The City of Dallas Planning and Urban Design Department released a rough draft of the West Oak Cliff Area Plan today.
The 87-page draft aims to set a vision and goals for roughly 5 square miles of Oak Cliff, from Davis to Illinois and Tyler to Cockrell Hill. It is the result of a dozen community workshops and meetings since November 2020 as well as nine hours-long task force meetings.
The draft touches on five topics:
• Land use and development
• Inclusive community development and quality of life
• Transportation and infrastructure
• Parks and open space
The land use recommendations are all about preserving neighborhood character by maintaining low-density residential zoning in single-family neighborhoods, promoting new development near DART stations, developing walkable retail centers and preserving historic buildings.
Here’s how the rough draft summarizes the priorities for land use:
Preserve and protect existing single-family neighborhoods
Single-family neighborhoods are at the heart of what makes West Oak Cliff a special community. Maintaining the current zoning in these neighborhoods will help to preserve their historic charm and reinforce the cultural identity of this area.
Promote transit-oriented development opportunities near high-quality transit
Prioritizing opportunities for mixed-income, mixed-use development near the DART light-rail stations and high-frequency bus will help enhance access to jobs, goods and services; improve safety; and help ensure great affordability for residents.
Create walkable, neighborhood-scale mixed-use centers
Through strategic urban design enhancements along with zoning changes in specific areas, many of the small commercial nodes in West Oak Cliff can find new life, allowing new jobs, retail, and cultural opportunities to thrive.
Preserve historic buildings and character through neighborhood-sensitive design
Although some new development is necessary for all areas of the city, it is important that significant existing historic structures are retained to preserve Oak Cliff culture, while new development is designed to be compatible in scale and character with surrounding single-family neighborhoods.
Find the full rough draft here.
Two more community meetings this week offer an opportunity to give feedback on the plan.
A virtual community meeting starts at 6 p.m. today, March 9, and details to join via Webex can be found here.
An in-person meeting starts at 10 a.m. Saturday at Martin Weiss Park recreation center.
