June Board Meeting Update At the June Board Meeting on June 8^th, the Friend’s Board met with the City of Dallas Parks and Recreation Department project managers and la terra studio to review design work that included potential trail layouts and location possibilities for trail amenities like fountains, bench pads, park pads, pet water stations, and a trailhead to honor contributors. Also discussed were safety issues like appropriate traffic markings across neighborhood streets; enhanced safety across busier through-fares like Preston, Hillcrest and St. Michaels; and location signage along the Trail that would alert safety officers as to a person’s exact location.

Thanks Il Cane Rosso!

On June 10th the Friends group hosted a fund raising event at Chocolate Angel Too sponsored by Il Cane Rosso. Il Cane Rosso contributed 10% of gross from all pizza sales to the Friends. Other donations were received marking our first formal fund raising event. Proceeds will be used to fund the Group’s initial operating and marketing budget. All funds raised will be tax deductible and will be allocated to marketing, funding future improvements and maintenance of improvements. Rich Govlik and Michael Black, representing the City Parks & Recreation, and Kris Brown of la terra studio, the City’s lead design team, attended and shared renderings of the future trail that showed potential path placements. Attendees were invited to share their ideas for the Trail and address any concerns they have of the Trail. The reception again was very positive from those attending.

4^th of July Parade

Board members Martha Parks, Lee Kleinman, Ben Johnston and Warren Parham manned a table at the 4^th of July Parade sponsored by Hillcrest Forest and Hillcrest East Neighborhood Associations at Kramer Elementary School. This was the fifth event in the past few months attended in a continued effort to solicit potential volunteers for fundraising, future landscape projects and sustaining memberships. The reception was overall very positive as word spreads of the future trail.

Upcoming Community Hearing

The City of Dallas will be scheduling a community hearing in late August at a location to be determined to formally announce the Trail, provide a status report as to design, planning and construction timelines, and give neighbors an opportunity to communicate directly to the City their respective concerns, suggestions, and expectations for and of the Trail. Once the date and location are determined, the Friends will post the information on this website and the City will mail announcements to homes within the neighborhoods surrounding the Trail’s planning for Phase I and II, the initial route from Preston Road east to Park Central Drive.