CITY & COUNTY
Top city & county stories to watch in 2023
2023 ANNUAL COMMUNITY GUIDE
Candidates seek election to Dallas City Council DALLAS Out of the 15 seats on the City Council dais, 13 members are up for re-election May 6, and two are exiting after nishing their eight-year term limit. Up for re-election are District 9 incumbent Paula Blackmon, whose district includes Lakewood and parts of Lake Highlands, and District re-election paperwork on Jan. 18. Blackmon rst took o ce in 2019. Ridley began serving at City Hall in 2021. Reaching their term limits are District 3 Council Member Casey Thomas and District 10 Council Member Adam McGough, whose district includes much of Lake Highlands. McGough was rst elected to o ce in 2015. director, have announced plans to run for District 10. McGough has endorsed Stewart. Council members are elected to two-year terms, while the mayor, who holds Place 15 on the dais, is elected to a four-year term. Mayor Eric Johnson has also announced intentions to seek re-election. Early voting begins April 24 and run through May 2 for the rst council election using new district maps approved earlier this year. Brian Hasenbauer, former Dallas Community Development commis- sioner, and Kathy Stewart, former Uptown Dallas Inc. executive BY KEVIN CUMMINGS
City working to create additional mobility options with bike plan
OTHER STORIES TO FOLLOW IN 2023
ALL DALLAS CITY COUNCIL SEATS UP FOR ELECTION
Dallas Water Utilities warns about fraudulent signage Dallas Water Utilities o cials are advising customers about door hangers being hung across the city titled “Water Update.” City o cials said in a press release that customers should be advised that this door hanger is not from Dallas Water Utilities nor the city of Dallas. The door hanger requests that customers call a number not associated with Dallas Water Utilities. Customers should remain vigilant about unsolicited visitors requesting access to their home, or seeking personal or nancial information, according to city o cials. Residents should also request the visitor show an identi cation badge and call 911 on impersonators. Dallas City Council meets on Jan. 25 and Feb. 8 at 9 a.m. at 1500 Marilla St., Dallas. www.dallascityhall.com Dallas County Commissioners Court meets Jan. 24 and Feb. 7 at 9 a.m. in the Allen Clemson Courtroom of the Dallas County Administration Building, 411 Elm St., Dallas. www.dallascounty.org MEETINGS WE COVER
Dallas City Council seats have eight- year term limits. The mayor can serve two four-year terms. Council members can serve four two-year terms.
15 total seats
The city of Dallas is looking to update its bike plan, which was rst adopted in 2011. (Kevin Cummings/Community Impact)
13 seeking re-election
2 reached term limit
BY KEVIN CUMMINGS
we’re doing this update is to not only capture how the city of Dallas has changed since 2011 … but also to cap- ture the really signi cant change in the technical and professional world of bicycle facilities,” Scott said. According to a map on the city’s bike plan webpage, proposed new facilities in the Lakewood area include developing bicycle boule- vards—streets that use tra c-calming measures, such as speed bumps and tra c diverters—along Fisher Road from Lawther Drive to Rockaway Drive and along Sondra Drive from Sperry Street to Abrams Road. Proposed projects in Lake Highlands also include bicycle boulevards in addition to a proposed visually
separated lane along Whitehurst Drive and Audelia Road from Walnut Hill Lane to Abrams Road, and a pro- posed biking trail along Walnut Street from Dallas’ city limit to Greenville Avenue. Other biking facility types pro- posed across the city include new shared-tra c routes and physically separated bikeways. Scott said city sta hope to bring its nalized draft of the update to City Council by April or May, allowing for some of the proposed projects to be included in the next bond election. She added that implementation will prioritize “quick win,” low-cost projects and those connecting to other existing forms of transit.
Early voting: April 24-May 2
DALLAS City sta is working to update its plan for what bike mobility will look like in the future with the goal of increasing accessibility to biking infrastructure and creating a citywide biking network. After gathering resident feedback, city sta is putting together the new draft of its bike plan, which it hopes to unveil in March. So far, Jessica Scott, bicycle manager with Dallas’ Transportation Department, said much of the input received includes demand for increased maintenance of existing bike facilities in addition to requests for more protected and separated facilities. “One of the really big reasons that
14 incumbent Paul Ridley, whose district includes parts of East Dallas. Both have made announcements that they intend to seek re-election. Candidates o cially began ling Mayor wants to reimagine unused city land as parks
Election day: May 6
SOURCE: CITY OF DALLAS COMMUNITY IMPACT
Mayor Eric Johnson said city leaders should focus on public safety, potholes and parks. Now, a new e ort has the potential to add more park space in the Lake Highland and Lakewood areas as well as through- out the city. On Nov. 28, Johnson sent a memo to City Manager T.C. Broadnax calling for an inventory of unused, vacant
and underused city-owned land that could eventually be “transformed” into new public spaces. “Through land already owned by the city of Dallas, we have opportu- nities to create new green spaces and improve neighborhoods across our city,” Johnson wrote in the memo. The memo stated the inven- tory should include a map with
information, such as the zoning of the land, any existing plans for it and the land’s market value. Ultimately, the e ort will look to determine whether the properties could be converted into parks, playgrounds or sport courts. Not putting a timeline on the e ort, Johnson also said the city could look at using the identi ed land for a ordable housing.
BY KEVIN CUMMINGS
DALLAS As the city looks toward a $1 billion bond package in 2024,
DALLAS 9500 N Central Expressway (214) 369-2800
PRESTON CENTER 8123 Preston Road (214) 361-6697
MARSH LANE 9972 Marsh Lane (214) 353-2701
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