In The News

ARLINGTON, TEXAS —The Honorable Mayor Jeff Williams and the Arlington Convention & Visitors Bureau presented the inaugural Arlington Visionary Award to former Arlington Mayor Dr. Robert Cluck, M.D., at the 2017 Arlington CVB Annual Meeting.

The Arlington Visionary Award was created to honor those citizens who have provided visionary direction for the tourism industry and making Arlington the American Dream City that it is.

“Dr. Cluck had a strong vision focused on how to make Arlington a better community for its citizens even before he took office as mayor in 2003,” said Mayor Williams. “He had the unusual foresight – when no one else did – to see the Dallas Cowboys in our community; and he had the ability to inspire others to join his vision.”

Serving as Mayor from 2003-2015, Dr. Cluck also saw the community’s potential as a thriving and competitive city of the future, and it was his ability to build collaborative partnerships that helped the city be a part of developments such as Viridian, the Arlington Highlands, the University of Texas at Arlington College Park, the Downtown Arlington redevelopment and General Motors expansion.

That same collaborative spirit was evident when Mayor Cluck and fellow councilmembers created the Arlington Tomorrow Foundation, which has contributed $11.4 million to more than 300 community projects since its inception in 2007.

“Residents still continue to benefit from the relationships that were developed by Mayor Cluck and Council and continued by current representatives and Mayor Williams,” said Ron Price, President & CEO of the Arlington Convention & Visitors Bureau, “The new Texas Live! Complex will open in 2018, and a new Texas Rangers baseball stadium will open in 2020. These two projects are only adding to our attraction as a major tourist destination.”

Tourism is a bedrock of the Arlington economy. In the past few years, Arlington tourism grew from 10 million to 14 million visitors – a 40 percent increase.

-arlington.org-