I Went Birding With Mayor Tom Leppert
And most of the Dallas City Council. We all boarded a bus at City Hall and munched on pimento cheese sandwiches as we made the 12-minute trek to the $11.8 million Trinity River Audubon Center that is nearing completion. I tagged along as the councilmembers toured the 21,000 square-foot facility which is situated on 120 reclaimed acres of land in the southernmost section of The Trinity River Corridor. What a knockout building. Almost 50 % of the space is devoted to an educational wing with 2 labs and three classrooms. The architectural design mimics a bird with outstretched wings rising into flight and the windows are sloped at 12 and 20 degree angles to avoid the reflection of the sky and to keep birds from flying into the glass. (That is thinking ahead, and yes, this is all happening in Dallas.) It’s all, as it should be, eco-friendly and upon completion the center will be LEED gold certified. There will be miles of hiking trails (hey, Jim Schutze: they will be part of the Master Trails Plan but won’t be paved!) winding through grasslands, woodlands, and wetlands. Timmy will be happy to know that the facility will host organized camp outs, bird watching classes, and water conservation awareness programs along with yoga, guided hikes, and club meetings. I got so excited when I met with all of the Texas Audubon Society staff who will manage the property, I applied for a job—and I didn’t even see one bird while I was there! However, Ben Jones, the director of education for the Audubon Center, told me the other day he charted 55 species in an hour and a half. Dallas, birders from all over the world will, sorry, flock here to see those kind of numbers. Note to City Council: do not underestimate the effect this facility will have on the tourism biz in Dallas. Twitchers have lots of time and money. (photos by R. P. W.: (left) Mayor Tom Leppart and a woman who resembles me; (right) Ben Jones in front of the Audubon Center.)
30 Comments to “I Went Birding With Mayor Tom Leppert”
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Will I be able to birdwatch from the sunroof of my Hummer as I breeze down the Trinity Toll Road?
Booooooorrrrring!
“Note to City Council: do not underestimate the effect this facility will have on the tourism biz in Dallas.”
LMAO!!!
To my Marco Polo poster friend: To give credit where it seems to never be due, this is in Southeast Dallas, about midway through the forest (and no where near the Trinity River where the Toll Road etc. will be). And the ‘trails’ you say will someday be there are in many cases, as your map shows, the very trails 2 blocks from my home that I have been walking on every day of my life since this forest was consolidated from private land and flood plains following the bond elections of ‘98. (Props to Ron Kirk). I have written about same for a decade, on air and in print.
But rest assured, when the series of existing trails all connect, and as DART cuts through the forest using existing railroad corridor with connecting access available from the huge (building in progress) amazing Lawnview station, (2 miles due south of Samuel Tennyson Gold Course), the great will become beyond wonderful. And I will host many a group since my home sits atop a 1.7 acre hill overlooking the northeast corner.
The architect of the building is Antoine Predock, an alum from the University of New Mexico’s School of Architecture and Planning, who also designed the brand new planning (I mean architecture and planning) building in Albuquerque.
He looks like an even crazier version of Mayor West from Family Guy
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wi.....ly_Guy.png
Suite!
Does this mean anything for the Palmetto Preserve?
I could see it having a positive affect on tourism. Texas is a major destination around the world for birders. The center coupled with the Cedar Hill Preserve could make DFW a more attractive fly in/fly out point.
I’ll check on Palmetto. Nice little alligators there.
Why doesn’t the Lepper have a noggin’ hat on? Is it because his thick head is already hard?
Did cousin Vinney lend him his suit?
That place sits directly downwind from the largest landfill in Texas. In the summer it smells. Really bad. I cannot believe that the folks who designed their website can compare it to the Golden Gate Bridge or Central Park. Oh man it smells.
If any of you guys have actually been down in the riverbottoms you will see it is not all it’s cracked up to be.
I’d dare anyone to figure out a way to build the proposed trails as shown on the map. There is so much dirty bog/swamp down there.
Give it time, and this place will be a success. Dallas needs unique places like this to be viable.
From what I hear, birders spend a lot of money as they travel to chase down pics of various species.
What about the sandwiches, Miss Foodie? Any good? My favorite pimento cheeses are made by Whole Foods. I think the blue Jr. League cookbook has a good recipe too.
I agree with Michael, Dallas needs places like this. Thanks for writing about it. Audubon will have another center at Dogwood Canyon. That’s a wonderful spot, with a unique stand of native dogwoods and nesting for the golden cheeked warbler.
http://www.audubondallas.org/dogwood.html
Thanks for the update. To all naysayers, never underestimate the pocketbook of a birder.
Unfortunately, I missed the bus. Tom Leppert. I really want to shake that man’s hand.
I really like the concept and would love to got there, but I guess I’m too much of a realist……or maybe just uninformed about the area. Since I live in Allen, I’m not intimately aware of the area surrounding this park. But my perception of the area is it’s dangerous - full of crime and criminals just waiting for uninformed folks like me to wander into their neck of the woods. That way they don’t have to drive North and take a chance on the Police catching them before they get back home.
