From Arlington's Boomed Viridian To Fort Worth's Doomed Cowtown Wakepark

I was in the D/FW zone on Wednesday. Whilst there I thought I might check in on the desolation zone in Fort Worth where for most of this century a supposedly much needed flood control and economic development scheme has been underway.

In slow motion.

No, what you are looking at here is not a Trinity Trail along the Trinity River in the aforementioned desolation zone of inactivity now known as America's Biggest Boondoggle, also known as the Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision.

What you are looking at above is a spur trail off the Trinity Trail in River Legacy Park, in Arlington, not Fort Worth. This spur trail leads to the massive development known as Viridian.

Way back in 2007 I was biking along the River Legacy Trinity Trail when I saw a guy doing some surveying alongside the trail. I stopped and asked the guy what he was surveying. He told me he was doing some measuring for something called Viridian, which was to be a big development of lakes, homes, schools, stores, restaurants, and other things, such as a lake with a public access beach.

Infrastructure work on Viridian soon began, quickly altering the landscape one saw whilst biking along the River Legacy Trinity Trail.

And then the Great Recession hit.

Work on Viridian ground to a stop. That stop lasted for several years, and then a couple years ago the Viridian development went into boom mode, a boom which continues to boom.

Since I last biked through Viridian new paved trails have been added, one of which took me to an overlook looking over the marina you see below, with a collection of kayaks, canoes and sailboats.

Meanwhile, in Fort Worth, that flood control economic development, touted as being vitally needed, has been limping along for most of this century, with little, unlike Viridian, to be seen for the effort.

The Viridian development has been developed without abusing eminent domain. While in Fort Worth eminent domain was abused to take dozens of properties. With some properties bulldozed while the property owner was still trying to get justice in the corrupt Fort Worth courts.

Property was taken in Fort Worth, supposedly for the public good, for a pseudo public works project the public has never voted for, with this pseudo public works project not bringing the project to fruition within any reasonable time frame, with those stolen bulldozed properties just sitting there with nothing happening on them.

Some of those properties taken by eminent domain abuse are where America's Biggest Boondoggle has been trying to build three simple little bridges, for years now, built over dry land, to connect the Fort Worth mainland to an imaginary island.

Viridian is a private development. No federal funds involved. No local congressperson's offspring hired to help grease any wheels.

There are several lakes in the Viridian development. None of which feature a cable powered wakeboard attraction.

One of the Trinity River Vision's early failures, one of the early boondoggle indicators, was known as Cowtown Wakepark. Touted by Kay Granger's boondoggling boy, J.D., as providing the sport of wakeboarding in an urban environment, this was obviously doomed to fail. It did not take professor of economics to see the problem with the business model. As in, only a few people at a time could be wakeboarding. It'd be like a Six Flags ride which could only handle four people at a time.

And then there was the location, at the edge of the Trinity River. Which floods, Apparently it never occurred to anyone involved that a flood would wreak havoc. Extremely ironic early on mistake, what with this being part of a project touted as being, in part, flood control.

Cowtown Wakepark did not last long. There was no investigation into how this mistake happened. Who was responsible? How much money did the Trinity River Vision spend to dig the pond for the Cowtown Wakepark? How much was spent to re-route the Trinity Trail around the Wakepark? Why is no one ever held accountable for any of the nonsense associated with America's Biggest Boondoggle?

Perplexingly pitiful...

Arlington Viridian Vision White Sand Beach With Possible Houseboats

I'd forgotten about this til this morning when something reminded me.

Last Wednesday, on my way to missing lunch with Elsie Hotpepper, driving north on Collins Street, heading to the Saigon Cho Market in Arlington's Chinatown, I stopped at River Legacy Park and had a short walk to stretch my legs which were in dire need of stretching.

For a year or two or three, give or take a month or two, I have been impressed by the rapid development of what is known as Viridian.

The Viridian Vision began with infrastructure development around 2007. When the Great Recession hit, the Viridian Vision ground to a halt. That halt continued until sometime around 2012, if I remember correctly. Since then a large number of residences of various sorts have been built, a school has been built, and an elaborate country club has been built, along with other amenities.

