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- Meetings of Interest: Sunday, October 15, 2023
Meetings of Interest: Sunday, October 15, 2023
Meetings of Interest: 🚋 Downtown Streetcar
Sunday, October 15, 2023
Good evening:
The Dallas City Council this week will discuss how to connect the two independent streetcar systems that cross into Downtown.
Downtown Dallas, Inc. (DDI), has long advocated for the Streetcar Central Link, which would be operated by Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART), to connect the Oak Cliff Modern Streetcar (pictured) through Downtown to the McKinney Avenue Trolley.
The vision, included in our 2017 strategic
update, gained new momentum earlier this year, when Downtown Councilmembers Jesse Moreno and Paul Ridley affirmed their support for the expansion in
. They asked for a full council briefing "at the earliest opportunity, for the purpose of formalizing the Council's support for the 'Central Link,' and requesting that DART prioritize construction of the 'Central Link' project."
That briefing, which has not yet been made public, is scheduled for this Wednesday.
It follows a DDI Mobility Committee workshop on the topic hosted at our Downtown offices last week. Senior City transportation officials were part of that discussion. It touched on the need for a City-led operations and maintenance financial analysis to determine the cost and funding mechanisms.
Under the leadership of DDI Mobility Committee Chair Allan Zreet, of Jacobs, and DDI Vice President of Planning & Policy Evan Sheets, our organization continues to believe that completing this connection will also unlock the potential for streetcar expansions into other areas of our City.
We will share updates on the City Council briefing in next week's newsletter.
❎ Highlights From Last Week's Meetings:
-- The City Council last Wednesday:
Voted unanimously to appoint Tammy L. Palomino as City Attorney, one of the most important jobs at City Hall. Palomino will be paid $325,000 annually to run the 160-person law firm known as the Dallas City Attorney's Office. She has been in the role in an interim capacity for most of this year.
Approved amendments to the City's prostitution ordinance, which was ruled unconstitutional earlier this year by a Dallas County Criminal Court of Appeals judge, upholding an earlier ruling by a municipal court judge. Further background on the changes can be found in this memo to Public Safety Committee members.
Authorized a $262,840 contract with SWA Group that will include site assessment and analysis of the Old City Park site located at 1515 South Harwood Street, the City's first park in 1876.
Unanimously approved a resolution condemning the recent Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel. That night, our Downtown skyline lit up with the colors of the Israeli flag (photo above).
📝 Memos of Interest:
-- Sales tax collections in three out of the past six months have been less than the same period last year (see above chart). The City's contract economist expects growth to "slow to a more historical rate over the the next several months."
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-- The acoustics in the Dallas City Council chambers are terrible. City staff is planning to spend at least $75,000 to address the audio challenges.
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-- Check out all the latest City Hall memos
and
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Meetings of Interest
Monday, October 16
💧 Quality of Life, Arts, and Culture Committee, 9 a.m., Council Chambers, 6th Floor, Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla St.
-- A panel of experts will
. The concept was first endorsed by the U.S. Public Health Service in 1950 and authorized by Dallas voters in 1966, according to the briefing. Opponents of fluoridation speak at almost every City Council meeting claiming that it is a danger to public health. This is at least the second time in a decade that City Council members appear to be questioning the practice. In 2014, then-District 9 (East Dallas) City Council member
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-- The City Council will soon consider tweaking the anti-litter code to address redundancy of two existing codes used for litter violations on private property.
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-- The City has launched a new
that tracks service requests received and resolved across the city. It is updated daily. Check it out
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🚇 Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, 1 p.m., Council Chambers, 6th Floor, Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla St.
-- If you've traveled home through Dallas Love Field Airport recently and used Uber, Lyft, or taxis, you certainly got your steps in.
covers the reasons for moving the new rideshare pickup location more than 700 feet away from the curb outside the airport exits and how it is being monitored.
Tuesday, October 17
🚌
Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) Board of Directors, 6 p.m., Board Room, 1401 Pacific Ave., Dallas
-- The agenda includes a vote on the organization's updated 20-year financial plan. It includes Downtown streetcar link funding.
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Wednesday, October 18
🏛
Dallas City Council, 9 a.m., Council Chambers, 6th Floor, Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla St.
-- In addition to the streetcar briefing noted above, City Council members will get an
earmarked for Dallas.
-- Also on the agenda is a briefing on the mess of donation drop boxes all over the city (see above) and a proposed ordinance to regulate them. The ordinance would create a registration process, including fees, and would dictate where the boxes can be placed and how often they must be monitored, among other things.
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Thursday, October 19
🗺
City Plan Commission, 9 a.m. Briefing, 12:30 p.m. Public Hearing, Council Chambers, 6th Floor, Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla St.
🏞
Dallas Park and Recreation Board, 10 a.m., 6FN,Conference Room, Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla St.
Quote of the Week
Wine Enthusiast magazine on Downtown's Midnight Rambler bar at The Joule hotel. The magazine named it one of the best hotel bars in America for 2023.
"Unlike so many hotel bars, which revel in their histories, Midnight Rambler celebrates contemporary art and music. Case in point, it hosts regular collaborations between bartenders and local visual artists, which translate to carefully curated playlists and weekend DJ sets."
Finally, I made a mistake in last week's newsletter. I wrote that "every successful bond election held in this century was on a November ballot, including in 2006, 2012, and 2017." I forgot about the successful 2003 Dallas bond election, which was held in May of that year. Every Dallas bond since then has been held in November.
Did we miss anything? Do you have any questions? Just want to talk about meetings?
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Were you forwarded this newsletter?
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Have a great week.
Best,
Scott GoldsteinChief of External Affairs& Government RelationsDowntown Dallas, Inc.
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