2 revamped parks will reshape the feel of downtown Fort Worth.

October 6,2022

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SEE FULL STAR-TELEGRAM ARTICLE BY HARRISON MANTAS HERE.

It’s still years away, but new conceptual designs to revitalize two city parks north of downtown Fort Worth are giving a clearer sense of what’s to come. The $34 million project will update the sparsely used Paddock Park by adding trees, water features, signage and providing a connection between downtown Fort Worth and the Trinity River. Paddock Park, which sits just north of the Tarrant County Courthouse, will be expanded into the fork separating north and southbound traffic off the Main Street bridge, and a crosswalk will connect it to Heritage Park Plaza.

The photos also give a look into plans to develop the bluff below Heritage Park.
One feature called “the balcony” will sit at the top of the bluff and allow visitors to look out across the Trinity River through Panther Island into the north side. This communal space could be rented out for events such as weddings and will be unlike any other public space in Fort Worth, according to Downtown Fort Worth Inc. president Andy Taft, who led a presentation Tuesday for the City Council. The plan also calls for creating a serpentine footpath called “the canopy” that would connect the top of the bluff to river bank, and will feature plaques giving visitors insights into the history of Fort Worth.

“We can tell the heritage of Fort Worth in this place where Fort Worth was founded,” Taft said. Construction of the new parks is scheduled to start in October 2024 with the tentative opening date slated for November 2026.