The North Central Texas Council of Governments (NCTCOG), the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT), the City of Dallas & Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation (aka Klyde Warren Park) have all partnered together in completing the original vision of this beloved community green space.
Klyde Warren Park has transformed Dallas’ urban core since opening in 2012. It offers more than 1,300 free programs and events each year and celebrates inclusion and diversity with guests from around the city and the world. Since the opening, KWP has generated $658 million in incremental property taxes for the City, County, DISD, Dallas College, and Parkland.
Klyde Warren Park ranks among a small handful of the City’s most successful public-private partnerships, and we have an opportunity to amplify our success by increasing the footprint of the park with the addition of the two decks – Klyde Warren Park Phase 2.0 (KWP 2.0).
The planned expansion of Klyde Warren Park (KWP) will cover the last recessed portion of the Woodall Rodgers Freeway. This will allow the park to create a continuous deck from Pearl Street to west of Akard Street. The completion of this project will deliver:
Estrada Hinojosa serves as Financial Advisor to the Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation for Phase 2.0 of the Klyde Warren Park. The Foundation successfully secured Private, Federal, State, and Local grant funding programs for Phase Two.
The Funding Gap: When the construction costs were reported to exceed $100 million, it became evident that the approximately $80 million in cash and grants secured fell short of the construction budget. The Park’s operating budget has historically been funded by tax levy from the Downtown Public Improvement District (PID). At that time, we suggested debt financing to cover the construction funding shortfall.
The Solution (SIB Loan): Because the Park Deck is to be constructed over a roadway, the project qualifies for assistance from The Texas Department of Transportation State Infrastructure Bank (SIB) loan program. The SIB loan program is a subsidized innovative mechanism to assist communities with transportation-related projects. We applied to the SIB loan program on behalf of the Foundation, and the application was successfully approved by TxDOT this month.
The gap in funding is now covered at favorable terms:
The Foundation chose to seek an increase in the PID levy from the City and the PID property owners as the SIB loan repayment mechanism.
