Dedo's Place - Pre-construction set

The official pre-construction meeting with the Park Department is set. Friends of the Katy Trail and Valley Crest Landscape Development will meet at Parks the afternoon of Wednesday, Feb. 4 to go over the final plans for the plaza to be built on the north end of the Trail. Construction should begin soon after, and last about 4-6 months.

The 5K is Coming

Oh, oh, when's the Michelob Ultra No. 11 Katy 5K?

Thursday, May 14. Put it on your calendar now because it's definitely on ours. Planning is well on its way and we thought we'd give you a sneak peak at this year's logo. It's going to be awesome because we're going to make sure we retain the title of D Magazine's "Best Post-race Party." Did we mention that the party is going to be better than ever? Stay tuned for details and we'll see you there.

New intern from SMU

On Monday, Sloan Armstrong joined the Friends of the Katy Trail staff as the part-time intern from SMU this spring. Look for Sloan helping out at FKT events. And if she does a real good job, we might even let her answer the phone.

Lee Park plaza gets green light

The project to build a plaza on the Katy Trail overlooking the fountain at Lee Park got the go-ahead from the Dallas Park Board's Planning & Design Committee. The next step for this estimated $1.25 million project is approval of the project and its name by the full Park Board in February.

Steaks Anyone?

Moore Lawn & Garden, the company the Friends of the Katy Trail pays to take care of the landscaping from the parking lot south of Knox Street to Airline Road at the north end, will be removing the stakes that held the trees in place since they were planted several years ago. The trees are now mature enough to stand on their own. Thanks to everyone who "adopted a tree" during our landscape fundraising campaign three years ago.

Thinking about Bicycle Commuting?

Click here to check out a cool article in today's Dallas Morning News about bicycle commuting. It's got some great tips and commuter bike reccomendations.

Interactive Artwork Malfunctioning

The interactive artwork, sometimes called the "musical bollards," at David's Way are not functioning correctly. The local maintenance guy in charge of keeping them working tried rebooting the computer that controls them, but they still didn't work 100 percent correctly. Another tech guy will examining the DSL connection and trouble shoot a few other items to see if it can begin to work properly. This should only be temporary.

Post Already in Place

The metal posts were installed today near the Knox Street parking lot and at the end near the AAC. They're bright and shiny.

Metal Posts Coming Soon

The three metal posts, or bollards, that are missing on the Katy Trail should be replaced soon. The posts -- located near the Knox parking lot (2) and the AAC (1) -- have been missing since the lighting construction was in full swing during the summer. After much difficulty and delay, it appears they are in the final stages of being manufactured. Our contractor tells us they are being galvanized right now, and could be in the ground by the end of January.

Crime Meeting Thursday

Central Patrol, the division of DPD that covers the Katy Trail, is hosting a meeting on Thursday, Jan. 15 at 6:30 p.m. to discuss with the community the accomplishments in 2008, areas needing improvement in 2009, and DPD's plans for the future regarding public safety in our community.

The public meeting, officially called Central Patrol Division's Year End Crime Synopsis, will be in the Cesar Chavez Learning Center, 1710 N. Carroll at Ross Avenue. Hope to see you there.

VIP Training Session - Next Week

One of our New Year's resolutions is to kick-start our Volunteers In Patrol program on the Katy Trail. We need at least a dozen VIPs in order to start the Friends of the Katy Trail VIP program. (To find out what a VIP does, check out our homepage under "Safety.")

DPD will be offering VIP classes next Monday, Tuesday and Thursday -- Jan. 12, 13 and 15. The Monday and Tuesday classes are 7-9:30 p.m. at the Northeast Station, 9915 E. Northwest Hgwy (just east of Buckner Boulevard). The Thursday class is in the basement of City Hall, 1500 Marilla Ave. also from 7-9:30 p.m. and includes a tour of the 911 system. All three nights must be attended in order to participate in the VIP program.

If interested, please contact Sgt. Dennis Craig via email -- dennis.craig@dpd.ci.dallas.tx.us -- for an application. You can also apply online at www.cepatrolcrimewatch.org under "volunteers." Or call Sgt. Craig at 214-670-4422.

