Dallas Goes Green (& Purple) with Klyde Warren Park Opening

 

The City of Dallas went green this past weekend, and we’re still five months away from the annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade.

The Hatch was on hand Saturday night for the Klyde Warren Park Grand Opening Celebration, which featured a vintage symphonic pop concert performance by Dallas indie rock legends, The Polyphonic Spree. A brief firework show followed immediately afterward that lit up the Dallas skyline and sent visitors off into the night to haunt local hangouts for the Halloween weekend.

Dallas loves grand openings, and this one, which was ten years in the making, was done right.

Organizers estimated around 40,000 visitors came to check out the park throughout the course of the weekend, which featured more than 50 free and open-to-the-public activities all day Saturday and Sunday that showcased the park, including croquet, dog trainings, and live painting demonstrations. The beautiful 5.2-acre deck park creates an urban green space over Woodall Rodgers Freeway between Pearl and St. Paul streets. The park will host four to five events daily, ranging from yoga to boot camp to movie nights to outdoor concerts.

Local food and drink vendors were set up around the Ginsburg Family Great Lawn Saturday evening to quench guests’ thirsts and appetites. Rows of chairs were roped off directly in front of the concert stage for media and VIPs. Everyone else jumped around enthusiastically to the music or brought a blanket to take advantage of the beautifully manicured green lawn, which was still so new the seams from planting were still visible.

There was an electric vibe of excitement amongst the crowd not only for the concert event, but for what we were there to celebrate. And while visitors had an amazing view of the lit Dallas skyline, no one could seem to take their eyes off downtown’s new park.

A full schedule of park events can be found a www.klydewarrenpark.org.