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GRAND PRAIRIE NEWS
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EPICCENTRAL’S FIRST RESTAURANT NOW OPEN... FIVE MORE ON THE WAY!
EpicCentral welcomes its first restaurant with Chicken N Pickle now open at SH161 and Warrior Trail. Chicken N Pickle is the wildly popular, indoor/outdoor restaurant and entertainment complex centered around pickleball, offering a variety of games, a casual, chef-driven restaurant and sports bar. The 77,000-square-foot venue features a dining room, six indoor pickleball courts, five outdoor pickleball courts (two covered), and 7,500 square feet of outdoor yard games. A large rooftop bar, stages for live performances and the signature lawn games for which Chicken N Pickle is known round out the property. Six other restaurants are under construction and expected to open later this year including Vidorra, The Finch, Poach’d, Serious Eats — which includes Serious Pizza, Serious Shakes and Serious Sliders and Loop 9 Barbecue are scheduled to open from late summer 2022 to early 2023. Construction is underway on Bolder Indoor Adventure Park, a 66,000-square-foot indoor family entertainment venue with an inflatable dome that will be installed in early fall 2022. EpicCentral will also include Hilton Garden Inn and Homewood Suites with a 20,000-square-foot convention center that will feature a 10,000-square-foot ballroom with seating for up to 1,000, opening late 2023. EpicCentral is part of the $75 million Economic Development Bond Proposal approved by voters in May 2021. See more exciting news about what's coming to EpicCentral on pages 14-15.
THE CITY OF GRAND PRAIRIE PROVIDES EXCELLENT VALUE FOR YOUR PROPERTY TAX DOLLARS
GPISD 52% City 25%
Dallas County 23% *
Where your property tax dollars go
Many taxpayers are surprised to learn that only about 25 cents of every dollar paid in property tax goes to the City of Grand Prairie to keep your award-winning city running smoothly and fund vital services like public safety, streets, economic development, parks, libraries and information technology. This chart shows how property tax dollars are distributed.
* The county total includes county, hospital and college districts. AISD 52% City 26%
Tarrant County 22% *
What Your Property Tax Dollars Get You
For each city service funded using property tax dollars, the city of Grand Prairie delivers a big bang for your buck in comparison to the cost of everyday items. Based on an average Grand Prairie home value of $198,000, which includes the Homestead exemption, the city’s portion of your property tax bill is about $110 a month. Here is how that is spent monthly to enhance your quality of life.
PUBLIC SAFETY
$63 a month vs $150 monthly cell phone • #2 safest city in DFW, WalletHub.com • EMS American Heart Assoc. Gold Standard award • 10 fire stations • ISO 1 ranking = LOWEST possible insurance rates • 8 ambulances and 221 paramedics • 4 minute fire response time • 200,000+ calls for police and fire • 8% reduction in crime since 2020; 55% since 2010 • 6 minute Priority 1 police response time
PARKS, ARTS, RECREATION
$4 a month vs $59 monthly gym membership
• Two-time National Gold Medal park system • 5,009 acres of parkland • 60 park sites, 29 picnic pavilions, 24 playgrounds • 3 recreation centers, 41 ballfields, 13 basketball courts • 24 miles of trails, 2 disc golf courses, 1 skate park • 3 outdoor pools, 1 indoor pool, 1 splash pad • PlayGrand Adventures all abilities playground • Joe Pool Lake, the Lake Parks, 1 dog park
LIBRARIES
$2 a month vs $30 monthly Amazon Prime
• Award-winners Educate Everyone • 200,000+ free books, DVDs • 3 walk-in, 1 self-serve libraries • 1 book locker for remote pickup • 1,700 programs a year
PUBLIC WORKS
$8 a month vs $50 tank of gas
• 200 traffic signals • 18,000 street signs • 750 street lights • 641 lane miles of streets • 100 miles of drainage channels
After many years, the Ruthe Jackson Center was finally able to get out with the old and in with the new! This Grand Prairie venue space was transformed over the 2021 holidays by ripping out the old flooring in the lobby and ballroom. The facility also received a fresh coat of paint in the lobby. Prior to the renovation, this local venue had a dated carpet, heavy paneling on the walls, and dark wood. With all of these changes, the venue has a much brighter and modern look. Guests often comment that the lobby looks so much more spacious. The renovations were complete just in time for the venue’s first wedding event of 2022 on January 15. The Ruthe Jackson Center is already seeing a positive return on investment as tours and bookings have increased. The RJC team says that dates are filling fast and they look forward to a busy rest of the year.
