City of Fort Worth hires consulting firm to reimagine Panther Island

FORT WORTH, TX (CBSDFW.COM) The City of Fort Worth hired consulting firm HR&A Advisors this week to help reimagine Panther Island, which lies northwest of downtown and east of historic stockyards.

Last year, the US Army Corps of Engineers provided $403 million from the federal government for flood relief on the Trinity River.

For decades, city officials have been arguing about how to develop Panther Island, and city officials believe this next step will narrow the focus on what it should be.

“We are at a stage where a lot has changed,” said Fort Worth City Council member Carlos Flores, “Now we are ready to return to the project because the vision has changed over time. We are now looking to help from HR&A Advisors to provide us with project management as well as advisory services to the team so we can map out what the future will look like.”

“We have the opportunity to take a step back, to make sure this plan is the best we can do as we move forward,” said Andy Taft, president of Downtown Fort Worth Inc.

There are currently several businesses on the peninsula that will later be converted into an island, and when the water surrounds the entire property, it is hoped that this place will become one of the best places in Fort Worth.

“Personally, I think this will change what Fort Worth, Texas means to the world,” Taft added.

Although the completion date for this is unknown, the priority is to control the floods and make this island a real island.