As part of sweeping changes to the booming West 7th neighborhood in west Fort Worth, the city will make some streets one-way, add sidewalks, install parking meters, and boost the number of police officers assigned to the area.
The area has grown remarkably fast over the last ten years.
When Perry Tong opened Pop’s Safari Cigar and Fine Wines on Morton Street in 1996, the neighborhood was full of empty fields and vacant buildings.
Not anymore.
"We've seen radical changes,” Tong said. "Now we're metropolitan Fort Worth. There is no parking. It's all building to building to building. It looks like Manhattan."
In many ways, the businesses are victims of their own success.
Parking is at a premium.
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Traffic, especially on weekend nights, is a nightmare.
Now, the city has a plan to fix it after a year of talking about it.
"I know effective solutions are going to require we continue this dialogue,” said Fort Worth Mayor Betsy Price.
Price and other city leaders outlined the changes at a meeting of business owners and others – many of whom have differing interests and favor different solutions.
"You're never going to make everyone happy,” Price said. “But at least in Fort Worth-style, people are at the table and addressing those issues."
The plan will make several streets one-way to improve traffic flow, build new sidewalks, and install parking meters along the streets. The price will vary -- $1 per hour during the day and $2.50 at night.
Bar owners are signing a year-long deal for their customers to park at the nearby lot at Farrington Field, which is owned by the Fort Worth Independent School District.
Also, police plan to double the number of officers patrolling this area, starting this Saturday night.
"While it's really busy right now, it hasn't stopped,” said police Commander Cynthia O’Neil. “It's still growing in the area. It's great for Fort Worth. It's great for the people who visit and the people who live here but we have to make sure we stay ahead of it."
Tong isn't sure all the changes will work.
"The one-ways? Kind of interesting,” he said. “I don't know what it's supposed to do."
But he's glad city leaders are trying something to help.
"It is a major problem down here,” he said.
Another $8 million in improvements to 7th Street itself could happen if voters approve a $400 million bond issue May 5.
