Fort Worth Is About To Use Money Intended For Landscaping To Build A Monument To Itself

My Fort Worth eastsider insider source, who I call "Deep Grass," sent me some interesting info this morning.

Back in 2004 the City of Fort Worth received $265,000 of landscaping funds from something called the Governor's Community Achievement Award, to be used for roadside landscaping in one of five locations in Fort Worth. One of the five locations is on the opposite side of I-30 from the Tandy Hills.

Six years have gone by without any of the money being used to do any of the intended landscaping. Landscaping, might I add, that Fort Worth really needs to do. Such as landscaping the two freeway exits that lead to Fort Worth's #1 tourist attraction, the Fort Worth Stockyards. Currently those exits are a weedy, littered mess. Not big city worthy.

Somehow the money that was supposed to be spent on landscaping migrated to something called FWPA, initials standing for Fort Worth Public Art.

Which leads us to the picture at the top. The City of Fort Worth is trying to fast-track that ugly sign, without public input, sticking the sign somewhere on I-30 between Fort Worth's eastern border and downtown. I could not figure out what the images on the sign were supposed to be representing. Is the squiggly blue line the Trinity River? Is that a Dallas skyscraper on the right, with the river and the W compass point leading to Fort Worth?

Those behind this "sign" scheme are calling it a monument. This monument, to be built on the eastside of Fort Worth, has been conceived without any consultation with the Eastside Activists. You know, those people who are working hard to make Fort Worth a better place to live, preserving what needs preserving, fixing what needs fixing, stopping what needs to be stopped, making this a better place to live.

Well, the FWPA will be holding the first public meeting on this proposed monument next Wednesday, in the East Regional Library. That is my local, neighborhood library.

Show up and let the city know you'd prefer not to see this monument built, but would prefer to see the Governor's Community Achievement Award money go to its intended purpose, such as (in the words of "Deep Grass") a lush planting of 4-foot tall prairie grasses like switchgrass, eastern gamma grass, and big bluestem with a liberal sprinkling of perennial prairie wildflowers (not the usual bluebonnets and paint brushes), enhancing the public easement on I-30 near the Tandy Hills, between Beach Street and Oakland Boulevard.

Fort Worth Monument Boondoggle Meeting Info below....

I-30 Gateway Monument Project

Community Meeting

Wednesday, November 10, 2010

6:30 pm – 7:30 pm

Community Meeting Room

East Regional Library

6301 Bridge St

Fort Worth, TX 76112-0823

(817) 871-6436

Agenda

6:30 pm Welcome from Mayor Pro-Tem Danny Scarth

6:35 pm Overview – I-30 Gateway Monument Project

Anne Allen, Public Art Project Manager

(AA introduces Debbie Branch, Code Compliance, and

representatives of Keep Fort Worth Beautiful)

6:40 pm GCAA & Texas Department of Transportation

Richard Schiller, Director of Maintenance, TxDOT

(RS turns it back over to Anne Allen,
who introduces Susan Sitzes, Artist)

6:50 pm Background: City Win’s Governor’s
 Community Achievement Award

Debbie Branch, Code Compliance, Commercial Recycling & Keep Fort Worth Beautiful Coordinator

(DB introduces Richard Schiller, TxDOT)

7:00 pm Presentation of Conceptual Design Artist Susan Sitzes

(Susan turns meeting back over to Mayor Pro Tem Scarth, who

opens it up for questions)

7:15 pm Q & A

7:30 Adjourn