| DART could arrive early Agency cautious but optimistic 06/01/2001 By April M. Washington / The Dallas Morning News
Light-rail trains could roll into downtown Plano several months ahead of
their scheduled June 2003 debut, DART officials said this week.
The transit agency offered reporters a tour Wednesday to showcase
progress on the Richardson and Plano rail segment.
"We are under budget and, at this point in time, we anticipate we'll
open the section in Plano early," said Gary Thomas, DART senior vice
president of project management. "But I'm hesitant to say exactly when.
A lot of people will look at the light-rail stations and think they look
completed and wonder why we can't operate the trains. We still have a
lot of work that needs to be done."
Transit agency officials tempered their optimism by saying work has been
slow along on a three-mile leg of the light-rail line between Park Lane
and Interstate 635 in Dallas.
"The challenge is when you have a vast project, you have several
different contractors working on different portions of the line," Mr.
Thomas said. "It's idealistic to think they're all going to do a good
job, but there are some contractors that haven't done as good of a job
as we would like them to do.
"They're not maintaining the initial schedule. Now we're looking at
areas where we can accelerate the work to keep the work on schedule or
ahead of schedule."
DART is building 24 miles of extensions to its nearly 5-year-old,
20-mile light-rail starter system in Dallas. The 12.5-mile extension of
the North Central rail line runs parallel north from Park Lane Station
to two Plano stations – one at 15th Street in historic downtown and
another at Archerwood Street between Park Boulevard and Parker Road.
$800 million investment
Through mid-2000, more than $800 million in private money has been
invested in development along DART's 20-mile starter line in Dallas,
according to the transit agency. That trend continues along the 24 miles
of new track, particularly in Plano and Richardson.
In Plano, several historic downtown buildings are getting face-lifts in
anticipation of the arrival of DART's light-rail line.
Earlier this week, Dallas developer Robert Shaw gave a guided tour of
East Side Village, an apartment and business development near the
planned rail station in downtown Plano. The project's first phase is
slated to open in September. The second phase, a 3.3-acre site boarded
by 14th Street, Avenue K, 15th Street and Municipal Avenue, is expected
to break ground around the same time. Together, the two projects are
expected to bring more than 600 apartments and 40,000 square feet of
retail and business development to Avenue K, near DART's planned
light-rail station.
"Without DART, you probably wouldn't see what's happening here,'' Mr.
Shaw said.
The Plano stations are expected to attract 3,000 riders daily and
bolster downtown development and business.
"The light rail has become synonymous with development," said Plano
Mayor Jeran Akers, flanked by construction crews working on the 15th
Street light-rail station. "Plano, as well as other U.S. cities, has
struggled to rebuild its downtown area. It's a major step in helping us
revitalize downtown."
New growth
Since the 1970s, Plano's growth has been primarily to the west and north.
Generally, overlooked is the neighborhood of old commercial and retail
buildings clustered around East 15th Street, just east of North Central
Expressway.
But in the last two years, about half a dozen turn-of-the century
buildings have been purchased for an estimated $3 million, city
officials said.
In Richardson, where the trains are scheduled to begin running next
June, 12 acres stand reserved next to the Galatyn Park rail station for
"mixed-use development," such as build-to-suit office, restaurants,
retail and service-oriented shops. But nothing is under construction.
The focus at Galatyn Park so far has been on the public/private
partnership that brought the new Marriott Renaissance Hotel and other
public projects, said Don Dillard, vice president of real estate for
Hunt Petroleum. Mr. Dillard, who has been the driving force behind
transit-oriented development at the Galatyn Park urban Center, said he
pictures a residential component in his development, but is waiting for
city officials' approval.
Common trend
Commercial development and transit villages are sprouting around train
stations nationwide. The concept of developing homes, retail and
businesses around rail lines isn't new. In the late 19th century, towns
growing up around rail lines coming out of cities such as Boston and Los
Angeles. Many downtown urban centers started to decline as the nation's
focus shifted to highways and as communities sprawled. Transit-oriented
development regained speed in the 1990s when funds increased for planning
and construction.
"We need strong urban centers in Plano, where we can pull together
businesses, retail, arts and pedestrian-type environments," said Frank
Turner, executive director of Plano's development business center. "The
basic corneal was already here. With the arrival of light-rail, I think
we are well positioned for a decade of development in the downtown area."
Staff writer Sarah Post contributed to this report.
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