Southern Gateway Public Green Foundation Unveils Master Plan, Phase One Designs for Landmark Bridge Park in Dallas
On July 14, 2021, The Southern Gateway Public Green Foundation unveiled the master plan and design renderings for Southern Gateway Park, the landmark bridge park that will span Interstate 35E between Ewing and Marsalis Avenues, directly adjacent to the Dallas Zoo. The park is poised to become the heartbeat of Southern Dallas – and a key catalyst for closing the opportunity gap that was created when the highway was originally built in the 1950s through the middle of Oak Cliff.
“The I-35 project created a literal canyon that tore a thriving community in half,” said April Allen, President of the Southern Gateway Public Green Foundation, and proud Oak Cliff resident. “The subsequent lack of capital investment in the south, combined with the absence of adequate city services, has contributed to generational poverty, social isolation, environmental injustice and economic despair for much of the area.”
And yet through it all, according to Allen, the neighborhood retained its vibrant spirit.
“This is a community that celebrates and embraces diversity,” she said. “That’s why Southern Gateway Park is so important. It signifies hope and opportunity and is both a literal and figurative bridge to the future. The park will knit historic Oak Cliff back together and accelerate economic and environmental revitalization.”
“The park will knit historic Oak Cliff back together and accelerate economic and environmental revitalization.”
The Foundation enlisted global design firm HKS and renowned landscape architecture firm SWA to lead the park’s planning and design. TxDOT began construction on the underlying deck structure last summer, with the first phase of the bridge park scheduled to open to the public in 2023, attracting an estimated 2 million visitors per year through a variety of signature spaces. These thoughtfully designed spaces – the result of a year-long community engagement and equitable development planning process – will foster connection and celebrate the area’s rich history and culture.
In addition to native landscape and ample green space, park amenities will include: a stage and pavilion for concerts and live events, an inclusive children’s playground, outdoor classroom space for local schools and organizations, a multi-purpose building for community events, integrated history exhibits, a dedicated food truck area, interactive water features for those hot Texas days, and so much more.
Allen said that while she can’t wait to see the incredible designs come to life, the park is about so much more than that.
“Southern Gateway Park is a park with a purpose,” she said. “It will be a welcoming space for people to connect, communicate and learn – not only about our history but about one another. From design to programming to strategic partnerships, every aspect of the park is about creating a more equitable and inclusive community.”
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson echoed Allen’s sentiments.
“Our city’s parks bring people together, serving as places for exercise, for gathering and for respite,” Mayor Johnson said. “Southern Gateway Park, which literally bridges a longstanding divide created by a freeway, will make an excellent addition to our city and our top-notch parks system. The plans for this park exude vibrancy and inclusivity and represent a significant and much-needed infrastructure investment in a historically underserved area of southern Dallas.”
The park is a public/private partnership with the City of Dallas, the North Central Texas Council of Governments, the Texas Department of Transportation, and the Southern Gateway Public Green Foundation. The new 5-acre green space also will tie into complete streets and pedestrian boulevards lined with more than 250 trees to increase the canopy and mitigate the impact of an urban heat island, as well as laying the groundwork for potential connections to the Dallas Streetcar line and a network of hike-and-bike trails. Together with the Dallas Zoo’s Master Plan, the collective capital investment will exceed $250 million, the largest investment in Southern Dallas’ history.
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