Next Neighborhood Meeting
The next neighborhood meeting is on June 30, 2011 at Hibiscus on Henderson at 7pm.Proposed By-Law Changes
Proposed new by-laws for CHNA are now ready for review. The by-laws committee has spent countless hours researching and drafting what we feel are the best by-laws we have seen for any neighborhood association in the city. All CHNA officers and all four by-laws committee members unanimously support the document. If there are any questions you have or changes you would like to suggest, please contact Kent Cobb, by-laws committee chairperson, at kent@speed-o-light.com. Our quarterly meeting will be held the last week of June, and we will contact residents by flyer and email a second time 10 days before the meeting to remind you of the upcoming vote and make available printed copies to anyone who requests them. Thanks to Kent Cobb and the other by-laws committee members for all their hardwork. Follow the link to download the Proposed CHNA By-laws.Bonham Elementry
Bonham Elementary Earns Blue Ribbon Award! To read the full article, please visit this link. Everyone in the neighborhood is proud of the school's recognition and achievement!Cochran Heights in the News*
*CHNA neither endorses nor disputes these articles. They are simply being shared to keep readers informed issues concerning Cochran Heights as featured in the media.Parking problems grow along with popularity of Old East Dallas' Henderson Avenue
09:15 AM CDT on Saturday, July 10, 2010By NANCY VISSER / The Dallas Morning News
nvisser@dallsnews.com
This article can be found on the Dallas Morning News Website Parking on Henderson Avenue on busy evenings has long been a headache, particularly for those who hate valet parking or trolling for street spots.
The crowding has worsened as the strip fills out with popular bars and restaurants from one end to the other. And last month, the problems boiled over after the city shut down six lots that were used for valet parking.
Josh Baethge, a 34-year-old office manager from Plano, summed up the sentiments of numerous Henderson patrons searching for parking on a recent weeknight: "It's all just a huge pain."
The situation illustrates what can happen when old commercial strips like Henderson are reborn into hopping night spots. Dallas trends can be unpredictable, with hordes flocking to neighborhoods with little public transit and parking while rejecting entertainment districts built to handle the masses.
Unlike some other cities in Texas, Dallas requires certain businesses to provide some free parking. But the city can't always predict where the latest hot spot will be.
City officials, police, merchants and neighborhood representatives met last week to address the mess on Henderson, and they acknowledged afterward that there isn't a quick fix.
"It's going to be a political, public safety, economic development issue," said Dallas police Deputy Chief Vincent Golbeck, who called the meeting.
However, there has been some recent relief: Free valet parking is offered all along Henderson, and restaurants near Capitol Avenue have set up a central valet stand that all patrons can use. In addition, one of the main valet lots the city shut down was reopened last week.
Henderson Avenue is a two-lane city street that doesn't even have a turn lane. It was never designed to accommodate the parking needs generated by the trendy restaurants that run from Central Expressway to Ross Avenue. And changes in business along the strip can throw off the parking patterns.
For example, J. Black's Feel Good Lounge opened two months ago with about a dozen parking spots on its lot and free valet service on busy nights. It was an instant draw, and the neighborhood quickly felt the impact, said Evan Beattie, president of the Henderson Neighborhood Association.
Then the dominoes started to fall:
•Cars began to block traffic on Henderson to get into the J. Black parking lot. Other patrons started parking on nearby streets.
•The police got more complaints about noise, trash, blocked driveways and congested side streets.
•A review found that some lots used by the valet service hadn't been approved for that use, and the city shut down six of them.
•A central valet stand was set up at Sushi Axiom, where cars can line up without spilling into the street. Individual restaurants still have their own stands, and if their valets get backed up, they can wave motorists to the next. Some people found it confusing.
•The city determined that emergency vehicles would have trouble getting through some side streets. Parking was restricted on some streets to just one side.
Police Lt. Albert Martinez, a night commander for that area, fears that if parking is restricted further, it will push patrons even deeper into the neighborhood, where they could become crime victims.
