Sunday, October 6, 2024

Good evening:

In her first 100 days on the job, Interim Dallas City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert won unanimous approval of her proposed nearly $5 billion budget, led an initiative to house more than 100 people experiencing homelessness in Downtown, and rounded out her leadership team with some impressive hires and promotions.

She also saw popular Dallas Police Chief Eddie García submit his retirement, just a few months after promising he would stay here at least three more years. And she continues to juggle a handful of tricky issues, including the ongoing saga of the digital sidewalk advertising boards that few seem to want — except a handful of her bosses on City Council.

Her most notable successes are detailed in her 100-Day Progress Report, submitted to City Council members last week.

In Downtown, Tolbert’s focus has been on a new “Street to Home” initiative to rapidly house and provide critical support services to people experiencing chronic homelessness in public spaces. Downtown Dallas, Inc. (DDI) was a lead partner with Housing Forward and City Hall on the program, which housed 107 people in less than 100 days, officials announced last week.

Though we still have work to do to address quality of life and public safety challenges in the core, DDI’s President & CEO Jennifer Scripps said the nonprofit’s “Homeless Outreach team has played a pivotal role, and we are excited to continue this important work.”

Most people in and around City Hall assume this is Tolbert’s audition for the full-time job, and that search is ongoing. There is no question she has brought a new sense of urgency and collaboration that many appreciate.

The question is whether the Mayor and City Council members have seen enough to drop the interim title in the next 100 days.

Read on for more on:

• The growing campaign against Dallas Charter Propositions S, T & U.

• A big change in response to “extreme dissatisfaction” at Dallas Love Field airport.

• How the business community grades City Hall and the economic climate in Dallas.

⚡ Highlights From Last Week’s Meetings of Interest:

Former Dallas Police Chief David O. Brown (pictured) said that while he supports hiring more police officers, “I do not support Propositions S, T and U. The police are not meant to do everything. In effect, these amendments would render Dallas as a police state with very little to no budget flexibility to deal with emerging issues in our neighborhoods.”

There were no public meetings of interest at City Hall last week. City Council members past and present got together anyway on Wednesday to formally launch the “Vote No On S, T, U, Dallas” campaign, calling the City Charter propositions a major step back that would force city leaders to defund parks, EMS, fire, libraries, and arts.

The S, T & U propositions, which I detailed here last week, were added to the November ballot because of a successful citizen petition drive organized by a group calling itself “Dallas HERO,” and backed by a luxury hotelier. The Downtown Dallas, Inc. (DDI), Board of Directors last month voted to oppose S, T & U, and to urge Dallasites to vote “against” the three harmful measures that appear at the very bottom of the ballot on November 5.

The diverse and bipartisan coalition against S, T & U includes former Dallas Mayors Ron Kirk, Laura Miller, Tom Leppert, and Mike Rawlings, as well as State Senator Royce West, Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price and former Chief of Police David O. Brown. They were joined at the campaign launch by 13 current City Council members, and a few dozen other civic and non-profit leaders, including many former elected officials.

Mayor Eric L. Johnson and Council member Cara Mendelsohn, also write they are opposed to S, T & U (and every other Charter amendment on the ballot) in a Dallas Morning News editorial published today.

Read more from KERA News. Visit VoteNoDallas.com for more information.

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📝 Memos of Interest:

— Tolbert has appointed veteran Dallas Police commander Michael Igo as interim Chief of Police, effective Oct. 18. Igo, currently executive assistant chief, is a well-respected, level-headed leader who has been with the Dallas Police Department for 33 years. He is widely seen as a strong candidate for the permanent job. Read more about him in The Dallas Morning News.

— Parking at Dallas Love Field airport is about to get more expensive (new rates above), according to this memo. On the bright side, the City plans to move the rideshare pickup location much closer to the terminals by January 2025, noting “extreme dissatisfaction” from customers upset about the tiring journey to Garage B.

— In the latest City Hall “oops” file entry, a technical glitch led to failure to charge 289 customers for Right-of-Way construction permits totaling $512,000. They are being charged now, according to this memo.

— Check out all the latest City Hall memos here and here.

Meetings of Interest: October 7 - 11, 2024

Watch City of Dallas Meetings Live

Monday, October 7

City Council Parks, Trails & Environment Committee, 9 a.m., Council Chambers, 6th Floor, Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla St.

— Fair Park First, the nonprofit charged with overseeing operations at the historic park, will update committee members on what has been a year marked by challenges. The organization gave a similar briefing last month to the Dallas Park & Recreation Board, on which I serve.

City Council Economic Development Committee, 1 p.m., Council Chambers, 6th Floor, Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla St.

— Dallas business representatives have an overwhelmingly positive perception of the City and the current and future business climate, according to a survey commissioned by City Hall.

Nearly 70% of respondents said they are satisfied with the overall quality of City services, with 64% saying they are satisfied with the current overall business climate, and 61% saying they expect it to get even better in two years.

The City’s low crime rate, level of taxation, and quality of life are most important to retaining businesses here, according to survey results.

Tuesday, October 8

Dallas City Council Meeting, 9 a.m., Council Chambers, 6th Floor, Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla St.

— It’s a rare Tuesday City Council meeting, with some members headed to the annual Texas Municipal League Conference in Houston beginning Wednesday. Among the items of interest on this week’s agenda:

• Item 36 is a resolution adopting the City’s State Legislative Program for the 89th Session beginning in January. Read more about what’s under consideration here and here.

• Item 38 is discussion in closed session about the potential sale of a neglected City-owned Downtown building at 711 South St. Paul St. The building was auctioned in two tiers last week — one with the building as is and one with the building demolished.

City of Dallas Economic Development Corporation (EDC) Board of Directors, 9 a.m., Riveredge 2nd Floor, 155 Riveredge Drive, Dallas, TX

— Members of the board overseeing the nonprofit will discuss “the role of the DEDC in the Dallas economic ecosystem,” as well as the organization’s strategic plan draft.

Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) Board of Directors, Committee-of-the-Whole, 1:45 p.m., DART Headquarters, 1401 Pacific Ave., Dallas; Watch Live Here

— DART Board members will discuss proposed state legislative priorities, which are outlined in this briefing.

Thursday, October 10

City Plan Commission, 9 a.m. Briefing, 12:30 p.m. Public Hearing, Council Chambers, 6th Floor, Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla St.

Did we miss anything? Do you have any questions? Just want to talk about meetings? Let me know.

Were you forwarded this newsletter? Subscribe here.Have a great week.

Best,Scott Goldstein

Communications & Government Relations Consultant

Downtown Dallas, Inc.

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