DTD: Ferris Plaza

[gc]

After many many many months of neglect, Ferris Plaza is finally being renovated. I drove by this evening and noticed that the fountain is fenced off....wooohooo

In case you do not know, Ferris Plaza is in between Union Station, The Dallas Morning News Building, and the Belo Building.

[gc]

I have attached an image of Ferris Plaza courtesy of 214's previous post in case you have no clue where/what it is.

[tamtagon]

this has been one of my favorite spots for getting pictures of homeless slumberers.

[gc]

In case anyone cares...the fountains at Ferris Plaza are flowing and lights have been fixed. It is very nice to see, though I am not sure the project is 100% complete yet.

[crescentboi]

Here's some pics from tonight.

[gc]

nice shots, thanks for posting them

[drumguy8800]

Thanks, crescent. Last time I went there to take a picture, I was hit up by some guy "From Houston and his buddy got arrested so he needed money to get back home and all the homeless shelter would give him was a blanket.." for $20. He told me his entire life story, I swear.. and then he said 'as saint luke said in mark chapter 84.. "random quote." For those of you Bible Buffs in here, luke didn't write mark, mark did.. and there isn't a chapter 84. He would not LEAVE me ALONE.. ugh. ><..

[crescentboi]

Yeah...tonight when I was walking around taking the pictures I had my ipod on and out...so no one approached me...or at least i don't think so cause i couldn't hear them! But when I was taking the pics of the DP&L a cop drove by, then he came around Commerce when I was walking that way and blocked the cross walk when I was trying to cross and he glared at me as I walked. I, of course, returned the glare. Why is it that you get dirty looks taking pics!

[crescentboi]

Well I guess I partially understand, but give me a break!

[Lakewooder]

Are the grackles still a problem there?

[crescentboi]

There weren't any there that I noticed...the sidewalks were pretty clean until the next block east.

[tamtagon]

Are the grackles still a problem there?

I love grackles!

[drumguy8800]

I love grackles!

Stupid birds crack me up. Whenever I hear 'em I just start randomly laughing.. the noise they make is priceless.

[Foucault]

For those of you Bible Buffs in here, luke didn't write mark, mark did.. and there isn't a chapter 84.
Chapter 84? That's pretty funny.

[frankchitown]

I took DART to Union Station Tuesday to see the BELO area, because I haven't been there in awhile, but I was dissapointed to see the fountain wasn't on (around 4:30PM). Its nice, but definately no Buckingham fountain (Chicago). Also, I've learned to avoid the downtown beggars with a quick "No English" in a French accent, they have no rebuttal and move on quickly.

[clipper]

As I mentioned before. Taking pictures of buildings these days is a no no and Big Brother is watching. Afterall, some terrorist may want to blow up the DP&L Building. And if you think this is bad, try taking a picture of a train. I've read about teams of cops surrounding some old guy trying to take a photo of an Amtrak train. Your papers, comrade?

[tamtagon]

Your papers, comrade?

I know that's right! But we only have our elected leaders to blame for it. If we had not been jacking people all over the world for the past 50 years, we would not be hated so much.

[dallastophoenix]

^ right... we all might have been obliterated had it not been for our elected leaders...

[clipper]

Who says they are elected?

[hamiltonpl]

Check your head, that tin foil hat is on too tight.

[freewaytincan]

Check your head, that tin foil hat is on too tight.

That's about what I was thinking.

[gc]

A watery welcome mat evolves into quiet treasure
05:58 PM CDT on Friday, October 1, 2004
By BRYAN WOOLLEY / The Dallas Morning News
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/fea/texasliving/stories/100304dnlivourtown.30e97.html

A man in jeans and black T-shirt goes to the fountain in Ferris Plaza, leans over, puts his hands in the water, splashes his face and his head and rubs water along his arms. Then he climbs back up the steps to a bench under a tree by Young Street and sips coffee from a Styrofoam cup.

Such casual ablution isn't what Royal A. Ferris had in mind when he gave the city of Dallas $50,000 to build the fountain. Nor did the several hundred proper folk who stood in a cold rain in January 1925 and watched the mayor turn on the water for the first time. But Mr. Ferris' fountain, recently restored to its original splendor after years of decrepitude, invites all the senses.

Ferris Plaza – or Union Terminal Plaza as it was called before it was given Mr. Ferris' name – was intended to be grand. It was meant to be the major gateway into the city. People arriving in Dallas by train, as most did in those days, were supposed to step outside Union Terminal onto Houston Street, see the fountain shooting plumes of water into the sky, and say: "Gracious! What a city!"

