RIP Dr. Julian "Bill" Peterson

RIP Dr. Julian "Bill" Peterson. A great City Plan Commissioner, friend, and community leader.  He passed away over the weekend after fighting cancer for some time.

It was a pleasure to serve with Bill for over two years.   Bill was a funny, practical, and reasonable guy who thoughtfully prepared for every case and agonized over many tough zoning decisions.

Bill led the way on the Commission with respect to getting food trucks in the Arts District, which helped to start the boom you see today in Dallas. He would've loved TruckStock in West Dallas on Saturday. 


He also supported the businesses that came in for rezoning.  He would always take a moment of Commissioners' privilege at the Horseshoe and say, "now that we've given them a permit let's go and support the place."  Even during his illness, Bill beat me to every new food spot in Deep Ellum and East Dallas.


I always appreciated Bill asking for my input when a case was in the area in which I lived, and that he allowed me to assist him on a case or two during his illness.


We shared many a laugh and I will always remember him sneaking out of the cancer rehab center just to attend my farewell at City Plan Commission.


I am fortunate to have known and served with him. Best wishes to his wife, P Jay, and the rest of his family and friends. May he rest in peace.

Columbia Meat Packing Needs to be Sent Packing

This is a day that I have been eagerly anticipating.  On Wednesday, the City Council voted to have a compliance case regarding Columbia Packing Company heard by the Board of Adjustment. This is the same hearing process previously used by Councilman Caraway, myself, and other community leaders to close numerous motels in Southern Dallas.

It's long overdue.  The strangest thing has happened since the plant has been closed; you can breathe the air at the foot of the Cedar Crest/MLK Bridge!

The video below above details some serious allegations of illegal operations carried out by Columbia Packing. I won't say more at this time.  However, I'm sure the community is looking forward to having the case heard. A hearing date has not been set; we will pass along that info when it is made available.

Turning the Page

Recently, I stepped down from my position as Vice Chair of the City Plan Commission. It's been a great four years. 


I made history as the youngest Vice Chair, made great friends and helped a lot of people. I couldn't have done it without the support of family, friends, neighborhoods and city officials including the entire City Plan Commission.


It's been fun having a hand in watching the city grow, and to see projects that will benefit the City come to fruition.


They said it is one of the 20 most powerful official positions in the City; I think I respected the power given to me. Instead of focusing on scoring political points,  we worked hard to build coalitions and do what's right for the City and its residents.


Stay tuned for my next move.

The Bigger Story

When I first heard about the story surrounding Chief Brown and the reporter from the Morning News, I fully expected her mainstream media colleagues internally and externally to defend her.  Reading articles and posts from other sites, I was right. 


I don't blame Chief Brown one bit for not giving her an "exclusive." Beyond the reporter's out-of-line and unprofessional behavior is a bigger story. 


It all comes down to the press feeling like they are bigger than every story out there. They live and die for the "exclusive." Notice that her tirade came about when she was not granted an exclusive. Is it about getting to the bottom of the real story and the issues, or is it about having your name attached to a byline that blares "EXCLUSIVE?" The reporter's actions clearly state the latter.


Shawn Williams does a great job of laying out some of the issues in his Dallas South News piece titled Dallas reporters frustrated by lack of access to Black officials. As Shawn says in his article:

Hit and run articles that play loose with the facts are being couched under the heading of “investigations." 

When Dallas' mainstream media drops the biased agenda, viewpoints, and vendettas they pursue, access will increase.  Their inability to dominate public opinion due to the continually increasing popularity of blogs and other independent websites is bearing itself out.  Minority papers arose from the fact that these groups couldn't get a fair shake in the mainstream press.  


The Dallas mainstream print press will burn you and ruin your life in a heartbeat, without contrition. Such actions have created a well-earned wall of suspiciousness in many communities.  When you see the words "repeated calls to..." in a story, it's basically harassment because they feel like they are owed an interview.  They aren't, it's up to the person involved whether they feel like talking to you or not.  A lot of press don't see it that way.


The mainstream press is in a fight for their lives; their usefulness is often questioned and for good reason.

