Plans to place a state-of-the-art boathouse at White Rock Lake are in the works. From the looks of a Dallas United Crew presentation, it would include a part-land, part water facility.
Dallas United Crew, formerly Highland Park Crew, hopes to build what they call in their presentation to the park department “a new community boathouse for Dallas on White Rock Lake.”
The north shore of White Rock is under consideration for the Dallas United Rowing boathouse.
According to a March 27, 2012 meeting presentation, first posted on pavethelake.wordpress.com, Dallas Park Department along with the White Rock Task Force approved the prospective location on the north side of the lake for consideration as the site for the structure. (We’ve been asked a few times, Who is on this task force? I have included a list of members at the bottom of this post.)
Here is the proposed structure in relation to the lake's other boat-related facilities.
This is still in the planning stages and it has not been formally proposed to the city council.
Perhaps this explains why Jim Schutze at the Observer is calling it a $4 million party barge. I kind of get that. (Click on image to enlarge).
Over at the Observer, Jim Schutze is referring to the boathouse, which includes a floating structure, as “The Highlands Park White Rock Lake Carnival Cruise Ship” and the “$4 million party barge”.
The floating portion of proposed boathouse from a bird's eye view.
Schutze speaks to a member of the task force, Michael Jung, who implies the task force doesn’t have quite the power or the say in plans and developments they once had—that in both the Winfrey Point parking plan debacle and this, “the park department has departed from an older tradition of using the lake task force as a sounding board before committing to major new uses at the lake. He cited numerous instances in which the task force has received multiple briefings on new ideas before the park department ever approached the City Council with a formal proposal.”
“But in both the Winfrey Point and the rowing club instances, Jung said Dyer and his department have gone far down the road of planning and negotiation with private entities before giving the public stakeholders even a hint of what’s going on. He says getting these things dumped on them full-blown has put the task force in a difficult position,” writes Schutze.
While Jim Schutze at the Observer and the operators of Pavethelake.wordpress.com, among many, lament the idea, the project planners tout the positives.
Schutze continues in his article: “The larger picture looming over both the Winfrey Point story and the new boat club, Jung said, is one in which the park department seems determined to push development and commercialization of the lake. ‘I am convinced they would grant a license for strip-mining of the lake if they could,’ [Jung] said.”
Here's a final slide from the Dallas United Crew presentation, listing positive points. To enlarge this or any of the above images, just click on it.
And finally, as promised, members of the White Rock Lake Task Force include:
Cheryl Amerine, Old Lake Highlands
Jill Beam, Fair Park and community services
Amanda Boers, Corinthian Sailing Club
Darren Boruff, Centannial Committee
Mary Brinegar, Dallas Arboretum
Randy Brown, Friends of Bath House
Jorge Chavez, L Streets
Andie Comini, White Rock Lake Dog Park
Mel Cyrak, WRL Volunteers on Patrol \
Denise Davis, Little Forest Hills
Max Davis, Little Forest Hills
Megan Doren, White Rock Boat Club
Ted Ellis, White Rock Lake Foundation
Win Evans, Lake Highlands North Neighborhood Association
Susan Falvo, Lakewood
Robert Giesler, Merriman Park
Joe Gillum, Peninsula
Susan Hello, For the Love of the Lake
Greg Hettrick, Emerald Isle
Scott Jenkins, Dallas Police
Michael Jung, White Rock (neighborhood)
Melanie Landay, For the Love of the Lake
Sam Leake, White Rock Boat House
Santos Martinez, Hollywood/Santa Monica
John Reena, Bicycling community
James Northrup, White Rock Boat House
Gary McDonnell, Lake Park Estates
Rob Raymond, White Rock Lake Conservancy
Becky Rader Environmental Health Commission
Joe Ries, Dallas Park and Rec
Ryan Spicer, Old Lake Highlands
Richard Stauffer, Dallas Park and Rec
Jeannie Terilli, WRL Foundation
Jared White, Dallas Park and Rec
Willia Winters, Dallas Park and Rec
Gerald Worrall, White Rock Lake Task Force Chair/Dallas Park and Rec
Rachel White, WRL Conservancy
