New York City-based Weiss/Manfredi and Dallas-based Malone Maxwell Dennehy Architects (MMDA) have been selected by the Trinity Park Conservancy to redesign an existing jail facility in Dallas for alternative uses.

The project comes to the two firms, MMDA will serve as Architect of Record while Weiss/Manfredi works as the design architect, after a lengthy selection process that involved 45 other competitors and a shortlist made up of seven other firms. An announcement highlighting the team's selection explains that the project team will work with the Trinity Park Conservancy to "integrate the building and its surrounding neighborhoods" into Harold Simmons Park, a forthcoming 200-acre park designed by Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates that will eventually connect downtown Dallas to surrounding areas.

“We are inspired by the potential of 106 W Commerce to create a dynamic community destination and gateway to Harold Simmons Park, and are thrilled to begin work with the Trinity Park Conservancy, the Dallas community, and Michael Van Valkenburgh Associates to create an open and inviting civic hub for the Park and its surrounding communities,” said Marion Weiss and Michael Manfredi.

The jail in question, Jesse R. Dawson State Jail, exists as a brutal, 10-story brick and concrete tower that will be repurposed according to community desires. To launch the project's next phase, the Trinity Park Conservancy is set to hold community listening sessions later this month to discuss the "history of the building and the wants and needs for the future of the building from community members who have worked in, been incarcerated in, or live and work near the building," according to a press release.