It's the paper's own fault. Historically, the Morning News and other mainstream outlets have pursued biased agendas and vendettas against minority leaders.  You can add D Magazine and the Dallas Observer to that list. They cover stories in a way that than can be best called "selective memory."  The mainstream's media quest for the exclusive often leaves them burning both public officials and private citizens.  Some of this may stem from the fact that their writing and editorial staffs lack diversity in a city that has many nationalities and cultures.  


Anything that is an affront to their institution is mocked.  Example of such is the way that the press mocked blogs and bloggers when they first became popular.  To be followed by 20+ blogs of their own of course.


This is a reminder that no matter what is written, the PEOPLE are what matter most. No institution, including Dallas' mainstream media, is bigger than the desire and will of the people. 

The Map

Here is the 2013 City Council district map as approved by the Dallas City Council.

To view the boundaries down to the street-level, an enlarged map image (PDF format) can be found here.  A link to the statistics behind the map is here.

The districting plan developed in accordance with the Charter will be submitted to the Department of Justice for Preclearance under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.

The approved districting plan will be in place for the next general election for the City Council conducted at least 90 days after the plan becomes effective.

New Dallas City Council Districts are Coming

Here is the proposed new map and for Dallas City Council districts. The final map will be in effect for the 2013 Dallas City Council elections.

From the City's website:

At the next City Council meeting, Mayor Rawlings will present the recommended plan to the Council. The City Council has 45 days to adopt or modify the districting plan.

The districting plan developed in accordance with the Charter will be submitted to the Department of Justice for Preclearance under Section 5 of the Voting Rights Act.

The approved districting plan will be in place for the next general election for the City Council conducted at least 90 days after the plan becomes effective.

Click the map to view at full size

The Quest for a Grocery Store: If They won't Build it, We Should

Not too long ago, I read a news wire on Dallas South News that talked about the proposed expansion of use of Dallas' McCommas Bluff landfill.  That topic has been debated at length and remains a hot issue.  In another Dallas South article related to that post, the following paragraph piqued my interest:

Paul Quinn College President Michael J. Sorrell has issued a call to action. The Highland Hills community and Paul Quinn College challenge the city to build a grocery store and a pharmacy, and create a solid neighborhood development plan before asking the College and local residents to support the trash measure.

If they won't bring the store, you bring the store. Paul Quinn College definitely has been an innovator with their acclaimed Food for Good Farm,  transforming the football field into a huge vegetable produce farm.   For whatever reason, the major chains don't see the value of having a store here. Even when Walmart called, they picked the areas of Fort Worth Ave in North Oak Cliff, 35 & Ledbetter, and Piedmont/Buckner Terrace for new locations.  Paul Quinn is no less than 6.5 miles from any of these areas. 

Having lived in an area with a lack of grocery and retail options, I can understand the frustration of that neighborhood. What I see, however, is an opportunity to change the game and build your own playing field instead of waiting for the big boys to invite you to play on theirs.

There is a blueprint to opening such a store.  You find a person that's a high-ranking employee in a grocery chain. He/she runs the store and finds capable employees.  That's how businesses get started, without waiting for the 'powers that be' to build a store.

Surely, I am simplifying it. But it is possible. A good example is La Michoacana, which is a grocery chain that focuses on Hispanics.  Their stores are not huge, most are 5-12,000 SF.  But they are growing and growing. The chain started with one 1,800 SF store. 

We can look to Chicago for another example, where Fresh Family Foods opened up last August on the city's South Side.  

To further the illustrate the pent-up need for a grocery store, Rev. Gerald Britt recently wrote in a blog piece titled So What is Economic Development:

The myth about low income and working class neighborhoods is that the people who live there have little or no disposable income. Purportedly objective 'data' is used to prove, for instance, that such communities cannot support grocery stores or retail. This has always been a curious argument to me. As I mentioned in a previous post, Paul Quinn College in South Oak Cliff (southern Dallas) is located in an area where there are nearly 4,500 single-family homes, as well as multi-family housing. There is a new elementary school being built nearly two miles south of PQ and within 5 or six blocks of the new school being built is a subdivision being built. The area has a mixed-income population. Nearly every house has a car in its driveway or garage. All of the people in those homes eat. They all wear clothes. They all have furniture. Yet the closest grocery store is six miles away. Most of the residents in the area drive as far away as Lancaster or DeSoto to buy groceries, or as far away as Cedar Hill, TX to buy clothes, electronics, etc. 

