Oak Lawn is a neighborhood in
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
,
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...
(
USA
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...
), defined in Dallas City Ordinance 21859 a
Planned Development District No. 193, the Oak Lawn Special Purpose District The unofficial boundaries are
Turtle Creek Boulevard
Turtle Creek Boulevard is a thoroughfare that runs through the Turtle Creek neighborhood of Oak Lawn, Dallas, Texas (USA), generally alongside the actual Turtle Creek. The street has been broken up by dedication of Reverchon Park and by constr ...
,
Central Expressway, the
City of Highland Park, Inwood Road, and
Harry Hines Boulevard
Harry Hines Blvd where Dallas North Tollway starts
Harry Hines Boulevard is a major street in Dallas, Texas, (USA), to the west of Uptown.
It was one of the first 'highways' in Texas, and is named for Harry Hines in honor of his work helping ...
. It is over in area. Officially it is bounded by the
City of Highland Park, the
North Central Expressway
North is one of the four compass points or cardinal directions. It is the opposite of south and is perpendicular to east and west. ''North'' is a noun, adjective, or adverb indicating direction or geography.
Etymology
The word ''north'' is ...
,
Stemmons Freeway
Interstate 35E (I-35E), an Interstate Highway, is the eastern half of I-35, where it splits to serve the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. I-35 splits into two branch routes, I-35W and I-35E, at Hillsboro. I-35E travels north for , mai ...
,
Woodall Rodgers Freeway
Woodall may refer to:
People Given name
*Woodall Rodgers (1890–1961), attorney, businessman and mayor of Dallas
Surname
*Al Woodall (b. 1945), American football player
*Corbet Woodall (1929–1982), British newsreader for the BBC
* Derek Woodal ...
, and other roads. The district is within the boundary defined by the City of Dallas law, excluding any existing planned development districts within.
About
Oak Lawn is one of the wealthier areas of metropolitan Dallas, with the population consisting mainly of urban professionals. The area is peppered with upscale townhouses, condos, apartments, and duplexes. Along the
Uptown portion on McKinney Avenue and along
Turtle Creek Boulevard
Turtle Creek Boulevard is a thoroughfare that runs through the Turtle Creek neighborhood of Oak Lawn, Dallas, Texas (USA), generally alongside the actual Turtle Creek. The street has been broken up by dedication of Reverchon Park and by constr ...
, there are many new high-rise condominiums and apartments. It is also a very diverse neighborhood with well established areas of older, single family homes.
For most of the 20th century the southern portion of the neighborhood near the intersection of Cedar Springs Road and Harry Hines Blvd was known as "Little Mexico". St. Anne's Catholic school served as the center for the community. With the redevelopment of the neighborhood beginning in the 1980s
Little Mexico
Little Mexico is a former neighborhood in Dallas, Texas, encompassing the area bordered by Maple Avenue, McKinney Avenue and the MKT (Missouri, Kansas, Texas) Railroad. Formerly a Polish Jewish neighborhood, it was settled by a wave of Mexican im ...
vanished. Only a few structures of this original community remain for most have been replaced by high rise office buildings, luxury hotels, and condominiums. As of 2010, St Ann's Catholic School, which had closed, is now an upscale restaurant.
Oak Lawn became a magnet for the counterculture movement in the late 1960s due to its inexpensive apartments and its proximity to Turtle Creek Park (formerly known as Lee Park and Oak Lawn Park).
Geography
Neighborhoods
*
International Center
*
Love Field neighborhood
*
Turtle Creek
*
Maple, Dallas
*
Perry Heights
Government and infrastructure
The
United States Postal Service
The United States Postal Service (USPS), also known as the Post Office, U.S. Mail, or Postal Service, is an independent agency of the executive branch of the United States federal government responsible for providing postal service in the U ...
operates the Oak Lawn Post Office at 2825 Oak Lawn Avenue; ZIP Code: 75219.
The
Federal Bureau of Prisons
The Federal Bureau of Prisons (BOP) is a United States federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Justice that is responsible for the care, custody, and control of incarcerated individuals who have committed federal crimes; that i ...
South Central Region Office was previously in Oak Lawn. It has since moved to the
U.S. Armed Forces Reserve Complex in
Grand Prairie, Texas
Grand Prairie is a city in Dallas, Tarrant, and Ellis counties of Texas, in the United States. It is part of the Mid-Cities region in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. It had a population of 175,396 according to the 2010 census, making it t ...