Being accommodating, Golbeck decided to reopen the Bonham Elementary School parking lot for valet service, with the promise that the proper paperwork is filed with the city. He said the other lots will remain closed until the city approves them.
"We want to be accommodating," Golbeck said, "but at the same time the message is getting out that people need to follow the proper procedures."
Golbeck said he hopes last week's parking meeting will lead to a working group to address Henderson issues. The business owners are also working on forming a Henderson merchants association.
"It takes something like this to get everyone organized," Beattie said. "We can work together to find solutions."
Still, there are different philosophies on the long-term fixes. And any approaches that require zoning changes are likely to be heavily debated.
Beattie, an architect with the firm Good, Fulton & Farrell, which has been involved in several Henderson Avenue projects, thinks adding mixed-use developments – including a blend of apartments, retail and restaurants – could alleviate some problems.
Those types of projects have to comply with certain parking requirements, which might bring parking garages.
The problem, he said, is that developers want to include apartments at a greater density than is currently allowed by Henderson's commercial and residential zoning. Until zoning changes are supported, new businesses are likely to reuse old buildings instead.
A couple years ago, Andres Properties sought zoning for a mixed-use development in the old Carnival Food Store lot near Ross Avenue, but the company withdrew the request after opposition from some residents and city officials. Instead, Newflower Farmers Market has opened there.
'Walkable feel'
Marc Andres, who with his brother Roger is one of the main Henderson landlords, noted that their development decisions – particularly choosing local tenants over national chains – have resulted in a booming district at a time when the recession has taken a toll in other areas.
"It's the only authentic neighborhood in Dallas that has some type of walkable feel to it. It's unique and authentic," he said.
Andres and Beattie both talk about applying "new urbanism" concepts to Henderson development. The idea is to replace sprawl with walkable, sustainable, livable neighborhoods that incorporate a mix of housing and businesses.
But the challenge is creating a walkable commercial strip in an area where the automobile is the primary mode of transportation.
"When people start using the 'urbanism' word, it concerns me. It's not urbanism to draw vehicles from Plano," said Bruce Richardson, secretary of the Lowest Greenville West Neighborhood Association.
"We really need a better balance of business that works within the current parking situation," Richardson said.
Angela Daniel, 32 of East Dallas, parked on Capitol on a recent weeknight but said she avoids the area on weekends.
"I don't know how they could fix it. It would look awful to put a garage around here," she said.
For now, valet parking works best, Andres said, because the services use lots at schools and businesses that are empty after 5 p.m. and attendants can squeeze in more cars than regular motorists could. He said Lone Star Valet parks about 1,000 cars for his tenants on busy nights.
Andres said that once all of the lots are reopened, order will be restored along the strip. "Things will be better," he said.
Kelli Slate, 52, of Dallas took advantage of the free valet parking on a recent night.
"I hate looking for parking, so this is a big plus and I'm really happy to tip. There's this hoity-toitiness about it, but it's convenient."
Still, many patrons would rather look for available spots on the side streets.
Jamie Marchi, 32, of East Dallas said she almost turned around and went home because she couldn't find parking near Capitol Pub.
"I'm worried it's going to end up like Greenville [Avenue], where people get upset about cars in their neighborhood and then the only option is valet and your car is five miles away."
Staff writers Erinn Connor and Christina Rosales contributed to this report.
Q&A: VALET PARKING ON HENDERSON AVENUE
Aren't Dallas restaurants supposed to provide free parking?
The city has requirements for free and available parking (with some exceptions). If a valet service uses that space, the valet service must be offered and signs must clearly state that it's free.
Why not just let the customers park their cars?
Valet service helps keep order along the strip, said Marc Andres, one of the primary Henderson landlords. The services use parking space from businesses that are closed in the evening, and the attendants can park 1.5 cars per parking spot. Without it, customers would probably be forced to park deep into the adjacent neighborhoods.
What's wrong with parking on the street?
Residents complain about the congestion, trash and drunks. Visitors are warned to be careful about parking at night in unfamiliar neighborhoods. The area between Henderson and Fitzhugh avenues, in particular, is plagued with car burglaries.