There is a ton of unmet market demand for groceries and other retail items in this area of Southern Dallas.  Maybe it's time to get working on a new plan.

"Bums" in Main Street Garden?

This post is inspired by the following article that I saw on Fox 4's website.

"Councilwoman Hunt Decries 'Bums' in Downtown Park" link

o_O *confused face*

I'm not linking to the tweets or pics, as they can be easily found.

As a nearby resident, I don't have much of a problem with the homeless people in Main Street Garden. I've never been hit up for money at the park. I'm there every week, and walk by at all times of the day and night. I don't feel threatened, although I can see how the situation can be frustrating to some.

Maybe my heart bleeds for people in dire straits, but anybody that is brave enough to sit in a park when it's 100 degrees outside doesn't bother me one bit. The new panhandling zone is working; I can't remember the last time I was hit up for change.

I made a decision to live downtown. It's not a bleached over Disneyworld. It's not like most neighborhoods. I realize I might be a strange bird, as I sleep better where there's noise (cars, buses, people yelling "Go Mavs") than I would at a countryside B&B. But here's the thing: no matter how many units of PSH (Permanent Supportive Housing) you build, there will be homeless people downtown. They aren't evil. There's one guy that always calls me by some random famous name every time I see him; last time I was Drake (sir, no). He's harmless.

But while we're on the subject of stepping up "enforcement...." A friend of mine said that the "park smells like pee." It's not the people, it's the dogs. How about we address the problem with dog crap everywhere in the park, and people that let their dogs urinate all over the place? Such enforcement would likely be more productive than this. It seems as if many pet owners seem to enjoy letting their dogs use the entire park as a toilet and don't pick up. Main Street Garden has a built-in dog run. There are doggie bag stations, and they often go unused. There are many dog owners in my family, and their dogs are curbed; I suggest downtown residents do the same.

The frustration can get the best of anyone. And be clear, I'm not saying that nothing should be done. I'm all for enforcing what's on the books. There are ordinances against sleeping and drinking in public parks (although the Lily Pad Cafe sells alcohol so I'm not sure how we enforce the latter).

For example: when I go for my 2-3 mile walks, I sometimes carry a bookbag. If I go for a walk or run and then sit down in the park with my bag and sweat it out for a while, am I different than a homeless person doing the same? That's the dilemma. Maybe our courtesy patrol can talk to the people that seem to be camping out and get them help if needed.

It's our park. It's everyone's park.

A New Dallas City Council

Come Monday, we will have a new Mayor and a few new members of the Dallas City Council.

I'm willing to give Mayor-elect Mike Rawlings a fair shot. Council should be interesting these next two years, because the makeup of council is different than in years' past.

Several people have asked me if current Mayor Caraway and his successor can get along in the coming council term. Of course they can; to suggest otherwise is simplistic thinking. If President Obama can appoint former Senator Clinton as Secretary of State, I'm sure the incoming and current Mayors can get along just fine as Mayor and Mayor Pro Tem. It's the politically mature thing to do, on both sides.

I will point out that while it was identified as a "beachhead" during Rawling's campaign, a lot has been done in the Lancaster-Kiest area (led by Mayor Caraway), such as multiple motel closings (which cleared the way for this), renovation of the Crest Shopping Center, and incoming new development within that corridor. It would be wise to build upon that which has already been done.

Rawlings' appointment for Chief of Staff is more than capable of navigating the waters of City Hall, but a lot has to be acted on right out of the gate. The Gas Drilling Task Force. The city budget. What to do about the Trinity. The Budget. Did I mention the budget? OK, just checking.

The work starts Monday. I wish the entire Dallas City Council the best.

A City Hall Fixture has Passed Away

Last Thursday, frequent City Council speaker Leslie Davis (no relation) was found dead in his residence in Oak Cliff. From the police report, it doesn't look like foul play.

As anyone that watched or attended Council meetings would know, Leslie spoke at almost every meeting. He always had a kind word and I saw him as a good person. He often visited Mayor Caraway's office, and the Mayor once bought him shoes when he needed some.

As he often said at Council meetings, "try to love each other the best you can."

The clip below was played at the end of today's City Council meeting. How fitting that he was the last speaker at the last meeting of the current City Council.

