Who We Are
The Downtown Duncanville Exchange is led by the financial stakeholders of downtown: the business owners, property owners, developers, artists, and residents whose capital, livelihoods, and daily lives are invested here. We exist to advance the timely implementation of the Duncanville 2040 Comprehensive Plan, which names downtown as the heart of the city’s civic and commercial life.
“Downtown Duncanville is our civic, cultural, and commercial hub; walkable, with a distinctive mix of locally-owned shopping and dining experiences, and opportunities for meaningful work. The district is bustling and lively, with strong urban design and creative placemaking features interwoven with public art, live music, and theatrical performances.”
Duncanville 2040 Comprehensive Plan, adopted October 21, 2025
The District
The Downtown Duncanville District is the mixed-use area at the heart of Duncanville, anchored by Main Street, Armstrong Park Cultural District, City Hall, and the Public Library. It is the geographic focus of the Duncanville 2040 Comprehensive Plan’s downtown vitality vision.
The City of Duncanville Zoning Map, showing the Downtown District (DD) zone in blue at the center of the frame. Main Street runs through the district, with Armstrong Park Cultural District to the west and the Public Library and City Hall along Center Street. Use the map’s built-in controls to zoom, pan, and click individual parcels for zoning details. Source: City of Duncanville Planning and Zoning Department.
About the Downtown District (DD) zone. The Downtown District is one of Duncanville’s named zoning categories under the City’s Zoning Ordinance. It is the only zone in Duncanville where mixed-use development, live-work units, bed-and-breakfasts, and short-term rentals are permitted by right. The DD zone also permits art studios and instruction, performing arts theaters, banquet and event centers, indoor amusement, and ground-floor restaurants and retail at the cadence a walkable commercial district requires. Residential uses including multiple-family dwellings and townhomes are permitted alongside commercial uses, supporting the mixed-use character the Comprehensive Plan envisions. The full list of permitted uses, along with associated parking and design requirements, is set out in Article 3 of the Zoning Ordinance.
Our Mission
The Downtown Duncanville Exchange is a stakeholder leadership initiative formed by the business owners, property owners, developers, artists, and residents whose capital, livelihoods, and daily lives are invested in Downtown Duncanville. We are organized to support the timely implementation of the Duncanville 2040 Comprehensive Plan as it relates to downtown as the center of community vibrancy, by investing in each other and the community through capacity building, capital development, and advocacy.
Our Partnership Priorities
Priority 1
Land Use and Zoning
Engage in the land use and zoning conversations that will shape what can be built downtown, with particular attention to overlay districts, mixed-use frameworks, and the long-term planning instruments the Comprehensive Plan contemplates.
Priority 2
Armstrong Park Cultural District
Support the development and stewardship of the Armstrong Park Cultural District as the cultural anchor of downtown, in coordination with the City and other partners advancing the district’s framework.
Priority 3
Anchor Cultural Infrastructure
Help cultivate the conditions for permanent cultural investments downtown, whether a museum, heritage center, performance venue, or other asset of lasting civic significance.
Priority 4
Downtown Livability and Connection
Advocate for standing public funding mechanisms for neighborhood amenities and cultural investments that actively enhance the downtown residential experience and foster strong, positive connections with our neighboring districts.
Priority 5
Economic Vitality and Measurement
Work from a shared evidence base to understand downtown’s economic potential and measure progress over time, drawing on published research methodologies and federal data sources.
Capacity Building & Education
The Downtown Duncanville Exchange invests in its members and in downtown’s future through a robust capacity building program, the long-term work of capital development, and ongoing advocacy on behalf of downtown’s stakeholders. Sessions are open to members, prospective members, and the broader downtown community. Dates are tentative.
View the full calendar
April 2026
Reading the Duncanville 2040 Comprehensive Plan
A working session walking through what the adopted plan says about downtown, how to read its action items, and where the plan leaves room for stakeholder-led implementation.
April 2026
Overlay Districts: What They Are and Why They Matter
The legal and planning function of zoning overlays, with case studies from comparable Texas downtowns and a framing of what a Downtown Duncanville overlay could look like.
May 2026
The Texas Commission on the Arts Cultural District Program
Designation criteria, benefits, and application pathway. What TCA designation means for Armstrong Park and for downtown’s access to state cultural funding.
May 2026
Form-Based Codes and Downtown Design Standards
How form-based codes shape the built environment of a downtown, with examples from small Texas cities that have adopted them alongside or in place of use-based zoning.
May 2026
Nonprofit Formation for Cultural Districts
The mechanics of standing up a 501(c)(3) to manage a cultural district: incorporation, bylaws, board formation, IRS application, and the first year of operations.
June 2026
Arts Grants: NEA, TCA, and Regional Foundations
A practical survey of the arts grant landscape available to Duncanville artists and cultural producers, from federal agencies through regional foundations to private philanthropy.
June 2026
Grant Writing: Structure, Budget, and Review
How to read an application, build a project budget, write a compelling narrative, and position a proposal for competitive review. A working session with sample materials.
June 2026
Fiscal Sponsorship Models
How unincorporated projects and early-stage initiatives can operate under the 501(c)(3) umbrella of an existing nonprofit, and when fiscal sponsorship is the right path rather than standing up a new entity.
