(Click image to see larger picture.)
Overall Park Improvement Objective: Maximize Love Circle Park's potential value to the City of Fort Worth as well as the local community.
Specific Objectives:
- Build on park's proximity to the Fort Worth Nature Center and Lake Worth.
- Restore park to a more natural state.
- Make park more useful to community's recreational and physical fitness needs.
- Create a plan that complements The Lake Worth Vision effort.
- Create a plan that coordinates with the values and goals of the Fort Worth Nature Center.
- Look for design features that enhance the safety of park users and the neighborhood.
Specific Proposals:
1) Finish park cleanup.
Undoubtedly, Love Circle Park is in much better condition today than just a few months ago. The park has been cleared of the terrible garbage, abandoned structures, and large piles of dirt left by the previous tenant. However, there still remains a tremendous amount of cleanup. Many trees in the "mowed area" are covered with vines and surrounded by brush. These "brush islands" make it impossible for mowers to get under trees and for park users to enjoy the trees' shade. Moreover, these dense brush globs attract people who want to misuse the park. For example, neighbors recently found a man in one of these clumps "huffing" spray paint.
- Raise tree canopy in mowed area (so mowers can reach under trees).
- Remove vines and brush from under trees.
- Remove unsightly fencing in and around park and smooth for mowing.
While a "diamond in the rough," Love Circle Park already enjoys a significant amount of natural habitat and lush tree canopy. The plan would build on these assets by preserving the existing canopy and planting more trees.
- Leave dense vegetation on east end of park for animals and as a buffer to Jacksboro Highway.
- Plant 50+ new trees to reforest damaged area.
Currently, neighbors and citizens from around the area daily converge on Love Circle to walk around the park. The plan would build on this community need for a walking and jogging area by including a scenic course. Moreover, this track would provide a connection to new and existing recreational assets such as Casino Beach and the Fort Worth Nature Center.
- Plan for under-bridge connection to Casino Beach (when redeveloped) and Trinity Bike Trails (when installed).
- Connect to new pedestrian entrance to Fort Worth Nature Center.
In its abandoned and neglected state, Love Circle Park and some of the adjacent land has been a magnet for crime and misuse. Vagrants have been found living in the dense brush clumps. Sexual and drug offenders have been found parked on the abandoned roadbeds. Drive by theft continues to occur on a regular basis. While no plan can completely eliminate crime, measures can be taken to reduce the area's attractiveness for misbehavior.
- Remove old unused and unnecessary roadbeds.
- Install new parking lot.
- Install traffic control around park (e.g. cabling).
- Secure TXDOT property on west end of Jacksboro Highway bridge with traffic control measures.
- Reduce potential crime by reducing traffic from Jacksboro Highway.
- Turn the east end of Love Circle into a cul-de-sac.
- Post signs at west end that Love Circle is "Not a Thru Street."
5 comments:
First of all we appreciate all that Senic Shores has done to clean up the golf course and plan for it's future use. We are totally in agreement regarding the aesthetic nature of the proposed usage and keeping it as natural as possible. Kudos to you all for your efforts!
There are a few issues with the proposal which don't totally concur with our understanding of what was discussed at the neighborhood meeting. Maybe we misunderstood. We thought it was agreed that the West entrance where the extra roadway beside Shore Line Dr was being taken up would be the location of the cul-de-sac and parking area. The entrance to Love Circle could then easily be blocked off there while still allowing visitiors access to the businesses and nature trails. Residents would continue to use the east entrance to access Highway 199 thereby reducing the visitor traffic to the residential area.
Thanks again for all you do for our community and best regards,
Mark & Linda Walter
7524 Love Circle
You're right. I should have addressed this for those who were at the meeting. When talking with TXDOT, they made it very clear that under NO circumstances would they turn the access road into a two-way road. If the road is one-way, the cul-de-sac at the west end would not work well. The only entrance into Love Circle would be the west-bound (Jacksboro Highway) exit. People trying to get into Love Circle from the east would have to go across the bridge and turn around into the west-bound lane and then cross the bridge again. Frankly, I still like our original idea better but its a non-starter with TXDOT.
Michael Dallas
President of Scenic Shores Neighborhood Association
Our efforts have been greeted with enthusiasm. Below, I have listed an encouraging email from Gale Cupp. Ms. Cupp is a Parks Board member as well as the Chair for the Neighborhood Association on South Lake Worth. We are very fortunate to have such a well-respected and influential leader as Ms. Cupp engaged in and supporting our efforts.
Ms. Cupp wrote:
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Michael,
A quick note tonight just to say that I fully appreciate your endeavor to clean up and augment the Love Circle Park area in collaboration with PACSD. It looks so much better indeed.
Your letter, and the helpful web site link and details, goes a long way to describe the vision of what community members want developed further at this marvelous site. As we know, Fort Worth parks requires interested citizens making their requests known. The Scenic Shores NA under your tutelage is making major strides in this area. Congratulations.
I know Mr Zavala is very supportive of such efforts.
Again, sincere thanks for your efforts at Love Circle, and for Fort Worth Parks overall.
Gale
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From r.lair
I think it would be great if the city would bulldoze all of the existing remaining fenceing, brush, and mounds that are next to Love circle so that this area could be mowed. In many places the road is reduced to one lane by overhanging brush, and culvert markers are concealed.
How can you reduce or limit access to a city owned park?
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