Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART)

[rantanamo]

Victory did not develop around a rail stop. A "special events" stop was created at AAC to serve the arena, not the other way around. Plano Station is located next to "Historic Downtown Plano". Once again, downtown was there first, though a fairly large apartment complex has since been built that may qualify as TOD. As for Park Lane Station, my understanding is that North Park Mall was there awhile before the DART station was added to serve it. There may be some other development that can be attributed to DART, but most of the development at Park Lane is likely because of the mall.

Mockingbird is very much a TOD, as there was virtually nothing there prior to DART.

OK Mr Dallas. I'll play. TOD = transit oriented development. Not transit only. Not specifically built only for transit. It conotes convenience to a station. It takes advantage of and is spurred on by the long-term stability of a rail station. It doesn't have to be nothing, then something after the rail. It simply has to be oriented for transit. This is why a Victory can be used as an example. I don't say it is...........YET. A hospital can be an example if its oriented for transit and takes advantage of that stability.

Current TODs in DFW:

Eastside STATION in Plano

Mockingbird Station

Cityplace West/West Village(Trolley and Light Rail oriented)

U/C or announced(bare with me on the names) that are definites with heavy DART mention in their releases. All are mixed-use, multi-family, urban style developments:

2 Galytyn Park developments in Richardson

Park Lane Place

Downtown Garland Project(at moved rail station)

Lake Highland Town Center(new blue line station)

Baylor Station area development(name escapes me)

Mosaic and Republic tower renovations

Mark Cuban's condo building in the Cedars

Former Merryvale(Now owned by Jefferson at the West End Station)

Cityville Southwest

DT Farmers Branch Station

DT Carrolton Station

I believe there are others I'm to lazy to dig up. Needless to say, with the huge multi-family deficit Dallas is facing, there is a lot coming near these stations. Dallas will take on a much different feel at its rail nodal points when the new lines open in 2009. I think the most immediate development impact will be in the Deep Ellum/Baylor Hospital area.

Dallas and her existing and planned rail lines are impressive. I just don't understand how Dallas got funding though. How did you guys? Pass some help down here. 45 miles of light rail with 60,000 daily riders and Dallas is getting more funding. Houston 7.5 miles of light rail and 30,000+ riders and our leaders are still running around in circles about where and how rail should be placed.

Dallas got funding, because DART really plans well for the future, and has continued to meet its ridership numbers year after year. DART rail hasn't even reached its most populous corridor yet, nor has its current rail line population reached urban maturity. Most of the system's miles are still suburn, low density areas. I liken it more to Toronto's system than anything else(bare with me) as it will become more and more nodal(Large TOD development around each station) like Toronto. That's a future I like for a larger suburban city that will never become a Manhattan. DART can see that vision, and they connect the area with that vision and need. Not to mention their underrated political saavy. All I know is, the system is working no matter what the numbers may say( I really have no clue what they say).

[Houston19514]

OK Mr Dallas. I'll play. TOD = transit oriented development. Not transit only. Not specifically built only for transit. It conotes convenience to a station. It takes advantage of and is spurred on by the long-term stability of a rail station. It doesn't have to be nothing, then something after the rail. It simply has to be oriented for transit. This is why a Victory can be used as an example. I don't say it is...........YET. A hospital can be an example if its oriented for transit and takes advantage of that stability.

Current TODs in DFW:

Eastside STATION in Plano

Mockingbird Station

Cityplace West/West Village(Trolley and Light Rail oriented)

U/C or announced(bare with me on the names) that are definites with heavy DART mention in their releases. All are mixed-use, multi-family, urban style developments:

2 Galytyn Park developments in Richardson

Park Lane Place

Downtown Garland Project(at moved rail station)

Lake Highland Town Center(new blue line station)

Baylor Station area development(name escapes me)

Mosaic and Republic tower renovations

Mark Cuban's condo building in the Cedars

Former Merryvale(Now owned by Jefferson at the West End Station)

Cityville Southwest

DT Farmers Branch Station

DT Carrolton Station

I believe there are others I'm to lazy to dig up. Needless to say, with the huge multi-family deficit Dallas is facing, there is a lot coming near these stations. Dallas will take on a much different feel at its rail nodal points when the new lines open in 2009. I think the most immediate development impact will be in the Deep Ellum/Baylor Hospital area.

