Dallas City Hall. A reader wants the truth about the I. M. Pei building.
File photo/Dallas Morning News
Dallas City Hall
When will Dallas city officials listen to citizens’ concerns, not the loud voices of the powerful, the wealthy and developers with personal agendas? City Hall was paid for decades ago. After years of bond debt and a ballooning annual budget due to city leaders’ inability to manage finances (real estate errors, deferred maintenance, pension fund issues, etc.), those leaders say City Hall must go.
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The city manager and those with personal agendas are determined to sacrifice City Hall to cover up years of fiduciary ineptitude. Several individuals want to amplify their profits with glitzy development opportunities adjacent to the multi-billion-dollar new convention center.
Nothing in the articles and advertisements they pay for mentions the money it will cost the taxpayers, you and me, for reconfiguring/customizing office space, long-term rental fees, security and other costs over time.
I believe those costs will far exceed the repair cost independent experts identified. The experts propose a 10-year plan to address all necessary upgrades and repairs.
Taxpayers were told the new convention center would revitalize downtown. Now, it is a sports arena. Tell the truth! Will reason and taxpayer concerns ever be heard?
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Cookie S. Peadon, Dallas
Where was the mayor?
So Mike Rawlings, former mayor of Dallas, is the point man for tearing down the I.M. Pei City Hall to replace it with a sports complex. Where was the mayor when money was needed for maintenance to this iconic structure? Just asking.
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Judy Culbertson, Dallas
He’d like progress
Rawlings is spot on regarding the future of City Hall. Sports are important to the city core not just because a lot of folks like rooting for the Dallas Mavericks and Dallas Stars, but also, and maybe more importantly, the absolutely amazing development that follows.
Just look at the area around the American Airlines Center. That area is still being developed to this day, and I personally would love to see downtown get completely transformed.
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Regarding City Hall itself, I don’t understand the complaints. The building and the area around it are not true gathering areas like the opposing voices shout. It’s a mostly ignored area of downtown unless you fancy a good protest or an occasional marathon.
As a downtown resident who frequently walks and runs past City Hall, I rarely see a soul other than a few homeless folks sleeping. Progress is what I’m hoping for.
Chad Bronson, Downtown Dallas
An excellent letter
Re: “A profound disconnect,” by Steve Ballard, May 9 Letters.
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I can’t recall a more well-composed and well-thought-out letter than Ballard’s. He just nailed it. Please consider inviting him to join your editorial staff, as Dallas Morning News readers could use more progressive viewpoints, especially those so carefully developed and worded.
In my book, he’s in the same league as Roger Rosenblatt, in that he cuts right to the heart of the topic at hand, leaving readers with many new thoughts to consider and some that maybe they hadn’t considered before. Just excellent!
A story about statistics
To Mr. Ballard, I’m reminded of an example our statistics teacher gave when I was in college. She told us that a study was done that showed in crime-filled neighborhoods, there were twice as many churches as in other areas. Therefore, churches caused crimes. She asked, “Is that right?” The answer was no. Turns out that churches made more outreach in the crime-ridden areas in hopes of helping.
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When there’s a crowd of people looking at the discounted meats in the grocery store and few look at the fresh meat, there’s a problem. When people watch gas prices each day and fill up when they go down, even if they only need half a tank, there’s a problem.
When people are moving in with family or friends because they can’t afford rent, there’s a problem.
Statistics don’t lie. People do.
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Setting an example
Ken Paxton wants school districts across the state to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms to ensure that Texas kids are able to learn from them daily. I propose that educators use Paxton and President Donald Trump as examples when teaching children the Seventh Commandment: “Thou shall not commit adultery.” Preferably, daily.
Diplomatic advice
When I worked in the Middle East, my scope included potential investments in Russia and China. They both had similar merit so my advice to the team was to choose which country offered the best opportunity to engage with the government in a consistent and constructive manner because every deal is solely dependent on how a single person feels when they wake up in the morning. My how far we’ve fallen.
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Voting Rights Act
The recent decisions by the U.S Supreme Court and the Supreme Court of Virginia have tag-teamed the Voting Rights Act to permit the southern states free rein to disenfranchise millions of voters.
In rapid fire succession, Louisiana and Florida have enacted emergency sessions in their state legislatures to create congressional districts whose purpose is clearly intended to marginalize or eliminate voting districts with large minorities.
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The Voting Rights Act was created to confront and change the Jim Crow policies throughout the south which restricted and denied voting rights for Black citizens.
In response to the intransigence of southern governors and legislators, President Lyndon Johnson signed the act to put a stop to the ongoing practice of denying minority voters their constitutional right to have representation.
In a cynical and disingenuous series of decisions, the Chief Justice John Roberts’ court has emboldened the return to the Jim Crow policies of the past while the Virginia Supreme Court has used technical interpretations of the Virginia Constitution to endorse and amplify the Roberts’ court ruling.
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The decisions undermine the rights of all voters for representation.
Robert W. Blackford, Dallas/Lochwood