July 2026
Public Improvement Districts (PIDs)
Structure, governance, and funding of Texas PIDs. How neighboring downtowns have used PIDs, and whether a PID is a fit for Downtown Duncanville.
July 2026
Tactical Urbanism and Low-Cost Placemaking
How low-cost, temporary interventions can test ideas for downtown public space before permanent investment. Examples from across Texas and practical project design principles.
July 2026
Parking, Transit, and Downtown Access
How parking requirements and transit access shape downtown economics. What Duncanville’s current approach permits, and what changes the Comprehensive Plan contemplates.
August 2026
Tax Increment Reinvestment Zones (TIRZ)
TIRZ mechanics, Chapter 311 requirements, and how TIRZ revenue can be paired with other financing tools to fund downtown infrastructure and cultural investments.
August 2026
Historic Tax Credits and Adaptive Reuse
Federal and state historic tax credit programs and how they apply to downtown buildings. Adaptive reuse as a strategy for activating underused historic properties.
August 2026
Opportunity Zones and Capital Stacking
How Opportunity Zone incentives layer with other financing tools to assemble capital stacks for downtown projects at the scale Duncanville can support.
August 2026
Hotel Occupancy Tax (HOT) and Downtown Duncanville
Texas Hotel Occupancy Tax mechanics under Tax Code Chapter 351, the eligible-use categories, and how HOT revenue can support downtown arts, cultural programming, historic preservation, and tourism promotion. What HOT can and cannot fund, and how a stakeholder body should engage the Council and Arts Commission on its allocation.
September 2026
DCEDC Grants and Small Town Real Estate Development
Economic development resources through the Duncanville Community and Economic Development Corporation, and the specific dynamics of real estate development in a small Texas city.
September 2026
Capital Campaigns for Cultural Institutions
How cultural institutions structure capital campaigns, from feasibility studies through the silent phase to the public launch. Timelines, benchmarks, and common pitfalls.
September 2026
Board Development for New Nonprofits
How to recruit, seat, and develop a founding board for a new cultural nonprofit. Fiduciary duties, committee structures, and the first year of governance.
October 2026
Percent-for-Art Programs: National Models and Local Application
How American cities fund public art through percent-for-art allocations. National examples, legal structures, and a working proposal for a Duncanville program.
October 2026
Public Art Commissioning: RFQs, Selection, Installation
The practical process of commissioning public art from artists, from request for qualifications through artist selection, contract, fabrication, and installation.
October 2026
Event Production for Downtown Activations
The operational mechanics of producing downtown events: permitting, insurance, vendor management, safety planning, and budget.
October 2026
Collaborating on Street Festivals, Markets, and Live Events
How property owners, business owners, artists, and civic partners work together to produce recurring street festivals, outdoor markets, and live music events. Partnership models, revenue sharing, shared logistics, and the governance structures that sustain multi-party event programs across seasons.
November 2026
Feasibility Planning for Museums and Heritage Centers
How museums and heritage centers get planned, scoped, and built. Feasibility methodology, site selection, program concept, and the civic arc of a capital cultural project.
November 2026
Performance Venue Economics
How performance venues of various scales actually work financially. Earned revenue, contributed revenue, rental income, and the conditions under which a small-city venue can be sustainable.
November 2026
Adaptive Reuse Case Studies
Detailed case studies of small Texas cities that have adapted historic buildings into cultural venues, with a focus on the decisions that made them succeed or fail.
December 2026
The Cultural Investment Strategy and the $7 Million Question
Methodology for estimating household entertainment spending and recapture targets, applied to Duncanville. Why the $7 million annual recapture figure matters and how the Exchange’s work is measured against it.
December 2026
Consumer Expenditure Data and Downtown Retail Analysis
A working session on reading BLS consumer expenditure data, applying it to local markets, and identifying the retail and cultural gaps that downtown investment could fill.
January 2027
Year in Review and 2027 Priorities
Public review of the Exchange’s first year of work, measured against the commitments on this page, and the agenda for the year ahead.
Get Involved
The Downtown Duncanville Exchange is gathering its founding stakeholders now. If you own a business or property downtown, work as an artist or cultural producer in Duncanville, are developing or considering a downtown project, or live in Duncanville and care about the future of its center, your voice is part of this conversation.
Join the Conversation
Share your name and connection to downtown Duncanville. We will follow up with information about founding meetings and how to participate.
Contact
References
Sources and working documents cited on this page. Links open in a new window where available.
City of Duncanville. 2025. “Resolution No. 2025-423: Establishing the Armstrong Park Cultural District.” February 2025. Duncanville, TX.
City of Duncanville. n.d.
Zoning Ordinance, Article 3: Land Uses. Department of Development Services, Planning and Zoning Division.
Article 3. Land Uses (PDF). Confirms the Downtown District (DD) as a codified zoning category and defines its permitted uses.
U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. n.d. “Consumer Expenditure Surveys.” Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Labor.
https://www.bls.gov/cex/.
U.S. Census Bureau. n.d. “American Community Survey: Duncanville, Texas.” Washington, DC: U.S. Department of Commerce.
https://data.census.gov/.