{"id":427487,"date":"2026-09-05T22:00:23","date_gmt":"2026-09-05T22:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/427487\/"},"modified":"2026-09-05T22:00:23","modified_gmt":"2026-09-05T22:00:23","slug":"dallas-officials-say-fair-park-plan-is-working","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/427487\/","title":{"rendered":"Dallas officials say Fair Park plan is working"},"content":{"rendered":"

Nearly a year after resuming control of the grounds<\/a>, Dallas officials are touting gains made at Fair Park. However, millions of dollars in deferred maintenance still need to be addressed. <\/p>\n

Described by the Dallas Park and Recreation Director in March as \u201cthe toughest political issue to solve in this city,\u201d Fair Park came back under city control in 2025<\/a>. Fountain ducts were broken, paint was chipped and A\/C units were on their last legs when the park department took over management last September, but now, they say progress has been made.<\/p>\n

At a Thursday meeting of the Park and Recreation board, park department officials gave one of the most comprehensive updates yet on strides made since resuming control of the home of the State Fair of Texas.<\/p>\n

When the city resumed control last year, the deferred maintenance total stemming from years of neglect stood at roughly $48 million, according to the briefing. Officials have made gains on long-needed maintenance projects, park staff told the board, which is why the total estimate for deferred maintenance at the park now stands at $44 million. It\u2019s a dent, but after years of stagnation and decay, the department is taking whatever progress it can get.<\/p>\n

Sign up for the This Week\u2019s Top Stories newsletter to get the latest stories delivered to your inbox<\/p>\n

THANK YOU!<\/p>\n

You’re all set.<\/p>\n

CLOSE\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom where we were, to where we are today, it\u2019s pretty dramatic,\u201d Deputy Park Director Ryan O\u2019connor told the board.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Fixing what\u2019s foundationally broken<\/p>\n

Fair Park, a sprawling 277-acre campus of architecturally significant Art Deco exposition halls, museums and entertainment venues, has long flustered city officials seeking a\u00a0long-term solution to sustainably maintain the grounds in good condition<\/a>. Plans to shift toward a more privatized model for management\u00a0of the grounds infamously floundered\u00a0under<\/a> a public-private partnership with Fair Park First, a nonprofit contracted to manage the campus in 2019. One of the nonprofit\u2019s vendors<\/a>, the Oak View Group, was later found to have misused $5.7 million in donor funds after an audit, which ultimately contributed to the city\u2019s decision to terminate the contract.<\/p>\n

As Director John Jenkins told the park board and has said previously, privatization fell short at Fair Park, as did city-run management<\/a>. That\u2019s why the park\u2019s future will rely on a hybrid model with city-led management of large-scale projects and maintenance \u2014 something which suffered under private management. Partnering with nonprofit or private entities could, as the department hopes, create revenue, activate underused buildings and draw crowds year-round, which is already happening, Jenkins said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we\u2019re seeing that we laid out a plan one year later you are actually seeing the results,\u201d Jenkins said. <\/p>\n

The department has focused on stabilizing operations at the park, department leadership told the board, and will continue to pursue partnerships with long-term contracts to turn the campus into a year-round hub of activity. More partners will create more revenue, Jenkins said, which the department hopes will help the grounds become self-sustaining<\/a>. Jenkins has been outspoken in his desire to create independent revenue streams across the system at a time when\u00a0the city is making large cuts to general-fund departments\u00a0amid declining revenues and rising costs.<\/p>\n

\u201cMoving to a model built on strong public-private partnerships, community-focused programming, and a commitment to transparency and accountability was the right call for Fair Park,\u201d Adam Bazaldua, who represents the Fair Park area on city council, said in a release. \u201cThis first year has been about getting the fundamentals right, investing in the park, creating economic development opportunities and ensuring it remains active and accessible year-round.\u201d<\/p>\n

Fixing what\u2019s literally broken <\/p>\n

Since taking over operations last year, the department has resolved $3.7 million in deferred maintenance while keeping costs within an $18.6 million budget, Fair Park General Manager Brett Wulke told the board. Funding for projects completed around the park came from the department\u2019s general fund allocation, multiyear funds and money from past bond programs, according to the briefing.<\/p>\n

The African American Museum has received $4 million in repairs over the past year, leadership told the board, including a complete overhaul of the building\u2019s lighting system funded by a Transportation and Public Works grant. Roughly 13,000 square feet of concrete has been replaced in front of the music hall, and repairs have also been made to the water wheel fountain at the Old Mill Inn. <\/p>\n

\"ANo, the visuals offered were not substantial. But officials say that, at this point, they wouldn\u2019t be, as much of the work has been behind the scenes.<\/p>\n