.
Diplomatic missions
The
Consulate-General of the United Kingdom in Dallas
This is a list of diplomatic missions of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, excluding honorary consulates. The UK has one of the largest global networks of diplomatic missions. UK diplomatic missions to capitals of other Com ...
was located in Suite 940 at 2911 Turtle Creek Boulevard.
In April 2005 the British government announced that it was closing the Dallas consulate in the summer of 2005; its territory was transferred to the consulate-general in
Houston
Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...
. It was one of 19 British diplomatic missions shut down around that time period.
[Allen, Margaret.]
Dallas' British Consulate to close in money-saving move
" ''Dallas Business Journal
American City Business Journals, Inc. (ACBJ) is an American newspaper publisher based in Charlotte, North Carolina. ACBJ publishes The Business Journals, which contains local business news for 44 markets in the United States, Hemmings Motor News ...
''. Friday April 1, 2005. Retrieved on May 9, 2009. The
Foreign and Commonwealth Office
The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Equivalent to other countries' Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ministries of fore ...
of the United Kingdom said that the consulates and embassies closed as a way to decrease costs.
The
Consulate-General of Mexico in Dallas is also located in Oak Lawn. Alfredo Corchado of ''
The Dallas Morning News
''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885 by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ''Galvesto ...
'' said that as of 2009, in terms of activity and size of the area Mexican population, the Dallas consulate is considered to be the third most important Mexican consulate after
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
and
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
.
[Corchado, Alfredo.]
Mexico removing Dallas consul general
" ''The Dallas Morning News
''The Dallas Morning News'' is a daily newspaper serving the Dallas–Fort Worth area of Texas, with an average print circulation of 65,369. It was founded on October 1, 1885 by Alfred Horatio Belo as a satellite publication of the ''Galvesto ...
''. Saturday August 15, 2009. Retrieved on August 27, 2009.
The consulate moved from 8855 North
Stemmons Freeway
Interstate 35E (I-35E), an Interstate Highway, is the eastern half of I-35, where it splits to serve the Dallas–Fort Worth metropolitan area. I-35 splits into two branch routes, I-35W and I-35E, at Hillsboro. I-35E travels north for , mai ...
to 1210 River Bend Drive in January 2009.
Education
Public schools
The public schools in Oak Lawn are part of the
Dallas Independent School District
The Dallas Independent School District (Dallas ISD or DISD) is a school district based in Dallas, Texas (USA). It operates schools in much of Dallas County and is the second-largest school district in Texas and the seventeenth-largest in the U ...
and ar
zonedamong the following:
* Ben Milam Elementary School
* Esperanza "Hope" Medrano Elementary School
* Maple Lawn Elementary School
*
North Dallas High School
North Dallas High School is a public secondary school located in the Oak Lawn area of Dallas, Texas, United States. It enrolls students in grades 9- 12 and is a part of the Dallas Independent School District. As of 2017, the principal adminis ...
* Sam Houston Elementary School
* T. J. Rusk Middle School
The
William B. Travis Academy/Vanguard for the Academically Talented and Gifted is located near McKinney Avenue and Oak Grove Avenue.
In 2014-2015 its student body was 95% low income; despite that it exceeded its "performance targets". Due to
gentrification
Gentrification is the process of changing the character of a neighborhood through the influx of more Wealth, affluent residents and businesses. It is a common and controversial topic in urban politics and urban planning, planning. Gentrification ...
, Sam Houston's enrollment declined to 201 students in the 2015-2016 school year while it had 302 students in the 2011-2012 school year.
Irma Lerma Rangel Young Women's Leadership School
The Irma Lerma Rangel Young Women's Leadership School is a school for girls in Dallas, Texas. Part of the Dallas Independent School District, it is the first public all-girls school in the state and is renowned for its challenging coursework and h ...
was previously in Oak Lawn.
Private schools
Holy Trinity Catholic School age 3 through 8th grade.
Dallas Christian Academy prekindergarten through 12th grade.
The
Walt Whitman Community School
The Walt Whitman Community School (WWCS) was a private alternative school in Oak Lawn, Dallas, Texas that catered to youth who identified as LGBT.Fowler, Jimmy. "School's out." ''Dallas Observer''. November 13, 1997. p1Archive). Retrieved on Septe ...
