The Design District's history

Why it matters: The Design District got its start as a pocket neighborhood in the 1950s, a cheap area to build showrooms and warehouses along the banks of the Trinity River.

• Now, it is home to antique shops, textile, art and furniture galleries and other design-focused businesses.

The intrigue: Hi Line Drive traces back to the 1950s and likely got its name from a newly constructed high-power line at the time, per the city's archivist.

• "It was just a quiet, quaint little area that, you know, the artists found," Narvaez says. "And artists are always the pioneers, because they're starting out so they can't afford the most expensive places."
• Today, a grassy median splits High Line Drive as power lines hover from above — a reminder of the neighborhood's past.

Fun fact: A 33-year-old grain salesman named Trammell Crow helped develop the Design District after the Great Depression and designed its single-story warehouse spaces, per D Magazine.

• He later helped develop the World Trade Center, the Decorative Center, and the Dallas Design Center.

• A Dallas skyscraper, museum and park bear his name.

What's new: Dallas has been talking a lot about connectivity — between trails, neighborhoods and roads — and the Design District is poised to benefit from those conversations, Narvaez says.

• The one-mile Hi Line Connector trail opened last year.

Yes, but: "We want to keep it what the Design District is — we want to keep its character, but at the same time, bring in the new," Narvaez says.