Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson backs $398 million park bond money request

Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson Monday launched a drive for $398 million in bond money to support his priority of better parks, one of three goals he set out in June for his final four-year term.

The new Dallas Parks Coalition campaign joins a list of other groups seeking a total that exceeds the borrowing limit the city can afford.  

Mayor Johnson wore a park ranger hat to dramatize his commitment to improving parks.  He said it is for families like his growing up in Dallas, that could not afford country clubs.

“That’s why I’m so personally fired up about it,” Johnson said.

Dallas Parks and Recreation Director John Jenkins, a 30-year parks department veteran, praised Johnson’s support.

“I never met any mayor that’s been so supportive of this park system the way this mayor has been,” Jenkins said.

In April Johnson appointed a greening czar to help find more city land that can quickly be converted to park space.

He’s been pushing completion of the 5 Mile Creek Greenbelt in southern Dallas.

The city recently acquired the Big Cedar Nature Preserve, which cyclists enjoy in far southwest Dallas.

A Dallas Water Commons project is planned near the Trinity River.

A new deck has been constructed over the freeway across from the Dallas Zoo, but plans call for completing the Southern Gateway Park there.

April Allen with the Southern Gateway Foundation is also part of the Dallas Parks Coalition.

“We all win when these vital amenities are created and improved,” Allen said. “We’re here today advocating for increased parks funding for the city as a whole.”

At Monday's press conference, Robert Kent with the Trust for Public Land mentioned $398 million as the group’s target for those and other park projects in a planned 2024 Dallas public improvement bond referendum.

“But the proposition is about so much more than playgrounds and trails. It will help our city prepare for the climate crisis, help the next generation grow strong and healthy, and attract equitable economic development,” Kent said.

A list shared later showed the parks department request increased to $399 million at an August 22^nd meeting.

The Dallas Parks Coalition request is more than twice the $125 million the city manager recommended for parks in March.

“Unlike some areas, where we try to do good in this city, it can be a little competitive. I think when it comes to greening our city, we have an amazing amount of unity and cooperation. I don’t see the competitiveness. I see us working together. So, I have no doubt, we are going to be amazingly successful,” Johnson said.

But there is intense competition from many other groups for a share of the borrowed money, which the city’s chief financial officer says must be capped at $1 billion in a 2024 referendum for voters.

The Dallas Housing Coalition wants $200 million for affordable housing construction which is severely lacking in Dallas.

The Police and Fire Departments want more than $700 million for new stations and training academies.

Dallas Animal Services wants $114 million for a new animal shelter.

The City Manager recommended $485 million for street and transportation projects and another $90 million for flood control, libraries, cultural and other city facilities.

The total of those is $2.017 billion, more than twice the borrowing limit.

Mayor Johnson stood with two other city council members at the press conference Monday, Paul Ridley and Jesse Moreno.

“As a collective, we will decide what we do with this bond program, but I wanted to make sure parks are front and center,” Johnson said.

The man with the park ranger hat is just one vote of the 15-member city council but he is campaigning for support on this issue.

The city council last Wednesday defeated Johnson's request for a larger property tax rate reduction than the city manager recommended, but that can be reconsidered next month.

The Dallas bond referendum was planned for May of 2024. 

Some city council members have suggested pushing it back to November to be sure that financing is also arranged for a $3 billion unfunded Police and Fire Pension liability.