(WWCS), an LGBT-oriented private school, was established in 1997 in Oak Lawn.
[Fowler, Jimmy. "School's out." '']Dallas Observer
''Dallas Observer'' is a free digital and print publication based in Dallas, Texas. The ''Observer'' publishes daily online coverage of local news, restaurants, music, and arts, as well as longform narrative journalism. A weekly print issue circ ...
''. November 13, 1997. p
1
(). Retrieved on September 22, 2014. It closed in 2004.
Public Libraries
The Oak Lawn Branch of the
Dallas Public Library
The Dallas Public Library system serves as the municipal library system of the city of Dallas, Texas (USA).
History
In 1899, the idea to create a free public library in Dallas was conceived by the Dallas Federation of Women's Clubs, led by pre ...
serves the Oak Lawn area. In addition to its regular library holdings, it has the only circulating, non-reference collection of LGBT materials in the US.
Infrastructure
Transportation
Central Expressway (
US 75
U.S. Route 75 is a major north–south U.S. Highway that extends in the central United States. The highway's northern terminus is in Noyes, Minnesota, at the Canadian border, where it once continued as Manitoba Highway 75 on the other side o ...
) flanks the community on the east.
Spur 366, known locally as Woodall Rodgers Freeway, runs along the southern border of the community. The Lomac and
Uptown portions of Oak Lawn are served by the free M-Line, provided by the
McKinney Avenue Transit Authority
The McKinney Avenue Transit Authority (MATA), a non-profit organization, operates the M-line Trolley in Dallas, Texas (USA). The offices and car barn are located at 3153 Oak Grove, Dallas, TX 75204. In operation since 1989, it is an example of ...
and
Dallas Area Rapid Transit
Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) is a transit agency serving the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex of Texas. It operates buses, light rail, commuter rail, and high-occupancy vehicle lanes in Dallas and twelve of its suburbs. In , the system had a ...
. The and light-rail lines stop at
Cityplace Station
Cityplace/Uptown station (formerly Cityplace station) is a DART Light Rail station located in Dallas, Texas. It is located beneath North Central Expressway (US 75) at Haskell Avenue in the Cityplace district. As an infill DART station, it opened ...
, right outside Oak Lawn. Just outside Oak Lawn to the southwest is
Victory Station
Victory station is a mass transit station in Dallas, Texas. It serves Trinity Railway Express commuter rail line, DART Light Rail trains, and DART buses. Located along the Stemmons Corridor in the Uptown neighborhood, the station opened in 200 ...
in
Victory Park, which is served by the , both red and blue lines during special events, and regularly by the Green and Orange light rail lines. The two lines continue to the northwest, stopping at
Market Center Station and
Southwestern Medical District/Parkland Station within Oak Lawn.
*
DART
Dart or DART may refer to:
* Dart, the equipment in the game of darts
Arts, entertainment and media
* Dart (comics), an Image Comics superhero
* Dart, a character from ''G.I. Joe''
* Dart, a ''Thomas & Friends'' railway engine character
* Dar ...
: and
Culture
Oak Lawn is considered to be the epicenter of
Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex's
gay
''Gay'' is a term that primarily refers to a homosexual person or the trait of being homosexual. The term originally meant 'carefree', 'cheerful', or 'bright and showy'.
While scant usage referring to male homosexuality dates to the late 1 ...
- and
lesbian
A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in relation to their sexual identity or sexual behavior, regardless of sexual orientation, or as an adjective to characterize or associate n ...
-culture. Cedar Springs Road, between Oak Lawn Avenue and Wycliff Avenue, has numerous businesses, retail establishments, restaurants and night clubs catering to the
LGBT
' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity.
The LGBT term is a ...
community.
The area has some of Dallas' most renowned
gay bar
A gay bar is a drinking establishment that caters to an exclusively or predominantly lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) clientele; the term ''gay'' is used as a broadly inclusive concept for LGBT communities.
Gay bars once served as ...
s and
nightclubs
A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music.
Nightclubs gener ...
