Chalk Hill Trail

Chalk Hill Trail (Photo by Danny Fulgencio)

The first section of the City of Dallas’ trail system to reach West Dallas also will be one of its prettiest.

The $6-million trail, funded mostly by Dallas County, could open in 2018.

Construction begins next year on the 3.7-mile path originally cut by the Gulf, Colorado & Santa Fe Railroad. It will begin at the DART station at Wright and Illinois and snake around to West Davis and Chalk Hill Road. In fewer than four miles, it travels through
varied scenery, including residential neighborhoods and forested areas, reaching the cliffs above West Davis.

The most expensive piece is a bridge needed to replace an old wooden trestle just north of Jefferson.

When it opens, there won’t be lighting or any other amenities along the trail. Fundraising from private “friends of” groups have paid for those extras on the Katy Trail and at White Rock Lake, for example.

There is a “very preliminary” plan to connect the Chalk Hill Trail with the Coombs Creek Trail, says City Councilman Scott Griggs. The latter would be extended through the Stevens Park Golf Course and then the old Colorado Place apartments where Lincoln Property Co. is planning a development. From there, it would cut a path into Stevens Park Village and to Pinnacle Park to connect at Chalk Hill Road.