Above you are looking at the sandy beach which has been added to what is now known as Lake Viridian.

Back before the Great Recession hit I was talking to a surveyor marking the Viridian property boundary. At that point in time he told me the plan was to turn the lake into a public beach.

I do not know if the plan still is to turn Lake Viridian into an attraction open to the public.

The two photos you see here were taken from the River Legacy Park trail which trails along the southern border of Viridian, meandering along the Trinity River.

I could not tell, for sure, what that was floating on the side opposite from where I was. A dock? Houseboats?

Does Viridian have a Houseboat District?

Wondering if Viridian has a Houseboat District had me pondering as to the contrast between all that has been built by the Viridian Vision, in a relatively short time, whilst Fort Worth's Trinity River Central City Uptown Panther Island District Vision has very little to be show for an effort which has been boondoggling along for most of this century.

America's Biggest Boondoggle recently added to its list of currently unseen attributes. The Boondoggle's imaginary island is now divided into West Island and East Island. And a Houseboat District has been added.

At the present time America's Biggest Boondoggle is stuck trying to figure out how to build three simple bridges over dry land to connect Fort Worth's mainland to that imaginary island. It has been almost two years since construction on those simple bridges began with a big bang. Currently all there is to be seen of those bridges are some wooden V Pier forms sticking out of the ground, growing moss.

I wonder if there are any plans to have Rockin' the Lake Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats in Lake Viridian?

It seems like floating on Lake Viridian would be a much more pleasant venue than that which America's Biggest Boondoggle sponsors in the Trinity River, on those occasions when the all clear is given indicating contamination levels are low enough for it to be sort of safe getting wet in that polluted river.

I wonder how it is that Viridian has developed so fast?

I suspect the Viridian Vision did not have to wait for federal funds to be sent its way. That and I suspect no local congressperson's unqualified son has been the executive director of the Viridian Vision.....

Euless Doctor Appointment Takes Me To Palm Treed Viridian Beach Volleyball Court

Today was the day of my regularly scheduled monthly doctor appointment in Euless.

The doctor's workshop is near Collins Street. Driving south on Collins Street soon takes one to the north entry to River Legacy Park, which was closed today, and likely for several days, due to the road and parking lot surface being upgraded.

So, I continued south, took a right on Green Oaks Boulevard and continued west til I got to the south entry to River Legacy Park.

Arlington seems to have the highly evolved good habit of constantly improving its parks. If River Legacy Park is not the best park in the entire D/FW Metroplex, I wish someone would point me to the park that is.

Today I rolled my bike wheels back across the Trinity River to the north side of River Legacy Park with the intention to take my handlebars to the Viridian development, if Lake Viridian had receded enough from last month's flooded state, to allow trail access from River Legacy to Viridian.

I think my last roll through Viridian was about two years ago. There were only a couple dozens homes built at that point in time. The development did not seem all that appealing, what with the high expectations of all that was proposed for the Viridian development before the Great Recession grounded the project to a halt.

Well, from what I saw today one would think the Great Recession is ancient history.

The paved trails along the lake have been expanded since my last visit. A school has been built. A sprawling club house, with swimming pools, has been added, part of which you see above, looking over my handlebars at a sandy white beach volleyball court surrounded by palm trees.

The landscaping at Viridian is impressive. I am a fan of a well landscaped landscape.

For quite a distance Collins Street has received the Viridian treatment, creating an aesthetically pleasing landscaped boulevard of the sort one sees in towns like, I don't  know, Phoenix, Tacoma, Mount Vernon, Los Angeles, and others.

Fort Worth should send a task force to Arlington to see what an improvement, aesthetically speaking, a well landscaped road can be, free of weeds and litter.

Check out the I-35 exits to Fort Worth's #1 tourist attraction, the Fort Worth Stockyards, and imagine those exits with the Arlington landscape treatment, rather than their current eyesore state of being a littered, weedy mess....

