Tag: west dallas
What’s really in West Dallas’ soil, water, air and fish? A new ‘holistic’ EPA study aims to find out
EPA will analyze the quality of air, water, soil and fish tissue in West Dallas to determine what pollutants are in the community.
West Dallas groups agree ‘GAF’s gotta go’ but take different tacks on how the polluter should exit
Neighborhood groups are trying negotiation and legal action to get GAF and its pollution out of West Dallas faster — and without leaving a mess.
West Dallas residents don’t trust city plans for their land
At a September Forward Dallas meeting, neighbors voiced anger over the city’s failure to protect the area.
Neighbors discuss housing protections, land use at West Dallas Community Vision Plan meeting
On Oct. 12, West Dallas neighbors met to review policy suggestions for housing and land use for the West Dallas Community Vision Plan.
District 6 residents ask for improvements to fire station, Jaycee-Zaragoza Recreation Center during bond town hall
The latest: District 6 residents prioritized two projects for the 2024 bond: improvements to a community fire station and the Jaycee-Zaragoza Recreation Center. The city’s Office of Bond and Construction Management hosted a town hall meeting last month at the recreation center on the proposed 2024 Capital Bond Program so neighbors could provide input. Why […]
Planned Dallas-Fort Worth high-speed train will cut through West Dallas neighborhood
As NCTCOG moves forward with its Dallas to Fort Worth high-speed rail project, West Dallas neighbors have questions about potential neighborhood impact.
La Bajada residents seek legal help after City of Dallas decision eclipses zoning ordinance
La Bajada Neighborhood Community Association and neighbors are trying to appeal the quasi-judicial board's decision at the county or district court level, and have until Monday, Aug. 28, according to West Dallas City Councilmember Omar Narvaez’ office.
West Dallas remembers Isabel “Chavela” Lozada Tavera
Chavela, a lifelong resident of West Dallas, left a lasting legacy of selfless service to her neighborhood.
Meet our new principals: Pinkston’s Tameca Ward and West Dallas Middle School’s Laura Guzman
Dr. L.G. Pinkston High School and West Dallas Middle School welcome new principals, Tameca Ward and Laura Guzman. Dallas Free Press sat down for conversations with Ward and Guzman to learn more about their vision for the 2023-24 school year.
Civic Explainer: What is a ‘Neighborhood Stabilization Overlay,’ or NSO?
NSO is a Neighborhood Stabilization Overlay, which is a type of zoning district adopted by the City of Dallas in 2005. NSOs can regulate things like how much yard space is allowed on all sides of the home, where the garage is located and whether or not it is attached to the home, as well as the height of homes.
City of Dallas fails to protect character of La Bajada neighborhood
La Bajada residents have expressed frustration that the height and size of several new homes in their neighborhood are incompatible, but the La Bajada NSO is not being honored by the city and outside developers.
Demand for protesting property values goes up as families fight to stay in their homes
Property tax consultant Toby Toler worked with more than 100 people over DCAD’s four-week protest period in April and May. He feels like the majority of the people he helped in Southern Dallas were able to successfully challenge their property values and lower their taxes.
Dallas ISD parents unclear on why clear backpacks are needed for pre-K and elementary students
Dallas ISD is requiring all students, including preschoolers as young as 3-year-olds, to carry a clear backpack as part of the district’s “ongoing effort to ensure safer schools.”
West Dallas’ oldest Black-owned grocery store thrives while others fizzle out in food desert
Gipson Grocery store converted into a one-stop shop with many services aimed to strengthen its community members.
What’s next for GAF: West Dallas 1 picks up where public meetings left off
While GAF has canceled public meetings for the time being, West Dallas 1 is hosting its own public meetings with the goal of informing neighbors and amplifying more residents’ voices.
Did Dallas ISD’s sale of the segregated Fred Douglass School seal Gilbert-Emory’s fate?
It wasn’t until Emmanuel Glover and Sarah Ashitey moved into Gilbert-emory that they learned their new house was in a historical African-American settlement.
Gilbert-Emory neighbors watch their historically Black community vanish, one half-million-dollar townhome at a time
The rapid sweep of gentrification has already wiped away many old homes in the once redlined Gilbert-Emory community.
Rosa Lopez street toppers commemorate her affordable housing legacy in Los Altos
West Dallas residents from Los Altos and community leaders gathered to honor the life and legacy of the late Rosa Lopez — her work in the community to improve the quality of living and empower neighbors.
Fentanyl awareness: Pinkston High School responds to parent concerns after drug scare
Dallas ISD’s Marlene Yepez-Porras and Pinkston parent instructor Anthony McGee told parents the school’s staff is working with the DISD to approve training for teachers and staff on fentanyl awareness. The staff emphasized that parents must also help by speaking with children about the dangers of fentanyl and how to keep an eye out for signs of drug use outside of school.
West Dallas strong: West Dallas 1 website breaks new ground and hopes to inspire new leadership
“We're setting the agenda on much of what's going on in West Dallas,” Raul Reyes Jr. says. However, his six-year term is coming to an end, and he and Jeffrey Howard don’t want to lose West Dallas 1’s momentum. As they prepare to pass the torch to the next generation, they are hoping the website will build support and awareness of West Dallas 1’s continuing impact.
West Dallas homeowners couldn’t access City funds for home repairs, so the City eliminated the barrier
The Dallas City Council voted last week to forgo the home insurance requirement for homeowners applying to the West Dallas Targeted Rehab Program, a City of Dallas neighborhood revitalization effort designed to provide financial assistance for home repairs. The city had rejected nearly half of program applicants, most of whom lacked home insurance.
A major West Dallas polluter is leaving — but not fast enough for neighbors
Neighbors don’t understand why GAF needs so long to leave and question who will truly benefit from a land upgrade. Once again, they have to defend their vision for their neighborhood.
The City created a home repair program for West Dallas residents, but they’re struggling to qualify
So far, the program has committed roughly $800,000 for about 90 eligible applicants, according to Thor Erickson, area redevelopment manager with the City’s department of housing and neighborhood revitalization. He says the goal was to complete 200 home repair projects and spend the $2 million within an 18-month period. The city didn’t meet its goal, Jackson says, because applicants are finding the city’s requirements to be too strenuous. In order to qualify for the program, West Dallas residents have to meet a laundry list of demands: make less than $77,900, live in the home as their primary residence, have home insurance, have a clear title and be current on their property taxes and mortgage payments.
West Dallas community members make history with a street topper in honor of late Rev. Dr. Walter Bookman
The Rev. Dr. Walter Bookman was a pastor at The New Morning Star Baptist Church in West Dallas for more than 40 years until his death in 1995. Now, thanks to efforts by members of Bookman’s congregation, a street topper across from the church will bear his name. Bookman was known for his humanity and […]
Dallas Free Press seeks a journalism pathway coordinator to work with high school students
Dallas Free Press is looking for a journalism pathway coordinator to work with students in South Dallas and West Dallas on writing, storytelling, civic engagement, media literacy and critical thinking skills that would benefit them no matter what career they choose.
Clifford Sherman pays it forward with computers for L.G. Pinkston High School seniors
West Dallas’ Ledbetter school on Gentry Drive was where Clifford Sherman began his education as a first-grader, and it’s where he gave this interview — though the school is now Voice of Hope Ministries’ center. He moved from one segregated school to another in third grade, and finished his education at L.G. Pinkston High School […]
A soccer field in the community, but not for the community
The soccer field sits in the middle of the Los Altos neighborhood’s Benito Juarez Parque de Heroes. Since 2012, when the City of Dallas built a fence around the field, it has gone mostly unused, except for the weekends when teams pay the city as much as $61 an hour to use the field for practice or games.
‘I’ve never seen any dirt go up 1400% in five years’
The land value of dozens of 7,000-square-foot parcels in Los Altos — just north of Singleton, up and down Borger, Crossman and Winnetka — all jumped from $65,000 to $168,000 this year. Several efforts are being made to educate West Dallas neighbors on how to protest property tax appraisals before the May 16 deadline.
Preguntas y respuestas: Qué saber sobre el pasado y el futuro ambiental de West Dallas
Conceptos clave en la lucha de West Dallas por librarse de los contaminadores, incluida la importancia de la zonificación, los permisos y la acción cívica.
What to know about West Dallas’ environmental past and future
Key concepts in West Dallas' fight to get rid of polluters, including the significance of zoning, permits, and civic action.
How West Dallas is leaving a history of environmental racism in the dust
Dallas is considering a new approach to permitting concrete batch plants, thanks to a long history of advocacy coming from West Dallas.
Q&A with Esther Villarreal
Esther Villarreal, appointee to Dallas' environmental commission and West Dallas resident, reflects on her advocacy and shares her hopes for the health of her community.
Dallas Free Press is hiring a development manager
Dallas Free Press is seeking an adept communicator who is highly organized to build strong relationships with potential major donors, funders and corporate sponsors.
Now open: West Dallas STEM school
This year, though seventh- and eighth-graders are at L.G. Pinkston High School's campus, they’re in a separate school with a unique learning approach — the new West Dallas STEM school.
Local newsrooms, universities and nonprofits join forces to focus on affordable housing in Dallas
The key partners on the project say affordable housing is a topic none of them has been able to consistently address on their own — but it’s a vital, systemic issue demanding greater response.
Changes are coming to Hattie Rankin Moore Park in Los Altos. The City wants West Dallas’ input.
After listening to residents in early 2020, the City of Dallas planned to add colorful murals, artificial turf, family grills, playground equipment and more athletic fields to the park in the Los Altos neighborhood, located just south of Anita Martinez Recreation Center and Lorenzo de Zavala Elementary School.
Dallas ISD rolls out free at-home internet access for students
Dallas ISD invested in 40,000 hotspots last school year for families without reliable internet at home, but this year DISD plans to spend $18 million on at-home wired connections for its students.
Los Gallos: A gym from West Dallas where boxing teaches life lessons
The Los Gallos Boxing Club wants to teach their students that with discipline and hard work, any obstacle that life brings can be overcome.
How West Dallas residents are challenging the industries polluting their neighborhood
West Dallas residents have set the stage to challenge GAF’s federal permit renewal and reimagine the Singleton corridor without smog, smells and health anxieties. GAF is North America’s leading roofing manufacturer and one of West Dallas’ leading sources of air pollution. After months of petitions, meetings and teamwork among neighborhoods and nonprofits, West Dallas residents […]
Dallas Free Press launches a journalism pathway, seeks a coordinator
Dallas Free Press has launched a journalism pathway from Dallas high schools to Dallas newsrooms, starting with efforts to educate high school students. We are looking for a part-time journalism pathway coordinator to work with students in South Dallas and West Dallas.
Circuit’s ride-share service gives West Dallas a new option for travel
Circuit, a free ride-share service, is giving West Dallas neighbors an environmentally and financially friendly way to travel short distances.
Summer activities in West Dallas
What can children and teens do in West Dallas this summer? Dallas Free Press created a round-up of summer camps and activities.
‘Why not Pinkston?’
For a school that recently faced academic elimination, the success of reaching the final four in the state, being awarded seven football scholarships in 2021, and having multiple teams in district playoffs gives hope that the best is yet to come.
Goal of neighborhood-led West Dallas plan is ‘teeth,’ accountability
A neighborhood-led plan "will be used to shape the future of West Dallas for the next 10 to 20 years,” and act to "slow down the fast-paced gentrification that is running a risk of literally changing the thread of our community and wiping away the history," says James Armstrong III.
Pollution history tied to plan for West Dallas’ future
From putting pressure on lead smelters in the 1980s to ongoing pushback against roofing manufacturer GAF, environmental justice issues in West Dallas have been community issues.
Three major updates contribute to Trinity River park
Trinity Park Conservancy leaders say they want to make the park a welcoming place for West Dallas and other communities along the riverbanks.
Mercy Street responds to winter storm suffering in West Dallas
In the middle of February was a horrendous week blanketed in white snow and suffering. West Dallas residents lost power, water and hope.
After the storm: Resources for West Dallas neighbors
Dallas Free Press has compiled a list of resources for West Dallas residents in the aftermath of February's winter storm.
A poisoned West Dallas speaks out against air pollution
GAF is North America’s leading roofing manufacturer, and its federal permit is up for renewal. West Dallas neighbors are seizing the opportunity to fight against GAF’s presence in their neighborhood.
Dallas: We need your input on news consumption and local media coverage
This Dallas Free Press survey will inform our community journalism efforts in South Dallas and West Dallas, and help our launching-soon local media collaborative determine its focus topic.
Does the fate of West Dallas rest on a 400-foot tower next to La Bajada?
On Thursday, the City Plan Commission will consider West Dallas Investments’ request to allow a 400-foot tower on the north side of Singleton, adjacent to La Bajada, with the hope of attracting a Fortune 500 company like Amazon, Google, AT&T or Toyota.
West Dallas neighbors work to make Bernal Drive safe
West Dallas residents have been begging for safer streets, and after decades of no response, the voices of neighbors living near Bernal Drive finally are being heard.
