Dog park at Ninth and Madison. Photo by CHB
There is a new off-leash dog park at the corner of Ninth and Madison.
It’s impressive, spanning the length of the Bishop Arts parking lot, features a half dozen cute pink picnic tables, an expansive well-clipped lawn. It’s also well-lit at dusk, and people I spoke with said it’s illuminated at least until 11 p.m. A posted sign verifies hours as 6 a.m.-11 p.m. The scene had a good vibe, pedestrians and dogs coming and going, chatting, in a jovial mood despite oppressive heat. The corner already emits that familiar dog park smell, which should be off-putting but is somehow inviting (to dog lovers anyway).
I asked a couple of visitors how long the park had been here. (I’m thinking, the Advocate just this month published an extensive story about Oak Cliff area parks and I hadn’t read a thing about a new Bishop Arts dog park.)
Photo by CHB
Maybe just a couple weeks, they said. I asked if they live in the Bishop Arts apartments. They eyed one another conspiratorially before saying something like “well, no, but, uh, we are really only supposed to use this if we do live in the apartments.”
The local homeowners said that considering how the park occupies so much real estate in one of Dallas’ most popular entertainment districts, they felt neither nervous nor guilty about low-key violating the “Private Park Exclusively for Residents of Exxir Capital Properties” small print on the Park Rules sign.
Exxir, with headquarters just a block from the discussed dog park, on Zang, owns several Bishop Arts apartment communities, restaurants, bars, suites and alleys (Bishop North and Treehaus apartments, Paradiso, Casablanca, Tejas, The Mermaid Bar, Garden Shed and various seasonal pop-ups) and orchestrates community events.
This whole thing is no surprise to those who have been paying attention. Some of us had just forgotten for a minute.
In January 2022, Exxir Capital bought Ninth street between Bishop and Madison which they would develop according to a Dutch city-planning concept known as Woonerf.
As the Advocate reported at that time, the developer planned to “turn the street into a pedestrian friendly low-speed drive where cars are allowed. The street could also be closed for markets and events without the hassles that come with closing a public street, such as permits and the requirement to hire police as security.” Think the regularly occurring Bishop Bazaar.
It was possible for Exxir to own a once-public street after the City of Dallas legally abandoned the segment.
The city council decision to abandon the block means Exxir is now responsible for maintaining the street, curbs, gas and water lines and drainage.
Allowing a private company to own the street also puts 13,100 square feet of space onto the tax rolls, the Advocate has reported. It could add up to an estimated $586,500 that the city stands to gain between new taxes and removing it from the city’s maintenance.
This woonerf will enhance the city’s “walkability goals,” council representative Chad West said then.
“I think we need more of these in the city, and I’m very excited to pass this today,” West said during the related 2022 meeting.
