Subject: Tennell Atkins

• And How About Them Council Races?

  June 16, 2007

• The Unholy Trinity: Kirk, Miller and Leppert

  August 15, 2007

• Tom Leppert: Predictable and Classy

  September 12, 2007

• Tom Leppert: Same As He Ever Was

  September 14, 2007

• Everyone Knows That Hotel's a "Risk." Which Ain't Stopping Anyone.

  May 14, 2008

• Cotton Bowl No Longer Toilet Bowl

  September 17, 2008

• Mayor's Pro-Hotel Group to Make Its Bow Tomorrow at City Hall

  September 23, 2008

• Mayor Tom and Friends Really Would Like You Stop Asking About That Hotel

  September 24, 2008

• As Far As Some on the Council Are Concerned, We've Already Voted For the Convention Center Hotel

  September 24, 2008

• A Really Long Post About Last Week’s Council Meeting. Worth Reading, Though. Swear.

  October 28, 2008

• Dallas Has a New Friend: South Africa. Also: The Fiscal Year That Was!

  November 5, 2008

• Before Council Votes to Ban Smoking, a Lot of Smoke is Blown at City Hall

  After nearly three hours of discussion, the city council wrapped up yesterday's briefing on the proposed strengthened smoking ordinance seemingly prepared to vote on the item at next week's agenda meeting. Council members appear poised to approve a ban on smoking in bars, pool halls and within 15 feet of public buildings at the December 10 meeting, with council members Jerry Allen and Steve Salazar emerging as potential advocates of expanding the ban to include smoking while driving with a child

  December 4, 2008

• Smoke! Smoke! Smoke That Cigarette! Because, Come April, Well ...

  Sam Merten Chief Ozumba Lnuk-X addresses the council today in opposition to the smoking ordinance. Hey, Adam Woods -- his real moniker -- totally stole our name! After more than three hours of tedious discussion and debate, the council voted today 10-5 to prohibit smoking in bars, pool halls and within 15 feet of public buildings effective April 10, with council members Sheffie Kadane, Steve Salazar, Mitchell Rasansky, Tennell Atkins and Vonciel Hill voting in opposition. But before the vote w

  December 10, 2008

• Why the New Smoking Ordinance Should Have Been Delayed, and Sorting Through the 10 Amendments

  There's a line where government stops and the rights of the people begin, and when Mayor Tom Leppert and nine of his council colleagues voted to strengthen Dallas' smoking ordinance, that line wasn't blurred, they drove right past it as if it didn't even exist. But no matter where you stand on the issue, one thing should have been clear in yesterday's council debate: The council opposition posed an excellent argument to at least delay the vote so the council could hash out some of the finer p

  December 11, 2008

• Dallas's Council Reps Send Very, Very Mixed Signals Over Int'l Inland Port

  I'm working on a new theory of life. I used to think the City of Dallas was obviously the big cheese in the region -- the wheel -- and that all of the little surrounding municipalities were sort of cheese wedges. Maybe I had it wrong. Maybe Dallas has cheese for brains, and all of the communities around us are trying not to laugh out loud at us.Yesterday morning I drove out to Arlington for a special meeting of the Regional Transportation Council, a very boring and little-known regional ent

  December 16, 2008

• A New Year's Resolution for Carolyn Davis: Get Better at Fund-Raising, Math

  Brian Harkin Whilst searching city records, we stumbled upon council member Carolyn Davis's semiannual campaign finance report. She filed the document November 17, which was nearly two months ahead of the January 15 deadline. Since Davis is hardly the model of punctuality when it comes to filing reports and she's the only council member to file early, we thought it was worth a look-see. Why the rush to file? Well, the calculations weren't particularly difficult after her July 29 fund-raiser

  December 30, 2008

• Mayor Tom, Talk Show Host?

  Dunno when this was done, but as evidenced by this just-posted clip it's clear Tom Leppert has a future as an early-Sunday morning community-affairs talk-show host when he's done being mayor. His interview with special guest Tennell Atkins is a little, oh, Chris Farley for my tastes, but it's promising nonetheless. Watch the high-quality version -- and do note the mayor's Colbert-like hand gestures. Right -- it'd be impossible not to.