Employees have begun power washing building facades and other concrete structures to remove stains and wear. While the briefing included photos of a few completed projects, Wulke said they couldn\u2019t offer more visuals because much of the work has been incremental, especially with projects like heating pipe replacement and HVAC repairs.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m not gonna have a lot of pretty pictures this time around \u2019cause a lot of this is in the background, but it is vital to lay the foundation to move us forward,\u201d Wulke said.<\/p>\n

Fair Park has received several historic designations, including being only one of two National Historic Landmarks<\/a> in the city of Dallas, with Dealey Plaza being the other. As a result, more visible projects come with additional hurdles. The department plans to restore sculptures and portico murals and has submitted a list of paint colors for approval by the Fair Park Task Force, the Office of Preservation, and the Texas Historical Commission, according to the briefing.<\/p>\n

The department is also working on major repairs to Fair Park\u2019s water and irrigation system. Officials told the board that replacements are 90% complete, after which water use could be cut by 30% through reducing overspraying and pooling. Those repairs will also pave the way for future landscaping projects to further improve the grounds, Wulke said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"cottonAerial shot of Cotton Bowl Stadium at Fair Park, where 1994 World Cup matches were played. <\/p>\n

Still, the $44 million in deferred total remains staggering, and some advocates have questioned whether it truly reflects the cost of restoring the grounds. Routine maintenance also remains, which the department is looking to supplement through a long-term contract with an outside entity. Voters approved a 2% hotel occupancy tax allocation for the upkeep of the Convention Center and Fair Park in 2022, which officials are counting on for future projects. In 2025, the Cotton Bowl received a $140 million renovation, the largest investment in the stadium\u2019s history, which was partially financed by the hotel tax allocation.<\/p>\n

\u201cDon\u2019t take the foot off the pedal, don\u2019t take it off,\u201d JR Huerta, District 1 park board member, said. \u201cI know it\u2019s gonna be a lot more work, but we got a long way to go still.\u201d<\/p>\n

Year-round revenue<\/p>\n

One longstanding concern for city leaders is how to draw crowds to Fair Park year-round<\/a>. Campus activations were a major pillar of the department\u2019s plan to revitalize the grounds, and officials told the board they\u2019ve made strides in that area as well.<\/p>\n

Thousands have attended events at the park in the last year, according to the presentation, including Monster Truck shows, the FIFA Fan Festival<\/a>, concerts and the Foodieland Festival, which officials said drew over 46,000 people to the grounds. Event revenue projections are decidedly outpacing those from previous years, officials said.<\/p>\n

Community events have also been prioritized to connect with residents in the surrounding area. Officials cited weekly additions such as farmers markets, yoga inside the Cotton Bowl, and a collaborative event with Sunny South Dallas as evidence of engagement. Daniel Wood, the area\u2019s park board representative, lauded the department\u2019s improvements so far but said there was still room to improve its outreach to the community.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe one thing that remains is that we need a lot more support from the community,\u201d Wood said at the meeting. \u201cThere\u2019s not a lot of community involvement, a lot of community support. We have a couple of events happening, but we don\u2019t have a lot of interaction with the actual community.\u201d<\/p>\n

The department will look to further shore up its event offering, and officials have confirmed football games, holiday activations, and a two-day music festival for New Year\u2019s Eve and Day. Long-term contracts for building leases and event marketing, concessions and booking will be a part of that push, according to the department. In March, the city council approved a contract with Visit Dallas to provide turn-key booking and marketing services at Fair Park. Staff told the board that Visit Dallas has only recently begun work on those initiatives, with Jenkins saying the entity \u201chasn\u2019t even gotten warmed up yet.\u201d<\/p>\n

One major part of the department\u2019s plan is a proposal to redevelop 40 acres of parking lots <\/a>on the northeast side of the campus into a multipurpose district with entertainment venues, retail, lodging and parking garages, which Jenkins told the Observer in April will take on a western feel compatible with existing structures. Thursday\u2019s briefing offered little news on that front, although the department is currently seeking proposals on the project, parks officials told the board, with updates coming at later meetings.<\/p>\n

While the briefing offered some substantial updates on completed projects, much of the work will come as the department moves from stabilization to \u201cstandardization, modernization and optimization\u201d in its second year of management, officials said. Wood, who has been outspoken in his desire to see Fair Park live up to its potential, told the board he feels confident in the department\u2019s plan.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis next year we\u2019re gonna see it flourish, I believe,\u201d Wood said. \u201cMaybe another year of groundwork, cause you\u2019ve still got a lot of finishing touches.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Nearly a year after resuming control of the grounds, Dallas officials are touting gains made at Fair Park.…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":427488,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[3084,102,104,103],"class_list":["post-427487","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-dallas","tag-city-hall","tag-dallas","tag-dallas-headlines","tag-dallas-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427487","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=427487"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/427487\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/427488"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=427487"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=427487"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=427487"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}