2011 Downtown Fort Worth Trailblazer Awards Winners
September 19,2011
Downtown Fort Worth, Inc. is proud to present the 2011 Downtown Fort Worth Trailblazer Award Winners
The Downtown Trailblazer Awards showcase the most successful and innovative efforts in center city development and celebrate the vision and commitment that make downtown spectacular.
Promotion and Marketing – ESPN in Sundance Square
During Super Week 2011, ESPN and other media outlets created a "broadcast village" in the heart of Sundance Square that showcased Downtown Fort Worth to a worldwide audience. The logistics for this event were unprecedented: it took a full year of planning, countless meetings, flawless coordination, and a tremendous amount of labor to pull it off successfully – in the midst of the worst winter storm in 20 years. In all, ESPN broadcast more than 110 hours of live television and radio coverage from Sundance Square. Millions of people around the world saw the vibrancy and historic charm of Downtown Fort Worth for the very first time.
Congratulations to Sundance Square, this year's Trailblazer winner for promotion and marketing.
Green Space – Hyde Park Transit Plaza
Thanks to the new Hyde Park, Fort Worth's famous panther now has a much larger and greener space in which to sleep. A partnership between the Federal Transit Administration, The T, TxDOT, and the City of Fort Worth, the Hyde Park project features new green space, improvements to 9th street, larger sidewalks, and two new bus passenger shelters. It greatly improves the aesthetics of the area, providing a comfortable, safe and attractive gateway for people walking from the Intermodal Transportation Center to the Central Business District. Hyde Park not only provides a new gathering place for the public but it instills new life into Fort Worth's oldest public park, which was dedicated in 1873.
Congratulations to the City of Fort Worth, winner of this year's Trailblazer award for Green Space.
Placemaking – Chesapeake Energy Holiday Lights
This past holiday, Chesapeake Energy made the Fort Worth holiday nights even brighter. Their gorgeous display of lights attracted people from near and far to the company's regional office downtown. They not only topped their building with blazing holiday lights they also wrapped 107 of the trees on their campus grounds with a rainbow of colors. In all, they used more than 670,000 lights. This stunning display was a wonderful example of corporate giving. It was a gift that turned the Chesapeake campus into a holiday wonderland that brightened our hearts and warmed our spirits.
Congratulations to Chesapeake Energy, winner of this year's Trailblazer award for Placemaking.
Preservation and Adaptive Reuse – Sid Richardson Museum
For years, the Sid Richardson Museum has entertained visitors with a priceless collection of Western art by Frederic Remington and Charles M. Russell. Located on Main Street in Sundance Square, the museum is now more welcoming and expansive than ever thanks to a recent renovation.
The primary goal of the renovation was to retain the overall flavor of the original Domino building while making the entrance more inviting to pedestrians. The new facade added large windows with views of the unique retail space inside. The project also expanded the gallery spaces, allowing the more than 50,000 people who attend the museum each year more room to enjoy the masterpieces. Without question, the Sid Richardson Museum adds greatly to the unique flavor of Downtown Fort Worth, providing a place where visitors can immerse themselves in our colorful past.
Congratulations to the Sid Richardson Museum, winner of this year's Trailblazer for Preservation and Adaptive Reuse.
Sustainable Development – Tarrant County College District
In 2001, Tarrant County College Trustees committed to the construction of a college campus in the heart of Fort Worth to serve the educational and vocational needs of Downtown and the Northside. Construction of a downtown campus that was to span the Trinity River began in 2006 but was complicated by Hurricane Katrina and the failure of the New Orleans levees. The New Orleans disaster led to changes in the Corps of Engineers levee design criteria, and a dramatic change of TCC's plans.
TCC, capitalizing on a soft market and a rare real estate opportunity, purchased the LEED Silver Certified Radio Shack headquarters and converted 572,000 square feet of office space into a portion of their downtown campus. These extensive renovations maintained the building’s silver certification.
The Trinity River East campus opened in August of 2011 and incorporates numerous environmentally friendly features. The outdoor plaza takes advantage of prevailing breezes, a large water feature and shade create a series of pleasant microclimates and the building capitalizes on natural light and highly efficient mechanical systems.
For their unwavering commitment to downtown and sustainable development, DFWI is proud to award the Trailblazer for Sustainable Development to Tarrant County College District.
Urban Design – XTO Energy, Inc.
If you've walked along Houston and 6th streets recently, then you've experienced the beauty of the XTO Energy streetscape project.
XTO Energy went above and beyond to ensure that an entire city block in Downtown Fort Worth was both attractive and pedestrian-friendly. The project included the total replacement of the existing sidewalks with new, widened brick walkways...pedestrian lighting...bus stops...street trees...large planting beds to screen the parking lot...a steel picket fence...and brick and stone parking lot entryways. The high quality of construction and XTO's commitment to maintain it will ensure a long life for this environment. The new streetscape is another prime example of XTO's unprecedented commitment to excellence.
Congratulations to XTO Energy, this year's Trailblazer winner for Urban Design.
Chairman's Award – Fort Worth Promotion and Development Fund
In many ways, during Super Bowl 45 Fort Worth took center stage. One big reason was because of the leadership of Mayor Moncrief, our business community and the Fort Worth Promotion and Development Fund, which plays a key role in promoting Fort Worth across the country and around the world.
Led by Mayor Mike and Rosie Moncrief, the Fort Worth Super Bowl effort pulled together a team of public and private resources to maximize Fort Worth's exposure and the economic impact during Super Bowl week and for years after. A new entity, Touchdown Fort Worth, was created to attract both major media outlets and prominent corporate visitors to the city during Super Bowl week.
This remarkable Super Bowl effort forged new working relationships, friendships and processes that have become part of the fabric of our city. ESPN in Sundance Square put our city on TV screens worldwide and led to Fort Worth’s role as “celebration central” in the days leading up to the game. The result was a major success for our city and none of it would have been possible without the support of the Fort Worth Promotion and Development Fund, the business community and the leadership of Mike and Rosie Moncrief.
Congratulations to this year's Chairman's Award winners, the Fort Worth Promotion and Development Fund and Mike and Rosie Moncrief.
Ambassador Award – Jim Wright
It would take this entire afternoon...and many more...to celebrate the lifetime accomplishments of Former Speaker of the House, Jim Wright. His efforts over many decades continue to have a huge impact on Downtown Fort Worth, both directly and indirectly.
Born in Fort Worth, Jim Wright was a member of Congress for 34 years, and served with eight American presidents. His continuous support for the aviation and military industries have created countless jobs and spurred innovation in our city. His leadership helped secure grant money to transform the Fort Worth Stockyards into a world-renowned attraction. As a member of the Public Works committee, his decisions helped build much-needed roads, dams and other infrastructure in our area.
When Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport was in the planning stages, he worked hard to locate the airport between the two cities. This ensured that businesses in Downtown Fort Worth would have easy access by air to the entire world...and led to greater foreign trade in Fort Worth and the entire region.
Speaker Wright currently serves as the honorary co-chairman of the JFK Tribute Committee and has been instrumental in the efforts to make that project a reality.
A great diplomat...a skilled orator...an accomplished author...a talented teacher...and a tireless champion of Fort Worth. Thank you and congratulations to this year's Ambassador Award winner, Jim Wright.