  January 30, 2009

• Something About Tennell Atkins's Campaign Finance Reports Doesn't Quite Add Up

  Brian Harkin/Sam MertenTennell Atkins says Tennell Atkins & Associates hasn't been operational since he took office as a council member in June 2007, but his campaign finance reports show nearly $9,000 in rent payments for an office bearing that name.With the city council campaign season heating up, we thought it would be worthwhile to take a look-see at some of the campaign finance reports of the incumbents to see how they've been spending their dough. Freshman council member Tennell Atkins eme

  February 10, 2009

• Mayor Tom Leppert Isn't the Only One Who Made False Promises During the Trinity River Toll Road Campaign

  Bill BetzenCouncil members Tennell Atkins and Dwaine Caraway do Mayor Tom's dirty work back in November 2007.In the comments of a blog item regarding council member Tennell Atkins's questionable campaign finance reports, someone using the name "joe" suggested that, along with being a hobbit, my motivation in digging around Atkins's reports was his support of the Trinity Turnpike and convention center hotel. Then he wrote: "cue next the 4 or 5," which I assume he meant to cue the next four or fiv

  February 23, 2009

• When Al Lipscomb's the Voice of Reason About the Convention Center Hotel, We're All Screwed

  Sam MertenLeppert was too focused on the hotel votes to enjoy today's performance by the Dallas Black Dance Theatre.In separate 10-2 votes, the Dallas City Council approved developer and operator agreements with Matthews Southwest and Omni Hotels for the convention center hotel, leaving the $525 million bond issuance as the final vote remaining before the project is officially given the green light. While the city waits to float the bonds until the financial markets settle, the question everyone

  February 18, 2009

• Who's No. 1? Dallas City Council Candidates Pick Ballot Positions.

  Sam MertenPauline Medrano and Sheffie Kadane were two of only three (Vonciel Hill was the other) incumbents who showed up this morning.City Secretary Deborah Watkins and her staff this morning in the Flag Room at City Hall announced the ballot positions for the May 9 city council elections, as Billy MacLeod, Victoria Walton, Tiffinni Young, John Jay Myers and Anita Dade gained an early leg up on the incumbents in their respective district races by nabbing the top spot. Ann Margolin was able to

  March 10, 2009

• Jerry Allen and the Former Dallas City Council ... All-Stars? Sure. Go With That.

  Bill Blayes, Alan Walne and Donna Halstead -- The Ex-Council Members out of costume!Few days back we peeked at Carolyn Davis and Dwaine Caraway's what-updates as served up on Dallas Delivers, the city's riotous no-holds-barred talk show served up on Time Warner Cable Channel 16. Alas, some of us don't have the cables, so the city's been posting throughout the week the entire series on YouTube; I'm totally getting the boxed set for my father for his birthday. There are so many episodes from which

  March 13, 2009

• Food For Thought 4.6.09

  "We're in a recession, hard times. We shouldn't be hurting business. I'm not saying, 'Let's take away this issue.' We're just saying, 'Let's give these businesses some time.'" (Tennell Atkins, member of the Dallas City Council, on an effort to delay the city's smoking ordinance, which bans lighting up in bars and is scheduled to take effect on Friday. Several drinking establishments have reported difficulty securing permits to build outdoor patios. Smoking will be allowed on decks beyond an esta

  April 6, 2009

• Old Red Bird Mall's About to Get a Fresh Look from the Urban Land Institute

  View Larger MapMoments ago, the Dallas City Council approved spending $120,000 in economic development grant money so the Urban Land Institute can "assess redevelopment options" at Southwest Center Mall. As we noted earlier this week, the council's Economic Development Committee took a peek at the proposal, and it was recommended to the full council almost unanimously, with only outgoing council member Mitchell Rasansky voicing his opposition to spending taxpayer money on a privately owned mall

  April 8, 2009

• During Debate, Atkins Explains, Look, He's For Hotel Because He Didn't Want to Waste a Vote

  Sam MertenTennell Atkins and LeVar Thomas debated for an hour last night at Paul Quinn College in South Dallas, as the two candidates in the District 8 city council race offered opposing views regarding the inland port, the convention center hotel and giving more power to Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle. Atkins claimed he's "spent all his time making sure the inland port moves forward," while requiring developer Richard Allen to involve minority contractors in the project. Thomas countered tha

  April 14, 2009

• Lets Talk | What Woodshed? | The Young and the Restless | Getting to NO | Buzz |Buyer Beware

  February 19, 2009

• Buzz: City Council Member Tennell Atkins Needs Help with his Math

  February 12, 2009

• Al Lipscomb's grandson LeVar “LD” Thomas seeks council seat

  January 15, 2009

• Sentimental Journey

  City Hall to voters: Shut the hell up

  October 16, 2008

• Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert Maintains His Lite-Rock Rhetoric

  September 13, 2007

• The Race Race

  In the battle for the District 6 council seat, the dark horse has a white face

  April 19, 2001

• Deadbird

  How vicious racial politics, mismanagement, and dirty dealing turned Dallas' Redbird Airport into a Third-World airfield

  October 12, 2000

• The exterminator

  Black politico Dwaine Caraway sounds a lot like a redneck when it comes to slamming his enemies

  July 27, 2000

• Council Doesn't Want to Raise Taxes, Cut Key Services to Trim Budget. Good Luck With That.