INSTA-WORTHY SPOT
FALLEN LOG PHOTO OPPORTUNITY IN WAGGONER PARK
The City of Grand Prairie’s Fallen Log heART art project installation is now installed in Waggoner Park, 2122 N. Carrier Parkway, perfect for your family, friends, or individual photo. Located under a tree canopy, with a natural backdrop of vines and foliage, just north of the walking trail behind the ballfields, the artwork replicates a tree that fell in the forest just waiting to be discovered. With a heart shaped “LOVE” carved into the trunk, the 12-foot log has enough room for sitting, standing, stacking...even laying for a dramatic pose for you and your loved ones. The tree was handcrafted by the artisans at NatureMaker Steel Art Trees. Fallen Log is the second installation of the heART Art Project, the first being murals at Farmers Market, which will rotate periodically during the year. The heART Art Project is the brainchild of Councilwoman Jorja Clemson who envisioned art using hearts to symbolize and communicate and inspire love, kindness, and unity throughout town. The city will issue a Call to Artists for a third installation in 2022.
CYCLIN' WITH THE MAYOR
Grand Prairie mayor Ron Jensen invites the community to join him for monthly bike rides from April through November as part of the Get Fit GP community wellness initiative. The rides will take place at a different location each month and be set at a casual pace. For more information on upcoming rides, please visit gptx.org/getfitgp Sat. 4/04 Mayor’s No Frills Walk Tues. 4/21 Grand Peninsula Ride Tues. 5/26 Lone Star Park Ride Tues. 6/23 Fish Creek Trail Ride Tues. 7/21 Loyd Park & ‘Back the Blue’ Ride Tues. 8/25 Nottingham Ride Tues. 9/22 Mountain Creek Lake Ride Sat. 10/17 ‘Pink Out’ Strollin’ with the Mayor Mon. 11/23 Prairie Lights Ride
11TH ANNUAL SPRING CLASSIC
The Grand Prairie Police Department Motor Unit is proud to host the Spring Classic Police Motorcycle Training and Skills Competition, which allows civilian and police riders to compete on the same courses. The five day event brings together officers from across Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and as far away as Tennessee to take part in valuable training to keep them safe while performing their normal duties. The competition allows the officers to have fun while showing off their riding skills in front of spectators and having an opportunity to interact with the public in a non-enforcement role. Through entry fees, donations made at the event, and our sponsors we are able to make a sizeable contribution to the Law Enforcement Torch Run for Special Olympics, and in turn support the Special Olympic Athletes and Special Olympics movement as a whole. The event runs from April 20-23 in the Epic Waters parking lot at 2960 Epic Place, with the main competition taking place on Friday and Saturday. It is free to watch and open to the public. For more information, visit gptx.org/ springclassic.
BENEFITING
REAL TIME MONITORING OF YOUR WATER USE
Grand Prairie water customers can monitor and manage water usage from the H2Know online portal 24/7 on their personal computers and mobile devices. The H2Know system measures and transmits hourly water usage data. With H2Know customers can: › Receive automatic alerts of higher than normal usage › Establish monthly budget with alerts when reached maximum total › Identify high usage and suspected leaks with precise meter readings › Monitor usage patterns such as irrigation to better manage frequency and time › Save water and money! To access H2Know, register at gptx.org/H2Know
KEEP GRAND PRAIRIE BEAUTIFUL
GRAND PRAIRIE COMMUNITY GARDENS OPEN HOUSE Saturday, April 30, 8:00 a.m. Visit gptx.org for more information.
MAY IS PARKS AND TRAILS CLEANUP MONTH
Volunteer to remove litter from Grand Prairie parks with Keep Grand Prairie Beautiful. Register here: bttr.im/i2cc2