Dallas got funding, because DART really plans well for the future, and has continued to meet its ridership numbers year after year. DART rail hasn't even reached its most populous corridor yet, nor has its current rail line population reached urban maturity. Most of the system's miles are still suburn, low density areas. I liken it more to Toronto's system than anything else(bare with me) as it will become more and more nodal(Large TOD development around each station) like Toronto. That's a future I like for a larger suburban city that will never become a Manhattan. DART can see that vision, and they connect the area with that vision and need. Not to mention their underrated political saavy. All I know is, the system is working no matter what the numbers may say( I really have no clue what they say).

So I guess there are really two, maybe three completed, existing TOD's that have been built along DART's light rail line. Can you remind me when the line opened?

[tamtagon]

So I guess there are really two, maybe three completed, existing TOD's that have been built along DART's light rail line. Can you remind me when the line opened?

It's been open about ten years, or so.... I think there was some unfortunate timing in DART's short history for stimulating transit oriented development. Right about the time Mockingbird Station was being praised for sucessfully introducing the TOD concept, the Metroplex got hit by an economic recession, and outside of single family homes, not much 'development' really occured. An economic slowdown doubly impacts the likelihood of significant TOD near Dallas Area train stations as the DART's strategy is to locate stations next to but not inside existing retail/employment/entertainment 'districts.' With this approach, the maximum amount of new stuff is prompted as an extention of what's already there - a pretty big difference from Houston's street level METRO approach which builds the train stops into existing development.

The disappointment should go away quickly, though. The Metroplex economy seems to have been 'back on track' for a couple years, giving the time intensive coordination and preparation needed to pull together large scale development adjacent to DART train stations. Park Lane Place is an excellent example of a successful (albiet unfinished) DART spurred transit oriented development. After a couple years groundwork, construction has been underway since the summer to bring a $400+ million retail/residential/entertainment development to the DART's Park Lane Station. Cityplace West Village has several undeveloped parcels of land awaiting approval. In my opinion, these West Village pending projects will be the heart of Cityplace transit orientation as this phase of the development will flank a promenade from the subway entry/exit.

Additions to the Mockingbird station area have been announced - some apts or condos or something, but I think developers are holding off making the 'big' decisions for that area until the GW Bush presidential library site is announced this winter. If SMU hosts the library, I'm betting Mockingbird Station TODs will really expand....

[Houston19514]

It's been open about ten years, or so.... I think there was some unfortunate timing in DART's short history for stimulating transit oriented development. Right about the time Mockingbird Station was being praised for sucessfully introducing the TOD concept, the Metroplex got hit by an economic recession, and outside of single family homes, not much 'development' really occured. An economic slowdown doubly impacts the likelihood of significant TOD near Dallas Area train stations as the DART's strategy is to locate stations next to but not inside existing retail/employment/entertainment 'districts.' With this approach, the maximum amount of new stuff is prompted as an extention of what's already there - a pretty big difference from Houston's street level METRO approach which builds the train stops into existing development.

The disappointment should go away quickly, though. The Metroplex economy seems to have been 'back on track' for a couple years, giving the time intensive coordination and preparation needed to pull together large scale development adjacent to DART train stations. Park Lane Place is an excellent example of a successful (albiet unfinished) DART spurred transit oriented development. After a couple years groundwork, construction has been underway since the summer to bring a $400+ million retail/residential/entertainment development to the DART's Park Lane Station. Cityplace West Village has several undeveloped parcels of land awaiting approval. In my opinion, these West Village pending projects will be the heart of Cityplace transit orientation as this phase of the development will flank a promenade from the subway entry/exit.

