Maybe You Can Help the City Decide How to Spend $3 Million in Trinity Bond Money

By Robert Wilonsky Mon., Jan. 18 2010 at 1:10 PM

Categories: News

Around here, Schutze is known as "The Trinity Beacon."

Back in 1998, 38,016 voters OK'd Proposition 11 -- otherwise known as the $246 million that was supposed to get the Trinity River Corridor Project up and running, like I need to tell you. Anyway. Three million of that money was supposed to go toward something called the Loop 12 Gateway park, construction on which was slated to begin in May of this year according to old city docs. Only, the city's never spent the green on the green space, which is why, during tomorrow's meeting of the Trinity River Corridor Project, council members will debate how to dole out the dough.

According to briefing docs, there have been myriad options in recent years, most of which come with a "however ..." caveat. As in: The city at one point considered using the $3 mil for a "picnicking facility" at the Sleepy Hollow Golf & Country Club. "However ... Site will not be available for development until U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is finished with their wetlands project in 2012." Which is why there are new options on the table, including: purchase additional property along Loop 12 in front of the Trinity River Audubon Center to enhance the frontage, add better signage and finish out the entrance and exit; spruce up the Pemberton Hill Park and trail near Elam Road; or wait for the Corps to finish at Sleepy Hollow.

Then there's this option: Erect so-called "beacons" that would "attract visitors to the Trinity Corridor's three main portals." They'd be 120-feet tall and be illuminated at night. Anyone wanna bet $3 million this is how the council goes?

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