DTFW | Trinity Uptown to more than double in size?

[MDE]

In a draft of a supplemental environmental impact statement, the corps supports changing the boundaries of Trinity Uptown to integrate about 1,000 acres that are part of the separate Riverside Oxbow restoration project, which is on the east side of downtown and also includes the Gateway Park expansion.

Pulling Riverside into Trinity Uptown would boost the latter project's estimated cost from $435 million to $519 million, based on 2005 dollars, the report said. Most of the added expense would be for excavation and building.

Changing the boundaries would allow the city to use Trinity Uptown dollars for its ambitious plans to transform Gateway into the gem of Fort Worth parks, with soccer fields, an equestrian center, an amphitheater and pedestrian trails.

"You get a lot back for this," said Saji Alummuttil, the corps project manager. The proposal "gives them something that is wonderful." FWST: http://www.star-telegram.com/news/story/392772.html

[columbiasooner]

City leaders largely praise Gateway plan
BY MAX B. BAKER
STAR-TELEGRAM STAFF WRITER
Related Content

City leaders largely praise Gateway plan
FORT WORTH -- Mayor Mike Moncrief and the Fort Worth City Council praised a new plan to absorb Gateway Park into the massive Trinity Uptown project on Tuesday, calling it a "once-in-a-lifetime opportunity" to create a glamorous new park and gateway to the city.

The officials said they will work hard to find the extra $84 million needed to pay for the new and improved Trinity Uptown by not only seeking more federal dollars but also tapping into revenue from gas leases, special taxing districts and state grants.

"I think this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to improve on an already outstanding project that there is strong support for throughout this city," Moncrief said.

"I think the people of Fort Worth deserve the project. They deserve the Uptown project, and they deserve the chance to create a new gateway to our city."

Council members were briefed on a proposal by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to change the boundaries of Trinity Uptown, which is about 800 acres on the city's near north side, to include about 1,000 acres near Gateway on the city's east side.

The land on the east side would be used to store floodwaters.

And publicly owned land could double as a park stretching from Beach Street to Oakland Boulevard, with soccer fields, equestrian and pedestrian trails, an amphitheater, and disc golf and mountain bike courses.

But the plan comes at a significantly higher price. Trinity Uptown's original $435 million price tag would jump to $519 million, based on 2005 dollars. That cost is expected to escalate when updated estimates are completed in July.

Plan still praised

Councilman Danny Scarth and others said it is only right to leverage city and federal dollars to clean up a park that sorely needs help, creating one that would draw citizens from around the community and be compared to Central Park in New York City.

Scarth rejected any notion that the city is trying to dump its floodwaters on the east side, too. Under the previous plan, the floodwaters would have flowed onto pricey land owned by influential residents on the west side.

"Let's just face it: That area used to be poop and trash," said Scarth, whose district includes Gateway. "It was a landfill and a wastewater treatment center. We are going a long way toward creating a beautiful recreation opportunity and perhaps one of the premier parks in the country."

Critics worry that the city may drown in red ink. Fort Worth has already pledged to spend about $140 million on Trinity Uptown.

"This is 100 percent taxpayer dollars, and not all of the taxpayers support this project," said Councilman Chuck Silcox, who has predicted that Trinity Uptown may eventually cost $1 billion. He supports a petition effort calling for a cap on spending.

"I'm very concerned about the cost. The true cost. The updated cost," he said.

Looking for funds

The corps' proposal incorporates two projects: Trinity Uptown, costing $435 million, and the Riverside Oxbow Ecosystem Restoration area, a $24 million project that the corps has never persuaded Congress to fund.

The additional $60 million is for developing areas to store floodwaters and building dams and other structures. Local government will also have to buy 235 acres in the area.

The corps has scheduled a public hearing for Jan. 24 at the InnSuites Hotel, 2000 Beach St., in Fort Worth.

The corps can't spend more than the $110 million designated for Trinity Uptown without congressional approval, and local officials say the federal government must be willing to pay for up to 50 percent.

"We know the costs are going to increase, so we are working internally, and we'll also be working with our partners to identify where those funds will come from so they won't impact day-to-day operations," said Randle Harwood, the city's Trinity River Vision director.

POSSIBLE FUNDING

City officials said they've already identified up to $45 million that could be spent on Gateway:

$4.5 million grant from the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department for recreation and ecosystem improvements.