Additions to the Mockingbird station area have been announced - some apts or condos or something, but I think developers are holding off making the 'big' decisions for that area until the GW Bush presidential library site is announced this winter. If SMU hosts the library, I'm betting Mockingbird Station TODs will really expand....

Thanks for the info. Sounds like great things coming. I don't think Dallas has been particularly slow in this regard; These things take time, in most every city. We frequently see, on this board and elsewhere, many people attacking Houston's MetroRail for its failure to spur TOD, with only 2 1/2 years of operation.

[Ethanra]

Dallas got funding, because DART really plans well for the future, and has continued to meet its ridership numbers year after year. DART rail hasn't even reached its most populous corridor yet, nor has its current rail line population reached urban maturity. Most of the system's miles are still suburn, low density areas. I liken it more to Toronto's system than anything else(bare with me) as it will become more and more nodal(Large TOD development around each station) like Toronto. That's a future I like for a larger suburban city that will never become a Manhattan. DART can see that vision, and they connect the area with that vision and need. Not to mention their underrated political saavy. All I know is, the system is working no matter what the numbers may say( I really have no clue what they say).

Thanks for a good answer, The ideas of DART are great.

[JasonDFW]

Dallas and her existing and planned rail lines are impressive. I just don't understand how Dallas got funding though. How did you guys? Pass some help down here. 45 miles of light rail with 60,000 daily riders and Dallas is getting more funding. Houston 7.5 miles of light rail and 30,000+ riders and our leaders are still running around in circles about where and how rail should be placed.

Houston got more than its fair share of highway money for many years and Dallas likely got more than its share of rail money for several years... I imagine that's how it happened. So, Dallas has a lacking HOV system and Houston has a lacking rail system. In the next 5 years the Dallas HOV system will have significant upgrades and I believe the Houston rail or bart system will have similar upgrades.

Jason

[The Great Hizzy!]

Just for accuracy's sake... Houston's current average weekday rail ridership is over 40,000, give or take a handful of the homeless finding a "still fresh" day pass lying on the ground.

[musicman]

Just for accuracy's sake... Houston's current average weekday rail ridership is over 40,000, give or take a handful of the homeless finding a "still fresh" day pass lying on the ground.

no day pass required. just hop on!

[RedScare]

It doesn't have to be nothing, then something after the rail. It simply has to be oriented for transit. This is why a Victory can be used as an example. I don't say it is...........YET. A hospital can be an example if its oriented for transit and takes advantage of that stability.

My reading of the history of the Victory project never mentions that it was created to take advantage of a rail station. Hillwood smartly convinced DART to place a station at AAC for use during events. However, Victory would be built REGARDLESS if transit ever came to Victory. Therefore, Victory will never be TOD. TOD is a euphemism used by rail supporters and planners to describe the phenomenon of development occurring around a transit stop BECAUSE of the stop. Mockingbird is a great example. The other two, I am unfamiliar with, but sound like good examples. Victory is NOT an example of TOD, and never will be. It IS a good example of transit planners placing transit stops where the people are. That is good for DART and Dallas, but, it is not TOD, and it clearly is not what downtownguy832 described.

[Dallasboi]

name='RedScare' date='Wednesday, November 8th, 2006 @ 12:10pm' post='125400']My reading of the history of the Victory project never mentions that it was created to take advantage of a rail station. Hillwood smartly convinced DART to place a station at AAC for use during events. However, Victory would be built REGARDLESS if transit ever came to Victory. Therefore, Victory will never be TOD. TOD is a euphemism used by rail supporters and planners to describe the phenomenon of development occurring around a transit stop BECAUSE of the stop. Mockingbird is a great example. The other two, I am unfamiliar with, but sound like good examples. Victory is NOT an example of TOD, and never will be. It IS a good example of transit planners placing transit stops where the people are. That is good for DART and Dallas, but, it is not TOD, and it clearly is not what downtownguy832 described.