My realism says if we can’t keep people safe on the Katy Trail where crime is relatively low, then how is my family going to be safe in the heart of crimedom?
Somebody educate me, please. Are my perceptions and fears misplaced?
Just get a CHL and you’ll be cool.
Backer, I think you ask an honest question. YOu mention the Katy trail. I walk it just about daily at noon. I’ve never felt the least bit threatened. I realize there have been a couple of incidents, but that’s true everywhere. Same is true about deep ellum. I’ve been there once or twice a week for the last two years, never even seen any thing like a violent act. (okay a couple of the vocalists might have assaulted my ears and sensibilities), but I’ve never even felt insecure. I think a few reports of crime keep people away from experiencing what the city has to offer. Now, I really don’t have an opinion about the area around white rock creek or the Trinity, I haven’t experienced that..yet.
Hopefully, surely, the city of Dallas realizes what is at stake with the opportunities that exist in the South Trinity area. It is going to take some extra resources to protect the public down there.
If they can’t protect the public at the Audobon center they should just give up and let the entire area just evolve into a jungle.
Say cheese: the pimento cheese was a good one made by Two Sisters. I’ve had it many times as I love the stuff. I also like Corner Market on Greenville and WHole Foods,especially the one specked with jalapenos, and Central Market’s with hatch chilies (seasonal). The best? Mine. I make it the best with a secret ingredient.
What you don’t know is the mayor’s hand was in the middle of Nancy’s back, yet you can still see his gangly fingers creeping over her left shoulder. “ET phone home.”
Bill, not the dreaded dirty bog/swamp! And biting insects? And snakes? Omigosh, you better stay away. Contrary to history, a Dallas park doesn’t have to have bright lights, mowed grass, and backstops/soccer goals to be an attractive public space. Congratulations to Dallas for finally “getting it.” Yall deserve it.
Don in Austin,
Have you been down into the Trinity Riverbottom? Other than exceptionally dry winter months the area is virtually impassable on foot. The problem with a trail system there is that it is prone to sustained flooding. The proposed trail(s) would cross the swamp where White Rock Creek forms a mini-delta as it enters the Trinity. Can’t happen. Anyone that has ever been down there knows it is unwalkable. Not to mention the awesome blink-of-an-eye flash flooding that happens in that very spot.
The trail at LB Houston is a great example of a trail along the Trinity. There are complete calendar months where it is unusable due to flooding. After it dries then it takes 100’s of man hours to clean. Volunteer man hours.
Like I mentioned above, the “forest” is not all it’s cracked up to be. Go down and have a look for yourself, pick up an old tire or three as a souvenir while you’re there.
Can I get a google map link? (Satellite view will be interesting…)
I was out walking with Rawlins the other day and snapped this photo: http://www.wunderground.com/da.....ms/449.jpg
Yes, Backer, to your question, you are correct to be misinformed, but make no mistake, you are. Perception passes for fact, but fact is, southeast Dallas is not one of the higher crime rates in Dallas. But ‘there’ is all a mystery to the uninitiated am sure 15th century Spaniards thought the Atlantic Ocean was the end of the earth
And PS: This is no where near the Trinity River. People who are commenting are many times completely in the wrong part of the city, let alone the forest. Trust me. Don. I would be willing to bet you did not go on the trails on the eastern side of the forest which is what this connects to. We’re talking 17 miles long and a few thousand acres. So a trip, say to Bexar Street trails is no where near the beautiful trails I hike each morning at the wonderful northeast corner. But hey, I have hiked LB Houston for 35 years. And it cannot touch what I know in the forest. No where near. Nada. And trust me: I love and know every inch of LB Houston.
Thanks, Bobby Ewing, for the shot we took as we trekked the mountainous vistas while swigging meade. OOpah!
PS: If someone wants to learn about access, go to GroundworkDallas.org or Google my name. I have written about the Forest for a decade now, and it is usually the second thing in the list when you Google my name. Beginning with some Dallas Morning News Op-Eds a few years back. (Others are now behind BELO firewalls or whatever the hell happens to stuff arbitrarily après press. )I meet people on the trails who got started that way. Although DART is making a mess as it cuts through using existing railroad access. A nice mess, but not really serene as before. But that’ll pass. Too much to cover in a post to a thread. But that’s a start.
Bill,
Of course it will flood, its a bottomland. Access to what was once a neglected area can’t be a bad thing and with that access there will be less dumping and litter as people start to care about/for it. As a natural area, its not supposed to be habitat for humans; your perceived swamp is another critter’s home, humans are just visitors and caretakers. If you like your trails more sanitary, then stick to the stadium track.
And Rawlins, my explorations of the Trinity Forest have indeed been upstream and primarily on the East Fork. But, hey, I’m on your side. I think its good and my comments reflect that. If opportunities arise to visit Dallas, I look forward to hiking the forest. More of the Blackland Prairie needs to be preserved also.