With free valet service, do you have to tip the valet attendant?
Tipping is optional but expected, according to etiquette experts. "Leave the valet guy $2 or $1, if that's what you have," said Evan Beattie, president of the Henderson Neighborhood Association. "A dollar to not have to walk several blocks through a rather dangerous neighborhood is a good value."
Are valet services regulated?
In Dallas, valet services need a city license if they operate on public right of way or use public right of way to move the cars. There are fees for the license, each parking spot, the valet stands, the signs, a site plan review and other items, according to a Sept. 29 briefing from the city's Public Works and Transportation Department. Last fall, enforcement was shifted to the Police Department. Do other cities require free off-street parking? Austin, Fort Worth, Houston and San Antonio do not, according to the city's briefing report. It notes that some say that requiring free parking "encourages an auto-dominated transportation system."
Fitzhugh's gentrification moves into retail site makeovers
10:38 PM CDT on Friday, June 25, 2010By STEVE BROWN / The Dallas Morning News
stevebrown@dallasnews.com
This article can be found on the Dallas Morning News Website
Some tired old shopping strips on Dallas' east side are getting a makeover.
The retail redevelopment along Fitzhugh Avenue east of North Central Expressway follows an apartment building
boom in the area.
With hundreds of more affluent residents moving into the neighborhood, property owners along
Fitzhugh are sprucing up storefronts to attract new tenants.
"The area is completely changing," said Steve Gottsacker, president of SPG Realty Advisors, which is about
to begin work on its retail property at Fitzhugh and Homer Street.
"We've had 1,750 brand-new apartment units completed within a third of a mile of our location," Gottsacker
said. "We are getting constant calls on that property. I've shown it twice this morning."
After one of the current tenants, a dollar store, shuts down, Gottsacker plans to significantly upgrade the
building, which was constructed in 1970. A smaller building in front that houses a tire store will also be
revamped.
"We are in negotiations with three different restaurant groups who are interested in the location," Gottsacker
said.
"We just have to get all the leases and financing together."
Owners of a retail strip a couple of blocks away at Fitzhugh and Belmont Avenue have finished their refurbishment
and signed two new leases.
The almost 50-year-old building, which previously housed two nightclubs, has been rented to Herrera's Cafe
and a pizza parlor, said development partner Chase Skorburg.
"We bought the property in 2008, right as they were beginning work on the new apartments," Skorburg said. "It was a tired building."
Skorburg said the owner of a smaller retail building next door has also done a new restaurant deal.
"I think this area is going to wind up just like Henderson," he said.
In the last few years, dozens of new restaurants, bars and retailers have opened along Henderson Avenue
between North Central Expressway and Ross Avenue.
The commercial strip, which is close to gentrified neighborhoods, is now one of the city's most popular
entertainment districts.
"Henderson is jam-packed," Gottsacker said, "and several of the operators from over there are now looking
at Fitzhugh."
It makes sense for merchants who have seen the growth along Henderson to be making the hop to Fitzhugh,
said retail real estate broker Jack Gosnell of UCR Urban.
"It's really ready to go but has been blocked by some old leases that were holding things up," Gosnell said.
UCR Urban has been hired to lease a nearby retail development at Capitol and Haskell avenues that will be
anchored by a Kroger supermarket and LA Fitness.
"The whole area is changing," Gosnell said.
In Old East Dallas, a new neighborhood takes shape
Friday, October 30, 2009By STEVE BROWN / The Dallas Morning News
stevebrown@dallasnews.com
This article can be found on the Dallas Morning News Website
When developer Mark Culwell chatted with his general contractor at the corner of Belmont and Bennett
avenues a couple of years ago, the construction executive kept looking over his shoulder.
"He didn't feel safe standing here," said Culwell, senior vice president of development at United Dominion Realty.
There's no fear factor now. The jumble of run-down rental units and ramshackle houses is long gone from the Old East Dallas intersection.