A few problems – the Great Depression, World War II – prevented the plaza's ever becoming as ornately grand as its designer planned. Soon after the war, more strangers were arriving by automobile and airplane than by train. So Ferris Plaza remained a simple brick patio with the fountain in the middle, some little spreads of sloping lawn and some trees.

Soldiers from the troop trains had found the little park's shade and splashing water a blessed relief from their cramped journeys. Office workers and shoppers found respite there from the sweltering buildings and torrid sidewalks of not-yet-air-conditioned Dallas. The plaza became an ordinary park for ordinary people. So it still is.

It's a haven for readers, those solitary souls who feel a need to be away from computers and cellphones and other people. They sit on benches under the oaks and lose themselves during their lunch hours. One rests her elbow on the back of a bench, her hand against her forehead, reading a hardcover book, never looking up. A few feet away, another has spread a newspaper on her bench like a meal. She picks up one section and then another. Neither reader takes notice of the other.

A man across Wood Street is having trouble with his car, which is parked at a meter. He gets out and raises the hood and stares at the engine. He pulls out his cellphone, says something and gets back into the car.
Then the Ferris Plaza fountain leaps into its ballet. Eight pipes spout water straight up. A dozen more send curving streams that meet and fall in a single cascade. Then from the fountain's center, a single mighty plume rises 40 feet into the air. It stands, stands, then crashes, spreading the aroma of cool water meeting sun.

The stranded man gets out of his car, crosses Wood Street and sits on a step in the plaza. He crosses his arms and stares at the fountain, waiting. The fountain rests awhile before it resumes the dance. Without its rising water, it could be a concrete horse trough painted yellow. A grandmother and two younger women are on the lawn with three young children, two girls and a boy. One young woman has an infant strapped to her chest in a baby-carrier. The other sits cross-legged on the grass. The children are playing some game that involves running in circles around her. They flap their arms like birds' wings and turn somersaults.

The grandmother sags heavily on the steps. One of the girls starts to cry. The old woman hugs her. The crying breaks up the game, but the boy still runs about, bobbing his head, flapping his arms, apparently imitating the pigeons. In a while, the women rise and lead the children across Houston Street and into Union Station. Maybe they walk through the old building to the DART station on the other side. Or maybe they board an Amtrak train that takes them to another city far away. Maybe they tell those who meet them in the other town about little Ferris Plaza and its sloping grass and the pleasant shade of its oaks and the fountain shooting water so high.

[crescentboi]

I wonder what the original plans for the plaza called for? anyone know of anything or renderings?

[drumguy8800]

I wish it wasn't depressed.. if it was at-grade, it might get a little more attention.

[gc]

Fountain of youth just the beginning for park
$350,000 makeover for downtown plaza includes benches, landscaping, ramp
08:56 PM CST on Sunday, November 7, 2004
By JIM GETZ / The Dallas Morning News
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/110804dnmetferris.22a2d.html

Like the water jets in the park's fountain, renovations in Ferris Park Plaza are on again – but those in charge say downtown will see a surge of beauty once $350,000 in work is completed next spring. The latest round of remodeling by the Downtown Improvement District around the fountain follows $276,000 spent by the city's Park and Recreation Department to improve the fountain itself. That work, which included installation of computerized, energy-efficient jets, lasted from summer 2003 until March.

The current work – which includes replacing brick pavers, installing a drinking fountain, adding benches, creating a ramp for handicapped access, refurbishing lampposts, pruning trees, improving drainage and planting new landscaping – began Oct. 18 and is slated to be finished in April. All of it is designed to bring the plaza, which turns 80 next year, closer to urban planner George Kessler's original vision.

"When it's done, the park should be in good condition and ready to serve the citizens of Dallas for another 80 years," said Patty Kleinknecht, general manager of the improvement district, a nonprofit group of downtown businesses. The group is again exploring ways to reduce the hordes of grackles that chronically plague the park with noise and droppings. The plaza is named after Royal A. Ferris, a Dallas banker, builder and two-time State Fair president who donated $50,000 to build the fountain. He wanted train passengers arriving at Union Station to have an awe-inspiring first impression of Dallas.

[drumguy8800]

Ahha! Good deal. crescent, pictures! Pictures, crescent!

[crescentboi]

The group is again exploring ways to reduce the hordes of grackles that chronically plague the park with noise and droppings

See, I knew it was a problem...and I think if they are able to figure something out the city needs to do it for all of downtown! They are gross! I was walking on Friday night and you could smell their droppings...it was disgusting.

