Main Street Garden Park

Love this park. Especially the dog park. Great to have a beer or a snow cone from the café and watch the dogs play. Only issue I have is the amount of homeless that surround the benches around the park. It’s insane. But I never feel unsafe at least. There are always officers and Patrol and I’ve never had any isssues.

I’ve only been here for events and parking is pretty simple if you park in the garage. A lot of the times though when I drive by when there are no events, the park is relatively empty.

I stopped by Main Street Garden Park after leaving work a little early. Wanted to get out doors for a bit. I set up my laptop and got to work. The WiFi was slow but improved over time. The Patio which once belonged to Rusty Taco and Lilly Pad is still very inviting. What’s not inviting is that some (not all) of the people that bring their dogs to do their business at the park don’t clean up after their animals. What I found odd was that these people had no shame in the fact that everyone could see that they had no intention of doing the right thing and picking up what their dogs had just left behind. That being said if the City gets tough on the few unscrupulous pet owners all will be fine at Main Street Garden.

Although I had driven by and spotted Rusty Tacos, I had never taken a moment to actually park and walk through this park.
What a nice oasis in the heart of downtown!
Not only is there a Rusty Taco stand with amble outdoor seating and tables in the shade. There are fountains for the kids to run through, a cart containing books that are free to the public to read and share while visiting the park, a small dog run and one of the infamous «B» and «G» statues that have been placed around town.
With all of the parks in the area busy all the time with kids running around it was nice to see that this was a more laid back and quiet park where you can go and relax.

A small, but nice little park in downtown Dallas. Ample seating on the edge of the terraced grounds.

I’ve walked downtown Dallas a few times and it’s nice to come here and rest my legs for a bit. There is Downtown Patrol on duty here so they provide some sense of security.

Frequently closed or reserved for corporate events, with no access to the dog park provided. Lots of off-​leash dogs in the on-​leash area, which the Downtown Patrol does nothing about. The dog park is frequented by out-​of-​towners and their poorly-​behaved country dogs.
On the upside, lots of free events are held there, and everyone is pleasant and friendly. Panhanding is not allowed, which is pretty surprising considering downtown’s vibrant homeless population. The in-​ground fountain is nice for kids and others to cool off. More food trucks, better music and better leash law enforcement would add a star to the park’s rating.

I’ve stayed at Hotel Indigo a few times for work across the street and this is the perfect place to relax and let your mind wander after a hard day’s work.
I had some tacos at the stand in the park and watched dogs and children frolic. After, I plopped myself down in the soft grass and just did what you do in parks — sat and enjoyed myself.
I really love urban parks and this space is just lovely.

What’s that you say? It’s a greenspace/​park in the heart of downtown Dallas? Okay then. Five stars awarded.
Listen, I know it’s not perfect. The trees aren’t mature so there’s little shade. There are carved stones that looks like coffins (really, city planners??). There’s a gaudy sign that says «Park» which has flashing lights. I could bitch about the design and layout, but I simply love that there’s a greenspace here.
Plus, big open lawn! Cute benches! Pretty native plants!
I’ve been multiple times, but I went for a walk tonight (a Friday), and there are actually people out in downtown Dallas at night! It’s near the little cluster of restaurants, hotels, clubs (Plush), and Neiman Marcus.
Hey, let’s support these baby steps that Dallas is undertaking to give our city more quality of life.

This was the perfect Sunday afternoon hangout for my little family today. We got there around 6pm so it was still warm, but the sun wasn’t blazing. We let my 1 year old daughter run off all of her extra energy in the splash pad area and the tot lot. She loved it!
The splash pad area and tot lot were well maintained and clean. The park has tons of seating and around 6 there was plenty of shade. The lawn looked a little beat up, but that’s to be expected since there were quite a few dogs running around on it. All in all it was a nice afternoon at a great little downtown oasis.

One of my friends used to always talk about the something something peck away theory, which basically meant that if you keep at things even if you may not see great results that eventually it will take hold.
That is the feeling I have about downtown Dallas. Years ago it was the Meyerson, then Victory Park, the the businesses on Main Street, then somewhere in the mix came the Nasher and new Omni, DART, the Merc, One Arts and the Wyly and Winspear, and now the deck park and the nature and science museum. I love all the pieces but it does seem like when they start they are often pitched as the final lynch pin and turn out to be more slow steady and consistent progress towards a vibrant downtown and a real sense of place.
To get more back on topic, I feel like the Main Street Garden is one of those stepping stones. Did it open to overflow use, no, but is it a nice place that seems to gradually get more and more and better and better use, absolutely. I am really glad the Main Street Garden is there and as long as business people, developers, charities and the city keep pecking away at downtown, I think there will be a day somewhat soon, when people collectively wake up to realize that there are some pretty good things going on there.
All that being said, I agree with Ashdleigh A., that it can get hot down there in the summer.

The best thing to happen to downtown Dallas in decades and a huge part in the revitalization of the Main Street District. A vibrant, well-​functioning urban park that mixes people of all ages in various usages of the park. Throw a ball/​frisbee on the lawn, play with the kids on the playground, have a drink at the Lily Pad café, walk the dog in the dog park, etc. Just a great urban park.

This plaza connecting the Merc, UNT’s downtown Dallas campus, a courthouse, and the historic Statler Hilton currently under renovation helps the central business district feel like a residential neighborhood. Mornings and evenings, regulars can be spotted walking their pets or grabbing healthy street food and happy hour-​priced drinks from the Lily Pad Café. On special occasions, it’s hosted the Homegrown Music festival or holiday lights and activities. And during the weekends, parents can watch their kiddos on the play equipment or running through the water feature as music is piped in through xeriscaped gardens.

So this is a tough one for me to review. I actually really like this place, but I spend a lot of time here so I can say I have a pretty honest opinion.
First off, let me tell you had I written this review a month ago, I probably would have gone with 4 stars. Then, lo and behold, it started getting hot outside and this place got a little unbearable. Okay, almost completely unbearable.
The bf and I moved to downtown a couple of months ago, and we try to take our dog to the little dog run area here at least four or five times a week to wear her out and get her around other pups. As Jon F. mentioned, there are no trees, or shading of any kind. Actually, I take that back. There are 3 benches underneath some sort of sad little «roof» that only works if it’s noon and the sun is directly overhead.
Now let’s think about this a little bit. You live in downtown. You have a dog. Presumably, you probably work normal business hours — which I assume is the reason why the park is busiest from about 5pm-​7pm. The last time I went, I literally felt like I was a human piece of bacon. Sizzling. My poor pup would run around for about 30 seconds, go grab some water, then hide underneath the meager shade of the bench.
As far as the ground being made of concrete (inside the dog run, of course), it actually doesn’t bother me because it keeps my pup’s eagle talons to a bearable level or sharpness.
Basically, this is a total convenience. If I want to go throw the ball around and really wear her out, I’ll take her five or six blocks down to the Bark Park underneath the freeway — while it doesn’t seem like the best location, it’s huge, and ¾ of it is BLISSFULLY shady.
Now, to continue on to Chapter 14 of this novel, I will say the convenience factor is unbeatable. It’s centrally located, and fairly well-​kept. I hope they start doing more community events like the music festival that happened a couple of weeks ago, movies in the park, etc. The downtown community is pretty close-​knit and I think if they started having more fun things go on they could lure some Deep Ellum dwellers out as well.
But please, city planners, when planning out the next couple of parks in the downtown area… TREES. SHADE. IT’S FREAKING TEXAS. IT’S HOT. DUH.

