Dallas, Texas, USA
“West End Square has been contemplated since 2004 when it was identified as a potential park site in the City of Dallas Downtown Parks Master Plan,” states Amy Meadows, President, and CEO of Parks for Downtown Dallas.
“We are excited to invite the citizens of Dallas to embrace and enjoy this little gem in the downtown park system.”
Set within the Historic District in Dallas, James Corner and his design team at James Corner Field Operations have converted former parking lot into a contemporary park for Parks Downtown Dallas and the City of Dallas Park and Recreation Department, using a design vocabulary that responds to and integrates with the district’s historic character and distinct material palette.
West End Square is a cutting-edge and vibrant public space designed to balance history and innovation, incorporating smart technologies that optimize maintenance, promote sustainability, and enhance the visitor experience.
The park’s design creates a testing ground for incorporating technology in symbiosis with a green space of respite for the district’s growing population, concentrated around innovation companies and start-ups.
As a result of public input meetings, West End Square is programmed to meet the community’s needs with spaces for work, play, and relaxation.
Built and opened during a pandemic, the park has become a community anchor, hosting frequent events that include salsa dancing classes, interactive art installations, and local vendor markets.
West End Square’s interior Prairie Gardens create an oasis from the neighborhood’s brick-paved sidewalks with a subtle, undulating topography.
Organically shaped planting beds with a planting palette inspired by the Texas Blackland Prairies feature seating nooks carved within them, a water feature that auto-regulates based on weather, and a smart irrigation system.
The Frame surrounds the gardens and activates the street edge with a diversely programmed threshold—inclusive of the Outdoor Workroom, Porch, Game Room, and Innovation Arcade—between the surrounding neighborhood and the park’s interior.
Offering shade and refuge, the trellis structure supports smart sensor lighting, fans, swings, and power for various types of programming.
It also serves as a flexible armature that holds the park’s electrical and fiber infrastructure within the open web of its I-beams, allowing for a plug-and-play approach so technology can be incorporated over time as the park’s uses and needs evolve.
West End Square sets a precedent for urban parks with adaptability and sustainability at the forefront of design, allowing these civic spaces to have an enduring impact in their community.
“This shared vision will result in a network of parks that stitch our urban neighborhoods together and contribute to a more livable, environmentally sustainable future for Dallas,” continues Meadows.
“West End Square’s design vision is to create a welcoming neighborhood park for day-to-day use while also carving out space for interactive artwork that can further expand the urban park’s programming, engaging the larger community and showcasing Dallas’ strong spirit of innovation,” states Isabel Castilla, Principal-in- Charge at James Corner Field Operations.
Project: West End Square
Landscape Architects: James Corner Field Operations
Design Team: James Corner, Isabel Castilla, Stephanie Ulrich, Kate Rodgers, Todd Lewis, and Mike Abate
General Contractor: The Beck Group
Horticulturalists: Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Garden
Client: Parks for Downtown Dallas (PfDD) and the City of Dallas Park and Recreation Department
Photographers: Sam Oberter
