In 1931, the City of Dallas built White Rock Lake’s first picnic pavilion and picnic grounds known today as the Stone Tables. This area serves tens of thousands of Dallas area residents a year as one of the most popular open air rental facilities for the City of Dallas.
The White Rock Lake Conservancy, working with Park and Recreation, has identified elements to be repaired, restored and improved. Phase one of the project, the pavilion restoration, was completed in the spring of 2015 and received the Preservation Dallas Award in 2019.
The stone tables will be restored to match their original design using as much original material as possible. The border and surface area will be developed with a drainage system to help lessen the flooding in the picnic and pavilion area. Two new grills with stone enclosures will be built and installed as well as new stone trash can enclosures. New downcast lights will replace the flood lights on the pavilion.
This project will be constructed by Henneberger Construction Inc. who has worked on many park projects throughout the City of Dallas, including construction of the stone signage around White Rock Lake. The project cost is $406,000 and is being paid for by private donations given to the White Rock Lake Conservancy. Construction will be overseen by White Rock Lake Conservancy’s volunteer architects from SHM Architects and MESA Design.
The restroom facility is adjacent to the picnic area is currently shutdown due to disrepair. The restroom will be restored so that there are two separate facilites. Two ADA parking spots and an ADA path to the latrine will be constructed by Phoenix One beginning in October. This portion of the project will cost $200,000 and will be paid for by the 2017 bond match for the stone tables project.
The Stone Tables Picnic Area Restoration is a partnership between The White Rock Lake Conservancy and the City of Dallas Park and Recreation Department.
