Dallas has a serious case of Bieber Fever, y'all.
In addition to the fact that we can expect a nude statue of Bieber and his Grand Prairie-raised girlfriend, Selena Gomez, to be housed inside of the city limits at the end of the month, today comes the news that the City of Forney, located just about a half an hour's drive east of Dallas, will be naming one of its streets after the teen superstar.
Really.
Fortunately (or unfortunately, depending on whether you're a teenage girl), the street -- formerly Main Street and now, no joke, Justin Bieber Way -- is only a temporary change, just for today. It was picked by 11-year-old Caroline Gonzalez, who won a competition for children aged 8 to 13 interested in city government to become the city's mayor for the day.
Turns out, changing the name of Main Street to Justin Bieber way wasn't her only order of business either.
Unfortunately, admits city manager Brian Brooks, he had to turn down her other platform -- free ice cream for everyone who lives in Forney -- because the move was, as he puts it, "cost-prohibitive."
Still, street-name change has made Forney something of a media darling for the day. Brooks says he's been fielding calls from inquiring reporters all day long and that, at one point, police had to set up a barricade at the intersection of Main Street Justin Bieber Way and Elm Street, so that the 15 or so reporters and photographers checking out the new $20 sign announcing the street wouldn't be run over by passing cars. Brooks also notes that he was just informed that someone had created a location for Justin Bieber Way on Foursquare.
"I've never seen a media firestorm like this!" an excited, laughing Brooks says, while admitting that he wasn't fully prepared for all the attention his city is receiving today. "This is the first time we've ever done this [competition]. So Caroline set the precedent about what could and couldn't be done."
So the lesson learned for Forney? Says Brooks: "Well, if ever we get caught up in something negative, I'm just going to throw the name Justin Bieber out there."
In the interim, Forney plans on keeping the street sign up through the night and into tomorrow, when Mayor Darren Rozell returns to office -- and, no doubt, a slower day on the job, at least for Brooks, who has seen his city pop up in news stories today from as far-off locations as Peru.
"I can't say I'm a fan," Brooks says. "But, after today's media inquiries, I guess I better go home and listen to the guy."