Oooooooooooooh OK!.........I get it......!!!! You are getting some kind of satisfaction out of sayingVictory is not T.O.D,and it NEVER will be.Even though with the train station just feet away it will be just as convenient as any other development that is considered to be T.O.D....in other words who cares that it won't be considered to be T.O.D, all that truely matters is that we will be able to board any train at any station and get off right in the middle of the action,just as Mockingbird station. Now that that's been said...You can respond with some smarty pants rebuttle on how you get no satisfaction out of saying that but at the same time you will never admitt that I'm right.........And Red I really do respect your views but you have to give me this one

[RedScare]

Oooooooooooooh OK!.........I get it......!!!! You are getting some kind of satisfaction out of sayingVictory is not T.O.D,and it NEVER will be.Even though with the train station just feet away it will be just as convenient as any other development that is considered to be T.O.D....in other words who cares that it won't be considered to be T.O.D, all that truely matters is that we will be able to board any train at any station and get off right in the middle of the action,just as Mockingbird station. Now that that's been said...You can respond with some smarty pants rebuttle on how you get no satisfaction out of saying that but at the same time you will never admitt that I'm right.........And Red I really do respect your views but you have to give me this one

Actually, dallasboi, I DO agree with you. It doesn't matter to me and you and the other DART (or METRO) riders which came first, the rail or the development, as long as it gores where we need to be.

My first point was merely to point out 832 was incorrect in stating that historic downtown plano grew up around the train station, as well as Victory was not planned around a station. My second point was merely to explain what Transit Oriented Development is...and, what it is not. Just because Victory does not fit the definition of TOD does not mean it will not be a great development, only that it doesn't fit the definition.

In Houston, neither Main Street nor the TMC are TODs either. The Smithlands apartment/retail project, if it gets built, WOULD be a TOD, but all of the TMC is not. Again, this means nothing to those who ride the rail, it is just semantics over the definition of some of the terms we throw around here.

So, mark me down as agreeing with you.....this time.

[slfunk]

My first point was merely to point out 832 was incorrect in stating that historic downtown plano grew up around the train station

This is just a history note, but the historic Plano area did build around the train station, the Interurban station that back then was a train that connected the farming community of Plano to the city of Dallas. This Interurban line ran up to McKinney and I believe shut down in the 60's. The present day Dart Station adjacent to the old depot. The depot is now a museum. The city of Plano back in the 2000 then began looking at ways to bring development downtown with anticipation of the Dart Rail Station. The plano council long thought of ways to do this, but saw the Dart Rail Station that could really set this off. I was part of that school team Plano city council sponsored to help study this. At that time in summer of 2001 they were finishing up the first phase of apartments which was to open about the same time as the station.

[RedScare]

This is just a history note, but the historic Plano area did build around the train station, the Interurban station that back then was a train that connected the farming community of Plano to the city of Dallas. This Interurban line ran up to McKinney and I believe shut down in the 60's. The present day Dart Station adjacent to the old depot. The depot is now a museum. The city of Plano back in the 2000 then began looking at ways to bring development downtown with anticipation of the Dart Rail Station. The plano council long thought of ways to do this, but saw the Dart Rail Station that could really set this off. I was part of that school team Plano city council sponsored to help study this. At that time in summer of 2001 they were finishing up the first phase of apartments which was to open about the same time as the station.

Got me on that one, funkster. That's some old-time TOD, right there. They just didn't use that term back then, I bet.

[slfunk]

Got me on that one, funkster. That's some old-time TOD, right there. They just didn't use that term back then, I bet.

I'm thinking they may have called it something different I also find it interesting that where we abandoned passenger rail lines back when, today a couple of stations are located or planned where some old tracks lay. For example the DART station at Fair Park is located where old trolley tracks use to drop people off, and Carrolton its downtown station use to be a depot area like downtown Plano.... Hmm old is new?

