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Citywide Plans

Citywide plans encompass the whole city and establish policies and/or implementation programs that address a variety of topics and issues. Below are descriptions and links for citywide plans organized by category. Adoption date indicated in parenthesis.
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Citywide Comprehensive & Land Use Plans

ForwardDallas Comprehensive Land Use Plan Update (Ongoing)

This plan is managed by the Planning and Urban Design Department.


forwardDallas! Comprehensive Plan  (June 2006)
forwardDallas! is Dallas' first citywide comprehensive plan. Shaped by citizen involvement, it envisions the future Dallas in which residents and stakeholders want to live and do business. forwardDallas! provides the overarching policy basis for land use decisions in the City of Dallas.  It contains eight policy elements: Land Use, Economics, Housing, Transportation, Urban Design, Environment, and Neighborhoods. forwardDallas! is periodically amended by City Council.
This plan is managed by the Planning and Urban Design Department.

 

Dallas Zoning Map  (1989)
The Dallas zoning map establishes uniform land use and development regulations based on division of all land in the city into districts, to control the type and amount of development that is allowed.  The zoning map is continually amended on a biweekly basis by City Council through a public hearing process. The Zoning Map is managed by the Development Services Department. You can find more information on the Current Planning and Zoning page.



Citywide Neighborhood Revitalization Plans

Comprehensive Housing Policy (April 2018)
This plan is the City of Dallas’ first comprehensive housing policy and provides for the creation and preservation of housing throughout Dallas, serving families at 30% to 120% of Dallas Area Median Income, and sets annual housing production goals for the next three years. The plan contains recommended changes to existing programs as well as the creation of new programs, tools and strategies for deployment of these programs through the designation of Reinvestment Strategy Areas to achieve the housing production goals.
The Plan is managed by the Department of Housing and Neighborhood Revitalization. 


Neighborhood Plus (October 2015)
The Neighborhood Plus plan is a citywide neighborhood revitalization plan, intended to update the forwardDallas! Housing and Neighborhood Elements. Neighborhood Plus focuses on six strategic goals: Collective Impact, Alleviating Poverty, Fighting Blight, Attracting and Retaining the Middle Class, Increasing Home Ownership and Enhancing Rental Options, and identifies actions to advance these strategies. 
T
his plan is managed by the Planning and Urban Design Department.


Five Year Consolidated Plan (August 2013)
The City's Five-Year Consolidated Plan provides the basis for spending grant funding from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). These funds are intended for the development of viable urban communities principally for the benefit of low- and moderate-income individuals, by providing for decent housing, a suitable living environment, and expanded economic opportunities. The Fiscal Year 2016-2017 budget is currently available.
This plan is managed by the Office of Financial Services on their Community Development page.



Citywide Transportation Plans

Connect Dallas (April 2021)
Connect Dallas  is the City's first-ever Strategic Mobility Plan. Connect Dallas represents a bold new way of thinking about transportation. Because funding is limited, the plan creates a framework for investing and responding to 21st century problems in a way that best achieves broader city goals, or Driving Principles, and a preferred vision for transportation in Dallas. The plan is intended to guide the modernization of our transportation project selection process, programs, and policies over the next five years.
T
his Plan is managed by the Transportation Department.


Complete Streets Design Manual (January 2016) 
The Dallas Complete Design Streets manual focuses on improving the way the City of Dallas designs and builds streets and is intended to update the forwardDallas! Transportation Element. The Dallas Complete Streets Vision is to build streets that are safe and comfortable for all users – young and old, pedestrians and wheel chair users, motorists and bicyclists, bus and train riders alike.
The Complete Street Manual is managed by the Transportation Department on their Complete Streets information page. 


Dallas Bikeway Plan (June 2011)
The Dallas Bikeway Plan is the result of a community driven planning effort to establish a bicycle facility master plan, implementation strategy and  recommendations for complimentary bicycle policies and programs.
This Plan is managed by the Transportation Department.


Thoroughfare Plan (1991)
The Thoroughfare Plan establishes a roadway hierarchy system and classifies Dallas roadways according to this system to prescribe minimum regulatory standards for each type of roadway. The Thoroughfare Plan is periodically amended by the City Council to address changes to individual roadways through a public hearing process . 
T
his Plan is managed by the Transportation Department.



Citywide Economic Development Plans

Strategic Engagement Plan (February 2013)
The Strategic Engagement Plan is the City’s economic development plan. It focuses on the strategic goals of expanding employment and the labor force, lowering the unemployment rate, broadening and diversifying the City's tax base, and supporting sustainable communities, by demonstrating improvement in key community indicators.
This plan is managed by the Office of Economic Development.


