City Secretary's Office

Ona Marie Hendricks, Anti-Sagging Crusader, Is Running for Dallas City Council

Ona Marie Hendricks' theory on urban sartorial choice is more developed than most. "There are two types of saggers," she explained to Fox 4's Steve Eagar a few months ago. "There is the ridiculous, nasty, disrespectful type where, like, everything is showing up under, where you can see everything, ... More >>

Before a Farmers Market Fight, Some Old Photos of What They're Fighting Over

The Dallas Farmers Market Friends will be at tonight's Texas Department of Housing and Community Affairs meeting, to speak out against a plan to open transitional housing for homeless people near the market. In their pleas to save the place, board members have made many references to the history o ... More >>

City Council Will Not Trim Public Speakers' Time at the Mic From Three Minutes to One

Acting City Secretary Rosa Rios​Yesterday we noted that the city council would be briefed today on two minor changes to rules governing public speakers, chief among them a proposal from Acting City Secretary Rosa Rios's office that trims speakers' three minutes at the mic to a mere 60 seconds if t ... More >>

Plan on Speaking Out in Front of Dallas City Council? There May Be Some Changes Coming.

​A couple of weeks back we noted that some Dallas Independent School District trustees would love to do away with public speakers at meetings, because, in the words of board president Lew Blackburn, "Occasionally we have people come speak to the board, and it's more of a three-minute bullying, if ... More >>

City Slowed in Attempt to Shutter Afterlife, Where DPD Says Drugs "Knowingly" Sold

Photo by Ray and Peter LekInside Afterlife in the summer of 2010​Speaking of DPD Chief Brown ...On October 4, the Dallas Police Department announced that it had arrested 19-year-old Skyler Brandt for selling the ecstasy that led to the August overdose of a 19-year-old from Grandview named Matthew ... More >>

It's No Conspiracy as Dallas's Official Archivist, John Slate, Reprises His Slacker Role

John Slate in Richard Linklater's original Slacker, released in 1991, and 20 years later​Most Friends of Unfair Park know John Slate as Dallas's Official City Archivist working out of the City Secretary's Office in City Hall. The man's a treasure. But, of course, he's a movie star too, by which I ... More >>

Council Opts Not to Study Trinity Whitewater Feature. Now, It's a Do-It-Yourself Project.

Conceptual rendering, meet The Real Thing​For now, at least, you can forget about the city spending an additional five figures to study the Dallas Wave, which Schutze calls in this week's paper version of Unfair Park "the unbelievably screwed-up man-made kayaking rapids" in the Trinity River. No d ... More >>

Too Early For a Drink? Updates From Case Trying to Unwet Dallas After Beer, Wine Vote.

​As you should be well aware by now, attorneys Andy Siegel and Leland de la Garza are trying to overturn the November 2010 referendum that made it legal to sell beer and wine citywide. That case is scheduled to go to trial next month. All that remains is a single claim: The attorneys insist then-C ... More >>

Why No Live Feed From Dallas City Hall?

​Leslie just got back from the first meeting of the city's gas drilling task force; her wrap-up's due shortly. But I tried tuning in earlier, thinking surely the city would live-stream this much-ballyhooed occasion. Instead I got to see Mike Rawlings conduct his first meeting as mayor (from June 2 ... More >>

The Day Before Election, Kunkle Makes a Last-Minute Appeal to a Very Specific Audience

​Much has been made about how former Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle has raised and spent pennies on the dollar compared to Multi-Millions Mike Rawlings, and most recent docs filed with the City Secretary's Office show that in the days leading up tomorrow's run-off election, Kunkle has spent just ... More >>

He Wanted to Move the Rangers to Dallas and Provide Free Wi-Fi Downtown. Now Council Candidate Chad Lasseter's Out of the Race.

Chad Lasseter​If you read our story about the ballot drawing Friday morning for mayoral and city council candidates, you might have noticed the omission of a certain someone from the District 14 race. Chad Lasseter -- the guy who slammed Angela Hunt for bailing on Tom Leppert's adios and aimed ... More >>

Well, That Was Quick: Kunkle's "For Mayor" Website Is Already Up. So Too Is Ron Natinsky's.

​Only yesterday, former Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle filed his campaign treasurer papers with the City Secretary's Office and made it all official-like: He's running for Dallas mayor. His website launched this morning -- so too the requisite Facebook and Flickr pages and Twitter account. And I ... More >>

It's Official: Kunkle's Running for Dallas Mayor

Patrick MichelsFormer Dallas Mayor Laura Miller's husband Steve Wolens is Kunkle's campaign treasurer.​Last week, former Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle said he was more than likely going to run for Dallas mayor -- as in, chances are "greater that I will run than I won't run." He didn't know when ... More >>

Seems Like Old Times, as Pete Schenkel Signs On as Natinsky's Mayoral Campaign Treasurer

​I've already seen council member Ron Natinsky's for-mayor website -- though, at the moment, it's little more than an under-construction placeholder. But says here that on Thursday, he filed with the City Secretary's Office his official paperwork naming his campaign finance treasurer, which makes ... More >>

Alas, There Were No "I Voted" Stickers

​Don't let the empty doorway at right fool you -- Leonides Gonzalez Cigarroa M.D. Elementary, home of the Fightin' One-One-One-Seven, was full of voters early this a.m. 'Round 8 all the booths were occupied, and a short line was forming behind me; hence the brief wait till space cleared. I was No. ... More >>

Things Learned From City Hall Lobbyist Registration Forms, One in a Series

Harry Wilonsky​Sam's already gone though Willis Johnson's lobbyist registrations forms, which were due to the city at the end of last week. But there's still plenty of ground to cover, as evidenced by the five pages' worth of revelations stashed away on the City Secretary's Office's Web site. So, ... More >>

The City Recently Got a Few Hundred Old Photos of Dallas Farmers Market. Here's One.

