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 The
face of Dallas is changing rapidly. New buildings, new businesses
and new people are continually renewing and reinventing our energetic,
successful city.
This eye toward change means Dallas has the potential for strong
economic growth. It also means that the policies, strategies and
practices that worked in the past must be revisited to make sure
they continue to work for Dallas as it grows and improves.
The Comprehensive Plan for the City will be key in helping Dallas
move toward becoming an even more successful, vibrant place to
live, work and visit.
Blueprint for a Healthy & Successful
Dallas
A Comprehensive Plan uses a community's vision and priorities
to develop guidelines for future development and strategies to
help achieve those goals. Dallas' plan will focus on guiding and
integrating three elements:
- Land use - Working strategically to stabilize
existing residential neighborhoods and to accommodate growth,
housing needs and development patterns
- Transportation - Using roads efficiently,
reducing congestion, and supporting development around DART stations
- Economic development - Supporting business
recruitment and retention, retail growth, and small business
development
Impact of the plan
 The
Comprehensive Plan will be designed to provide the blueprint for
implementation actions and act as a guide for the Dallas City Council
regarding allocation of City resources. The plan will focus growth
where it is wanted and needed and protect stable areas of the City.
The plan will also address convenient access to shopping and jobs
for more people, and provide more housing and travel options for
residents of Dallas.
How the Plan Will be Created
Listening to the people
The City of Dallas will hold hands-on workshops throughout the
City so that everyone can share their ideas about how Dallas should
grow during the next several decades.
Participants will make recommendations about where homes and jobs
of the future should be located around the City. They also will
make suggestions about transportation, transit, and roadway needs
and areas to be preserved as open space. The input gained through
these workshops will form the foundation upon which the Comprehensive
Plan will be built.
The City of Dallas encourages residents from all over the city
to come share their ideas at one or all of these important community
workshops!
Creating scenarios
Based on the workshop results, model plans (called "growth
scenarios") will be developed that provide an overview of
how future growth will affect different geographic areas of the
City. Each scenario will provide a clear example of what the future
of Dallas could look like under varying circumstances.
Forging the vision
Residents and community leaders will indicate their preferences
for each growth scenario, and the City of Dallas will craft a comprehensive,
long-range plan that incorporates strategies for implementing a
common vision for the future.
Planning for our Future
Urban areas can be vibrant, amazing places, providing a wealth
of opportunities -- for business, education, entertainment, food,
art, and recreation -- within a relatively small area. But without
thoughtful guidance shaping an urban area's growth, problems such
as congestion, long commutes, loss of open space, and air and water
pollution can undermine its livability.
One of planning's many advantages is it allows a community to
choose the areas where it wants to focus growth (for example, in
commercial districts or around transit stations) and choose areas
to maintain stability (such as existing established neighborhoods).
Planning for an urban area's future requires thinking about a
variety of interrelated issues, including:
- How people get from place to place
- How land is used
- Where and how people live
- Where businesses and housing are located
- Building and street design
- Infrastructure development, such as roads or sewer lines
- The effect of development on natural resources
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