The Bishop Arts District is a shopping and entertainment district in north Oak Cliff, Dallas, Texas (USA), near the intersection of N. Bishop Ave and Davis Street. About two miles southwest of Downtown Dallas, the Bishop Arts District is home to a variety of independent boutiques, restaurants, bars, coffee shops, and art galleries.[1]
History
The area was originally developed as warehouses and shops in the 1920s.[citation needed] In the 1930s, a trolley stop along Davis became Dallas' busiest trolley stop. The district began a decline in the mid-1960s through the beginning of the 1980s. The reasons for the decline included the rise of the shopping mall, the loss of sizable tenants such as Astor theater and Goodier Cosmetics, neighborhood demographic changes and the elimination of Oak Cliff's streetcar system.[citation needed]
Bishop Arts in the 1980s before revitalization
In the fall of 1984, Jim Lake saw a bargain in the now run down storefronts and began buying up property. He said, "Hopefully we'll make money on this in the future, but in the first three to five years I'm gonna feed it." Lake said of his decision to buy the property, "I just thought it needed saving." As a sign of his commitment, Lake provided, rent-free for a year, space for a police storefront. This was an important element in the area's security and sense of community. [citation needed]
Continuing through the 1990s and 2000s, renovations have taken place to transform the area into a walkable, urban environment. Murals, brick pavers, and other street elements have polished the rough look of the warehouses and have made the area a popular leisure and dining destination.
In 2015, Exxir Capital invested $42 million to construct a mixed-use development includes retail, office, and apartments in the district.[2]
The area's culture has continued to mature with the expanding Oak Cliff Film Festival, which has garnered media attention from Texas Monthly and The New York Times.[7]
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