The Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation Expands Staff in Preparation for 2012 Opening
DALLAS (June 9, 2011) —The Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation recently named two new additions to its team – Angie Chien joins The Park as the associate director of programming and special events and Anthonia Ibe steps into the role of director of finance and administration.
“As we move to within a year of The Park’s opening, it’s essential to have a group of highly talented and experienced professionals that can contribute to the momentum we have built,” said Linda Owen, president and CEO of The Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation. “Angie’s experience spearheading multi-million-dollar initiatives for Central Park and Anthonia’s work with two well-known Dallas non-profits make them the perfect fit for our team.”
Chien joined the Central Park Conservancy’s Women’s Committee in 2007 as a development events coordinator and quickly worked her way up to a manager and then associate director, where she raised more than $2 million through various fundraising initiatives including Adopt-A-Bench, Tree Trust and the Tour Committee. Chien is a graduate of Williams College.
Ibe joins the Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation with 20 years of financial experience, the majority of which she spent working with local non-profit organizations, including The Sixth Floor Museum at Dealey Plaza and Dallas Summer Musicals, Inc. Ibe is a CPA who actively participates as members of both the Texas Society of CPAs and American Institute of CPA (AICPA). She received her MBA from Amberton University and a Bachelor of Arts degree from Valparaiso University.
Chien and Ibe join the team as construction on The Park progresses rapidly. More than 60 percent of The Park’s crossbeams are now in place and the two defunct utility bridges have been demolished. The first landscaping could begin to arrive in late 2011 and The Park is expected to open in fall 2012.
About The Park
The Park will serve as a central gathering space for Dallas and its visitors to enjoy in the heart of the city. The 5.2-acre park will create an urban green space over the existing Woodall Rodgers Freeway between Pearl and St. Paul Streets in downtown Dallas. Plans include a performance stage, restaurant, shaded walking paths, dog park, children’s park, great lawn, water features, area for games and much more.
Connectivity is central to The Park's purpose. The Park will promote increased pedestrian, trolley and bicycle use between Uptown, Downtown and the Arts District, contributing to a more walkable city center.
The Park will create a front lawn for the surrounding cultural offerings including the AT&T Performing Arts Center, Dallas Museum of Art, Morton Meyerson Symphony Hall, Nasher Sculpture Center, Trammell & Margaret Crow Collection of Asian Art, Booker T. Washington High School for the Visual &Performing Arts and the future Perot Museum of Nature and Science.
Construction on the deck plaza began in October 2009. The Park is expected to be complete in fall 2012.
Design, deck and tunnel construction are funded through a public-private partnership including $20 million in bond funds from the City of Dallas, $20 million in highway funds from the state and federal government through TxDOT, and about $36 million from private donations, including major gifts from Chase and the W.W. Caruth, Jr. Foundation. In March 2009, The Park was selected to receive $16.7 million in stimulus funds that are specifically for transportation enhancement projects. The Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation is in the final phase of the campaign to secure private funding for amenities construction, operations, programming and endowment.
The Park will be privately managed, operated and programmed by the Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation. The Foundation has studied great urban parks across the country and will bring “best practices” to The Park's operations, programming and maintenance.
The Park’s design is led by The Office of James Burnett, Thomas Phifer and Partners, and Jacobs Engineering Group, Inc. The Texas Department of Transportation selected Archer Western as the contractor for construction of the deck plaza. Bjerke Management Services provides project management services to the Woodall Rodgers Park Foundation.
Jody Grant serves as Chairman of the Board of the Woodall Rodgers Foundation and is joined by President and C.E.O., Linda Owen, and board members Elaine Agather, Nancy Best, Garrett Boone, Leo Corrigan, Ed Fjordbak, Sheila Grant, Linda Hart, Mitch Hart, Jeff Jackson, Tom Leppert, John Muse, Bob Shapard, Rob Walters and John Zogg.
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