Dedo's Place Construction

Good news from today's pre-construction meeting with Valley Crest regarding Dedo's Place - the plaza near the north end of the Katy Trail. Valley Crest thinks they'll have everything done by the beginning of the summer. While that's a preliminary estimate, it's still encouraging news.

Pre-Construction Meeting Set

The pre-construction meeting for the new plaza near the north end of the Trail is Thursday afternoon. The Friends of the Katy Trail has hired Valley Crest Landscape Development - the general contractor that built the Thomsen Overlook at Reverchon Park - to do this plaza as well. It will be called Dedo's Place in honor of long-time board member Dedo Kidd. Construction should begin in February, but we'll know more after Thursday's meeting.

Katy Trail Party at Vert Fitness on Saturday Night

The holidays may be winding down, but the parties just keep on coming. Particularly if the Friends of the Katy Trail has anything to say about it.

And just so you keep your New Year's resolution to get in shape, we're kicking off 2009 with a member happy hour at Vert Fitness.

They're brand new to the neighborhood, so please join us:
5-8 p.m.Saturday, January 10
1909 N. Henderson Ave.
RSVP to Office@KatyTrailDallas.org

You can get in shape and help the Katy Trail all at the same time. (OMG, does it get better than that? We don't think so.) Check out all the details below and note that all January proceeds go to help YOUR Trail. You can also click Vert Fitness to get details.

We'll be in our hottest workout gear, so see you there.

Tollbooth on the Katy Trail?

In a recent online story about getting into shape in 2009, one Katy Trail user said, "There's no tollbooth on the Katy Trail, so this was a good place to start." Makes us wonder if perhaps there SHOULD be a tollbooth on the Katy Trail. After all, the Trail is a privately maintained park. Unfortunately, only 10 percent of the users actually contribute to its maintenance.

More Bike-Ped Friendly Streets

The developers that own the properties adjacent to Carlisle Place - the street that dead ends into the Katy Trail just south of Lemmon eastbound - are considering how to incorporate improved bicycle and pedestrian routes into their developments. The hope is they can build wide sidewalks and dedicated bike lanes, like the ones that were unveiled at the Nasher back in November to connect the Katy Trail to Downtown.

Don't know what we're talking about? Check out the "Katy Trail-Arts Loop Connection" entry on the Friends of the Katy Trail's homepage.

A Tree Grows in Oklahoma

SWA Group, the landscape architects of record for the Friends of the Katy Trail, thinks they have found a beautiful specimen tree in Oklahoma that would be perfect for the plaza on the Katy Trail overlooking Lee Park. It's a Burr Oak - the same tree planted in the Briggs-Freeman Plaza in Reverchon Park - and one the City of Dallas' former arborist, now a senior planner for Parks, thinks Dallas could use more of. The tree is currently 20-25 feet tall.

Expect to see construction of this plaza begin in early 2009.

Help ID Hit-and-Run Driver

At 3:55 p.m on Wednesday a Trail user was hit by a car while crossing Knox Street. The vehicle was a late 1980s dark gray Honda Accord sedan traveling east on Knox toward Central Expressway. The driver was a white male approximately 25-35 years old, had a goatee and was wearing a ski-cap. The Trail user was running south and cars in both directions had stopped to let them cross when the driver in the Honda went around the stopped cars and into the intersection.

Fortunately, the runner was able to jump into the air, striking the car's windshield and hood, which likely has a dent in it now. The driver then yelled at the runner to get off his car, before making an obscene gesture and driving off.

Should you see a vehicle in the Katy Trail area and/or a driver matching this description, please write down the license plate number and contact DPD by calling 911.

Contract signed

The Friends of the Katy Trail has entered into a contract with Valley Crest Landscape Development to build a small plaza/entry near the Trail's north end where McKinney Avenue dead ends into the Trail. The plaza, named "Dedo's Place," will feature the familiar limestone seat wall and three-tiered drinking fountain. Expect to see construction begin in the first quarter of 2009.

Missed the Show?

Didn't have a chance to listen to "Think" on Moday? Here's a link to the show on KERA's website -- http://www.kera.org/audio/think.php.

Enjoy.

Tune in Monday at Noon

The designer of the Katy Trail-Arts Loop connection, Mia Birk of Portland-based Alta Planning+Design, will be on KERA's "Think" with Krys Boyd at noon Monday. Tune in to 90.1-FM and listen to Mia discuss how Dallas can convert existing streets to make improved bicycle and pedestrian connections between the Katy Trail and Downtown.

