Along with naming and branding for DFW's newest trail, our Alta-led team was asked to recommend placemaking and economic development opportunities along the soon-to-be-complete trail between downtown Fort Worth and downtown Dallas (through THREE cities in between!)
Popken PopUps mapped points of interest, biked the entire corridor to assess existing conditions, and mapped large races and events already occurring along the trail.
This unexpectedly beautiful grassland and stormwater retention area is near Grand Prairie's Lone Star Park and stadium. The trail follows wilderness areas along the Trinity River as it crosses through 5 cities, from downtown Fort Worth to downtown Dallas.
We were also tasked with proposing locations where nationally attractive marathon and half-marathon race events could be developed for start/finish events as well as mapping some exciting potential routes for these races! (Contact eh NCTCOG for those details!) The NCTCOG (North Central Texas Council of Governments) was the intermediary client coordinating the 5 cities and funding some of the segments of the trail design and construction.
Through the assessment, we identified almost 100 specific sites for opportunistic placemaking in 5 typologies, including trail-oriented businesses:
Scenic Vista
Resting & Play
Neighborhood Gateway
Large Sporting Event
Economic Development Opportunity
See the full report on the 5 trail-based placemaking typologies:
Check out the map of trail-based business opportunity sites and placemaking opportunities: