Design Dive: $170 million master plan for Gateway Park

Photo provided by the City of Fort Worth

Park and Recreation Director Richard Zavala presented the new $170 million master plan for Gateway Park to City Council.

Dedicated in 1979, Gateway Park is Fort Worth’s only metropolitan park, measuring nearly 800 acres — for reference , New York’s Central Park caps out at 843 acres.

Once a sewage treatment plant and a landfill, the park has undergone two previous master plans in 2002 and 2009. Now, the park is poised for planning once again.

Image courtesy of the City of Fort Worth

What’s included?

Designed by Kimley-Horn, the full master plan offers a range of outdoor activities. Residents can look forward to:

• An eastern bluff with a lookout point and kids area
• Protected river bank with hiking and biking trails
• Central gathering area with sports courts and fields
• Western park development in the Oxbow area

The first phase of the master plan will be take place west of Beach Street in the Oxbow area — valley storage land that is part of the Central City Flood Control Project . Improvements include:

• Athletic fields + tennis, pickleball, basketball and sand volleyball courts
• Outdoor event space + areas for food trucks
• Outdoor classroom and low ropes course

Image courtesy of the City of Fort Worth

How much?

While the plan has an estimated $170 million build out, the Park and Recreation department only has $8 million from the 2022 bond package set aside for park improvements + $6.6 million from Tarrant Regional Water District bonds.

Those funds will be used for the design and construction of Phase 1. The remainder of the funding will be left to the discretion of city management and residents in future bond programs .

What’s next?

On Tuesday, June 11, City Council will review the proposed plan and consider a design and engineering agreement with Kimley-Horn for Phase 1 improvements. Construction is slated to run from January 2026 to March 2027.