[tamtagon]

I wonder if the birds will be more likely to hang out in the Trinity River Park once the flood plain is tamed.

[freewaytincan]

I wonder if the birds will be more likely to hang out in the Trinity River Park once the flood plain is tamed.

Considering the city will probably use all kinds of pesticides and other assorted poisons, I wouldn't count on it.

[drumguy8800]

Renovation is lookin' good -- from 02.21.05 -- Click to enlarge.

<a href="http://www.xvisionx.com/forum/ferrisplaza.jpg"><img src="http://www.xvisionx.com/forum/ferrisplazathumb.jpg" style="border:1px solid #000000" alt="Click to enlarge"></a>

[Random Traffic Guy]

Update:
The fences came down Monday or Tuesday. It looks pretty good, I guess, not quite sure if there was anything new built besides the HC ramps. All the grass is still taped off, looks like they put new sod down.

[gc]

^ thanks

[noelamador]

Park to re-emerge in living color
Planner's vision ready to spring from downtown fountain
11:01 PM CST on Friday, March 18, 2005
By JIM GETZ / The Dallas Morning News
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/031905dnmetferrisplaza.16c73.html

Monday will be like 1925 in downtown Dallas, only better.

Elmer Guzman uses a roller to pack a layer of grass at Ferris Park Plaza. The fountain renovations and other landscape improvements were funded by a public-private partnership. On Monday, the city will turn on the fountain once again.

When the city once again turns on the fountain in Ferris Park Plaza, the resulting display and the surrounding landscape architecture will be what Dallas' legendary urban planner George Kessler and pioneering businessman Royal Ferris envisioned: colorful streams of jetting water surrounded by intricate brick walks and beds of multi-hued irises.

It took more than a decade of on-again, off-again effort by various downtown players and about $600,000 to get it done.

"That's really where the public-private partnership came in on it," said Alice Murray, president of the Downtown Improvement District, which does capital improvements and other activities. "The city took the lead on the fountain, and we said we'll do the landscape."

Mr. Kessler created the park about a century ago. Eighty years ago, Dallas residents withstood a January rain to watch as Mr. Ferris' $50,000 donation to the park ? the fountain ? was dedicated.

The renovation of the fountain over the last year ? more energy-efficient pumps, new pipes, new lights, ultraviolet-resistant surface ? cost the city $276,000, with the money coming from a 1998 bond election. The improvement district landscaping, designed by John Armstrong of Armstrong Berger Inc. and done by Southern Botanical Inc. and Mid-Continental Restoration Co., came in just under the budgeted $350,000.

The project was a scaled-down version of a $1 million idea that died in 1998 when the city's Zoning Board of Adjustment rejected removal of 21 live oak trees ringing the plaza.

Instead, only two trees were removed. The rest were pruned and will be illuminated to be less attractive to the pesky grackles that infest downtown.

Other improvements include restored streetlamps; a ramp to meet Americans with Disabilities Act standards; new benches, trash containers and a drinking fountain; addition of ground cover, flower beds and shrubs; and better irrigation and drainage.

"I think now we have a very tasteful, basic plan that is respectful of the original plan but just a bit simpler," Mr. Armstrong said. "This really is quite a park site because of the multi-colors and various shapes of the bricks."

Currently, downtown fountains have run only two hours a day. Now, Mr. Armstrong and the improvement district hope corporate sponsors will step forward to pay the $5-an-hour operating cost to run them longer.

Ferris Plaza was intended to be a grand gateway for train travelers whose destination was downtown Dallas. The rise of the automobile and airplane changed that. But people can still arrive by light rail behind Union Station, just across the street. And soon, people may be able to attend art shows sponsored by the improvement district or lunchtime concerts in the park.

"We definitely want to turn it into a destination point," said Paul Lindenberger, who oversaw the project for the district.

E-mail jgetz@dallasnews.com

[gc]

Good stuff. The little things do add up.

