Most people who drive on it probably don’t even know the road’s name: I-345, that sliver of connective concrete tissue between Interstate 45 and Central Expressway. Way back in 2013, Patrick Kennedy wrote an article in D Magazine that argued that the little stretch of highway was costing Dallas somewhere around $4 billion in potential investment. Why? Because, if removed, the ring of highways around downtown would be broken, and the city center and neighborhoods to the east could be reconnected. But wouldn’t this hurt traffic, you might ask? Well, no. And in 2014, D Magazine dedicated an entire issue to examining the issue, finding out that taking down the highway would be better for Dallas neighborhoods, job growth, and long-range transportation planning.
That idea has snowballed over the years. Last year, TxDOT released CityMap, which proposed three options for dealing with the nuisance highway. Next week, the Dallas city Council is set to vote on commissioning an economic development study that will complement the CityMap study and look at the unleashed potential tearing down I-345.
What does this all mean for Dallas? That’s what we will discuss here at the D Magazine Headquarters this coming Wednesday evening. Here are the details:
Join us on November 1, at 6 p.m. for a conversation about the future of I-345. We’ll talk about the TxDOT CityMap study – which proposes removing the highway or burying it a la Central Expressway – as well as considerations that are necessary for the planning of any future development, neighborhoods, and new street grid on the land that will be freed by the removal of the highway. Drinks and refreshments will be served. I will be moderating, and the panelists will include Kourtny Garrett, CEO of Downtown Dallas Inc.; Scott Polkov, a planner who worked on the CityMap study; and Patrick Kennedy, urban planner and DART board member. For more information, go here.
