Cedar Springs Place
2531 Lucas Dr., Dallas, TXCedar Springs Place (1936-1937) was one of only 51 Public Works Administration low-income housing projects to be built in the country, was the first one to be built in Texas and west of the Mississippi, and is of national significance for this reason. This complex of buildings is significant because, like the San Felipe Courts in Houston (N. R. nomination 1987), it exemplifies the new social ideals and planning standards of the New Deal programs. It is an excellent example of the combination of 1930s federal housing reform, community planning, architectural design concepts, and governmental involvement and support. At the time Cedar Springs Place epitomized a new concept in housing for the poor not only in Dallas but in the rest of the country as well and as such is eligible for listing in the National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) under criterion "A" (Community Planning and Development) as part of a broad pattern of history. The use of the austere International Style by the consortium of regionally well-known architects who designed Cedar Springs Place was considered innovative at the time, which makes this project eligible for listing in the NRHP under criterion "C" (Architecture). These architects were led by Walter Sharp and included Lester Flint, Grayson Gill, Ralph Bryan, Anton Korn, Roscoe DeWitt, Everett Welch, Herbert Tatum, and Arthur B. Thomas. The architects designed Cedar Springs Place as they were simultaneously working on the Art Deco-styled Texas Centennial buildings in Fair Park (N.R. 1988) in eastern Dallas. Although the Cedar Springs Place buildings have somewhat deteriorated, the complex is intact and retains its original architectural integrity.
Local significance of the district:Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1991.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.