Economic Development Plan (May 2021)
The Economic Development Plan fosters economic growth and social progress for all residents. The Policy pillars focus on expanding the tax base South of I-30 and South of the Trinity River. It is a powerful and proactive mechanism that supports hyper-local investments, new job creation, corporate relocation, and is the tool needed to foster resilient and prosperous communities. The Policy will begin with a one-year transition period by which the City of Dallas will put in place processes and infrastructure to support the decade-long Policy implementation.
This plan is managed by the Office of Economic Development.



 Citywide Park & Recreation Plans

Dallas Park and Recreation Department Comprehensive Plan (January 2016)
This Park and Recreation Comprehensive Plan establishes the mission for the Park & Recreation Department to champion lifelong recreation and serve as a responsible steward of the city’s parks, trails and open spaces.  The plan establishes thirteen strategic directions to focus on over the next decade and lays out a strategic plan for getting there.
This plan is managed by the Park & Recreation Department.

Dallas Park and Recreation Master Plan (January 2016)
The Park and Recreation Master Plan offers an in-depth perspective of recreation program offerings, and helps identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, core program gaps, system-wide areas for improvement, and future programs and services for residents.
This plan is managed by the Park & Recreation Department.


Dallas Aquatic Facilities Master Plan (December 2015)
This updated plan builds on the 2012 Aquatics Master Plan which evaluated several options to replace existing City of Dallas pools.  The 2012 Plan adopted a hybrid approach with three regional aquatics centers, five community aquatics centers and three spray grounds.  The purpose of the 2015 update was to finalize the recommended quantity, location, type and phasing of aquatic facilities based on updated data, public input, and available funding. 
This plan is managed by the Park & Recreation Department.


Dallas Trail Network Plan (October 2008)
This plan establishes a citywide network of linear, loop, nature and neighborhood trails extending across almost 250 miles.
This plan is managed by the Park & Recreation Department.



Citywide Infrastructure Plans

2017 Bond Program
The 2017 Bond Program is currently being prepared for a referendum vote in November 2017. This link provides interactive maps of the City's proposed bond projects list by proposition, the needs inventory or "wish list" of all projects needing funding, as well as other information related to the upcoming bond program.
The 2017 Bond Program is managed by the Public Works Department.

Capital Improvement Program
The Capital Improvement Program (CIP) identifies how the City of Dallas spends previously approved bond program funds to invest in City infrastructure such as roads, libraries, parks, recreation centers, police and fire stations, and other facilities.  All current capital improvement projects can be viewed on an interactive map and status reports are available on previously approved bond programs.
The Capital Improvement Program is managed by the Public Works Department.


Water and Wastewater Capital Improvement Program
The Water Utilities Department manages its own capital improvement program funded through a separate bond program.  This link takes you to an interactive map where you can identify the location and status of water and wastewater capital improvement projects.


Library Master Plan  (2001) 
The Library Master Plan evaluated the public library system’s condition and developed an integrated plan for the future over a ten-year period. Findings and recommendations from the plan assist decision-making on existing and future library facilities, services and technology.
This plan is managed by the Dallas Public Library Department.



Miscellaneous Citywide Plans

Comprehensive Environmental & Climate Action Plan (CECAP) (April 2020)
The CECAP is a comprehensive roadmap that outlines the activities that the City will undertake to improve quality of life, to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, to prepare for the impacts of climate change and to create a healthier and more prosperous community.
This plan is managed by the Office of Environmental Quality & Sustainability.


Drought Contingency Plan (February 2014) 
The Drought Contingency Plan provides policies and procedures needed when the water used in the Dallas area approaches the system's supply, treatment or delivery capacity. This plan is managed by the Water Utilities Department.


Dallas Master Emergency Operations Basic Plan (April 2015)
The Master Emergency Operations Basic Plan outlines the City of Dallas’s approach to emergency operations. It provides general guidance for emergency management activities and an overview of the city’s methods of mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.
This plan is managed by the Office of Emergency Management. 


Dallas Cultural Plan
The City has recently embarked on updating its Cultural Plan. View and engage in the plan on the Dallas Cultural Plan page.  Read the existing Cultural Plan.  This planning effort is managed by the Office of Arts & Culture.

Dallas Resiliency Plan
The City of Dallas is developing a Resiliency Plan through the RockeFeller Foundation’s 100 Resilient Cities Program.  This plan is focused on helping Dallas become resilient to the environmental, social and economic challenges that are a growing part of the twenty first century. 
This planning effort is led by the Office of Resilience. 


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