Dallas hotel property taxes are up. Waaaay up. Just sayin’. Interesting story in today’s USA Today about the rise in hotel property taxes across the country–and how Dallas is way above the national average. That’s what PKF Consulting, an Atlanta-based company that keeps tabs on the hospitality biz, says and…
Ron Price is fond of speaking in clichés, using phrases like “that dog won’t hunt” as if he were punctuating a closing argument before the U.S. Supreme Court. So it’s fitting that when trying to describe the plight of the veteran school board member whose political future has dimmed over…
For 16 years, the case of Charles Coulston gathered little but dust. No new leads. No new suspects. Nothing. Investigators didn’t have much to work with. Coulston had been killed in a rock pit near New Hope, a small town on the rural outskirts of Collin County. From the jagged…
When Mayor Laura Miller announced last week she’d decided not to run for mayor for a third time–because she’s “desperate to be with [her] kids”–something about it struck us as awfully familiar. It wasn’t because hers was the well-worn retirement speech given by everyone who chooses to step out of…
Four years ago, in the story “Sweetheart Deal” by Rose Farley and Thomas Korosec (April 25, 2002), the Dallas Observer reported that Virginia McGuire, daughter of former Speaker of the U.S. House Jim Wright, bought an apartment complex near White Rock Lake with the intention of turning it into affordable…
Own Goal No score, what a bore: Man, I must say you take the prize as idiot writer of the year. First of all, it’s very apparent you have no understanding of soccer (“Nil Appeal,” by Richie Whitt, July 6) or must not like any sports at all, for that…
After sitting on a runway for an hour in Atlanta and finally arriving at DFW Airport three hours late on a July 5 flight, Terrell Owens pulled down his plaid Gilligan hat and pulled out his cell phone when a beleaguered co-passenger timidly approached near the luggage carousel. “Hate to…
This guy used to work for the Dallas Mavericks. Now he works for President Bush. Hunh. File this under Holy Crap, You Cannot Be Serious: Yesterday, President Bush appointed Kevin Sullivan as White House communications director, after Sullivan spent a year as an assistant secretary of communications for the Department…
At this very moment, there are five Lenny’s Sub Shops in the state of Texas, including a location on Jackson Street downtown. How are they? Dunno. Never been. Not the point. The point is, in a market crowded with the likes of Which Wich (the homegrown joint operated by Genghis…
Zayra, you have pretty much voted yerself off this island. Every time Rock Star: Supernova host Brook Burke says “the world’s best unsigned rockers,” I throw up in my mouth just a little bit. The last two weeks have been a horrible showing for what the world has to offer…
Have you been checking out the Wright Amendment hearings taking place at this very moment in Washington, D.C., in front of the House Committee on Transporation & Infrastructure’s aviation subcommittee? The Dallas Morning News is providing a video link to what has to be the most rambling, frustrating and ill-informed…
Add one more to this Sorta photo: Chris Holt From the Some Guy Joined And/Or Left A Band Today Department: The winners of 2006 Dallas Observer Music Awards for Musician of the Year and Best Act in Town announced their long-rumored fusion today, as Chris Holt (the former winner) has…
Our Belo-bound (and other downtown day-dwelling) readers are probably familiar with the Women in Black, the group of ladies (wearing guess what color) protesting war, evil and other crappy stuff outside the Federal Building at 207 Houston Street. They’re not exactly formidable by numbers–sometimes just two or three show up–but…
Dallas Morning News editor Bob Mong Jr. says there has been no “definitive” decision made concerning impending layoffs buyouts at Dallas’ Only Daily. Over the last two days, I’ve heard from a number of sources, none of whom are mentioned in this post, that Belo Corp. management has decided to…
Clark Vogeler, the Toadie closest to camera, is up for an Emmy. Unfair Park says, “Mazel tov.” We were looking over the complete list of Emmy nominees this morning and were pleased–nay, delighted–to find an old Friend of Unfair Park’s among those in contention. He’s not competing against the likes…
Many of our readers were as surprised as I was to find out about the Indian Child Welfare Act, a federal law that dictates unwanted or orphaned Native American babies be placed in other Native American families, foster homes or orphanages before they’re placed with a non-Indian family. I became…
Ron Price will probably run for mayor. But doesn’t he wanna be, like, powerful and stuff? Add Ron Price to the long list of elected officials considering a bid for mayor. As recently as last week, the nine-year South Dallas school board member wasn’t even sure he wanted to run…
J Dilla died earlier this year at the age of 32. On Saturday, Dallas’ hip-hop community turned out to pay its last respects. The career of J Dilla (born James Yancey) was illustrious, if tragically abbreviated. A solid and soulful Detroit beat wizard who produced seminal work with an impressive…
Bill Holston, a law-practicing Friend of Unfair Park, has this to say regarding The American Lawyer’s pro bono survey indicating Dallas lawyers need to play some serious catch-up: “The Dallas Bar donates millions of dollars of free legal services to the poor each year. I and many others are members…
He may be the starting AL pitcher tonight, but this is how we’ll always remember Kenny Rogers. Most of us–fine, I–watch baseball about three times a year: Opening Day (Oh, the excitement!), the World Series (Oh, I wonder where the Texas Rangers are) and the All-Star Game (Oh say can…
Robin Arcuri will be making a point, or a few, downtown at noon as does bares all (well, most) for PETA. I don’t know what your lunch plans are, but you may wanna change ’em–if, that is, you wanna see a naked Playboy model gallivanting about Pegasus Plaza, at the…
If you are in this picture or know somebody who is, then this Summer of ’86 shindig is all about you. Scary to think that anybody could be all that nostalgic about 1986 (Challenger, Iran-Contra, Dennis Miller), but for the guys behind the upcoming Summer of ’86 Dallas Punk Reunion,…