Dallas Municipal Archives, City Secretary's Office​When I was on the phone with city archivist John Slate yesterday, talking about his Historic Dallas Parks book, I asked him about something else he'd mentioned in May -- the city's recent acquisition of "several hundred vintage images of the Dalla ... More >>

Quite the Two-Fer: A Book on Dallas's Historic Parks And a Fund-Raiser for City's Archives

Photos Courtesy Dallas Municipal Archives, City Secretary's OfficeFrom John Slate: "Lake Cliff Park's pool in 1947. The pool was shut down in 1959."​As I mentioned in January -- upon the publication of Historic Dallas Hotels and its accompanying postcard set and Park and Rec historian Sally Rodrig ... More >>

Progress Dallas Says It Has More Than Enough Signatures to Force Wet-Dry Vote

Flickr user: lopolis​Right about now Progress Dallas's peoples are at Dallas City Hall dropping off the petitions it says will most definitely trigger a local option election allowing Dallas residents the opportunity to vote for drenching the dry parts of town in beer and wine. Progress Dallas say ... More >>

Public Safety Committee Shuns Preservationists, Approves New Historic Demolition Ordinance

Sam MertenYup, Dwaine. This briefing was way over the collective heads of your committee.​Baffled and outraged preservationists quietly vacated Monday afternoon's Public Safety Committee meeting after the city council committee voted unanimously to adopt a new historic building demolition ordi ... More >>

So, If You're Lobbying Dallas City Hall, You Need to Report To, Um, Everyone?

​The city finally came up with that list of city officials with whom lobbyists must report contacts under the new lobby reform ordinance that goes into effect a week from now. The lobbyists had been bitching behind the scenes because the city was taking months to come up with the list. Now that we ... More >>

City Hall Wants Lobbyists to Report All Meetings. To Whom? Dunno. Stop Asking.

​We always knew you can't beat City Hall. Now it looks like you can't even meet City Hall. As of April 1, people or institutions deemed to be lobbyists at City Hall will be required to go online and report every meeting or contact they have with certain city officials. My sources tell me firms tha ... More >>

UNT Libraries Sorts Through City's Official John F. Kennedy Archives, Then Reposts

University of North Texas Libraries/Dallas Municipal ArchivesIf you ever wondered what it looked like during a night in Jack Ruby's Carousel Club, wonder no longer.​Dallas's official John F. Kennedy Collection has always been on the city's Web site -- a little hidden on the City Secretary's Offic ... More >>

Leppert Calls for Another Ethics Reform Briefing, Doesn't Want This "Petering Out"

​Chris Heinbaugh, Mayor Tom Leppert's chief of staff, tells Unfair Park this morning that the mayor still hopes to get those ethics reforms passed at Wednesday's regular city council meeting. (Good luck with all that.) We should have a better idea of what they actually look like later this evening ... More >>

Once Again, the Mayor Had the City Attorney Rewrite Rules for Council, Public Speakers

Natalie Dee​I see Rudy's already posted his item about tomorrow's vote on Dallas City Council rules changes, which showed up earlier this week on the addendum for tomorrow's meeting. (It's Item No. 2.) But what he doesn't get into is why the council will vote on reducing and, in some cases, elimin ... More >>

Ron Price Is Very, Very Proud of Academic Accomplishments in South Dallas

Mark GrahamRon PriceDallas school board trustee Ron Price made it official at 3:44 p.m. on January 30, when he turned into the City Secretary's Office paperwork announcing that he's running for Carolyn Davis's District 7 seat on the Dallas City Council. (Ex-City Manager Richard Knight Jr., now in th ... More >>

Laura Miller to Return to City Hall

Laura Miller in a scene from Fighting Goliath: Texas Coal WarsWell, look, perhaps that headline's a little misleading -- I have no idea whether she'll actually show up on February 6, when the council chambers hosts the Texas Big City Mayors Meeting. (I did call; got voice mail.) But according to the ... More >>

Former Mayoral Candidate Jennifer Gale, Dead at 44, Had Big Plans for '09

As you've no doubt heard, Jennifer Gale -- who ran for mayor of Dallas only last year -- was found dead today in Austin, where Gale was yet again planning on running for mayor of that city. The 44-year-old was discovered early this morning outside the First English Lutheran Church on Whitis Avenue, ... More >>

Come Thursday, We'll Know Who's Gonna Operate Our Hotel

This morning, the City Secretary's Office posted the agenda to a Special Called Economic Development Committee for Thursday morning. At the top of the to-do list: Convention Center Hotel Operator Selection. In other words, we'll know whether the city's chosen to go with Omni Hotels or if it pref ... More >>

Hurrying the Hotel

City Hall plows ahead with convention center hotel despite petitions

It's Déjà Vu All Over Again

Economic Development Committe to Hold Special Meeting Friday. You're So Invited.

How the Trinity-Soaked Sausage Was Made

Mayor Tom's All For A Tough Code of Ethics. For Everyone Else.

Dallas City Council in Paradise

So, Looks Like We're About to Get to Vote on that Trinity Thing Again...

Trammell's Little Girl Goes Both Ways

A Blog Item Sure to Drive Sharon Boyd Crazy

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