In their place, developers have built an urban neighborhood that would be at home in Dallas' hot Uptown district.
So far, prospective renters don't seem to have any trouble migrating to Dallas' newest rental enclave.
"Most of them are coming from Uptown and downtown," said sales specialist Karly Kuby. "And we've had a few who are moving from out of town."
"We just moved our first resident into the project," Kuby added.
With 465 units, UDR's new Belmont apartment community occupies almost four blocks between
Fitzhugh and Henderson avenues just east of North Central Expressway. Next door, another developer –
Phoenix Property Co. – has just finished 182 apartments in its Eastwood on Henderson complex.
Together, the developments represent the biggest block of new housing constructed in the area in
decades.
So how's all that working out with the recession?
"Our leasing traffic has been good," said Culwell, who's spent almost three years working on the project.
"We've been kind of holding our breath – it's not the perfect time of year to be opening a project like this,"
he said.
Or the perfect economic environment.
But on a recent Friday morning, potential tenants lined up to tour the new apartment buildings, which have
the latest in architecture and – on the upper floors – killer views of downtown Dallas.
A month's rent will run between $800 and $2,000, depending on the unit's size and location.
The apartments offer three price levels of interior finish – from laminate countertops and carpet to granite in
the kitchen and hardwood floors.
"So hopefully, we won't lose anyone because of our price points," Culwell said. "We want to have
something for everyone."
To sweeten the deal, the landlord is throwing in a 42-inch HDTV as part of the appliance package in every
unit.
"We are doing it in our apartments everywhere in the country," Culwell said. "We are buying a lot of TVs."
UDR has more than 150 apartment projects stretching across the county. Along with the Belmont project,
the publicly owned developer is also building a large rental community in Addison.
To make the East Dallas project appeal to new urban residents, the developer added wide sidewalks along
the streets, lush landscaping and streetside patio areas.
"This is not a retail location," Culwell said. "But we wanted to make the outside inviting and encourage
people to walk. "We are just a couple of blocks away from all the new restaurant activity on Henderson
Avenue," he said.
Phoenix Property's new Eastwood apartments next door are at the busy intersection of Belmont and
Henderson. The seven three-story apartment buildings are designed in what the developer calls "mid-century
architecture."
The first residents have already moved in.
Homeowners in the nearby Cochran Heights neighborhood between Henderson and Fitzhugh are mostly
pleased with the dramatic transformation.
"The apartments have cleaned up that strip and are a nice asset to the area," said real estate agent Mitch
Deshotels, immediate past president of the Cochran Heights Neighborhood Association.
Arlene Colbert, a longtime resident of the area, says the apartments are welcome for the most part.
"The apartments definitely improved the looks of the area, even though the apartment buildings are rather
stark-looking," she said.
"We are worried about the traffic, particularly in the first two blocks of Henderson, east of Central.
"It is already really bad with no solution in sight."
Old East Dallas garden filled with European elegance, details
12:58 PM CDT on Wednesday, September 30, 2009By MARIANA GREENE Garden Editor magreene@dallasnews.com
This is some fancy tool shed: Tudor architecture, hand-stained-glass casement windows, a monumental antique French chandelier, reproduction Arts and Crafts wallpaper, central air and heat.
As owner Greg Armstrong explains the impressive, formal garden room: "It started out to be a tool shed, and it
got out of control. Alan and I spent too much time in Europe. "Armstrong is given to wry, self-deprecating
remarks. After all, he's only the property's "under-gardener," a phrase he (or perhaps partner, and master
gardener, Alan Rister) picked up touring the grand gardens of England, Italy and France. The owners will offer
their own grand tour Saturday as one of seven stops organized by the Rainbow Garden Club.
"I had a lot of this conceived in my mind before we did it," says Rister, who has lived in the house next door
since 1986. "It took 15 years to convince the owners of the property to sell. It was a much-abused house that
really should have been condemned by the city."
