Since its 2012 opening, Klyde Warren Park, the open space built on a deck atop a highway canyon, has changed opinions near and far about a city not typically known for public planning prowess.
On any given day, the park that connects Uptown and downtown is filled with office workers grabbing lunch at food trucks, downtown residents perfecting yoga poses and children splashing through water features.
It’s simultaneously a gathering place for locals and at the top of recommendation lists for visitors. And now the park over Woodall Rodgers Freeway on downtown’s north end is helping spur a new look at the rest of the downtown highways.
Victor Vandergriff, of the Texas Transportation Commission said the civic conversation about Dallas highways is no longer just about getting suburban residents into and out of downtown for work.
Downtown itself has become a burgeoning residential neighborhood. And growing choruses have begun asking for job centers closer to the urban core, protected bike lanes and viable sidewalk connectivity.
“There’s more emphasis on how does this work to build a vibrant downtown economic base and lifestyle,” Vandergriff said.
[Photo credit: Klydewarrenpark.org]