No lake illness encountered<\/p>\n
Re: \u201cDallas Rower Makes Case for Clean Lakes \u2014 Because nasty bacteria makes people sick, Congress must maintain funding for wastewater infrastructure,\u201d by Jordan Stock, Monday Opinion<\/a>.<\/p>\n As the parent of two daughters who rowed at Bachman Lake, I read Stock\u2019s column with interest. Like Stock, my daughters loved the sport and also gained opportunities at elite colleges that actively recruit rowers.<\/p>\n I cannot speak to the precise water quality at Bachman, but despite being splashed and immersed in the water during rowing, neither of my daughters ever became ill.<\/p>\n Opinion<\/p>\n White Rock Lake, where I have sailed for 25 years, has surprisingly fresh, clean water. It is the crown jewel of Dallas nature and its vast watershed ensures that water is constantly refreshed after rains. In all my years on the lake, I have never known anyone to fall ill from contact with its waters.<\/p>\n Swimming was prohibited at White Rock not because of water quality, but because it was Dallas\u2019 official drinking water source from the 1910s to the 1930s. And then it was used as a temporary water source during droughts. <\/p>\n The real challenges today are silt and runoff from upstream development, which require dredging. This is a local issue \u2014 Texas law prevents Dallas from holding upstream cities financially responsible, so cooperation, not legislation, is the solution.<\/p>\n White Rock Lake has a bright future as an oasis for all Dallasites who treasure the chance to row, sail and relax in its peaceful environment, especially since council member Paula Blackmon has obtained $20 million for its dredging. That is a good start toward the future.<\/p>\n Jeff Snoyer, Dallas<\/p>\n President, Corinthian Sailing Club Educational Foundation<\/p>\n Dallas does it again<\/p>\n Re: \u201cAn Oops in Hiring Dallas Watchdog \u2014 City Charter requires an attorney to lead the inspector general office,” Wednesday editoria<\/a>l.<\/p>\n The Dallas City Council\u2019s recent decision to hire an inspector general who does not meet the charter\u2019s qualification is deeply troubling, yet not surprising. Our elected leaders, many of whom are attorneys themselves, either overlooked the plain language of the charter requiring this position to be held by an attorney or willfully chose to ignore it. Neither explanation is acceptable.<\/p>\n The irony is glaring. The Office of Inspector General was created to bring accountability and transparency to city government. Yet Timothy Menke\u2019s hiring and the fallout from placing an unqualified person in this critical role have been handled almost entirely behind closed doors in executive session. What is supposed to be the city\u2019s mechanism for shining light on misconduct has instead begun in darkness.<\/p>\n Equally concerning, this is not an isolated incident. The council has already disregarded the charter by allowing the City Plan Commission chair to serve years past his eight-year term limit. Now, with this latest hire, the trend of sidestepping voter-approved rules grows clearer.<\/p>\n Dallas deserves a Council that respects the rule of law and the ethical standards it was elected to uphold. When will City Hall start taking accountability seriously?<\/p>\n Natalie LeVeck, Dallas<\/p>\n Democracy vs. wealth<\/p>\n On our trip to Washington, D.C., in October last year, my wife and I visited the Smithsonian. I took a picture of the following words of Associate Supreme Court Justice Louis Brandeis, as even then I feared they would not survive.<\/p>\n Justice Brandeis said, \u201cWe can either have democracy in this country or we can have great wealth concentrated in the hands of the few, but we can\u2019t have both.\u201d<\/p>\n I am watching with great interest to see if his words will be preserved.<\/p>\n Chris McGowan, Coppell<\/p>\n More on gerrymander bill <\/p>\n