An unprepossessing brick cottage built in 1926 remains the pair's official address, blending into the Cochran
Heights neighborhood of '20s, '30s and '40s bungalows. A brick wall across the front of the acquired adjoining
lot, its solid facade broken by centered, old iron gates, modestly hides the glory inside. If you are paying
close attention as you drive or stroll by the property, you first notice an array of terra-cotta chimney pots on
multiple stacks, then a Tudor roofline with unusual red shingles. Through the gates, if you peer boldly, you can
spot a sunken garden, stained-glass windows and classical cast-stone urns and obelisks that remind you of a
country house in Edwardian England. Surprise gives way to admiration.
"In many ways that's part of the pleasure of this garden, its being unexpected," says Rister. "We were very
intent in not turning the house into a McMansion monstrosity. The new central garden is surrounded on three sides
by structures: the original cottage extended to house a stone-and-stucco tower and master suite, a garage
disguised as a carriage house and a garden pavilion imagined as circa 1910. Outdoor geometric garden rooms
defined by boxwood borders, stone or cast-stone garden architecture are tucked throughout the lot. The layout
makes the site appropriate for dinner with friends, a niece's wedding, a solitary glass of wine at sunset, Sunday
afternoon with a book or manageable opportunities for gardening in perennial beds or shady to sunny containers.
Nothing is higgledy-piggledy. The geometries – and the ornamentation – of classical European design are
paramount. You'll recognize the tall, slim Italian cypresses, caryatids holding up walls and benches, shallow
water features, substantial urns, straight-line vistas and walls with niches.
"I was really totally into all that detail at the time we were doing this," Rister says. "I had my aesthetic
list,and I had my functional list. I knew I wanted a formal fountain, a lawn, garage and a building with a
workroom and storage.
"I also wanted an architectural focal point in the garden," Rister continues, "and a potting shed that was like
a gazebo, something ornamental."
Both men traveled extensively in their careers. Armstrong was a physicist at Texas Instruments and Micron
Technology. Before he retired, he traveled monthly to Japan for several years. Rister, a retired buyer for
Tiffany & Co. and Neiman Marcus, was exposed to luxury goods daily and traveled frequently to Europe for both
work and pleasure. He forged a special affection for France while obtaining his master's degree in French
literature and culture.
Personal travel has taken them to the famous and historic gardens of Europe. Their photos capture the formality
and precise geometry of favorites as well as statuary and other garden ornament. The lessons learned are evident
in the Rister-Armstrong property, which has a serene and private atmosphere despite being one house away from the
bustling restaurant and bar scene of Henderson Avenue.
What you won't see, however, are the shrubs and perennials of an English border in high summer. There are a few
roses in place, but Rister is gradually replacing plants that do well in England and in American states with
England-like climates. His master gardening classes in 2005 and his volunteer work at Texas Discovery Gardens at
Fair Park, which focuses on natives and other drought-tolerant hardy plants, have caused him to reconsider his
plant list.
"Having wasted so much money and killed so many plants, as we've all done," Rister says, he is experimenting with
climate-tolerant choices that give him the exuberance of the English garden but that are more likely to survive
our heat and humidity.
"Can I make it look English with native and adapted plants?" he wonders. The colorful foliage of coleus,
caladiums and other tropicals joins flaming orange tithonia, salvias, zinnias and durantas. Gothic urns are
planted with architectural agaves. He changes out the plantings in decorative flowerpots with the seasons,
preferring brilliant colors over sweet pastels.
The focus of the garden has to be the octagonal pavilion with its turn-of-the-20th-century details. Architect
Clinton Strong derived the design based on Rister's dreams, not specifics. Interior designer John Gormley
furnished it in an Arts and Crafts mood. A stylized sunflower wallpaper, designed after Englishman William
Morris, the Arts and Crafts master, is the backdrop to dining furniture and conservatory plants. A regiment of
custom casement windows overlooks the sunken garden and goldfish pond; each window is bordered by bands of
multicolored glass executed by Molloy Mirror & Art Glass. The border of clerestory windows above is accented
with miniaturized, hand-colored versions of the wallpaper's sunflowers.