$13.7 million if the city puts all the money from the Trinity Uptown tax increment financing district into the project. Currently, it is setting aside only 80 percent. TIFs freeze property values and then divert taxes from new construction or increases in value into a fund for projects in the area.

$19.9 million by adding all or part of the sales tax in that area to the TIF revenue. This money now flows into the general fund.

$2 million to $5 million in gas revenues over 10 years.

$1 million to $2 million in federal Community Development Block Grant funds. The programs are typically used to provide decent housing, a suitable living environment and better economic opportunities in low- and moderate-income areas.

MAX B. BAKER, 817-390-7714
maxbaker@star-telegram.com

http://www.star-telegram.com/metro_news/story/399276.html

[St-T]

This will not happen.

[Uptown72]

If any city could pull it off, it would be Ft. Worth.

On the bottom of the list for pulling it off, I would say Dallas. Of course, our new mayor's stance could totally change my feelings!

[elmstreetdallas]

Right. Because Dallas has never been able to pull off large projects. :rolleyes:

[TexasStar]

If any city could pull it off, it would be Ft. Worth.

On the bottom of the list for pulling it off, I would say Dallas. Of course, our new mayor's stance could totally change my feelings!

You've got to be kidding. Do you actually live here? And if you do, just take a look around.
This is a boom town. And I mean Dallas!

[NDtexan]

Anyone who's not rooting for both of these projects that have potential to elevate both cities and the Metroplex overall sucks. Drop the inter-city negative feelings and attitudes and realize that both river projects are going to be good for all of DFW.

[columbiasooner]

Link (http://www.star-telegram.com/news/story/423735.html)


Tuesday, Jan 29, 2008

East-side leaders happy Gateway Park in river plans


By MAX B. BAKER
Star-Telegram Staff Writer
FORT WORTH -- An Army Corps of Engineers proposal to broaden the scope of Trinity Uptown by absorbing 1,000 acres that includes Gateway Park is being met by east-side community leaders with cautious optimism and a healthy dose of skepticism.

While some say they are happy to finally see the city take aggressive efforts to improve Gateway by making it a part of Trinity Uptown, others are unhappy that the city has not moved faster over the years to improve conditions at the park.

Former Councilwoman Becky Haskin and others said the city has had millions of dollars set aside for years for Gateway -- along with numerous master plans to transform it into a facility rivaling Central Park -- but has failed to act.

"I spent my entire time on the council trying to get things going only to come up with a dog park," said Haskin, who served on the council for 13 years. "I love my dog park, but for goodness sake! ... It's totally frustrating."

The corps is recommending changing the boundaries of Trinity Uptown, which is about 800 acres on the near north side, to include about 1,000 acres near Gateway on the east side. The land would be used to store floodwaters.

The publicly owned land on the east side would double as a park with soccer fields, equestrian and pedestrian trails, an amphitheater and disc golf and mountain bike courses.

Under the original plan, the floodwaters would have been allowed to flow on pricey west-side property.
Sarah Walker, moderator of the Riverside Alliance, which represents a cluster of neighborhood associations, said part of the proposal taps into a feeling that "the west side gets all the better sirloin steaks, and we get the bacon and the hamburger."

"Gateway should have been developed years ago," Walker said. "We are very concerned."

City officials promise that the new plan won't send floodwaters anywhere they don't already go. They also say this is the best way to leverage city, state and federal dollars to turn Gateway into a regional park.
To calm the waters, city officials have been meeting with anyone who will listen, especially east-side community leaders, before the corps' public hearing on the plan Thursday at 6 p.m. at the InnSuites Hotel, 2000 Beach St.

"I can understand [Haskin's] frustration, because you do feel like it does take an awful long time for things to get finished," said Councilman Danny Scarth, who represents Haskin's old council district.
"I understand that great things happen on the west side. But now we are getting some of the good stuff, so let's not screw it up," he said.

The plan
In a draft of a supplemental environmental impact statement, the corps recommends essentially consolidating three projects.

First, there is Trinity Uptown, a $435 million flood-control and economic-development project that includes a Trinity River bypass channel, canals and a town lake. In 2004, Congress approved $110 million for it.

A second corps project is the 600-acre Riverside Oxbow Ecosystem Restoration area along Interstate 30, where the agency wanted to spend $24 million to put the Trinity River back into its original channel and return the area to a natural state. But Congress never funded it.

