In September, Viridian district board members said that a specially formed committee<\/a> was looking for ways to fund the beach redevelopment into a boardwalk meant to dissuade crowds, such as the gathering that forced officials to close it<\/a> in June.<\/p>\n Committee chair Phil Reinsch told the board Dec. 9 that committee members had little luck getting grant money to help pay for the plan.\u00a0<\/p>\n The district may have to foot the bill for the redevelopment alone, should other funding options fail, Reinsch later said.<\/p>\n In late May, an incident involving 300 teens crowded on the beach led to a temporary closure. Eleven days later, the board voted to keep it closed indefinitely<\/a>.<\/p>\n Since then, the beach redevelopment committee has been looking for ways to apply for grants to pay for the boardwalk.<\/p>\n One option the committee is seriously considering is the Arlington Tomorrow Foundation, the city\u2019s charity arm<\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n Reinsch said he fears some council members who sit on the foundation\u2019s board may feel the beach plan doesn\u2019t merit grant funding since Viridian municipal district brings in a large amount of tax revenue that is separate from the city\u2019s budgeted funding.<\/p>\n Reinsch later clarified that sentiment was not founded on comments from the foundation or council members and that in early discussions the committee had gotten positive feedback from the foundation\u2019s executive director, Carolyn Mentesana.<\/p>\n Mentesana was not available for a comment ahead of publication.<\/p>\n \u201cThe conjecture is that, simply, they may feel that we get plenty of tax dollars, why should we use some of our charitable foundation to support them further?\u201d Reinsch said in a Dec. 18 interview with the Arlington Report.<\/p>\n The committee will apply for a grant through the foundation \u201cif we have a sense that it would be approved,\u201d Reinsch said.<\/p>\n Another issue the committee has run into is finding a nonprofit it can partner with to receive the grant, a necessary piece according to the foundation, Reinsch said.<\/p>\n At one point, the committee reached out to the River Legacy Foundation, a nonprofit organization that seeks grants for the River Legacy Park and nature center.<\/p>\n Steve Cavender, the board president of the River Legacy Foundation, said that the beach committee approached him and the foundation to use its 501(c)(3), or charitable organization, status to apply for a grant through the Arlington Tomorrow Foundation.<\/p>\n \u201cWe cannot legally allow that to happen,\u201d Cavender said in an interview with the Arlington Report.\u00a0<\/p>\n Cavender said the move would put River Legacy Foundation\u2019s nonprofit status at risk and that the board suggested that Viridian or the beach committee create its own nonprofit to apply for the grant.<\/p>\n Reinsch said there are two other funding mechanisms in the district that could help pay for the project:\u00a0<\/p>\n The community enhancement fund, which is made up of a portion of the sale of properties in Viridian and helps pay for improvements across the neighborhood, Reinsch said. Viridian district board chair David DeVries, who serves as a nonvoting member of the committee, was not available to comment on the redevelopment plans or whether the district could pay for them through these funds.<\/p>\n Until the committee and board can find a solution, new gates will be placed around the beach, doing away with the ropes that cordoned off the area.<\/p>\n The move comes as the district\u2019s management changes hands from The Nehemiah Company, run by the original developer Robert Kembel, to Blue Line Management & Consulting Services.<\/p>\n Those gates had not been installed, and the ropes had been taken down at the time of writing.<\/p>\n DeVries said the gates are a temporary solution to an issue that will be addressed in the future, once funding is secured.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cTruthfully, the biggest thing is going to be finding money to make it something that\u2019s attractive, that we all want,\u201d DeVries said Dec. 9.\u00a0<\/p>\n Chris Moss is a reporting fellow for the Arlington Report. Contact him at chris.moss@fortworthreport.org<\/a>.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/The-Beach-Design-L-0.01-PRELIMINARY-DESIGN-IMAGES-no-LA-name_page-0001-1024x701.jpg\")
A preliminary design shows what the Beach at Lake Viridian could look like in the future. (Courtesy photo | Viridian MMD)<\/p>\n
\nAn excess money fund, which is made up of money previously allocated for other projects but left unspent, Reinsch said.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/12\/ViridianClosed2_Moss-1024x683.jpg\")
A sign leans against rope cordoning off the Beach at Lake Viridian on Sept. 4, 2025. (Chris Moss | Arlington Report)<\/p>\n