About The AIAPrograms & Initiatives

Richard Morgan, AIA
HLM Design, Dallas

AIA Dallas has been widely praised for its central role in the largest public works project in Dallas’s history—the redevelopment of its Trinity River Corridor.

Like many American cities, Dallas had traditionally turned its back to its river corridor. Residents regarded the river as a smelly, muddy, dangerous place to be avoided. But when floods brought artists and photographers to its levees to capture the skyline’s watery reflections, the river spawned dreams of a beautiful downtown waterfront. Those images, along with promises of parks, lakes, environmental restoration, economic development, flood protection, and relief from traffic congestion, helped to pass a local bond initiative and secure commitments for major state and federal funding.

As more detailed plans for the project were developed, many community members thought the plans emphasized flood control and highway development to the detriment of recreational and environmental uses. Members of AIA Dallas were similarly divided on the merits of the redevelopment plans. The component’s Government Affairs committee decided to take action. They formed an unbiased, blue-ribbon advisory panel of AIA members and subjected them to three days of expert presentations on all aspects of the Trinity Corridor Plan. The panel produced a critique of the project that served as the component’s position. It recommended that an eminent urban design team be commissioned to create a “grand urban vision” for the Trinity Corridor that would guide decisions about its redevelopment. AIA Dallas’s position was aired publicly in a well-attended symposium organized by the component.

A newly elected mayor took note of the AIA’s position and asked the component and two other civic organizations to form a three-person leadership team to raise private funds and commission an urban-design review of the proposed plans. This “triumvirate” soon raised more than a half-million dollars, conducted a selection process, and commissioned an urban-design study that sought to create a long-term vision for the corridor.

The results of the process and the study were spectacular. The new plan not only improved the project but also unified a divided community. Like its predecessor, the new, balanced vision plan is a huge, complex project requiring more than $1.7 billion in public funds and involving a long list of local, state, and federal agencies.

The Trinity River Corridor Project has been as emotionally and politically charged as any issue in local memory. Many people credit AIA Dallas with saving a critically important project that was threatened by widespread community opposition. The dedication of a six-member committee of politically naïve, volunteer architects played a major role in reshaping the project and making Dallas a more livable community. Not only will the community benefit, but AIA Dallas is being asked to provide advice and assistance on a broad range of urban design issues. Success is sweet!