Is Downtown Dallas 360 Plan Reboot the Antidote to Dallas' Idea Fatigue?

June 19, 2015 Studio Outside

Downtown Dallas: Forward Momentum. Video by SkyLVL Altitude Media

You can hear ideas and get inspired about the future, and then you can do something about it.

Wednesday night's Downtown Dallas 360 Plan Kickoff presentation/idea session was the latest effort to gather input from Dallas designers and generally interested people on the future of Downtown Dallas. The general vibe of the evening was full of "re" words: reinvigorate, revitalize, redesign, re-imagine. An opening presentation by MIG principal Daniel Iacofano inspired attendees with visions of what Downtown Dallas could become, and showed precedents in other cities around the world. The creative, colorful imagery of successful and unique spaces around the world that Dallas could emulate -- let's bring that to our city!

Then the audience weighed in, and I started to recognize the familiar refrains. How to make Downtown a world-class destination? We need more walkability, livability, transit options, pedestrian-friendly streets, open spaces, better inner-city schools, and a healthier environment. "Tear down Highway 345", an audience member suggested and was rewarded with applause. "How are we connecting to the Trinity Riverfront?", another said, eliciting more applause from audience members clearly on the same page.

As the comments kept coming, I thought: do I have something to add here? Should I request the mic and mention something about revitalizing Fair Park, or adding more bike share stations? How about the earth-shattering idea of connecting Deep Ellum to Downtown through some sort of pedestrian- and bike-friendly corridor? Might as well not, right? Who in that room, from the big-firm architects to the boutique urban planners and urbanites hasn't heard these ideas tossed around for years, and even put into planning documents? Exactly what were we going to accomplish tonight?

And then someone spoke up from the back of the room with a fresh idea, and I was glad to be there to hear it. "We have all these people, and organizations, with ideas for all of the neighborhoods in and around downtown. How do we communicate between groups to make sure everyone is able to actively participate is making downtown a better place?" Bingo. The first thing I thought was that this guy, whoever he is, has probably been to a lot of the same conferences, lectures, and symposiums that I have. He may have even watched a live-streamed city council meeting or two. He's heard the ideas of revitalizing downtown and making it more livable, and perhaps even knows what downtown could look like at some point in the future. What he's looking for (and, I would argue, many of the planning professionals and "generally interested urbanites" are ready for) is some way to coalesce all of these ideas and put them into action. How can we know exactly what work is happening in Dallas towards that ideal vision?

Image still from Downtown Dallas: Forward Momentum. Video by SkyLVL Altitude Media — Image still from Downtown Dallas: Forward Momentum. Video by SkyLVL Altitude Media

It looks like Downtown Dallas 360's re-boot might offer that opportunity. Downtown Dallas, Inc. President John Crawford said early on that the Plan was a "living document". When I downloaded the existing plan earlier Wednesday, I couldn't tell; it looked like a static .pdf document to me. This new kickoff meeting was an opportunity not only to gather ideas when there is hardly anything new to say, but it was a chance to get the interested parties in the same room. Can we rally around not a document (a static Plan with a capital "P"), but around a more open catalog of ideas open to input and change as a true "living" plan?

I certainly look forward to see how the Downtown Dallas 360 Plan is not only updated and re-booted (it will be up for City Council adoption in the summer of 2016), but how all of us design professionals and "generally interested people" can come together to see it through.

READ MORE:

Downtown Dallas 360 Plan [pdf]

The new Downtown Dallas 360 Web Site

The moment has come for downtown Dallas [March 2015]

Why Investors are Flocking to Downtown Dallas [Sept 2014]

New projects will bring more workers, residents to downtown Dallas' West End [June 2015]

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vd5zNH9UZ2...

Unearthed 1967 Dallas Film "The Walls Are Rising" Could Have Been Made Today

May 26, 2015 Studio Outside

“This is Dallas: young, vital, industrious; it has become a major american city and it shares most of the problems plaguing american cities today. 53 percent, just over half of the Dallas Central Business District, is devoted entirely to the automobile . . . there is no relief for the pedestrian from the harshness of concrete and the domination of the automobile.”

-- Thus begins the narration on The Walls Are Rising, a beautiful 1967 film rife with quotes such as the above that could easily have been uttered today. Produced by the Dallas chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) and the Greater Dallas Planning Council (GDPC), and recently discovered by AIA Dallas and Flashback:Dallas author Paula Bosse, the film consists of over 8,000 still images photographed and narrated by Austin's Ron Perryman. The film is conceived as an open letter to the city's political leaders and establishment, offering an alternative to the seemingly directionless and unplanned development happening in the city. Walls begins by depicting Dallas as a place unfriendly to humans but efficient and friendly for the automobile; booming with economic development but development without good urban design; growing rapidly in population yet failing to provide open spaces for that population.

“The things which bring people together to form a city are many and varied, and most of us feel the benefits are well worth the sacrifices involved. But many of the sacrifices are not necessary. Planning and good design can eliminate them.”

— The Walls Are Rising, 1967, 19:08

It's essentially a love letter to cities, and an ode to Dallas itself, full of optimism and hope for the future of the city. But where does that optimism stand now? Below are the recommendations for the future of Dallas; think about which of these issues are still at the forefront in our city (starts at 19:50 in the video), keeping in mind that these recommendations were made by AIA Dallas and GDPC almost 50 years ago:

Freeways should be designed for the driver instead of the automobile.
Attention should be given to open spaces and neighborhoods.
Proper signage (advertisements as well as traffic signage) should be clear, legible, and minimal.
Protect major neighborhoods by routing traffic around them.
Walkability is important: each neighborhood should have access to schools, libraries, etc.
Living Downtown should be encouraged by making downtown as livable as possible.
Hike and bike trails should be designed to connect Dallas' many green spaces and creeks.
A commercial elevated gondola connection between Fair Park and the Dallas Zoo (?)
Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) to create an efficient, safe commute
The creation of a recreational lake in the Trinity River Corridor that would provide "ideal park areas" and expansion of the central business district toward the river.

Clearly not all of the recommendations still seem like a good idea today, such as the miles-long gondola ride between Fair Park and the Zoo. Also, the call to completely rebuild the Oak Lawn commercial districts in the film gives a sense of misguided urban renewal strategies. Regardless, it's apparent that Dallas architects and designers in the sixties weren't afraid to dream BIG. They saw Dallas as a city on the precipice of either becoming a world-class livable city, or just a pass-through on the way to suburban sprawl. Does this "Dallas on the edge" narrative hold true still today?