FoBL Newsletter - May 2021
“A place isn't just a snapshot of itself in the present, a place is everything that ever happened to it” — Marisa de los Santos
THE ESSENTIALS
There were three City Council races that we were interested in: D2, D6 and D13. Why so many? Because Bachman Lake Park is at the intersection of these districts. Over the last two years Friends of Bachman Lake has briefed the City Council representatives of all three districts on the issues in our area. We are very happy that Councilman Narvaez won D6 as he will provide much needed continuity and we know that he will continue to serve as an advocate for green spaces. If you are in D2 or D13, make sure to mark June 5th on your calendar for the runoff election!
We were worried that our meet-and-greet at Bluffview Growler was going to be rained out last month but the weather held and we had a fantastic turnout. It was great to brainstorm on how the various neighborhoods around Bachman Lake Park could collaborate on issues such as pedestrian/cycling safety, protecting trees and addressing zoning and permit issues.
In other momentous news:
On May 4th, all Dallas Public Libraries branches reopened! Remember that we have two fantastic branches within a mile walk of Bachman Lake Park: the Bachman and the Grauwyler branches.
Don't forget that May 14th is the last day to enter your comments in the NCTCoG interactive map! If you don't know what we are talking about, read the News section below.
A big thank you to all that attended spring cleaning at Bachman Lake Park on April 17th. We had great turnout and made a huge difference picking up plastics in honor of Earth Day. A special thanks to the Dallas Rowing Club, Love Field Airport, Dallas Parks Department and the Michigan State University Alumni.
***Continue to share our newsletter with your neighbors and friends!***
NEWS
Hyper Local News - What's That?
Hyperlocal journalism or news, refers to the coverage of events and topics on an extremely small, local scale. Plans to build a north airport entrance, repairing flooding on Northwest Highway or the construction of new schools on Walnut Hill. They may not be the most exciting things to read about but they have a good chance of attracting your attention because, unlike a stock market crash, political scandal or natural disaster across the other side of the globe, they have a direct effect on you and your immediate surroundings. We are not paid to aggregate this information for you but we feel strongly that by getting Northwest Dallas informed on a granular level, we can rally citizens to push for improvements in this long neglected corner of the city. We are very interested in publishing your write-ups, just send us an email at: media@friendsofbachmanlake.org.
Here are summaries of events that took place in April that you should be aware of and for which you can still weigh in on!
Trains, Trails and Automobiles: comment, vote, engage!
In April, Friends of Bachman Lake held demos of the interactive mapping tool with neighbors at Love Field West and the awesome moms of Bachman Lake Together. We only have until May 14th to enter comments into the tool to identify the locations in our area that require improvements to roadways, pedestrian/cycling or transit. This is really a once in a lifetime opportunity to affect change in our area, including logging your opposition to a north entrance to the airport. As we have pointed out previously, the airport alternate entrance is on hold pending the output of this work. We will have a live demo a Neighbors in the Know on Monday at 6PM (English) / 7PM (Spanish). Just join by livestreaming the meeting through our Facebook page or via the following this WebEx link:
To give you an idea, here are some of the comments that have been added so far to the map. If you agree or want to provide an opinion on the comment, go to the interactive mapping tool!
The Webb Chapel bridge should be solely for pedestrian / biking use. It is currently a safety issue as people have to walk in the road because the sidewalk is so narrow. The City could make this an observation / viewing place for watching planes and a place for fishermen to fish, a setup similar to what was done on the Commerce St bridge downtown. There is no need for this vehicular shortcut, when cars can use either the Lemmon Avenue bridge or go to Denton Drive
(At NW Hwy and Lemmon): Commercial area with shops and restaurants are cutoff from surrounding neighborhoods. No crosswalks between Midway and Lemmon
There is a high volume of traffic on Capps and Shorecrest cutting from Midway to Lemmon. Either speedbumps need to be put in or access to Lemmon needs to be limited. There are no sidewalks on Shorecrest or Capps so pedestrians are at major risk of being injured
(At NW Hwy and Ovella): Add a hawk signal for kids to be able to get to the park or back home from school
Need sidewalks along Harry Hines - There are schools in this area and kids have to walk on the street to get to/from school
Significant back-ups on Webb Chapel Bridge as cars use this as a shortcut to Northwest Highway
During heavy rains, Northwest Highway floods at Denton Dr. It is common for multi-vehicle accidents to occur as people loose control when they hit the pond of water.
This last comment is so appropriate given our recent social media video:
Love Field's Good Neighbor Program - The April Edition
For those of you new to the area, Love Field Airport hosts quarterly meetings to inform the surrounding neighborhoods about the progress of their projects as these are many times disruptive to the area. Over the years, neighbors have successfully advocated for beautification improvements (remember the old chain link / barbed wire fence?) and noise controls. Whereas the quarterly meetings used to be hosted at the neighborhood recreation centers around the airport, they have been held virtually this past year. We think this does provide good access to information for folks but the fact that neighbors can only post questions in the chat box, makes for difficult two-way communication.... If you missed the April session, here are the highlights:
The Good:
Progress is being made on the Lemmon Ave Trail project and that includes commissioning the public art that will be along the trail. If you know an artist or you want to be part of the selection committee, let Drema Chavez (drema.chavez@dallascityhall.com) know!
Love Field has a new Good Neighbor Program Facebook page
Let Helena Thompson know if you would like to coordinate a one-on-one with airport leadership, her email is: helena.thompson@dallascityhall.com
The Bad:
Runway construction has started and that is why there is so much more noise on the East side of the airport. Our hearts go out to those that live on the West side, it is loud! We look forward to February 2022 when the project is supposed to be done (check out the photos for the timeline).
A new FAA fiber cable will be installed in Bachman Lake, which may disrupt rowing later this year.
The Unknown:
The airport alternate entrance project remains on hold pending the planning work being done by NCTCoG.
Click on the arrows to the left and right of the image to see the updates from the airport for the Lemmon Ave Trail, the planned intersection improvements, the new pocket parks and the schedule for the runway reconstruction. If you have any questions, please contact: Helena.Thompson@DallasCityHall.com.
May 2021 Dallas Police Department Statistics - Northwest Station
The Reporting Area (RA) numbers listed below can be found on DPD map Section 520 and DPD Section 530. Are there areas in Northwest Dallas that we should add? It is challenging to do a comparison to 2020 when it was such an anomalous year, so take these stats with a grain of salt.
OUR FAVORITE IMAGES THIS MONTH
Instagram photo credits:
@friendsofbachmanlake
EVENTS
Our monthly plogging event is every 2nd Saturday of the month – at whatever time works for you! Bring one of those plastic bags we all have around the house and put it to good use. Walk the path or meander off of it and pick up trash. It’s great for the hamstrings! Give a shout-out to anyone you see walking around the lake with a plastic bag - they are clearly FoBLers!
Every second Monday of the month (6PM English and 7PM Spanish) we host a multi-neighborhood virtual meeting to review the major projects that affect our area. Remember, just go to the FoBL Facebook page and watch it live! Next up, DART and their Network Redesign!
Also, don't forget to join us at our monthly ‘meeting of the minds’ at Bluffview Growler. It's on the 4th Wednesday of every month from 4-6PM. No RSVP needed. Note that this activity is subject to COVID related restrictions and proper social guidelines.
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