Planners with the Trinity Park Conservancy on Friday unveiled a model of the largest part of the long-planned Dallas Trinity River Park, along with a promotional video for a groundbreaking ceremony scheduled for 2024.
NBC5 first reported in June that the park would not be built between the downtown levees as planned since voters first approved its construction in 1998.
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which manages the floodway, never supported the construction of a park within the levees that Dallas voters approved in 1998.
The latest plan for Harold Simmons Park, named after the family that donated $50 million to the park, is to build a series of parks on the outside of the levees adjacent to the river, with access to green space and trails built between the levees.
The Trinity River Conservancy has released a promotional video announcing the planned 2024 groundbreaking for the Dallas Trinity River Park.
The nonprofit Trinity Park Conservation purchased the old industrial land for the park outside the levee.
“This is about securing the right real estate to ensure that Dallas has the park it deserves and that this is a tier one park, so we were fortunate to be able to find industrial land right next to an area that the city gave us for parkland, where we couldn’t build brick and mortar,” said Tony Moore, CEO of Trinity Conservancy.
A model for the largest, 22-acre park portion, is located along Commerce Street near Beckley, near the existing Trinity River Overlook. The park will reuse part of an old steel company building.
The conservation association plans to announce details about the park’s amenities on Monday, along with a projected construction start date in 2024.
“The construction of this park is long overdue and I would say the park we have now is a much better park than what was originally proposed,” Moore said.
The cost of building the park is currently estimated at $325 million, with additional amenities and additional real estate costs. The land between the levees was already public land.
“This will be transformative for Dallas,” Moore said.
Already large new apartment buildings are beginning to pop up in the area.
Abby Rismiller, a new resident of one of those buildings, saw the plans for the park on Friday and said she was pleased with the changes that were made to replace what was planned for the inside of the levee.
“I think it will be well received. I’m really excited about it. I’ve been thinking about what we could do with that piece of land there,” she said.
Some businesses in the industrial area have already left, but tenants still operating in other areas, who did not want to speak on TV, said they expect to stick around for many more years.
“We’ve worked with local residents and landowners and are fortunate to now have full control over the land, but we need to continue to have conversations with local residents,” Moore said.
The Trinity Parks Conservancy would be tasked with running the new park, similar to an arrangement with Klyde Warren Park on the Woodall Rogers Freeway, which is run by a nonprofit organization.
Trinity River Conservancy
Moore said discussions are underway with the city of Dallas about a financing arrangement for what will become a city asset.
Dallas City Councilman Omar Narvaez, who represents the proposed park’s West Dallas neighborhood, said he has seen the plans and supports the project.
Narbeaz said multiple community meetings were held to solicit input during the park planning process.
The Trinity River Plan approved by voters in 1998 included a toll road, but the road was scrapped by the Dallas City Council in 2017.