[Dallasboi]

Actually, dallasboi, I DO agree with you. It doesn't matter to me and you and the other DART (or METRO) riders which came first, the rail or the development, as long as it gores where we need to be.

My first point was merely to point out 832 was incorrect in stating that historic downtown plano grew up around the train station, as well as Victory was not planned around a station. My second point was merely to explain what Transit Oriented Development is...and, what it is not. Just because Victory does not fit the definition of TOD does not mean it will not be a great development, only that it doesn't fit the definition.

In Houston, neither Main Street nor the TMC are TODs either. The Smithlands apartment/retail project, if it gets built, WOULD be a TOD, but all of the TMC is not. Again, this means nothing to those who ride the rail, it is just semantics over the definition of some of the terms we throw around here.

So, mark me down as agreeing with you.....this time.

..Hell is officially frozen!!!! Just kiddin red

[dfwcre8tive]

Here's a new TOD that has been announced and about to start construction. Lake Highlands Town Center. A new DART station will be built on the Blue Line and the whole thing will be pedestrian oriented. "New construction will include over 2.3 million square feet of residential, retail, and office."

http://forum.dallasmetropolis.com/showpost...mp;postcount=40

[RedScare]

Is the Blue Line that curvy line on the right hand side of the drawing?

[TexasStar]

Is the Blue Line that curvy line on the right hand side of the drawing?

Don't give up the day job.

[RedScare]

Don't give up the day job.

I just figured out what you meant. I don't mean the creek, but the rail line.

[TexasStar]

I just figured out what you meant. I don't mean the creek, but the rail line.

Sorry, I thought you were just making fun of the fact that the rail alignment is anything but obvious in that diagram.

[dfwcre8tive]

Is the Blue Line that curvy line on the right hand side of the drawing?

Yes that's the Blue line to Downtown Garland. Lake Highlands station will be between the current White Rock and LBJ/Skillman stations. It was one of the deferred stations back in 1995-96 because community support was not there at the time. It was recently reconsidered with the approval of the 2030 plan and will be constructed when the Town Center is built in the next few years.

[zaphod]

Cool!

looks though like the station is only connected to the tod and not the surrounding area. I know most people around there arent going to use the way it looks but there couldve been at least at small parking lot I guess or even a way someone on a bike wouldnt have to go off pavement to get there.

But yeah, nobody outside the development will use it so its not important

[JasonDFW]

looks though like the station is only connected to the tod and not the surrounding area. I know most people around there arent going to use the way it looks but there couldve been at least at small parking lot I guess or even a way someone on a bike wouldnt have to go off pavement to get there.

But yeah, nobody outside the development will use it so its not important

Myself and others I've talked to who are currently going to the Park Lane station quite a distance away will use this, and we're not in the development. It will be a nice stroll down there. A lot is going on right now to make that a nicer walk as well.

Jason

[dfwcre8tive]

Exciting news!

Commuter train station at D/FW Airport is in the works

By GORDON DICKSON and DAVID WETHE

STAR-TELEGRAM STAFF WRITER

* Train station graphic

The world's third-busiest airport soon will be bustling with train riders, too.

Dallas/Fort Worth Airport officials say they'll build a train station between Terminals A and B in five to six years to connect trains from Fort Worth, Dallas and other Metroplex cities.

Now that Grapevine residents have approved a sales tax for rail, the Fort Worth Transportation Authority has the financial partner it needs to build a commuter rail line from southwest Fort Worth to Northeast Tarrant County.

By 2012, the line would reach D/FW's north end.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit officials say they'll bring light rail to the north end of the airport by 2013.

"Can you imagine getting on a train at Hulen Mall and getting all the way into D/FW Airport?" said Jeff Fegan, the airport's chief executive. "It's probably not a bad deal if you don't want to fight the traffic on the roadways. I think it will certainly make it a heck of a lot more convenient, and certainly it's the right thing to do for this region, especially the way highway congestion is."

