TRUSTING THE TRINITY

The projected $2B Trinity River Corridor Project is the largest public works and urban development project in the history of Dallas, and one of the largest of its type in the nation, Trinity Trust prez Gail Thomas tells us. It will reduce flood damage, provide recreational amenities and visionary environmental benefits, improve downtown traffic congestion, and encourage development along the Trinity River. The Margaret Hunt Hill Bridge and the upcoming second Calatrava-designed bridge, the Margaret McDermott Bridge. The Trinity River Audubon Center (which opened in 2009, above) at Loop 12 east of IH-45 is located within the Trinity Forest. There's also plans for an expanded system of pedestrian trails and a Texas Horse Park.

Gail, center, with Haynes & Boone co-founder Mike Boone and partner George Bramblett Jr at the bridge's topping off last summer, tells us the Trinity River Project will have more impact on CRE and development than any other project in Dallas? history. Because it runs through 20 miles of Dallas-area real estate—through the very center of the fourth largest metro area in the US—the Trinity Corridor offers untold development opportunities now and for years to come, Gail says. Redevelopment has already started and will increase with the opening of each new project along the Trinity. Thoughtful development that embraces our natural resources, supports commerce, and enhances neighborhoods are the types of development that will be critical for supporting the Trinity, she says.

Trails are being built into the Great Trinity Forest (we snapped it from Air Bisnow while having a great Wonder Woman invisible airplane fantasy). The Dallas Wave and overhead Trestle Bridge (the old Santa Fe Trestle) are already under construction on the Trinity River east of Corinth Bridge at 8th Street. This paddling amenity will attract paddlers locally and from around the country when it opens, she says. We'll let Gail sum it up: ?Dallas  exists because of the Trinity River. The river is the soul of the city, and yet, we have misused and mistreated it. It's time to reclaim our river, move back to the city center, and live in community along the banks of the river.?