By Angela Hunt, Dallas City Council member
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Dallas, TX –
In 1998, Dallas voters narrowly approved a $246 million bond package to transform the Trinity River Corridor into an incredible urban park. The city enticed voters to approve the project with beautiful renderings of promised lakes, parks, and trails.
Unfortunately, for nearly a decade, the centerpiece of the Trinity River Project - the Downtown Trinity Park - has sat idle. While the lakes and parks we approved languish, the City of Dallas is planning to construct a massive toll road inside the Trinity River levees. If you're wondering where that is, it's down in the river basin between the green hills that protect our city from flooding - the last great expanse of nature in Dallas, and the same place our park will be located.
The road began as a little-mentioned component of the bond package called the "Trinity Parkway." The parkway was supposed to be a low-speed, meandering reliever route providing access to our new park. But over the last decade, the "Parkway" grew into a high-speed, six-lane toll road that provides absolutely no access to the park. And because this new toll road will be built in our floodway, it will be susceptible to flooding. That's according to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which controls the floodway.
Just six months ago, the Corps forced toll road planners to move the road's route away from our levees, pushing it even farther into the park. This was done because the Corps was concerned that the road would weaken our floodway levees - with catastrophic results for downtown and South Dallas.
All of these changes to the parkway - none of which was approved by voters - will have a dramatic and harmful effect on our much-anticipated recreational amenities. According to the City, the toll road will eliminate one-third of our Downtown Trinity parkland, as well as reduce the size of our new lakes. And the noise and pollution from the toll road will certainly discourage runners, cyclists, and especially families from enjoying our City's greatest natural asset.
But this toll road is more than just a environmental disaster - it's a financial disaster, as well. The toll road is now more than $600 million over budget, and construction has not even begun. The road has taken priority over our lakes and parks, both of which lack funding. While the city gives our land - without compensation - to the North Texas Tollway Authority so suburban motorists can bypass downtown, private organizations are forced to raise funds to pay for our parks and lakes.
Since this project is so off track, and because this roadway has changed so much from what voters approved, we believe Dallas residents should have the opportunity to decide if they would like to move the toll road out of our Trinity Park.
If you've heard of our effort, you may also have some concerns. Perhaps you've heard rumors that a referendum will dismantle the entire Trinity River Project. This simply isn't true. Our referendum only proposes prohibiting anything other than a 35MPH, four-lane access road within the levees.
Another myth is that we'll lose funding for this project if we have a vote. Last week, Congresswoman Eddie Bernice Johnson explained that this is not true. Funding for our park and flood control is in no way tied to the toll road, and won't be affected if we change its location.
You may have also heard that a referendum will delay the project. Last week, Gene Rice of the Corps of Engineers and Kevin Feldt of the North Texas Tollway Authority explained that a vote would not affect their timelines. In fact, it is the toll road - and the engineering challenges involved with building it in our floodway -that has held up this project for nine long years.
While cities across the country are ripping out roads near parks and waterfronts, Dallas is poised to make a mistake that will last generations. The real question is "Who should make this decision?" A handful of powerful landowners, developers, and politicians? Or Dallas voters and taxpayers?
Angela Hunt is the District 14 represenative on the Dallas City Council, and the leader of the Trinity Vote! campaign.
If you have opinions or rebuttals about this commentary, call (214) 740-9338 or email us.