A tunnel walkway with moving sidewalks would connect the T and DART systems and also lead to airport escalators and the terminals. The place would likely be decorated in DART's signature yellow on one side and the T's red and blue on the other.

A North Central Texas Council of Governments computer model estimates that 2,900 people per day would use the station. Of those, 60 percent would be transferring between the T and DART; the rest would include airport workers and air travelers.

A Plano student might ride trains to Texas Christian University. A south Dallas resident could shop or work at Grapevine Mills. People all over the Metroplex could get to the airport without a car.

"It should be an exciting station, a station with a lot of activity," said Chad Edwards, a council of governments planner. "Now people are going to have a viable option to a taxi or a rental car to get downtown. With two systems coming together and all the people at the airport, it's going to be a great option for commuters and visitors to our region, and people who work at the airport."

The T's commuter rail line would extend from southwest Fort Worth, through the hospital district, downtown and the Stockyards, then into Northeast Tarrant County. In addition to the D/FW station, there would be two other stops in Grapevine.

DART's planned orange line to D/FW would extend through Irving's Las Colinas.

The rail systems aren't compatible -- the T's trains would be diesel-powered, while DART's streetcarlike trains are electric -- but they would dead-end within easy walking distance of each other.

Riders could use either rail system and connecting buses with a single ticket. Today, a day pass for the T and DART costs $4.50.

The agencies already co-own the Trinity Railway Express, which counts about 8,000 riders per day, although many riders are counted twice. The TRE runs five miles south of D/FW's terminals and offers frequent shuttle service from the CentrePort station to the airport, but only a smattering of air travelers use it.

The new station on the north end of D/FW would be more popular for those traveling to the airport because it would be in the heart of the terminal area, planners say.

But local commuters may benefit the most from the easy transfers between the T and DART. Tarrant County residents who want to access the eastern Metroplex's light-rail system would no longer have to make their way to downtown Dallas. From downtown Fort Worth, they could get to D/FW in about a half-hour.

"Our plan envisions D/FW to be an intermodal hub, not just as a destination but a transfer point, just as happens in downtown Dallas and Fort Worth," said Michael Morris, transportation director for the council of governments.

Years in the making

Getting the station set up by 2012 shouldn't be a problem, airport officials say. About $60 million from the Texas Mobility Fund is earmarked to lay tracks to Terminals A and B.

For the T train, a new spur must be built from the Cotton Belt line in Grapevine to D/FW's Terminal B, about two miles to the south. The tracks would run parallel to the southbound airport service road, and the T's boarding platform would be built between the service road and the International Parkway main lanes.

DART's light-rail tracks and overhead electrical lines would run parallel to the northbound service road near Terminal A. DART and D/FW officials are still talking about how to get the tracks across the east airfield and into Irving.

The station will remain separate from Skylink, the airport's elevated train that serves people who have cleared airport security.

However, to make the rail station easier for airline passengers to use, airport officials may install common-use ticket counters near the train station, where passengers could check bags, go through security and then take Skylink to any terminal. Those plans will be sorted out in the next couple of years.

The station, expected to cost tens of millions of dollars, could be paid for with debt backed by ticket taxes or cash from natural-gas royalties, airport officials say.

Rail bandwagon

Connecting airports to rail lines is a growing national trend, and at least 15 major airports already have direct rail access. Many cities are battling mandates to clean up polluted air and unclog highways, and rail helps relieve the pressure, said Scott Wintner, a spokesman for Airports Council International-North America.

D/FW has about 60 million passengers a year and will continue to grow, said Steve Van Beek, an airport adviser and director of Jacobs Consultancy.

"We may need the transit system," he said, "just to provide the relief."

Who will ride the train?

About 2,920 people would pass through the D/FW Airport rail station on a typical day, according to computerized modeling projections.

About 1,360 would come from Tarrant County: 300 airport workers, 870 people transferring to a DART train and 190 people arriving for other reasons, including air travel.

