A registered National Historic Landmark, Fair Park is the 227-acre home to the State Fair of Texas and various cultural institutions in Dallas, Tex. In 2020, Fair Park revised its masterplan to include a 14-acre Community Park and a parking garage. Designed by Gensler, the Fair Park Fitzhugh Parking Structure recently won the AIA Dallas Chapter Unbuilt Design Award.
The garage will have 1,650 parking spaces over five stories. In an attempt to design a large concrete parking structure that’s sensitive to its surrounding community, the team placed part of Community Park on top of the garage structure, making it an extension of the park.
To connect the park to the garage’s top deck, the design uses both earth berms and structural berms. On the surface of the north berm, an immersive outdoor experience includes a prairie landscape, viewing deck, shading canopies, shading platform, and rooftop event deck. With concessions and restrooms, the rooftop deck can be used for public and private events. Beneath the north berm lies 80,000 square feet of operational facilities for Fair Park and Community Park.
With a 47-foot ascent to the top of the garage, the project makes the structure’s height an asset for the park, offering views of the adjacent neighborhood, Fair Park, and downtown. It also creates a new, distinctive public space for Dallas. The project’s shape takes inspiration from the region’s limestone ridges and the park’s prairie-inspired landscape, blending and unifying the garage structure with its surroundings. The parking structure aims to incentivize wellness by encouraging people to walk rather than use the elevator.
On the Building Team:
Owner and developer: Fair Park First
Design architect and architect of record: Gensler
Associate architect: Moody Nolan
MEP engineer: DFW Consulting Group
Structural engineer: Ponce-Fuess Engineering
General contractor/construction manager: VCC and Con-Real
Parking consultant: WGI
Civil engineer: Pacheco Koch
Related Stories
Legislation | May 4, 2022
Washington is first state to mandate all-electric heat for new large buildings
Washington recently became the first state to require all electric heat for new buildings.
Building Team | May 4, 2022
Mancini Acquires Gertler & Wente Architects, Expanding the Firm's Opportunities in New Market Sectors
National design firm Mancini Duffy - with a 100+-year-old history and tech-forward approach based in New York City - announces the acquisition of Gertler & Wente Architects to further expand its footprint in the healthcare, multi-family residential, restoration, institutional, and religious sectors.
Contractors | May 4, 2022
CFC Construction names Pat Smith president
CFC Construction is proud to announce that Pat Smith has been promoted to President of the Colorado-based general contractor.
Sponsored | Healthcare Facilities | May 3, 2022
Planning for hospital campus access that works for people
This course defines the elements of hospital campus access that are essential to promoting the efficient, stress-free movement of patients, staff, family, and visitors. Campus access elements include signage and wayfinding, parking facilities, transportation demand management, shuttle buses, curb access, valet parking management, roadways, and pedestrian walkways.
Codes and Standards | May 3, 2022
American Institute of Steel Construction updates environmental product declarations
The American Institute of Steel Construction has released updated environmental product declarations (EPDs) “to help designers and building owners design more environmentally friendly buildings and bridges,” according to an AISC news release.
Education Facilities | May 2, 2022
Texas School for the Deaf campus gateway enhances sense of belonging for deaf community
The recently completed Texas School for the Deaf Administration and Welcome Center and Early Learning Center, at the state’s oldest continuously operating public school, was designed to foster a sense of belonging for the deaf community.
Codes and Standards | May 2, 2022
Developer Hines, engineer MKA develop free embodied carbon reduction guide
Real estate management and investment firm Hines has released the Hines Embodied Carbon Reduction Guide. The free guide, produced with Magnusson Klemencic Associates (MKA), is the result of a two-year effort, relying on MKA’s industry-leading knowledge of carbon accounting and involvement in programs such as the Embodied Carbon in Construction Calculator (EC3) Tool.
Building Team | May 2, 2022
HED and VAI announce merger to bring strategic expertise and drive community impact in Dallas
HED (Harley Ellis Devereaux), a leading national architecture and engineering firm, today announced a merger with award-winning, Dallas-based VAI Architects Incorporated (VAI).
Laboratories | Apr 29, 2022
Oracle Industry Lab in Chicago enables development of solutions for multiple industries
The Oracle Industry Lab in Chicago, which provides customers in multiple industries the opportunity to test new technologies, recently opened.
Market Data | Apr 29, 2022
U.S. economy contracts, investment in structures down, says ABC
The U.S. economy contracted at a 1.4% annualized rate during the first quarter of 2022.