[drumguy8800]

Pictures from 03.18.05... the park looks very nice. The pictures of the lampposts show that one has a barometer and one has (i think?) a temperature gauge. Maybe for WFAA? -- <b>Click thumbs for larger image.</b>

<a href='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/picture.html?ref=simple&name=fp/fp01l'><img src='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/docs/fp/fp01t.jpg' style='border:1px solid #000000'></a> <a href='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/picture.html?ref=simple&name=fp/fp02l'><img src='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/docs/fp/fp02t.jpg' style='border:1px solid #000000'></a> <a href='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/picture.html?ref=simple&name=fp/fp03l'><img src='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/docs/fp/fp03t.jpg' style='border:1px solid #000000'></a> <a href='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/picture.html?ref=simple&name=fp/fp04l'>
<img src='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/docs/fp/fp04t.jpg' style='border:1px solid #000000'></a> <a href='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/picture.html?ref=simple&name=fp/fp05l'><img src='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/docs/fp/fp05t.jpg' style='border:1px solid #000000'></a> <a href='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/picture.html?ref=simple&name=fp/fp06l'><img src='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/docs/fp/fp06t.jpg' style='border:1px solid #000000'></a> <a href='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/picture.html?ref=simple&name=fp/fp07l'><img src='http://xvisionx.no-ip.info/docs/fp/fp07t.jpg' style='border:1px solid #000000'></a>

[RaStyyle]

What is that fountain made out of? It looks tacky!

[drycreek]

Looks great to me. Now all it needs is people. This area of DT could be incredible if some private development took place. Maybe someday somebody will redevelop the entire Reunion Arena complex and turn all those parking lots into mixed-used towers n stuff. How cool would it be if a triangular type building came out to a point right between Union Station and the DMN headquarters? Then maybe the DMN could be a new mixed-use hq?? Then maybe an art deco res tower on the north side??? Would be pretty sweet.

[drumguy8800]

What is that fountain made out of? It looks tacky!
It's concrete and they painted it a cream color. I think it looks nice.

It will look very nice when the water is running.

We need a lifesize chess board downtown.

[Random Traffic Guy]

Random observations:
The fountain is lit up at night, looks very nice. Also, on sunny and windy days the water generates a nice rainbow.

There are also benches in the same style installed in front of Union Station, to kind of tie both sides together.

[dfwcre8tive]

With new technology, Dallas fountain has a flair for fanfare
09:32 PM CDT on Saturday, August 30, 2008
By MICHAEL E. YOUNG / The Dallas Morning News
myoung@dallasnews.com
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/news/localnews/stories/083108dnmetfountain.371e39e.html

You might not be able to tell by looking, but the landmark fountain at Ferris Plaza is a whole lot smarter than it used to be.

Not bad for something that's been part of the downtown Dallas landscape for 83 years, a gift from the plaza's eponym, businessman Royal Ferris.

But now its brain is very 21st century.

Using a computerized touch pad, city parks crews now can easily set the fountain to perform for maximum crowd appeal during key commuter hours.

More important, circulation pumps and filters can be adjusted to operate as often and efficiently as necessary, a real consideration for the shallow pool and fountain that serve some, at least, as an urban watering hole.

Niko Pilgrim of Affordable Controls and Electric in Forney saw that need firsthand earlier this month.

"We were working there, rewriting some of the code for the controller, and I looked out and saw a lady in there doing the backstroke," Mr. Pilgrim said, with just a bit of hyperbole. "There are lots of people bathing there. A lot of homeless people use it.

"So you want to make sure the circulation pumps and the filters are running the way they're supposed to run."

But for the average passer-by, the fountain provides the real show. And the touch pad allows city parks workers to make quick, easy adjustments to things like water flow.

"They have wind sensors on poles out there, so if you see they're spinning slowly, you can shoot the water higher," Mr. Pilgrim said.

"But if it's spinning fast, you don't want to shoot the water as high as if it was calm – it'd blow all over. When it's calm, though, you can really shoot that center ring way up there."

The fountain underwent extensive renovations before returning to service in 2005, with new pipes and lighting, more-energy-efficient pumps and an ultraviolet-ray-resistant surface at a cost of $276,000.

"This was a pretty extensive project," said John Reynolds, who oversaw it for the parks department. "But there is better technology that has come along since."

And that new technology brings along all sorts of possibilities.

"They have nozzles for an outer ring and inner ring and the center of the fountain," Mr. Pilgrim said, "and I was thinking how cool it would be to put each of those nozzles on a solenoid – [an electronic controller] – and put an MP3 player in there and set the fountain to change to music.

"But there's still some work to do out there."

[Cantanamo76]

Where is Ferris Plaza?

[cowboyeagle05]

Where is Ferris Plaza?
Its the plaza directly in front of Union Station with the historic white fountain or for those of you who like a Google map link here it is: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=Ferris+Plaza&sll=32.776811,-96.806175&sspn=0.003274,0.006974&ie=UTF8&t=h&z=17&iwloc=A