The walkway would run underneath this section of Garland Road. Photo by Katie Bernet

The walkway would run underneath this section of Garland Road. Photo by Katie Bernet

We now have a general idea of when the Dallas Arboretum’s proposed parking garage will gain momentum — and when more details will emerge about its impact on our neighborhood.

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The Arboretum has applied for the specific use permit required to build the underground walkway beneath Garland Road, connecting the garage with the entrance to the highly-anticipated Rory Meyers Children’s Adventure Garden.

The earliest time it could make it onto a City Plan Commission agenda is Sept. 12, moving to the City Council by Oct. 8, says Megan Wimer with Dallas city planning says that. And that’s if everything stays on schedule at City Hall, which it often doesn’t. It’s a very rough timeline, she says.

Read the full request and see the technical renderings.

[quote align=”left” color=”#000000″]The plans for the underground tunnel suggest that it will be virtually unnoticeable from street level.[/quote]

Although an SUP is handled in the same way, it’s not a re-zoning request. The permit allows for one additional use for the property. The city controls Garland Road, so any changes must get approval.

“They’re not really changing the zoning of the property,” Wimer says.

The plans for the underground tunnel suggest that it will be virtually unnoticeable from street level. Visitors will enter the walkway from inside the parking garage and come out at the entrance to the Children’s Garden. The walkway is 20 feet across and 13 feet high.

Wimer says she has asked for more detailed renderings that can tell us exactly how it’s going to work under there.

That stretch of Garland Road is a state highway, and TXDOT has verbally approved the project. They won’t officially give the go-ahead until they reach an agreement with the city, and it passes through the council.

The Children’s Garden opens Sept. 21. The Arboretum plans to release more details on the parking garage in the next few weeks.