So I’m in Dallas for 18 days for training, no car, but I look online and hey theres a dog park not to far from my hotel. AWESOME… Ginger (my pup) and I take the mile+ walk over to this park, and first were like Great, big lawn, little trees and nice little water fountain thing, its low so I assume dogs and kids could walk around in it, nothing says they can, Ginger loves it, It says in this area dogs need to be leashed, SOOOO, i assumed it wasnt an off-​leash park, but no there is a small dog RUN, thats basically cement… and it SMELLS, so bad, OMG! People are picking up, but its cement and theres no hose around to wash it with, TOTALLY DISGUSTING. Perhaps they could build a little walled area, and put wood chips in it instead, its much easier to clean poop off of. But I’m desperate, we stay and play, and I come another day, and see people just letting the dogs run with out leashing on the grass… AHHHH, signs are more a law thing, I suppose if your dog is traffic educated, you could let them lose and run around. My puppy isnt so, I just brought the longer lead in the future. I found alot of little areas/​park like spots in the city have the lower fountains for the dogs, so we just ended up walking around too. I suppose if you live in a city this is a normal dog park you would see, but it was very small, and stinky. There is shade around from some structures built, but none in the dog run enclosure, sooo very hot.

This is sooo not where I thought it was. For some reason I thought it was closer to Woodall Rogers, but duh I guess «Main Street» should have tipped me off. I’ll learn my way around downtown someday: P
But anyhoo, yeah! This place is neat! It’s not a huge space but is fun to walk around. The doggie area is small and entirely concrete – or whatver other material Jon F mentioned I guess – I kept worrying one of the sprinting dogs was going to poke its eye out on a bench or something! But it’s still a really nice respite in the middle of downtown.
I probably wouldn’t go out of my way to come here, but would definitely make a nice place to stroll with kids or if you’re in the area. I WOULD make the trip to see a movie or a band or something like that, so I’m excited to see what all they offer!!!
I’d say this place gets 3.5 stars.

I think Jon F’s review is hilarious… and a little true. But I’m still a fan. Why? Because its the only stinkin Dog park in the downtown, duh! But seriously, there’s a huge greenspace for the pooch to walk on. I think the «off leash» area is silly… why isn’t it off leash on the big green grass? totally weird!
Plus if you want a drink o water for your pooch, you HAVE to enter the off leash area? um… why?
Sure there’s a place to sit, have a bite and all that… but if your there for your dog what ya gonna do? Leaven em in the off leash by themselves?
Also, I’m not a fan of kids area’s at a dog park either… how snobby you’re thinkin… but, so many dogs act squirrly around squeeky kids and I would hate to see a child bitten. Heck, I act funny around squeeky kids too. :p
It can be hot as the dickens at this park to, but I imagine that the tree’s will eventually provide a bit of shade. My pooch thinks the place is just ok too… he wasn’t excited by the off leash area at all, totally snubbed it.

Look for the huge, neon lit, tongue in check sign that says PARK. This new green space in the middle of drab downtown sports a grassy lawn, garden of salvia, rows of magnolia trees, benches, a very shallow pool and fountain for wading, playground, a café with covered patio, and several private covered areas with tables.
Big thumbs up, this was really done right.

Too little too soon. The City of Dallas’ downtown recreational revitalization went off with thud.
Now it’s not all their fault and the place has potential but I think they pressed the opening weekend too soon. The Neiman’s tree was set for Friday night (11÷20÷09) and they hosted a Music at the Park the next day. I was only there on Saturday but it rained substantially Friday night so the entire green area was roped off with cops’ caution tape leaving only benches and short walls to sit on. Since it was music event it was a bit lame to have folks pretty far away from the stage.
But that doesn’t excuse the loose stone pavers by the entrance like they were just laid down last minute. And the unfinished dog park that had black tarps over some mysterious objects. The lights on some of the sculptures or structures were not all working. I would have like to see the full lighting effect but I left before dark.
I did like the design and architecture of the kids park, the café, and the seating stone structures spread throughout the perimeter of the park.
The event had a few vendors there with some nice tenderloin and chowder. But Lily Pad Park Café’ is there and should provide local organic food and dog treats but was open for this event.
So if you want to go, I’d recommend waiting for it to dry out at least and give them some time to get the kinks outs. I think they would have made a better first impression if they had a mid-​December or first of the year opening.