Observations about Parking from a Downtown Resident

It was encouraging to see a briefing at this week the City Council level entitled, "Downtown Dallas Strategic Parking Plan." It is sorely needed.


The parking situation in Downtown continues to be awful. Here are a few observations I have made as a resident:

• At surface parking lots, the machines are rigged so you can't pay for more than one day (and if you park overnight, you need to pay for two days since the cut-off is 11:59pm). The goal is not to have you pay your way to park and be on your merry way, the goal is for you to miss the cut-off and get booted. And you never get 24 hours; as previously mentioned before the cut off is always 11:59pm.

• Valets drive way too fast. In the past month I've been nearly hit three times.

• Valets also control way too many street spaces. You can't find a decent place to park on the street after 5pm; valets have them all. There shouldn't be any street spaces downtown set aside for valets; they should be using the parking lots. Raise your hand if you think it's fun to pay a valet $10 to park your car in front of the restaurant in which you are eating.

• Why is there "no parking" set at certain meters from 7-9am and then from 4-6pm? It's not for traffic flow, as buses take up both lanes anyway and it still becomes a bottleneck. I hear you saying, "read the meter/sign before you park." This is true; however, it's inconsistent and does nothing but create a got'cha moment for an unsuspecting parker.

• Parking enforcement officers writing tickets at the 01 and the 59 minute mark of the hour. If you are parked and make any mistake with a meter, you're toast. Trust me, Bubbles from the Wire would be impressed at the lookout skills of the ticket writers.

• Many meters start on the weekends at 7am. That's right, 7 am. On a Sunday. If you crash at a friend's place or have overnight guests and sleep past 7:01 am (7:05 on a good day), you will have a ticket.

Is it legal: sure. Is it bad business? YES. Want to guarantee someone never comes back to Downtown Dallas? Stick a ticket on someone's car at 4:01pm after they spent $100 on dinner. You've won the battle but lost the war.


I received the ticket on the right in the Arts District, while at a late-night restaurant party. I was one of about 15 people that left the party to find their cars ticketed. Why on earth are tickets being written in the Arts District after midnight? You would think the City would be glad that people are spending money in this area, especially on a night when there are no events going on.


Throw us some sort of bone. Maybe no meters after 6pm or even 8pm. At a minimum, dial it back on weekends from the 7am fiasco mentioned above. Something...anything. As a resident, there's nothing that will make you feel more like Peter Finch in Network (as seen on right) than a boot or parking ticket on your car or that of a friend.


A few things that I encounter as a downtown resident are highlighted in the study.

• Parking is important and complex enough in its own right to warrant singular focus
• The key parking problem is not one of availability, but one of accessibility
• In highest demand areas there is (the) least “publicly available” parking

This is the kicker. There are spots, but they aren't near anywhere that people want to go.


Uptown Dallas is way more active than downtown. You know what else uptown has? More available and cheaper parking spots. Almost all street spaces are free. Revenue from meters is a drop in the bucket compared to that generated by people shopping and spending money in the neighborhood.


I remain optimistic that the parking situation can improve in Downtown Dallas and the surrounding areas. For now, we remain easy pickings and pay through the nose in fines for being the early adopters of a downtown lifestyle.

CHAMPS

Dallas, maybe?....

Saggy Pants Banned From Fort Worth Buses

from CBS11 News

A Word with People who Blame Their Local Government

The election, in pictures (click to enlarge).

Voter turnout - November 2008: 62%

Voter turnout - May 2011: 11%

Dallas Seeks Applicants for Gas Drilling Task Force

The application must be completed by May 23rd. Here are the details.

Dallas Keeps Cash Found by Honest Teen

Not a good look by the City (via Channel 8).




UPDATE:  from Dallas South News (5/11/2011)

Dallas Police Chief David O. Brown has directed that the department follow a provision in state law that allows for public notice to be given after thirty days of someone finding money and turning it into the Dallas Police Department.  Once public notice has occurred, a ninety-day waiting period follows. 

If a claimant comes forward, a hearing is held within the Police Department.  If no rightful owner comes forward during this 120-day period, then Chief Brown will return the money to the finder, Ms. Ashley Lazaro.

A MUCH better solution.