Half-Marathon on Katy Trail

Sunday morning there will be 7,000 runners on the Katy Trail participating in the White Rock Lake half-marathon. They'll be getting on the Trail at Harvard and running all the way to the AAC. So we have the following suggestions:

1. Exercise before 7 a.m. that day
2. Stay off the Trail until after 1 p.m.
3. Come out and cheer on the runners at your favorite Katy Trail location.

For the most fun, choose option 3.

University Crossing

On Tuesday we met with 30-some people involved in the connection of the Katy Trail to Mockingbird Station and the property that SMU owns in the area. SMU is branding the area "University Crossing." To check out a cool video on the location, go to http://www.universitycrossing.com/.

Katy Trail Extension to White Rock

Here's the latest schedule we heard from Public Works recently:

• Early 2009 -- Complete funding for bike-ped bridge over Mockingbird connecting Palomar to Mockingbird Station; and get approval from City Council for contract with HNTB to design bridge.
• April 2009 -- Begin construction of Trail from McCommas bridge through Glencoe Park, and from Warcola behind Kroger to Skillman.
• Mid 2009 -- Complete design of Trail from Skillman to White Rock Station.
• Late 2009 -- Begin construction of Skillman to White Rock Station section.

PSA Now Showing at Victory Park

The Katy Trail PSA is now showing on the big digital billboards at Victory Park! You can download a schedule of times when it will be playing here.

The PSA is showing on the South facing billboard on the East wing of Victory Park above where WFAA Channel 8 does its newscast. A map and parking is included in the schedule document.

Go check it out!

Introducing the Katy Trail-Arts Loop Connection

At a public meeting Monday at the Nasher Sculpture Center, Councilmember Angela Hunt, with help from Friends of the Katy Trail’s Executive Director Eric Van Steenburg and Mia Birk, principal from Portland-based Alta Planning+Design, introduced the planned Katy Trail-Arts Loop Connection. To view the presentation, click here.

This connection improves the bicycle and pedestrian facilities between the Katy Trail and Downtown by creating complete streets that accommodate vehicles, bicycles, pedestrians, mass transit, the disabled, and the aged.

Click here to download a pdf of the streets identified for improvements and renderings of what those streets will look like.

Click here to see a 10-minute video interview with the commissioner of the Department of Transportation in New York, which is attempting to turn all of their roads into “complete streets.”

Back from Trail Conference

The Friends of the Katy Trail staff is back from a successful appearance at the National Trail Symposium in Little Rock, Ark. Both the Executive Director and Associate Director gave well-received presentations on everything from public safety to fundraising events. More importantly, now we can get to all your voice mails and emails that have accumulated since Saturday.

Testing All Lighting

OK, it’s time for you to test the lights on the Katy Trail. Get out there at 5 a.m. and make sure they come on from end to end. Then go back at sunrise and make sure they are off for the entire 3.5 miles of Trail. Be back on the Katy Trail and sundown and make sure the lights come on again from the AAC to Airline. Finish your day by being on the Katy Trail and 11 p.m. to make sure the lights turn off.

IF you notice anything not working according to schedule, or just not working, email us at Office@KatyTrailDallas.org.

Lighting Gets Final Tune-up

Our contractor tells us that as of Tuesday, all lights were working on the Trail. They replaced some lamps and ballasts, as well as turned on the lighting in the sections from the AAC to Harry Hines and Blackburn to Armstrong because someone had turned the power off. When the power was off, it also impacted the timers, so the lighting wasn’t working when it was supposed to. This has also been corrected.

Keep your eyes on the section from Blackburn to Armstrong. The photo cell that senses when the sun is up is in the bamboo; and it is possible that if it doesn’t get enough light, it will think the sun is down and turn on the lights. If you see the lights on in this section during the day, please let us know.

Bench Cleaning Complete

All the benches on the Katy Trail have been power washed to remove dirt and graffiti, and then sealed with a graffiti-resistant, environmentally sensitive sealant to help make it easier to remove graffiti in the future. The work was done by David Fink of Pressure Cleaning Technologies. Let us know your thoughts on how the benches look now.