, including Station 4 (formerly The Village Station), The Brick(now closed), Woody's (formerly Moby Dick's), J.R.'s, Sue Ellen's (opened in the Throckmorton Mining Company's old location), The Mining Company (opened in the former location of Sue Ellen's), Havana, The Round-Up Saloon, Drama Room (formerly Mickey's and BJ's--now closed), Alexandre's (formerly After Dark), Illusions (now closed), Pekers (formerly The Side 2 Bar and Phases), Zippers, BJ's NXS (formerly Crews Inn), Pub Pegasus, The Hidden Door, The Tin Room, Cross Bar (now closed), Marty's Live, Cedar Spring Tap House, Dallas Eagle (now closed), and others, most of which are located along, or close to, Cedar Springs Road. Oak Lawn is contiguous with the Dallas Design District and less than two miles away from
Downtown Dallas
Downtown Dallas is the central business district (CBD) of Dallas, Dallas, Texas, United States, located in the geographic center of the city. It is the second-largest business district in the state of Texas. The area termed "Downtown" has tradit ...
.
The area also hosts some of the larger city festivals including the annual
Halloween
Halloween or Hallowe'en (less commonly known as Allhalloween, All Hallows' Eve, or All Saints' Eve) is a celebration observed in many countries on 31 October, the eve of the Western Christian feast of All Saints' Day. It begins the observanc ...
street festival, Dallas' Gay
Pride parade
A pride parade (also known as pride march, pride event, or pride festival) is an outdoor event celebrating lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer culture, queer (LGBTQ) social and self-acceptance, achievements, LGBT rights by country o ...
, and Easter in the Park at Oak Lawn Park (formerly Robert E. Lee Park).
In 2014, Dallas's Oak Lawn was voted the number one
gayborhood
A gay village is a geographical area with generally recognized boundaries that is inhabited or frequented by many lesbian
A lesbian is a Homosexuality, homosexual woman.Zimmerman, p. 453. The word is also used for women in rel ...
by
Out Traveler
''Out Traveler'' is a gay and lesbian travel magazine from the publishers of '' Out'' and '' The Advocate'', combining photography with coverage of LGBT travel topics. Published as a stand-alone title from 2003 to 2008, it was subsequently incorpo ...
. In October 2018, Dallas made history when it became the first Texas city to get state recognition for its Oak Lawn LGBT neighborhood.
There is a large concentration of Hispanic owned businesses, restaurants, grocery stores, nightclubs, and retail establishments on the Maple Avenue corridor between the Inwood Road and the North Dallas Tollway.
Architecture
Oak Lawn is one of the older neighborhoods in Dallas. Continuous redevelopment of the neighborhood has created a mixture of architectural styles spanning much of the 20th century to the present day.
Measuring by structural height, the tallest buildings in or adjacent to Oak Lawn are as follows:
#
Cityplace Center
The Cityplace Tower is a 42-story building located at 2711 North Haskell Avenue at North Central Expressway (US 75) in the Cityplace district of Uptown Dallas, Texas (USA). The building is tall and has of office space. It is also the tallest bu ...
, (42 floors)
#
W Dallas Victory Hotel and Residences, (32 floors)
# Azure, (31 floors)
# 1900 McKinney (26 floors)
# Mayfair at Turtle Creek, (24 floors)
# 2500 McKinney, (25 floors)
# Ritz-Carlton, Dallas, (21 floors)
# 17 Seventeen McKinney (22 floors)
# Residences on McKinney, (22 floors)
# La Tour Condominiums (22 floors)
# McKinney Avenue Lofts (21 floors)
# The Ashton (20 floors)
#
The Mondrian
The Mondrian, designed by famed Dallas architect Thomas Brink, is a 20-story high-rise located at 3000 Blackburn Street in the Cityplace neighborhood of Oak Lawn, Dallas, Texas, United States. (20 floors)
# The Vendome, (20 floors)
See also
*
Gay village
A gay village is a geographical area with generally recognized boundaries that is inhabited or frequented by many lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBT) people. Gay villages often contain a number of gay-oriented establish ...
*
LGBT rights in Texas
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in Texas have some protections in state law but may face legal and social challenges not faced by others. Same-sex sexual activity was decriminalized in the state in 2003 by the ''Lawrence v. ...
References
*
Emporis
Emporis GmbH was a real estate data mining company that was headquartered in Hamburg, Germany. The company collected data and photographs of buildings worldwide, which were published in an online database from 2000 to September 2022.
On 12 Sept ...
.com., World / North America / U.S.A. / Dallas TX
External links
The Oak Lawn Committee, Inc.GayDFW events/nightlife/restaurants in Oaklawn, Dallas, Fort Worth
{{Coord missing, Texas
Gay villages in Texas
LGBT culture in Texas