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Craig W. Bachik of the Kairos Design Group wants student to do what they do best: speak their minds.
Bachik presented his plans for a revitalization of downtown Dallas at an open student government meeting February 22 in the Catherine Evans McGowan Room.
Connecting Community and Campus
“As of right now there is no connectivity between the university and downtown. Twenty years from now we will change this,” said Bachik.
High traffic volumes are one of the main problems Dallas officials face as they consider improvements.
“The approach is to look at the analysis of the population of the community. As of now, there is an excess of 20,000 people going in and out right through the four corners,” Bachik said.
The master plan addresses historic and transportation concerns and pedestrian circulation. Open space and quality of life are necessary considerations if the rejuvenation project is to succeed, Bachik said.
He added that students’ ideas are crucial for discovering ways the borough can better accommodate the student population.
“I would like to see more things that appeal to kids like some sort of mall or shopping center with a lot of stores, movies and a club,” said freshman Brittany Rahn.
Looking for Shops and Relaxation
One concern students often express is a lack of stores for shopping and places in addition to restaurants where they can meet and relax.
“How cool would it be if they had another dance school added and tried to encourage students to get involved with the dance community since it is not very active in our downtown?” asked junior Janelle Nemetz, who also voiced her opinion at the open meeting.
Bachik asked students to fill out a survey that asked a few questions about students’ perceptions and use of downtown Dallas. Questions included why students go downtown, how often they go, and whether the addition of sidewalks would cause students to walk downtown more frequently.
Sophomore Andrea Brognano voiced her opinion at the meeting and said students get bored easily and want something fun to do on the weekends.
“Our Downtown Dallas needs more places for students to go too like the movies or shopping areas which would be my personal preference. Even small cheap places to eat at would give the students something different. Having things like this would benefit us,” Brognano said.
Master Plans to Battle Weakness
The four steps in the master plan update consist of collection of data, analyzing the data, creating the vision, and implementing the plan. The strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats of downtown Dallas are all under study.
The strength is the fact that transportation will be added to make it is easier for students and residents to arrive in downtown Dallas.
“The weaknesses are not being pedestrian friendly and having unattractive appearances. Also, the disjointed businesses, Main Street, and the lack of landscaping and zoning all fit into this category of weaknesses that our downtown Dallas possesses,” said Bachik.
Threats also come into play with the master update plan because of funding and the economy. Community apathy and lack of plan buy-in are other threats as well. Bachik says he’d like to change existing structures and processes and improve them “The goal is to reinvent the Roundabout into something that does not currently exist,” said Bachik.
Funds may be allocated with the current stimulus package and in 6 months, the second version will be out. Within the next month, smaller changes will be happening to downtown Dallas, Bachik said.
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