Category: Local

Our neighborhood has seen it’s share of changes to other surrounding communities lately. From the Bishop Arts and Tyler Davis District’s commercial growth, to the interstates surrounding Oak Cliff, both are seeing huge changes, and now the bordering arterial streets W. Davis St. and Tyler/Polk will see significant repair and reconfiguration.

Tyler St. / Polk St. Two-Way Conversion

In September, after more than 2  years of planning and countless public meetings, the city passed a change to the cities thoroughfare plan on Tyler and Polk St. from Canty to 12th.   An idea that came out of the first Better Block project on Tyler St., the street grid will be put back to it’s original design as a two-way street, and will include a propsed traffic circle at  Winston and Tyler/Polk, bicycle lanes on Polk St., and an attention to public safety.  The project will be funded from 2006 city bond funds to upgrade the street lights, stripping and creating the traffic circle.  Construction should being in 2017.

W. Davis St. Sidewalk Repair

Current apocalyptic sidewalk

After TIF funded repairs in front of the Kessler Theatre

Have you ever tried to walk down to your favorite Bishop Arts restaurant along W. Davis St?  Or for that matter pushed a stroller or taken a wheelchair?  For the past 3 years, the city of Dallas has been working on a plan to change how we look at W. Davis. St.  Formerly a small section of the original trans-continental highway 80, it’s a shadow of it’s form self.  Broken or missing sidewalks, crumbling cement, narrow, and impassable all describe the current state of most of the street from Zang to Montclair.  However, you only have to look at the block of W. Davis St. from Clinton to Winnetka to see what this entire area will look like soon.  That block underwent repair in 2014 when the owner of the Kessler Theatre, Edwin Cabiness received Davis Garden TIF funds for widening the sidewalk, landscaping, and bicycle parking.  This project will simply restitch the sidewalk network back together as well as existing driveways.  The more we can create a better walk-able environment, the better our community will be.  Construction should be being in early 2017.

New Crosswalk at Canty and Tyler Connecting Kidd Springs Park

The crosswalk at Canty and Tyler St. recently reappeared after years of fading and neglect by the city.  New plans to upgrade the Kidd Springs swimming pool, heard calls from several neighbors that the crosswalk needed to be restripped.  Most people barely seethe pedestrian yellow signs calling for traffic to slow down, but now there’s a brand new crosswalk helping pedestrians feel a bit safer when crossing this treacherous crossing.  Once the new traffic circle gets installed and traffic is diverted back to two-ways, the speeds should fall further thus making it feel safer to cross Tyler St.

Before New Crosswalk

After with New Crosswalk