For years the city has wanted to expand Gateway, a 500-acre park stretching from Beach Street to Oakland Boulevard along the West Fork of the Trinity River. The city has secured $4.5 million in state and local grants for that purpose.

Fort Worth asked the corps to change Trinity Uptown's boundaries after the Riverside Oxbow and Gateway projects stalled. The proposal called for moving from the west side to the east side the "valley storage" areas for floodwaters.

The corps said lumping the two projects together would enlarge the Trinity Uptown project -- for example, the corps would plant at least 70,000 trees as part of the ecosystem restoration -- but also boost the price to at least $519 million.

Still, local officials say the new approach is the best way to go.

"It allows us to do more in a shorter period of time than ever before," said Randle Harwood, the city's Trinity River Vision director.

'Hard sell'

The proposal has won support from some east-side leaders who once raised questions about Trinity Uptown.

Don Boren and his wife, Wanda Conlin, say they are pleased with the new plan. Boren said the original plans didn't much benefit anyone east of Interstate 35W. "It's been a hard sell for all of our neighborhoods," he said.

Conlin said the scope of the new proposed project is "absolutely wonderful."

"We have been skeptical in the past because the east side of the river has been a dumping ground," Conlin said. "If it is going to be an honest-to-God restoration of the river on our side of town, that is what we have been fighting for for years."

Clifford Proffitt, former president of the Carter-Riverside Neighborhood Association, described himself as "cautiously optimistic" and said he's glad to see projects and development coming to Gateway. "It's been an underfunded, needing-improvement park for some time," he said.

Proffitt does worry that water from other areas of the city will be unnecessarily dumped into Gateway, and not just from Trinity Uptown. He would also like to see some safeguards put into place to make sure the money is spent on the park.

Louis McBee, who ran for mayor last year on a platform suggesting that the city cap its investment in Trinity Uptown, still isn't convinced.

McBee wonders whether Gateway will be left in the lurch if federal funding dries up. Last year, U.S. Rep. Kay Granger said she will work to boost the $110 million authorized by Congress for Trinity Uptown.

"We all remember the superconducting supercollider," McBee said, referring to an abandoned $10 billion project near Waxahachie. "So federal funding can dry up."

Harwood said there has been a significant amount of investment in Gateway in recent years, including about $5 million to rebuild the soccer fields with artificial turf. While he's confident of more federal funding, work at Gateway will continue even if the funding doesn't come through.

Still, Harwood said he understands why some east-side residents are distrustful.

"For a long time promises were made to residents in the east and southeast, and they haven't been kept, and I understand their skepticism. But I haven't been that person. Anything I said we are going to do we have delivered on," Harwood said.

Public hearing

The Army Corps of Engineers will present its supplemental environmental impact statement at a public hearing at 6 p.m. Thursday at the InnSuites Hotel, Trinity Suites and Resort, 2000 Beach St. in Fort Worth. The report is available now at www.swf.usace.army.mil. Click on "Draft Supplement No. 1 to the Final EIS for the Central City Project, Upper Trinity River, Texas." The corps will also accept written comments from the public until Feb. 19.

[columbiasooner]

Link (http://www.fwbusinesspress.com/display.php?id=6954)

Mayor: Gateway Park overhaul benefits city
BY JOHN-LAURENT TRONCHE
January 24, 2008
The combination of the Trinity River Vision and Gateway Park/Riverside Oxbow projects is in no way a compromise to please East Side residents, Mayor Mike Moncrief said at a press-only event about the projects.

The combining is, instead, a move to streamline the projected Gateway construction time, Mike Moncrief said during the Jan. 24 event.

“With this chance to combine these two projects into one, we get far more bang for the buck,” Moncrief said. “And Gateway Park, which has a 40-year master plan, can have that master plan realized in 10 years and exceed what that master plan originally provided for.”

Moncrief, flanked by City Councilmen Danny Scarth, of District 4, and Sal Espino, of District 2, praised the project as a move to create thousands of jobs and pour billions of dollars in revenue into the economy.

Espino and Scarth, whose districts share in the area that would be affected by the Gateway Park/Riverside Oxbow improvements, agreed that the project represents a step forward.

“The expansion of this project, which the [U.S. Army Corps of Engineers] is recommending, is terrific for the East Side,” Scarth said, “because we’ve been looking at and trying to continue the expansion of Gateway Park with a master plan that’s already in place for 40 years. But if we can do that plus so much more in 10 years, it’s great for the East Side.”

