Task Force Report Unveiled: Big Opportunities for Housing, Transit, Walkability Near Dallas College Mountain View

At a small gathering of the Oak Cliff Chamber of Commerce this month, Dallas planning staff updated business leaders on five authorized hearings that came out of the West Oak Cliff Area Plan — and shared the findings of a task force report that identified opportunities for redevelopment and pedestrian safety issues. 

Some of the stories shared at the meeting were ones we’ve heard before: District 1 Councilman Chad West’s vow to implement urban planning after El Corazon de Tejas was demolished in 2017 and the neighborhood victory of downtown Elmwood rezonings that paved the way for mom-and-pop coffee shops. 

But we didn’t know about a partnership that’s been forming behind the scenes with the Far West Oak Cliff Task Force and Dallas College Mountain View Campus.

It turns out Mountain View College president Macario Hernandez was a member of the task force commissioned by Councilman West about a year ago. Officials said conversations are underway about housing, economic development, and trail connections near the Oak Cliff campus. 

View the Oct. 3 staff presentation to the Oak Cliff Chamber here. 

Dallas College Mountain View Campus 

Senior Planner Brian Price explained that the Far West Oak Cliff Task Force was commissioned to “take a high-level overview of current conditions and strategic opportunities for this area.” There aren’t any organized neighborhood associations in that region, so public engagement was key, he added. 

 The task force report is not an area plan but could result in one, officials said. 

“An area plan is — it’s a lot more than this — but it’s like your scratch on a napkin for a new business but then the business plan follows,” West said. “With an area plan, it’s your zoning that follows. Your area plan is more high-level, sort of the vision, followed by the authorized hearings.”

One of the most exciting findings in the report was the opportunities that exist at the community college campus, Price explained. Mountain View owns a lot of land and shared its master plan with the task force. 

“We realized there’s a real need for housing for staff and students,” Price said. “There’s a need to better connect [Dallas Area Rapid Transit] services to the campus. There’s a need to provide walkability improvements across Illinois Avenue at the campus.”

Additionally, there’s an opportunity to connect the campus trail network to the city trail at Chalk Hill, Price added. 

“This area suffers from a lack of parks and public spaces,” he said. “You’ll see some parks on either side of the focus area but not really in this area. The Chalk Hill Trail is kind of a spine through this focus area and actually goes through some beautiful land with lots of trees. When you walk back there you don’t even really feel like you’re in the city.” 

 There are challenges with Dallas County right-of-way and a railroad, but the City of Dallas is working with its Park and Recreation Department to secure funding for a connection, officials said. 

“There are some technical issues that need to be resolved but essentially this would be a beautiful trail that would offer a wonderful opportunity to connect walkability, bikeability, and open space to this whole area,” Price said. 

Possible Nature Preserve

An opportunity exists at the nearby Joey Georgusis Park for a future nature preserve, Price said. 

“We make that recommendation in the report to consider ways, for pennies on the dollar, of building a new park with all programming — to find ways to preserve the prairie land, a bird habitat, connect the trail through it, and maybe provide educational opportunities for nearby schools and Mountain View College,” he said.

Pinnacle Park, where the City of Dallas “put quite a few resources into jump-starting an industrial park” could use an area plan to guide a vision for the future, the planner added.  

“There hasn’t been a lot of engagement for this area in the past,” he said. “How can we support the existing businesses but create opportunities for open space, walkability, and liveability, to make that area more like a Design District and less like a single-use warehouse? Some of those recommendations are also made in the report as well as looking at the corridors themselves — Cockrell Hill, Westmoreland and Davis Avenue.”

Retail and Residential

Task force member Peter Jacobsen, a partner at Pershing commercial real estate firm, said the volunteers trekked up and down Davis Street, Illinois Avenue, and Westmoreland Road talking to business owners and property owners. 

“We learned a lot about the area and we think there’s a lot of opportunity, especially along Westmoreland, ” he said. “At the southwest corner of 30 and Westmoreland, The Canyons is delivering about five retail pads. They have a ton of interest from national and regional retailers and restaurants.” 

There are additional opportunities west along Davis for retail, multifamily, affordable housing, and other new development, Jacobsen added.  

A new project at the southwest corner of Cockrell Hill and Westmoreland is slated to bring about 250 market-rate multifamily units and a little bit of retail. 

Many of the neighborhoods within the focus area have infrastructure challenges, no sidewalks, and home repair needs. The task force has reached out to community leaders about organizing neighborhood associations, Price explained. 

“We make some infrastructure recommendations for these neighborhoods but the big thing is that as long as these neighborhoods remain unorganized it’s harder and harder to bring attention to the needs of these areas,” Price said. 

The next step is to issue the report at a public meeting at Dallas College Mountain View and recruit residents who want to serve on a task force for an area plan specific to the Far West Oak Cliff region.