Dallas has made amazing progress in the development of parks and trails over the last twenty-five years. During this time-period area residents and visitors have witnessed a substantial increase in the amount of park space throughout the city; the opening of the transformative Klyde Warren deck park; new parks in key areas of downtown Dallas, and the opening and expansion of the trails system in the city. Though more progress in creating more green space is wanted, needed and has been championed by Mayor Johnson and City Hall, much has been accomplished. This Panel will examine key development in the City’s progress.

Join us for an important Panel Discussion as leading thought-leaders discuss some of the hallmark achievements in providing more parks and trails in Dallas. The Panel will be moderated by Willis Winters, FAIA, past Director of the City of Dallas Park and Recreation Department. Panelists will be Amy Meadows, President of Parks for Downtown Dallas; Tara Green, Principal of OJB and former President of Klyde Warren Park; Bud Melton, regional champion for bicycle and walking trails; and Paul Dyer, who was the long-time Director of the Dallas Park and Recreation Department.

The Panel is free and open to the public. No reservations are needed to attend this Panel hosted at Perkins&Will. Please join us, and invite family, friends and colleagues to also attend to learn about the growth of public space in Dallas!

MODERATOR

Willis WINTERS

Willis Winters is the Director Emeritus of the Dallas Park and Recreation Department, having recently retired following a 27-year career in public service. Prior to joining the fifth-largest park system in America, he was a recognized, practicing architect in Dallas for 13 years. Winters graduated from the University of Texas at Austin where he was ranked number one in his class in the School of Architecture.

During his tenure with the Park Department, Winters managed over one billion dollars in capital improvements including upgrades at the Dallas Arboretum, the Dallas Zoo, the Dallas Trail Circuit, the restoration of Fair Park, the implementation of over 40 park pavilions designed by noted American architects, 80 miles of trails, and the development of an ambitious network of seven new downtown parks. Winters has been recognized for his public service and currently serves on the boards and steering committees of many local, regional, and national organizations. Winters is the President-Elect of Preservation Texas. He is also an accomplished author, having published seven books on the history of architecture and planning in Dallas and Texas.

PANELISTS

Paul DYER

Paul Dyer joined the Dallas Park and Recreation Department in 1982, and served as its Director from 1992 until his retirement in 2012. The Dallas Park system is the 5th largest municipal parks system in the nation, covering 29,401 parkland acres including 375 parks and destination parks such as Fair Park, The Dallas Zoo, the Dallas Arboretum and Botanical Gardens.

Paul directed the formulation of the department’s 2002 “A Renaissance Plan”, a nationally recognized long range strategic development plan to guide the future of the Dallas parks system. During his tenure, the Department commissioned and initiated the Downtown Parks Master Plan, Fair Park Comprehensive Development Plan, Dallas Zoo Long Range Plan, Aquatics Master Plan and Trail Network Master Plan. For his leadership, Paul has been honored by the Texas Tech University Academy of Engineers; has received the Friends of Fair Park Spirit of the Centennial Award; and the Dallas Historical Society Award for Excellence.

Tara GREEN

Tara Green is Principal of Public Realm Strategies for the Office of James Burnette landscape architecture firm. She is accomplished in Park Programming, Park Management, Community Engagement, and Strategic Planning. A member of Downtown Dallas, Inc., Tara is committed to creating coalitions of support with diverse stakeholders and community groups and excels at partnership development.

After two decades of working in leadership positions in the sports and entertainment industry, Tara brought extensive experience to her role as President of Klyde Warren Park. Always focused on the total visitor experience, Tara led the team that transformed Klyde Warren Park into Dallas’s top destination, building a vibrant community of people that returned to the park over and over again. Responsible for the team that curated and produced the park’s 1,300+ free activities and special events throughout the year, Tara ensured that the park’s overall programming was comprehensive, the operations were well-run and served diverse needs. During Tara’s tenure, Klyde Warren Park won thirty-nine national and international awards, including the prestigious Urban Land Institute Urban Open Space Award in 2014.

Amy MEADOWS

Amy Mettlen Meadows is President and CEO of Parks for Downtown Dallas (PfDD), a private operating foundation that develops public parks in the city center of Dallas through a public-private partnership with the Dallas Park and Recreation Department. PfDD is overseeing the design and construction of four new parks identified in the 2013 Downtown Parks Master Plan Update. Pacific Plaza opened in 2019, West End Square in 2021, and Carpenter Park in 2022. The final project, Harwood Park, will open in 2023. Also, PfDD is raising endowment funds to assist in maintaining these parks in perpetuity. Previously, Ms. Meadows served for 11 years as the vice president & executive director of The Belo Foundation before it became Parks for Downtown Dallas. She been active in the Dallas nonprofit community for 30 years through Board roles for the Hudson Foundation, Downtown Dallas, Inc., and was program director then executive director Social Venture Partners Dallas in the early 2000s. She is a sustaining member of the Junior League of Dallas, a graduate of Leadership Texas and Leadership Dallas, and a former commissioner, appointed by Governor Bush, to the Texas Commission on Volunteerism and Community Service.

Bud MELTON

W.J. ‘Bud’ Melton, a 5th generation Texas native, has championed equitable, purposeful pedestrian and bicycle mobility throughout his career. For many years, Bud served as founder, board member and president of Texas Trails Network; led research for what became the Texas Department of Public Safety’s Super Cyclist™ youth bicycle safety training program, and served as board chair of BikeTexas, the statewide advocacy and education nonprofit. Bud was a delegate to the Texas Department of State Health Services Texas Active Living Network, and a DFW-area multi-agency collaboration known as the Stream Team.

Bud joined his wife Annie’s mobility alternatives consulting firm in 1995, and in partnership with Annie and Dr. Albert Halff, Bud began planning, designing, studying, and advising on modal optionality for off-street multiuse trails. Annie and Bud’s firm led or assisted Halff and several other firms with bikeway, trail and streetscape plans/ designs for scores of cities and counties in Texas, Oklahoma, and Louisiana. Bud currently serves advisory councils for UTA CAPPA’s Master in Landscape Architecture program, and for Dallas ISD’s Choice CityLab High School Foundation.

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