Scarth added that the park’s location will benefit the entire city.

“There are going to be things there for everybody,” he said.

The project, estimated to cost approximately $519 million in 2005 dollars, is an ambitious one, with plans for equestrian trails, a skating park, rock climbing, kayaking and an amphitheater among other amenities.

“I would love to see a facility that was capable of supporting commercial concerts,” Scarth said of the amphitheater, “a venue that would attract acts that can actually help pay for a facility — that would then be used by our local symphony orchestra and other groups so that they don’t have the cost. In other words, we can pay for that through commercial operations but make it available for our community groups at the same time.”

Both projects still await the entirety of their funding, but Moncrief said he is positive that Fort Worth residents will see an area face-lift in the future.

“I think we can, and I’m confident we will build this project,” Moncrief said.

Contact Tronche at jtronche@bizpress.net

[columbiasooner]

See the Link For Gateway Park Animation (http://www.star-telegram.com/news/story/431921.html)

Hundreds turn out to see proposal for Gateway Park
BY MAX B. BAKER
STAR-TELEGRAM STAFF WRITER

FORT WORTH -- Surrounded by large, flat-screen monitors showing computer-generated images of an improved Gateway Park, about 200 people attended a public hearing Thursday night to praise or pan a proposal to expand Trinity Uptown project.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers conducted the hearing as part of a review of a proposal released this month that recommends absorbing about 1,000 acres near Gateway on the city's east side into the Trinity Uptown project north of downtown.

Fort Worth Mayor Mike Moncrief was the first with praise, saying that if the plan is approved, it will accomplish in 10 years what everyone previously said would take 40: Turn Gateway into one of the city's premier parks.

"The project will provide ecosystem restoration, it will increase recreational opportunities and bring greatly needed economic development to a blighted portion of our city," Moncrief said. "It will make a great plan even better. It just makes good sense."

The corps' draft supplemental environmental impact statement recommends changing Trinity Uptown's boundaries, allowing publicly owned land on the city's east side to take floodwaters while it doubles as a park. Under the original plan, the floodwaters would have been allowed to flow on privately owned, pricey west-side property.

The cost for the combined project is conservatively projected to be $519 million, or about $84 million more than the project's original $435 million price tag. Those numbers are based on 2005 estimates, and an updated price estimate is expected to be completed this summer.

The corps will accept written public comments until Feb. 19. It plans to make a decision by May. If approved, construction could start as early as this fall.

Dee Jennings, president of the Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce, praised the proposal, saying that it would connect the east side to downtown and the west side.

"You don't go into the bookstore and buy just one bookend," Jennings said. "We want two bookends."

Connie Rensink of the River Trails Homeowners Association and Greg Ricks of the Woodhaven Neighborhood Association were among east-side residents who said the plan was good news for their side of town.

"We're very excited," Ricks said. "I get to be a part of something great."

But for George Vernon Chiles, who grew up on the east side, Trinity Uptown is about "money, money, money." He said downtown developers are the ones who will profit from the flood-control and economic development project.

"It's public money for private profit," Chiles said.

Of the 73 people who filled out registration forms, 67 expressed support for the proposed change and six were opposed.

maxbaker@star-telegram.com
MAX B. BAKER, 817-390-7714

[columbiasooner]

Link to Flyover #1 (http://trinityrivervision.org/TRVWEB/MediaFiles/View1.htm)

Link to Flyover #2 (http://trinityrivervision.org/TRVWEB/MediaFiles/View2.htm)

[FoUTASportscaster]

Are you in anyway affliated or bought off to support this project?

[tamtagon]

Are you in anyway affliated or bought off to support this project?

dude, let it go

[FoUTASportscaster]

Simple question. All of a sudden, a guy who hasn't posted much (though he could have gloated following the election, he didn't), posts a bunch of articles in a relatively obscure thread, seems to be a valid question.

[NDtexan]

He probably is, but so what. There are others on the forum just like him. Fravely only posts stuff on the Stoneleigh Court thread, and even Hanover1 used to seem to stick to just his companies' threads.

[sterling]

It's very interesting news. I don't care if he's a shill or not. Many times we've loved the insider stuff that comes out in here. Saves us from reading a bunch of other crap. And HERE we can discuss it.

My two cents? Fort Worth got it going on!

[columbiasooner]

It's called PR...

[mikedsjr]

Very cool stuff. Keep bringing the stuff here.