About six weeks ago there was a much-discussed report in the Dallas Morning News about parking changes at White Rock Lake, specifically Winfrey Point, that would require people attending events there to park somewhere other than the surrounding grass, where the parking lot’s overflow generally lands.
In the days before the Independence Day Run at Winfrey Point last weekend, I received a friendly notice from organizers, The Dallas Running Club, requesting that I “respect the lake neighbors and the park” by opting to park at alternate locations near the race start. I did, because I like to do a bit of a warm up run before a race anyway. But it appeared that most of the participants parked on the grass, as usual. (In everyone’s defense, said request arrived late Thursday or Friday before the holiday, so chances are that no one read it).
The DRC has also tried restricting parking using signs and cones in past months, and seems to be attempting to ease its members into the new parking protocol, but next year, if things go as planned, organizers and lake users won’t have a choice. That’s when city officials will begin strictly enforcing the parking restrictions that prohibit parking on the grass. I think it will work fine once people get used to it, especially considering that nearby businesses are evidently willing to let morning event goers park on their property. But I don’t think most people will ever stop parking in the absolute closest space they can find to their destination (even if they are about to run five or ten kilometers) unless they are forced. It seems to be human nature to try to get as close as you possibly can without getting a citation.