It’s been two months since Texas Monthly’s president, Evan Smith, announced he was leaving the magazine to go into the virtual newspaper business as CEO of Texas Tribune. In the October issue of the Monthly, Smith offers his adios: “What I’ve Learned.” And among those myriad lessons is this one:…
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…
Just when the budget process couldn’t get more interesting …Yesterday we noted that some on the council, and City Manager Mary Suhm, have pointed out that at the end of the year, the city’s franchise fee contract with Atmos Energy is set to expire. Suhm notes, on Page 24 of…
Coulda swore the National Hockey League never returned from its 2005 lockout. No, wait, don’t I sorta remember a hip little hiccup back in 2008? Honestly, they tell me there will be a Dallas Stars game down at American Airlines Center tonight. Marc Crawford is the new coach. Brenden Morrow is…
If you’ve got some time this afternoon, you may wanna tune into the city council’s budget amendment briefing, which has turned its attention to the council members’ proposal to cut their own budget. As you may know, the council’s modest proposal got more modest last week. But the council –…
Yesterday came the big announcement: AT&T done bought itself the naming rights to the Dallas Center for the Performing Arts. But there was one glaring omission in the press release’s fine print: How much did the company pay? That troubles New York Times arts and business writer Judith Dobrzynski, who…
Unfair Park’s about to get a new down-the-street neighbor, as evidenced by this coming-soon banner I espied on the drive to work this morning. And, no, this is not the Hot Klub reunion scheduled for October 9 — though, funny thing, it’s but blocks down Maple Avenue from Mark Lee’s…
It took Mayor Tom Leppert approximately two years to accomplish what no one else in Dallas could: begin building a convention center hotel. And hundreds of assorted politicos, city officials, business leaders and supporters were on hand Tuesday afternoon at the site of the Omni Dallas Convention Center Hotel to…
At last: KERA just sent word that its announced-in-June all-music radio station, now known as KKXT-FM (91.7), will officially makes its bow November 9 at 7 a.m. Also announced this morning were the nationally syndicated programs KXT, as it’ll be known, will air: Acoustic Café, American Routes, Mountain Stage, Putumayo…
Courthouse News this morning draws our attention to the plight of Brwa Aziz, a dentist in Iraq for whom the mission has not been accomplished. Aziz, you see, enjoys sinking his teeth into North American fast food. He’s already serving up smoothies, as a franchisee of Canada-based Juice Zone, and…
Buddy of mine took his 9-year-old to the Rangers game Monday night in Arlington. Kid, not surprisingly, wanted some ice cream. In one of those cool, plastic Rangers helmet cups. One problem: “They didn’t have any Rangers helmet cups,” my buddy tells me. “They had run out. They told us…
Speaking of Mayor Tom Leppert and his sales pitching …Today at the Dallas Regional Chamber luncheon at the downtown Sheraton, the mayor gave his State of the City address, which more or less consisted of a show-and-tell: He told the audience — businessmen and elected officials, mostly — how he’s…
Kim’s wrapping up her piece from Mayor Tom’s State of the City address at the downtown Sheraton this afternoon. And she’s got a nice photo of Leppert holding one of those nifty iPhones he’s sending to corporate honchos across the country in the hopes of convincing them to relocate to…
Back in June, Provident Realty spokesperson Marie Fahey told Unfair Park that, look, the developer wasn’t quite sure when it was gonna get around to building that European crossroads at Walnut Hill and Central Expressway, site of the long-delayed Glen at Preston Hollow mixed-use development. The company, she said, was…
I raised the white flag a while back. Apparently you guys finally gave up, um, last night. With the Texas Rangers in the middle of a pennant race for only the fourth time in their 37-year history and Cy Young candidate Scott Feldman pitching against a very beatable opponent, an announced crowd of…
Former Unfair Park-er Alexa Schirtzinger sure dug her some nature, if you recall. So it’s not surprising she shows up in the latest issue of Audubon talking up the Trinity River Audubon Center. But she also tells the tale of how a teacher at Rufus C. Burleson Elementary School on…
This may be the craziest, saddest, best, coolest photo I’ve ever seen posted. The good news: Tom Landry’s statue is being re-erected today in front of Gate A at Cowboys Stadium. The bad news: Kinda creeps me out that it reminds me of …..
Patrick Michels was out at Jerry Jones’s EnormoDome this morning, where workers were scheduled to erect Tom Landry. Pardon … Tom Landry’s statue. But they were running a wee bit behind schedule, Patrick had to return to the office so he could film my interview with C-3PO, so this is…
I’m a big fan of illustrator Jack Unruh’s — you probably are too if you’ve seen his work in, oh, Entertainment Weekly, GQ, Sports Illustrated, Rolling Stone, Time or … look, you name it. The man ain’t in the Society of Illustrators’ Hall of Fame for nothing. He’s a good…
Week 1 receiving stats: Terrell Owens, Buffalo Bills – 2 catches, 46 yards, 0 touchdowns. Loss. Miles Austin, Roy Williams, Patrick Crayton, Dallas Cowboys – 8 catches, 263 yards, 3 touchdowns. Win. My reaction? …..
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…
Back in July we noted that current Dallas Morning News photographer David Woo and former News photographer Richard Pruitt collaborated on a side project due on coffee tables in November: a tome titled Top Dogs and Their Pets, proceeds from which toward rescuing, rehabbing and re-housing abused puppies. This week…
