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| Oak Lawn | |
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| Country | United States |
| State | Texas |
| Counties | Dallas |
| City | Dallas |
| Area | |
| - Total | 12 sq mi (31 km2) |
| Elevation | 479 ft (146 m) |
| ZIP codes | 75201, 75204, 75205, 75219, 75235 (small area) |
| Area code(s) | 214, 469, 972 |
| Website | http://www.oaklawncommittee.org/ |
Oak Lawn is a neighborhood in Dallas, Texas (USA), defined in Dallas City Ordinance 21859 as Planned Development District No. 193, the Oak Lawn Special Purpose District. It is located immediately north of downtown. The district is generally bounded by Woodall Rodgers Freeway, Central Expressway, the City of Highland Park, Inwood Road, and Harry Hines Boulevard. It is over 12 square miles (31 km2) in area.
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About
Oak Lawn is one of the wealthier parts of Dallas, with many professionals and urban types living in upscale townhouses, condos, apartments, and duplexes. Along the Uptown portion on McKinney Avenue and along Turtle Creek Boulevard, 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.
Oak Lawn is known for its good restaurants, as well as its many bars and clubs. (In particular those catering to the LGBT community of Dallas.) Running through the center of Oak Lawn from downtown to Love Field is Cedar Springs Road, which has housed the center of the Dallas gay community for over 35 years at the intersection of Cedar Springs Road and Throckmorton Street.
Geography
Neighborhoods
Government and infrastructure
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The United States Postal Service operates the Oak Lawn Post Office at 2825 Oak Lawn Avenue.[1]
Diplomatic missions
The Consulate-General of the United Kingdom in Dallas was located in Suite 940 at 2911 Turtle Creek Boulevard.[2][3]
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. It was one of 19 British diplomatic missions shut down around that time period.[4] The Foreign and Commonwealth Office of the United Kingdom said that the consulates and embassies closed as a way to decrease costs.[5][4]
Education
Public schools
The public schools in Oak Lawn are part of the Dallas Independent School District and are zoned among the following:
- Ben Milam Elementary School
- Esperanza "Hope" Medrano Elementary School
- Maple Lawn Elementary School
- North Dallas High School
- 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.
Private schools
- Holy Trinity Catholic School, age 3 through 8th grade.
- Dallas Junior Academy, prekindergarten through 10th grade.
Infrastructure
Transportation
Central Expressway (US 75) 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 and Dallas Area Rapid Transit. The Blue and Red light-rail lines stop at Cityplace Station, right outside Oak Lawn. Just outside Oak Lawn to the southwest is Victory Station in Victory Park, which is served by the Trinity Railway Express, both red and blue lines during special events, and eventually the future Green and Orange light rail lines.
Culture
Oak Lawn is known for being the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex's center for gay- and lesbian-themed entertainment. The area boasts a host of Dallas' most renowned gay bars and nightclubs, including Station 4 (formerly The Village Station), The Brick, Woody's (formerly Moby Dick's), J.R.'s, Sue Ellen's (recently opened in the Throckmorton Mining Company's old location), Throckmorton Mining Company (recently opened in the Sue Ellen's old location), Havana, The Round-Up Saloon, Mickey's, Illusions, Pekers (formerly The Side 2 Bar and Phases), Zippers, Crews Inn (closed 2009), Pub Pegasus, The Hidden Door, The Tin Room, Rush, Cross Bar, and The Hideaway, most of which are located along, or close to, Cedar Springs Road. Oak Lawn is contiguous with the Dallas Design District, and so much of the area conveys a very "artsy" and upscale feeling. The sight of Rainbow flags hanging in front of businesses and homes and same sex couples holding hands and showing public affection is very common here.
Architecture
Measuring by structural height, the tallest buildings in or adjacent to Oak Lawn are as follows [1]:
- Cityplace Center, 560 feet (171 m) (42 floors)
- W Dallas Victory Hotel and Residences, 439 feet (134 m) (32 floors)
- Azure, 375 feet (114 m) (31 floors)
- 1900 McKinney (26 floors)
- Mayfair at Turtle Creek, 302 feet (92 m) (24 floors)
- 2500 McKinney, 285 feet (87 m) (25 floors)
- Ritz-Carlton, Dallas, 285 feet (87 m) (21 floors)
- 17 Seventeen McKinney (22 floors)
- Residences on McKinney, 231 feet (70 m) (22 floors)
- La Tour Condominiums (22 floors)
- McKinney Avenue Lofts (21 floors)
- The Ashton (20 floors)
- The Mondrian (20 floors)
- The Vendome, 252 feet (77 m) (20 floors)
See also
References
- ^ "Post Office Location - OAK LAWN." United States Postal Service. Retrieved on December 4, 2008.
- ^ Uden, Tim. BUG Britain & Ireland: The Backpackers' Ultimate Guide." BUG Backpackers Guide. 2005. 16.
- ^ "British Consulate, Dallas, Texas." Britain in USA. Retrieved on January 30, 2009.
- ^ a b Allen, Margaret. "Dallas' British Consulate to close in money-saving move." Dallas Business Journal. Friday April 1, 2005. Retrieved on May 9, 2009.
- ^ "Britain to close to High Commission in Nassau." Caribbean Net News. Friday December 17, 2004. Retrieved on January 9, 2009.
External links
- The Oak Lawn Committee, Inc.
- Oak Lawn Neighborhood information
- GayCities Dallas guide to gay bars/clubs in Oaklawn
- http://www.dallasillusions.com
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
