I live in Fort Worth not Dallas but for some reason people look at Fort Worth as Dallas and our city is tired of it.

[Pontificator]

(I'm late to this discussion.....) Isn't it frustrating when people don't get simple geography? I have relatives in South Texas who refer to us going "back to Dallas" after a visit. Heaven forbid!

I remind them that Fort Worth is west of Dallas, and we live 30 miles west of Fort Worth!! I try to make them understand by asking Austinites if they refer to themselves as living in San Antonio, or vice versa.

[JJG]

Originally Posted by second_pancake

I am in total agreement with "waqt". Fort Worth is Fort Worth, NOT Dallas. Dallas touts itself as being progressive, innovative, and modern, but the fact of the matter is that type of self-promotion is the exact reason there are folks that live in Ft. Worth and enjoy it so much: We don't like constantly trying to keep up appearances or progress for the sake of progress. More skyscrapers?? Why?? Just because?? There need to be tenants to fill those skyscrapers and as another mentioned, take care of the surface parking lots and concentrate on what already exists within the city before building something new. No matter the economy, a city can not build something in the hopes that companies will come to town simply because that building exists.

If Fort Worth continues to be concerned with the appearances of their city in relation to Dallas rather than accepting and embracing its history and differences, it will be headed down a very destructive path. I am from a city that continues to live in the shadow of cities like Atlanta, and is constantly being compared to various cities throughout the country, including Ft. Worth, for what others have that they don't. They are so concerned with being new and shiny that they have all but destroyed the history they had with no real plan to create anything. What they managed to create is a completely dead downtown with historic buildings reduced to surface parking lots and homeless parks. I have seen this in Dallas, but this is their M.O. This is what Dallas is known for...down with the old, up with the new. Is that what the residents of Ft. Worth want? I don't think so. And I don't think those of us new to the area want that either. The major draw to Ft. Worth is the big city with the downhome feel. Embrace it and learn how to promote that and all will be good.

.... *sigh*
Again, NO ONE is saying we should be like Dallas.

Unlike Dallas and other cities, Fort Worth doesn't tear down most of its historical buildings just to build new ones that become vacant within a year.

We say we want more skyscrapers because most of the buildings in Downtown are filled up. If (and when) companies decide to move to Fort Worth, they wont have room, so they build.
But when I say we need more skyscrapers, I want it to be smart and well thought of. The city is growing, but it needs to grow smart. Fort Worth needs to stop building more suburban sprawl and start building in the city again. It needs to bring more of its citizens back into the heart of the town and not away from it, so more residential development is needed. So there is no "just because" when it comes to more skyscrapers in downtown.
All I ask is that the buildings aren't plain or ugly like some of the P.O.S.'s rising in Downtown right now (you KNOW what skyscraper I'm mainly talking about).

There's nothing wrong with progress. But it has to be smart progress.... something Dallas hasn't known in a long time.

I could care less about what Dallas has, because that whole city can be a mess at times. I love Fort Worth. Always have and always will. But don't think that you can't embrace what a city already has and NOT embrace some good in what a city could have at the same time. Skyscrapers, sports teams, and "extras" like those are nothing to be afraid of.... but only if they are introduced and managed the RIGHT way.

Fort Worth is a great city, with great people, and a great western spirit and downhome feel. But just because a city feels like a small town doesn't mean it has to look like it.

[Lakewooder]

Whoooa wait a minute...Dallas interloper here..

I am from East Dallas and I am tired of Dallas being divided into "north" and "south". We suffer the bad reputations of both! So I know what you mean.

BTW, we are home to the first historic district in Texas - we like to claim that we are the birthplace of the modern historic preservation movement our state. Now downtown and the Park Cities are another story!

[JJG]

Oh, and another thing about the rail....

Fort Worth does have the TRE that runs from Downtown FW to Downtown D.

But the main reason why people say we don't have rail is because we have no real system. Well at least, not now anyway. But the TRE is just a one way commuter rail. It doesn't go around the city.


There are plans to have a streetcar system and it's in the works right now. Last news I heard about it, they were still in planning phase, but they have the routes down and all they have to do now is get the funding to start construction.

And our light rail won't be like Dallas (just in case you're worried about that). We are getting a modern streetcar system...... which means that the trains would follow the road like cars. Think of Portland, Seattle, and San Francisco...

[LivingLikeAGradStudent]

I did hear that Fort Worth-adjacent Arlington is the biggest city in the country without public transportation. That makes for some awfully clogged roads.