  Sam MertenThe city's budget is $190 million in the hole because of "revenue erosion," according to CFO Dave Cook.The Dallas City Council yesterday afternoon wrapped up a lengthy discussion on how best to tackle the city's $190-million budget deficit by agreeing that a tax increase and making cuts to the police and fire departments are not the answers. Council members opposed several of the proposed cuts by City Manager Mary Suhm and her staff, yet were unable to provide alternative solutions to

  May 21, 2009

• Transportation Committee Minorities Favor Concession Monopoly at Love Field; Booting Ordinance Briefing Delayed

  Brian HarkinVonciel Hill wants concessions at Love Field to remain in the hands of one company, whose CEO is a director for the Citizens Council and contributed to her campaign. The city council's Transportation and Environment Committee yesterday afternoon met for 90 minutes in executive session after Unison Consulting, the city's consultant for Love Field airport, presented a briefing on the benefits of competition for the airport's concessions. Because rent is paid to the city based on a per

  May 27, 2009

• Hunt Uses Low Voting Success to Rally Supporters at Post-Inauguration Lunch

  Sam MertenAfter this morning's city council inauguration, Angela Hunt celebrated her third term with a lunch at the Stoneleigh Hotel, where approximately 100 invited guests watched her open a copy of today's Dallas Morning News. She read from Dave Levinthal's article about the council members' voting habits, and the crowd applauded as Hunt said she's dead last among her colleagues by voting on the winning side just 45.5 percent of the time. Even more applause and a bow from Hunt followed when

  June 22, 2009

• Finance Reports Confirm What You Already Knew: Harlan Crow and Ray Hunt Are Loaded

  Sam MertenWhat recession? As Harlan Crow told us right after the losing the election and more than $5 million: "I'll get over it before I get home."The spending gap between the two convention center hotel campaigns predictably didn't mimic the narrow margin at the polls, as Harlan Crow's $5.2 million anti-hotel effort dwarfed an otherwise impressive haul of more than $1.9 million by three pro-hotel committees. Nearly all of the funding for Crow's campaign came from his company's hotel, the Hilt

  July 17, 2009

• Got Something to Say About the City's Budget? Then Let City Council Hear From You.

  Mary Suhm and Tom Leppert, from yesterday's Dallas Zoo briefing​By no later than tomorrow, we should get our first look at City Manager Mary Suhm's proposed budget for the coming fiscal year -- specifically, what stays and what goes to clear out the $190 million shortfall. (Suhm had told Unfair Park last week she expects to present the budget to the city council today or Friday.) In anticipation of its release, the city today posted to its Web site a schedule of Budget Town Hall Meetings, whic

  August 6, 2009

• Big Fisher: Schutze is Back at the City Hall Trial As the Feds' Informant Takes the Stand

  Sam MertenDon Hill and the missus, Sheila Farrington​Victor Vital, Sheila Farrington Hill's attorney, is cross examining Allen McGill, Darren Reagan's partner in the Black State Employees Association of Texas (BSEAT), which prosecutors have characterized as a fake union and extortion scam. McGill, a defendant in the City Hall corruption case, has pleaded guilty and is cooperating with the prosecutors. All this, incidentally, is a prelude to the testimony of afforable-housing developer and FBI

  August 11, 2009

• See, That Wasn't So Hard: Council Committee Comes Up With Parking Boot Ordinance

  ​After months of discussion and debate and occasionally contentious meetings with parking lot operators and downtown business owners, the members of the city council's Transportation and Environment Committee appeared today more than ready to bring to a close the saga of the parking boot. And so, pending a vote by the full council on August 24, here's the new ordinance boiled down to a single sentence: Operators can only boot patrons if their parking lots provide printed receipts. Simple as th

  August 11, 2009

• Turns Out Jury in City Hall Corruption Trial Isn't the Only Ones Learning About CHDOs

  It's good to know CHDOs are doing some good 'cause the City Hall corruption trial is teaching us that they're naughty.Among the dozens of acronyms we've grown accustomed to hearing throughout the City Hall corruption trial is CHDO -- Community Housing Development Organization -- which is why yesterday afternoon's briefing to the city council's Housing Committee titled "Impact of CHDOs in the City of Dallas" caught our eye. To our disappointment, the trial wasn't discussed, although witness Jer

  August 18, 2009

• Council Members (At Least Those Without Rent Homes) Supportive of Registration Idea. Except Dave Neumann, Who Blasts "Tax."

