Fort Worth Leaders Pick Smaller Stockyards Protection Plan
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FORT WORTH (CBSDFW.COM) - The debate lasted well into the night, but city leaders in Fort Worth finally decided just how much history will be preserved at an iconic landmark. There was never any question that the city council would pass new protections for the Fort Worth Stockyards.
The question was about exactly how many buildings and streets would be protected.
Council members voted on a protection zone that covers about 60 acres of the Stockyards. That allows developers to demolish several decaying buildings along the edges of the area. The City of Fort Worth will control some of the new development, but it will not add new restrictions on growth.
"Property owners do not want any more oversight," stated council member Sal Espino. "They believe this is the most regulated area of the city in terms of land use, and they're right. This will be the most regulated area of the city, and council will continue with oversight."
The approved zone was the smaller of two plans that were in front of city leaders. Historians and architects wanted officials to extend the protections over an area about 139 acres in size. However, after years of planning and hours of hearing the public's input on Tuesday night, the council decided to restrict growth in the smaller area.
"We don't own the Stockyards," said Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price, "and we walk a very fine line with government regulating your property and your business, but yet having just enough regulation to still preserve and still impact things."
Opponents of the smaller plan argued that this decision will mean that parts of the city's history will be destroyed forever, and that Fort Worth's future will be in the hands of developers. "If you vote in favor of this district, you will ignore four months of research and field work," Stockyards architecture historian Kip Wright said during the Tuesday night meeting. "I don't regard this small district. I regard it as a political district."
