The 3.2-acre lot bracketed by Pacific Avenue and St. Paul and Harwood streets has become an eyesore. To say it’s poorly maintained is an understatement. The uneven layer of asphalt is littered with freshly broken glass and shards from an earlier generation of destroyed beer bottles.

Walking the perimeter on a workday afternoon means taking in the symphony of trash and sadness that characterize it: Djarum Black packages, ancient, crushed Dr Pepper and Colt 45 cans, half a Trojan wrapper, and, beside it, the used condom. There’s a nonpopulated attendant booth covered in graffiti.

Since 1921, the space has been a parking lot. Now it’s surrounded by prime real estate, and the lot will soon transform into a $15 million urban oasis belonging to Parks for Downtown Dallas, a nonprofit group spearheaded by Robert Decherd, the former president and CEO of A.H. Belo Corp. Since leaving the company, which owns The Dallas Morning News, the reclusive Dealey family scion has devoted himself to philanthropic public park projects.

The park Decherd’s foundation plans to build is called Pacific Plaza. The history of the site has been anything but peaceful. A contentious, almost Shakespearean fight ensued when two groups proposed plans for a different park at the same site.

A group called 4P Partners, headed by former Dallas City Council member Ron Natinksy, came forward with a plan to build a 1,526-space subterranean parking structure with a 3.6-acre park on top. The group had already created a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that would enter into a lease agreement with the city of Dallas. Natinsky says his plan would be free to Dallas taxpayers, and the parking lot revenue would generate income for his group and the city.

But in March, the City Council greenlighted Decherd’s plans for a new downtown park called Pacific Plaza, using a $15 million donation from his foundation. The deal is part of a wider offer of $44 million in cash and land to build four downtown parks, provided the city add $35 million to an upcoming bond package to help pay for it.

A park is supposed to be a peaceful place for reflection. This one was born amid a conflict that says as much about how the city conducts its business as it does about the future of downtown Dallas.

EXPAND Robert Decherd Parks for Downtown Dallas

There’s an acute awareness that an outsider is walking into Robert Decherd’s sprawling offices at the Bank of America building. Vickie King, Decherd’s assistant, and Amy Meadows, president of Parks for Downtown Dallas, are waiting at the double glass doors.

“Did you find everything OK? How was parking?” they ask, over-the-top cheerful. It's a rare occasion; reporters are simply not allowed here.

“Mr. Decherd will see you in a moment,” King says.

A certain amount of hype surrounds Decherd. His actions have spoken louder than his words, leading Forbes to list him as one of the nation's most powerful people and D Magazine to compare him to Howard Hughes "because he’s unapproachable."

Since retiring from A.H. Belo Corp. in 2013, Decherd has carved out a new niche as the godfather of parks in downtown Dallas. When it comes to green spaces, his track record is probably better than anyone else's in Dallas. He took an old parking lot across from the federal building and turned it into Belo Garden at Griffin and Main streets. Foundations associated with Decherd have contributed around $20 million to create places like Dallas Police Memorial, WFAA Plaza and Lubben Plaza.

“This is amazing acceleration. It has good aspects. It has some negative aspects, but we need to make sure we get this right. That's why these parks are so important." — Robert Decherd Facebook

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When Decherd walks out a few minutes later, the vibe is less Howard Hughes swagger and more a 66-year-old wearing loafers. Decherd, once the most powerful man in Texas journalism, is unflaggingly polite and serious, except when asked about the large paper giraffe statue displayed on the desk in his office.

“That’s an important piece of folk art my daughter did when she was 6,” he says, smiling.

His office is understated, with no evidence of lavish vacations or his weighty professional accomplishments. The décor is minimal: A popsicle-hued photograph of Mr. Frosty, a fast-food place in Denton, hangs on the wall, and to the right of his bookcase is a framed sketch of his great-grandfather, George Bannerman Dealey.

Decherd pointedly admits he usually doesn’t do interviews. What made him want to do this one?

“We have a contract with the city of Dallas to build a public park,” Decherd says. “In that context, we need to be available and approachable to everyone.”

The city of Dallas hired the Carter & Burgess planning firm to create a master plan for its downtown public parks in 2004, and it was updated in 2013.

“Now is the time for collaborative synergy,” its authors declared. “Instead of the dynamics of mixed-use venues stimulating business and entertainment, the downtown has become a place of individual destinations serving single activities.”

The plan calls for four “priority parks” to be built: Pacific Plaza, one in West End, one under North Central Expressway and one near the Dallas Farmers Market at Harwood and Young streets.

“Parks for Downtown Dallas prepared to invest substantially all of our financial assets, helping the city of Dallas build these four priority parks,” Decherd says. “Any shape, form or fashion the park board and City Council deemed to be appropriate, so long as we agree that we're going to have a great outcome. We're going to build great parks. We don't want to just go invest money on whims or bad ideas.”