  ​If the Dallas City Council winds up passing an ordinance requiring rent-house owners to register with the city -- a proposal we mentioned Sunday and just discussed at the council's briefing -- it'll apparently have to do so without three members' input. In the middle of Code Compliance's presentation, two years after this notion first surfaced at City Hall, Mayor Tom Leppert said that Pauline Medrano, Vonciel Jones Hill and Tennell Atkins had to step out of council chambers because they "have

  September 2, 2009

• The City Council's Budget Wish List

  Natalie Dee​Curious to see which council member wants what program reinstated to City Manager Mary Suhm's proposed FY2009-2010 budget, which the council will vote on one week from tomorrow? Then you're in luck: Tomorrow, the council will discuss during its briefing session their budget amendments, which call for reinstating everything from Park and Recreation programs to Office of Cultural Affairs staff to library materials to ... well, from the looks of Tennell Atkins's proposal, pretty much

  September 15, 2009

• Several Council Members Say That, You Know, a Teensy-Tiny Tax Hike Ain't a Bad Idea

  ​Speaking of the council and the budget and fees versus taxes ...As we mentioned yesterday, Tennell Atkins's budget amendment called for a 1-cent property tax increase -- which I didn't think would get terribly far, given council members, the mayor and the city manager's oft-repeated vows not to raise taxes despite the $190 million shortfall. But after Atkins made his presentation -- which, summed up, was, "It'll cost you $8 a year on a $100,000 house ... and I paid $9 to go to the movies" --

  September 16, 2009

• MartyB Can't Even Get a Second Grader to Throw Him the Ball, But Mayor Tom Will!

  Photos by Sam MertenEight-year-old Kendall Tubbs, a second grader who's had type 1 diabetes since she was 3 years old, managed to upstage appearances by Dallas Cowboys tight end Martellus "MartyB" Bennett and former Heisman Trophy winner and Woodrow Wilson High School grad Tim Brown at this morning's second annual Passport to Health Diabetes Awareness campaign. "Sometimes diabetes means making tough choices," a poised Tubbs told the crowd gathered at the press conference held in City Hall's Fla

  October 13, 2009

• Tooth Marks: The Brawl at City Hall Over Real Ethics Reform Is Only Just Beginning

  Patrick MichelsDallas City Attorney Tom Perkins​Angela Hunt is putting the bite on the mayor today on the issue of ethics reform.The council is being briefed on possible new ethics rules growing out of the City Hall corruption case. Council member Hunt and four other members signed a letter a couple weeks ago asking City Attorney Tom Perkins to give them a briefing on what other cities do, so this is that.Perkins gave them a lot of technical stuff first. Now it's going around the horseshoe for

  October 19, 2009

• The Waters Are Murky as Dallas City Council Seeks Clarity Before Ethics Reform Vote

  Sam MertenCouncil member Carolyn Davis talks to zoning lawyer Kirk Williams as Willie Cothrum (right) listens.If nothing else, the city council's hastily planned ethics reform briefing early this morning showed that this group is capable of a spirited debate. For the most part, Mayor Tom Leppert has been able to keep everyone, with the exception of Angela Hunt and former council member Mitchell Rasansky, on the same page, sharing their toys with no complaints. But today, Dave Neumann, a Leppert

  October 26, 2009

• News CEO Jim Moroney on His Decision to Close the Paper's Southern Dallas Facility

  ​When A.H. Belo Corporation released its third-quarter financials on Friday, included high in the press release was this note: "As part of the Company's ongoing efforts to realign its business and reduce expenses, The Dallas Morning News will close the packaging facility as it consolidates production operations into a single facility located in Plano, Texas. This consolidation of production facilities should be completed in the first quarter of 2010. The Company has begun the process of market

  November 3, 2009

• Angela Hunt Wasn't Pleased to Find Out About Chief Kunkle's Adios from Media, But Does Want Mary Suhm to Conduct National Search

  Chief Kunkle and Angela Hunt at the Katy Trail lighting ceremony last year​Several members of the Dallas City Council are in San Antonio at a National League of Cities conference. Angela Hunt is not, which is why, like most of the city, she found out that DPD Chief David Kunkle was retiring by turning on the local news at 10 last night. Was she pleased? Not really: "I am disappointed that our city manager didn't apprise the council of this and that we learned about this from the media first,"

  November 12, 2009

• While Chief Kunkle Isn't Planning on Slacking Off, Don't Park Your Car at Baby Dolls

  Patrick Michels​Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle was at City Hall this morning for the first time since announcing his surprise retirement last week. Ostensibly, he came to discuss the newly updated crime statistics, but he kicked off a briefing of the city council's Public Safety Committee by discussing his decision to get out while the gettin' was good."There is a time to come in and a time to leave," he said. "I'm not leaving unhappy with anybody; I'm not leaving because I'm tired or worn o

  November 16, 2009