Smart Growth Dallas, a first of its kind initiative, was developed by the City of Dallas in partnership with The Trust for Public Land, buildingcommunityWORKSHOP, and the Texas Trees Foundation. The goal of Smart Growth Dallas is to help the City of Dallas increase its environmental, economic, and social resilience. As the City of Dallas’ population continues to grow, Smart Growth Dallas can address the challenges of providing healthcare, water supply, transportation, heat waves, flood control, and equity. Already in its second phase, Smart Growth Dallas is expanding on its first phase mapping and data analysis to build partnerships to provide green benefits to the community of Dallas.
How does Smart Growth Dallas Work?
Smart Growth Dallas relies heavily on interactive mapping software, “The Decision Support Tool,” which allows users to make strategic, data-driven decisions to help meet community needs. It brings together more than 100 datasets to help pinpoint where green assets are located to combat urban heat islands, provide flood protection, enhance mobility, and improve public health. The platform is helping Dallas use green assets to address five key challenges: Cool, Connect, Absorb+Protect, Health, and Equity.
COOL: Reduce the urban heat island effect in Dallas by increasing the tree canopy, thereby creating shady green spaces, and decreasing the heat absorption by buildings and impervious surfaces.
CONNECT: Link Dallas through a system of trails and transit lines to link residents to popular destinations such as retail and jobs.
ABSORB+PROTECT: Create priority zones to reduce flooding, absorb rainfall, and recharge drinking water, allowing the City of Dallas to identify areas to protect vulnerable infrastructure, neighborhoods, and residents from riverine flooding.
HEALTH: Identify opportunities where green infrastructure can improve physical and environmental conditions for residents with preexisting health conditions.
EQUITY: Locates the opportunities where Green Infrastructure projects can bring environmental landscape benefits to underserved and disadvantaged communities.
Implementation
The Smart Growth for Dallas platform includes powerful tools to search, query, and sort its various data and analyses, allowing users to identify intersections and opportunities for synergy. For example, users can search for all parcels of land within the City of Dallas that are vacant, larger than 2-acres, located within a health priority zone, and publicly owned. Determining future locations for a public health clinic can be done by using this specific information.
Project Success
Smart Growth Dallas is a successful tool that has helped shape a healthier, more connected, and more resilient Dallas. The Decision Support Tool has allowed data-driven decisions to promote park and tree planning and Green Infrastructure installations throughout Dallas. The tool has also helped expand the Dallas park system by influencing the 2017 bond for parkland acquisitions and enabling joint agreements between two school districts to allow 32 campuses to use parks for after-hours childcare.
In conclusion, Smart Growth Dallas, a public planning tool, has laid the foundation for greening Dallas by helping the City to generate new funds for parks and investing heavily in a high-need, park-poor community. Smart Growth for Dallas is enabling park acquisition, trail development, and green infrastructure installation across the City.
