Vinyl Fence Dallas

UTA architecture students win Ross Avenue Better Blocks competition

UTA architecture students were the big winners. Here's what Better Block creators Jason Roberts and Andrew Howard had to say about them and other winners on betterblock.org: At the end of the day UTA's Team Pocket Park took the prize for most innovative space that incorporated reclaimed materials and encouraged people to linger. The group used reclaimed billboard vinyl creating a billowing sail/shade feature. Beyond that, they acquired discarded fencing materials to create 40 tables and chairs that they arranged in an area to face a small stage. Runner-up was Team Better Bus Stop 1 made up of members of D-Magazine, La Terra and the Innovative Young Professionals group. Their groups created a bus stop which featured series of cardboard tubes with umbrellas, repurposed pallet-wood for benches, games, and a newstand. It's amazing how some old fencing, vinyl tarps and imagination can jazz up a tired Dallas thoroughfare.

That was the point of an urban makeover Sunday along six blocks of Ross Avenue. Teams competed to turn vacant lots and blighted street corners into patches of urban paradise, and to do it on the cheap.

The contest was part of a larger city effort to rethink how Dallas builds and uses streets all over town - to make them more welcoming to bicycles and baby strollers, not just SUVs and sedans.

"Our goal is to have our streets enjoyed by everyone, for all activities," City Council member Linda Koop told a group outside the Dallas Black Dance Theatre. Inside, participants could learn about the city's $800,000 street-planning project and rank their priorities (more bike lanes scored at the top of the list, more parking at the bottom).

Let's face it: Dallas probably will never top San Francisco or Seattle on the list of walkable, bike-friendly cities. But city officials and groups see plenty of potential.

Take the hot, largely dreary stretch of Ross Avenue that teams spruced up Sunday.

One group created a dog park with an ice-filled kiddie pool for four-legged visitors and painted wooden chairs for two-legged ones. Down the road, artists sold jewelry, pictures and clothing from tents.

The winning project came from architectural students from the University of Texas at Arlington. They turned a field near Pavillion Street into a park and food court - by stringing up tarps to provide shade, and fashioning used fencing into seats and tables. People listened to live music and ate Korean tacos and Vietnamese sandwiches bought from nearby trucks.

Vinyl Fence Installation Tips: Installing Posts and Panels

Lowe’s home improvement expert, Mike Kraft, demonstrates how to properly install vinyl fence posts and panels. Learn some valuable tricks to make sure that your vinyl fence is sturdy and straight. First, find out which side you need to place the fence brackets on. Then, mark and attach with screws. If you are using a stair step method of fencing, adjust the screws accordingly. After setting up the brackets, you can begin to lay your first vinyl fence post. Place a bed of gravel in the post hole for drainage and then set the post against your layout measurements with a clamp. Follow up by filling the hole with concrete. Make sure you don’t completely fill the hole, as you might want to place soil on top later. Once the cement is set, put the vinyl fence panel in place. Then, you can continue your fence by sliding the posts into the panels and attaching with screws. Finish off with concrete in each post hole. If you would like to learn how to attach a fence gate or need the printable instructions for this video, visit www.Lowes.com

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