The city of Dallas hosts its Green Fest on Sept. 20 on the Continental Avenue Bridge, which reopened as  pedestrian friendly park in June. Photos courtesy of the city of Dallas.

Sept. 15, 2014

By Rita Cook 

Greenies, get ready – this weekend, another round of green festivals is kicking off in North Texas.

Next Saturday, the same day that the city of Arlington hosts Ecofest, the city of Dallas revives its annual Green Fest on Sept. 20. The environmentally themed event will be held 10 a.m. to 3 pm. at a new venue – the Continental Avenue Pedestrian Bridge.

"This year's fest will feature not only local entrepreneurs, but also artists, inventors, service providers, growers, harvesters and consumers who are pioneering new ways to be sustainable and who are helping build an ever stronger Dallas," said Kevin Lefebvre, senior environmental coordinator for the city of Dallas.

Going on its sixth year, the festival skipped a year in 2013. 

“Secretly, we knew it was going to rain that day, we're environmentalists,” joked Lefebvre about last year’s lapse. “Actually, it did rain that day, but we were so busy last year leading up to the planning stage on through to the day itself, we felt it best not to over commit ourselves and lose our message; so we skipped a year.”

However, he says they intended to keep it going all along. 

“After talking with our partners and friends, we picked up where we left off. Plus, this year we'll be hosting the U.S. EPA's Children's Health Fall Festival during Green Fest to share even more information.”

The festival has gained attendance every year and has been held at various locations, including Texas Discovery Gardens and the Main Street Garden in downtown Dallas. Organizers are hoping the new venue will draw additional interest.

“This great new attraction embodies the very pillars of sustainability: it connects people, promotes economic opportunity and preserves a grand feature of our built environment by repurposing the Continental Avenue viaduct into a destination for all to enjoy,” Lefebvre says, adding that the event is coming together nicely as the day approaches.

“We're moving right along and have some great vendors and educational opportunities lined up. Plus, we'll be having two Zumba classes, a yoga class and a city of Dallas mascot race and lunch with the young and young-at-heart who attend.”

There will also be food trucks, classes and face painters on hand. 

“We want people to remember they can lead happy, healthy, productive lives simply if they try. We're calling the idea Healthy Life-ing and we hope Green Fest resonates that message to all who attend,” he said.

Admission is free. See complete schedule of activities. 


Rita Cook is an Arlington-based award-winning journalist who writes or has written for the Dallas Morning News, Focus Daily News, Waxahachie Daily Light, Dreamscapes Travel Magazine, Porthole, Core Media, Fort Worth Star Telegram and many other publications in Los Angeles, Dallas and Chicago. With five books published, her latest release is “A Brief History of Fort Worth” published by History Press. Contact her at rcook13@earthlink.net. 

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