About 1,560 people would arrive daily from Dallas: 240 workers, 890 people transferring to the T and 430 arriving for other reasons, including air travel.

SOURCE: North Central Texas Council of Governments

Gordon Dickson, 817-685-3816 gdickson@star-telegram.com David Wethe, 817-685-3803 dwethe@star-telegram.com

[713 To 214]

DART Rail Sparks yet more Transit Oriented Development (TOD)

Intangible benefits like TOD can't be ignored when considering rail construction/expansion.

__________________________________________________________________________

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dw...ne.bc65f57.html

Work will start this month on the first phase of the 33-acre retail and mixed-use complex.

Park Lane project planned

12:17 PM CST on Thursday, December 14, 2006

By STEVE BROWN / The Dallas Morning news

Houston-based PM Realty Group said Thursday that it has formed a partnership with a Chicago investor to develop three residential buildings in a North Dallas project.

PM Realty Group has been working with Harvest Partners on the development of the 33-acre Park Lane retail and mixed-use complex at North Central Expressway and Park Lane.

Houston-based PM Realty Group said Thursday that it has formed a partnership with a Chicago investor to develop a three-building residential complex at North Central Expressway and Park Lane.

Work will start this month on the first phase: a 20-story tower with 62 residences and a 15-story tower with 218 homes. An adjoining four-story building will have 45 loft apartments.

The developers plan to have the first homes ready in summer 2008.

The combination of the residential buildings, retail and DART's adjoining light rail station " will make Park Lane one of the most desirable places to live in Dallas," PM Realty president Rick V. Kirk said in a statement. . . .

[dfwcre8tive]

There are new renderings of the 3 Carrollton stations that will open as part of the Green line in 2010.

http://www.ci.carrollton.tx.us/development...ART_AD_Home.asp

[dfwcre8tive]

DART's 2030 plan is now available online...

http://www.dart.org/2030plan/DART2030PlanJan2007.pdf

[lockmat]

Have the lines in Dallas created TOD?

[rantanamo]

Despite the misguidance in this post, yes it has. Mockingbird Station and Plano's Eastside Station are the two that are complete. Under construction are the 2 Galatyn park projects in Richardson, Park Lane Place mentioned above, Cityville Southwest and the u/c complex near Baylor Hospital. If you want to expand specific TOD to building density around station areas, you get Las Colinas(where most of the new mixed-use development is going up around the future line and developers talk aobut importance of being next to the line), DTD where projects like Mosaic and the Merryvale site, Victory and the West Village Cityplace area. The last mentioned areas have been struck down here as existing with or without the rail, which is true, but it is also true that in Toronto's style they are dense growing areas of seperate projects that are arising around the areas of the rail stations. Whether or not specific TODs they are certainly going to make a rail-full life much much easier.

rving says urban district will make people 'forget' stadium

$2 billion plan for Cowboys site compared to Dallas' Uptown

11:45 PM CST on Thursday, January 11, 2007

By BRANDON FORMBY / The Dallas Morning News

After the Dallas Cowboys leave Irving for Arlington, Texas Stadium won't last much longer.

Irving city officials announced Thursday their plans to build an expansive urban district, complete with a DART rail station, hotels, civic buildings, residences and a park above State Highway 114 on the current stadium site.

The project, expected to be complete by 2022, will be worth an estimated $2 billion. The first phase is scheduled to be completed by 2012, three years after the Cowboys leave the city.

Also Online

Staff writer Ty A. Allison contributed to this report.

E-mail bformby@dallasnews.com

[dfwcre8tive]

Authority looks to accelerate rail project

07:12 AM CDT on Monday, April 2, 2007

By Monty Miller Jr. / Staff Writer

http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dw...2.23661662.html

The Denton County Transportation Authority is working to bring its regional passenger rail line to Denton as soon as 2010, three years earlier than projected.

The board of directors wants to fund the project without using as much federal funding, DCTA President Jon Hedrick said.