Park and Recreation Department staff have outlined a plan to bring development to areas of Fair Park currently occupied by parking lots.
At a Park and Recreation Board meeting Thursday, staff outlined a plan to potentially develop parking areas on the eastern side of the 277-acre campus into hotels, retail space, sports venues, and multipurpose entertainment facilities.
Senior Deputy Park and Recreation Director Ryan O’Connor told board members that developing the underutilized lots “could be the piece of the puzzle that we’ve been seeking for so long.” While the plans aren’t new, staff told board members Thursday they could begin seeking proposals soon and that there isin development on the campus. O’Connor first laid out large-scale development as one of the park department’s five foundational pillars for revitalizing Fair Park at a park board meeting in October. In an interview after the meeting, he said the department has been looking at industry best practices and identifying non-traditional revenue opportunities for Fair Park in recent years.“Once we had the opportunity to resume operations in Fair Park, we started trying to apply some of those lessons learned at Fair Park,” said O’Connor, who also emphasized that any potential development wouldn’t threaten existing structures., the nonprofit organization that had overseen Fair Park since 2019. City officials’ decision to cancel the contract came after a 2024 audit revealed that the Oak View Group, a private company contracted by Fair Park First to run day-to-day operations at the grounds, had misappropriated $5.7 million in funds meant for operations. . Questions over how to activate the campus year-round and organically fund maintenance have long plagued the city — issues which helped drive Fair Park First Contract forward.“The city has never been able to provide the funding that we really need out there to really take care of those historic buildings,” O’Connor said. “The city has tried it a bunch of different ways. We’ve tried the fully privatized model. We’ve tried the fully public model. We just need to find ways to generate more revenue out there. And with that concentration of surface parking lots out there that are only used 24 days a year, it just seems like something that should be pursued as an opportunity.”, has been among the most visible signs of the trouble facing Fair Park in recent years. Staff told board members at the meeting that the city has implemented a proactive maintenance plan to address issues as they arise and has compiled an estimate of deferred maintenance costs at Fair Park. O’Connor said he couldn’t provide the number off the top of his head, but called it a “ significant amount of money.” The City Council approved a contract for over $150,000 in repairs to the Esplanade Fountain in May. Repairs have since been completed, O’Connor told the Parks Board Thursday.The plan presented Thursday calls for revenue from a potential “Leisure, Entertainment and Lodging District” to be redirected to fully fund maintenance and improvements at Fair Park through lease agreements or other mechanisms. It also recommends that all potential development “complement not contrast” Fair Park’s existing character and comply with existing preservation standards. “It’s important to emphasize that whatever opportunity does come needs to be complementary to Fair Park,” O’Connor said. “It needs to reflect the historic character of the park and all the very important historic preservation principles and things that are in place there.” The area identified in the Thursday presentation for potential development is an expanse of parking lots currently bordered to the south by Dos Equis Pavilion and the planned site of a. Development may bring an operator for the community park and eliminate costs for the city, O’Connor told the board. Any development would likely include structured parking, which could help offset the loss of the lots during the State Fair of Texas.When asked what he could potentially see going into the park, O’Connor said a hotel would benefit visitors during major events and that a multipurpose development could catalyze the revitalization of other nearby attractions.“It’s things that blend in with what’s currently there,” O’Connor said. “So think of Western themes, right? Perhaps some sort of multi-purpose facility that could have rodeos, for instance, or athletic events, but could also be utilized for smaller concerts at night, things like restaurant-retail, and then sports venues. Perhaps there’s opportunities to reutilize the Coliseum as a complement to some of the things that may come in the future.” Potential development would be open only to uses compatible with park operations and compliant with current or future zoning overlays, staff told board members. The proposal calls for potential development to benefit the surrounding community through regular reporting on local hiring, workforce development and economic impact. Along with South Dallas, O’Connor said the plan would benefit Fair Park partners such as the Dallas Historical Society and the African American Museum. “We have all these incredible cultural partners that, if we’re driving people to the campus and also give them opportunities to go see these other incredible things, that’s good for all of us,” O’Connor said. The push to examine development in Fair Park is part of a broader initiative by the department to activate the campus year-round — not just during the State Fair’s 24-day run — which would help the grounds operate sustainably. Since taking over in 2025, the department has begun hosting weekly Farmers Markets and has scheduled high school football games in the Cotton Bowl for the first time since at least 2020. The city also approved ato handle marketing and event bookings for the venue on Wednesday, which O’Connor said will help stimulate activity at Fair Park. The department will brief the city council on the development plan at a future meeting of the Parks, Trails and the Environment Committee, which is currently scheduled to meet next on April 4. Members of the park board were largely receptive to the plan. District 14 Board member Rudy Karimi, however, said the city needs to tread carefully with development opportunities.“There’s a fine line that we’re going to walk, and we have to walk this very, very carefully,” Karimi said at the meeting. “When you look around what’s happening in our city right now, the discussions around what we’re going to do with City Hall and the development there, this creates a lot of disruption within people. It creates a lot of heartache.” “It’s going to be magnified times 10 when we talk about Fair Park and real estate-driven development. I think it’s OK to consider it. There’s no doubt in my mind why it’s needed, but there is a very, very fine line that we need to walk with our public.” Park and Recreation Director John Jenkins responded by saying public engagement will be crucial to whatever comes next for Dallas’ beleaguered crown jewel. “Fair Park has probably been the toughest political issue to solve in this city,” Jenkins said. “And I assure you, we’re going to be very methodical, very strategic, and that’s why today, we’re going to make sure we’re constantly putting it out before the public.”If you value independent journalism, please consider making a contribution to support our continued coverage of essential stories and to investigate issues that matter.
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