It has become a national model of excellence in innovative green space development. Harold Simmons Park will transform the core of the Trinity River. , we support bigger dreams. We're excited to see this vision come to fruition.”

District 6 City Councilman Omar Narváez focused on the “connectivity” the park will bring beyond the levee and into the Design District’s downtown. “Everything that's happening around it right now is really about making sure this park is connected to this park. This park is one of the most spectacular parks, not just in Dallas, but in the entire state of Texas and in the nation. It will be,” he said.

“Dallas Calling Card”

A rendering of Harold Simmons Park with a portion of the Dallas skyline in the distance. [Image: Trinity Park Conservancy]

Margaret Hoffman, vice president of the Trinity Park Conservancy, said she believes the park “will become Dallas' calling card.”

“I think we not only enhanced the natural character of the city, but we did it intentionally with the cooperation of the surrounding community,” she said. “That's pretty remarkable.”

Vincent T. Parker, chairman of the Trinity River Corridor Regional Government Corporation, agreed, calling the park “a recreational space that can bridge divides.” This provides an opportunity to see healthy growth and development in an area that has been neglected for a long time. ”

Marcus Shropshire, Trinity Park Conservancy's director of capital projects, said it will take a “cooperative effort” to get there. “We will continue to work with the City of Dallas, the Army Corps of Engineers, and the local trade industry in all construction sectors to make Harold Simmons Park a reality,” he said.

Time as an “excellent curator”

Rendering of Harold Simmons Park. [Image: Trinity Park Conservancy]

So it remained a dream for decades. What will that time bring to next year's park groundbreaking ceremony?

“I truly believe that time can be a great curator,” Moore said. “Harold Simmons Park is a park that everyone can enjoy, regardless of age, race, socio-economic status or zip code. It's where nature connects the city and community of Dallas.”