Today I Decided To Bike Through Viridian Rather Than The Trinity River Vision Boondoggle

I don't remember when it was I was last at Arlington's River Legacy Park, but I am fairly certain today was the first time I've been at this location this summer.

Due to it currently being the HOT time of the year the snake warning signs are up. Along with a new sign I've not seen before, as in "ATTENTION: We share the park with bobcats and other wildlife. Please use caution while in the park."

It has been years since I've had a bobcat encounter in River Legacy Park. I have had a bobcat encounter this summer in Arlington's Village Creek Natural Historical Area.

This morning I read that Tarrant County and the D/FW  Metroplex zone has been experiencing a home buying boom, with there being more people wanting to buy than the supply of homes available to buy.

The Formerly Blocked Trail To Viridian

Reading about the home buying boom caused me to wonder how much the Viridian development adjacent to River Legacy Park was booming. I last saw the Viridian development after reading that homes were now being built on the long stalled project. That was, maybe, 6 months ago, maybe longer, that I pedaled to check on Viridian.

Several years ago a paved trail was installed (and blocked) that led from the Gateway Park trail to Viridian. Today I was pleased to find that this trail is no longer blocked and one can now bike the trail to Viridian.

The paved trail entry to Viridian is quite welcoming. The entry is well landscaped. The completed parts of the Viridian development are all well landscaped.

A Viridian art installation overlooking one of the Viridian development's lakes. Is the above lake Lake Viridian? I have no idea. I do know that years ago, before the 2008 economic collapse that brought the Viridian development to a stall, I talked to a guy who was surveying the border with River Legacy Park and he told me the lake you see above was going to be developed into a public use swimming lake with a beach.

Today I saw no signs of a beach being installed around "Lake Viridian" but I did see plenty of landscaping around the lake. In the above photo my handlebars are on a bridge overlooking the lake.

Looking at "Lake Viridian" had me wondering how this lake compares in size to the shrinking proposed Pond Granger that is part of the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle? In the middle of "Lake Viridian" there is a small island. Unlike the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle imaginary island, Viridian could actually name an actual island, Panther Island. Then put a pavilion on it and call it Panther Island Pavilion and Viridian would have created something that the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle only pretends to have created.

Above is another view of "Lake Viridian" and the paved trails one can use to bike the lake. Or if one is walking there are plenty of benches on which to have oneself a sit down.

Unlike the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle, Viridian is a private development. When first announced, sometime around the time the Dallas Cowboy stadium started getting constructed, the plans were quite elaborate, including restaurants, retail and an island with very expensive homes. Prior to the 2008 financial meltdown a lot of infrastructure work had been done. And then, after the meltdown, work on the Viridian project slowed to a crawl.

The Viridian crawl now seems to be sped way up.

Now, what I'm thinking is how interesting it is that something like the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle has been limping along for well over a decade, with Fort Worth still waiting for that much needed flood control project to start protecting Fort Worth, with the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle really not having all that much to show for itself after all this time.

Not much to show, unless one is impressed with the TRVB's creation of the world's premiere urban wakeboard lake, the world's first drive-in movie theater of the 21st century, the world's first inner tube happy hour floats in a polluted river and the world's premiere island-free polluted waterfront music venue.

Oh, and abusing eminent domain to steal, I mean, buy a lot of people's property. No eminent domain abuse has occurred to create Viridian. No businesses were destroyed. No lives were left in chaos.

Where the paved trail exits Viridian I was surprised to see what looked like a small mountain, of the sort of brown, grass covered hills one sees in Eastern Washington. I have no clue whether nor not this mountain is part of the Viridian development.

If such a mountain appeared in the Trinity River Vision Boondoggle zone I would expect to be reading breathless reports about the mountain becoming the world's premiere year round ski resort with the world's biggest artificial snow maker and the world's fastest open air ski lift, with a Tim Love restaurant at the summit, commanding a view of the Panther Island Pavilion music venue and those world famous Rockin' the River Happy Hour Inner Tube Floats, along with the stunning skyline of beautiful downtown Fort Worth....