Can Dallas’ trails tell our history and elevate our culture?

There’s a lot more to Dallas than business and concrete, but walking through some parts of the city, you might not be able to tell very easily. It doesn’t have to be that way.

There’s a plan brewing to create a walking path through the city connecting some of Dallas’ most significant cultural and historical sites. It’s called the Dallas Cultural Trail, and it would run through the Dallas Arts District, Deep Ellum and Fair Park.

The goal is to curate Dallas’ special moments and put them in context with one another, said Samuel Mortimer, president of Friends of Santa Fe Trail. It’s important to help string together threads that may not obviously be connected.

Showcasing the city’s history through physical spaces can help us celebrate our best achievements and learn from our worst history. This trail can also help make the city a little friendlier to pedestrians, and there’s the added benefit of encouraging tourism. It is an investment worth considering as the city develops its trail system.

The Dallas Arts District, the Deep Ellum Foundation and Fair Park First are the managing entities of Dallas’ three state-recognized cultural districts, and they’ve come together with the city to work on this project alongside an advisory committee of experts on art, history, economic development and others, according to Stephanie Keller Hudiburg, executive director of the Deep Ellum Foundation.

Lily Cabatu Weiss, executive director of the Dallas Arts District, said a collaboration with DART is possible as well.

The project is still in early planning stages and little is set in stone. The city provided a small sum to help the project get started, according to Weiss, and further funding options through public and private sources and the upcoming bond are being explored. The total estimated cost would be roughly $40 million, Hudiburg said.

The Cultural Trail would likely dovetail with Santa Fe Trail, which already connects Deep Ellum and Fair Park, Mortimer said, with the possibility of new pocket parks as well.

Eventually, there will be an application process for determining which sites will be included along the trail, Weiss said.

Building the Cultural Trail would mainly add enhancements to existing trails and infrastructure like better pedestrian and bike facilities, night lighting for safety and elevating the experience, signage for wayfinding and added artwork, said Brian Luallen, CEO of Fair Park First. There has also been talk of a digital experience, maybe even an interactive app, he said.

Ultimately, the trail would function more like a guided walking, biking or transit tour through Dallas’ three cultural districts — not unlike Boston’s Freedom Trail. Luallen said the goal is to market the city as an idea, tying together city gems like Klyde Warren Park and the Forest Theater.

Dallas is a more interesting city than most people think. The Cultural Trail would be a great way of showing it off.

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