"The garden pavilion concept started out as an architectural focal point for the garden, which was to be a gazebo
or the like, or better yet, something like a potting shed, to be architect-designed and worthy of attention in
the new garden," says Rister.
"I told our architect that I like hexagonal and octagonal buildings, that I would like to have a built-in potting
bench and, oh, by the way, how about some shelves for gardening books, and while we're at it, how about a half-bath,
etc., etc., etc. Clint came back with drawings for the building pretty much as you see it today.
How could we resist?"
Project Resources
Susi Thompson, ASLA. Thompson Landscape Architects, Dallas
Clinton Strong, AIA. Dallas
John Gormley, ASID. John Gormley Interior Design, Dallas
Stonework and masonry: Southwest Builders Inc., Bedford
Antique brick: Metro Brick & Stone Co., Dallas
New brick: Acme Brick, multiple locations
Chimney pots: Superior Clay Corp, Uhrichsville, Ohio
Copper roof ornaments: W.F. Norman Corp., Nevada, Mo.
Walking shoes a good fit in Cochran Heights
06:17 PM CDT on Friday, September 12, 2008By MARY JACOBS / Special Contributor to The Dallas Morning News
This article can be found on the Dallas Morning News Website Carlos Zarazaga had one requirement while shopping for a home: He wanted to live someplace where he could walk to a pub. He and his wife, Jessie, found Cochran Heights, a Dallas neighborhood of about 250 homes south of Henderson Avenue, just east of North Central Expressway.
Now they can walk a few blocks to the Old Monk, a popular neighborhood hangout.
Their choice to be in Cochran Heights reflects many of the advantages that residents tout: a walkable, convenient neighborhood with a friendly, Bohemian spirit. Many stores and restaurants are in reach along the stretch known as Knox-Henderson, and so is the Katy Trail.
"I like the European scale of the neighborhood," said Jessie Zarazaga. "The houses are older and charming, and they're small, with small yards. That makes it feel more friendly."
The neighborhood was one of the first in Dallas to approve an "overlay stabilization," restrictions on new construction relating to height and setback to help preserve the scale of the neighborhood.
"The houses here are so cool and quirky," says Wendy Johnston. "About the only thing we all have in common is that all of our houses are unique."
She and her husband, Rick Grinter, live in a home designed by architect Charles Dilbeck, creator of numerous distinctive Dallas homes in the 1930s, '40s and '50s. Dilbeck homes range from English country cottage to art deco styles.
The Johnston-Grinter home, like many Dilbecks, features a "crazy" fireplace with unusual brickwork, multilevel designs and storybook details.
Cochran Heights has many Dilbecks – Ms. Johnston estimates there are 30 on her street alone – as well as an assortment of Tudor and traditional home styles by other designers.
The architectural variety fits the variety of people, says Mitch Deshotels, a Realtor with Briggs Freeman and president of the neighborhood association.
"We have new residents, young couples with babies and people who have lived here for 30 to 40 years," he said. "We have artists as well as attorneys and physicians."
Because so many residents shop along Henderson, a cooperative relationship between residents and businesses has developed. The merchants maintain extra police patrols and recently extended those patrols into the neighborhood at no charge to residents.
And many in Cochran Heights are excited that the Sunflower Farmers Market chain plans to open a store next year on Henderson.
COCHRAN HEIGHTS AT A GLANCE
History: Most of the original homes in Cochran Heights, including many by architect Charles Dilbeck, were built in the 1930s and '40s.
2007 home sales*: $207,000 to $730,000
Shopping: Knox-Henderson retail area
Schools: Dallas Independent School District
2007 crime: No murders, no rapes, 9 aggravated assaults, 8 robberies, 26 burglaries, 40 thefts, 28 vehicle thefts
*Reported sales prices of homes listed through MLS
**Police reporting area 1159
SOURCES: Dallas Police ; Mitch Deshotels, Briggs Freeman Real Estate Brokerage, Mathews Nichols Group