The neighborhood was designated as a Dallas Landmark District in 1993. A year later, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
Cox said when she was growing up in the community, it was an exciting place. It has since deteriorated, a result of historic underinvestment. “It’s not a neighborhood anymore,” Cox told us last year. “I’m very worried and concerned about the survival of Tenth Street.”
She said it will ultimately take investment in the neighborhood to save it. Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Carolyn King Arnold initially said she was going to propose a package deal for Tenth Street as part of the city's upcoming 2024 bond election. She calls Tenth Street a victim of policies passed by the Dallas City Council over the years.
As it turns out, though, Tenth Street won't be getting the package deal Arnold initially wanted. Nevertheless, she said the city is on the right track to preserve the neighborhood.“I’m very worried and concerned about the survival of Tenth Street.” – Patricia Cox, Tenth Street resident
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Arnold said this about Tenth Street at a City Council meeting last month: “We need money for housing. We need streets. We need flood protection.” The neighborhood could also use help with providing mental health and wraparound services for the homeless in the area, she added.
“All of that will help to secure that community, and I think if it’s on the bond, it protects them,” Arnold said. “We don’t want to lose that community because of the growth on the [Southern] Gateway, [and] the deck park. We want to make sure that in years to come no one can move the money, and that community is protected. So, that is something that I definitely want to make sure that we pull together on this bond package.”
Larry Johnson, a homeowner in Tenth Street, said bond money should be used, in part, to rehab and rebuild historic structures in the neighborhood to be used as learning and community resource centers. The Sunshine Elizabeth Chapel and the Black and Clark Funeral Home are historic buildings that could be reconstructed with the bond money, Johnson said. “They [the city] owe us reparations in the form of putting back some of the structures that we’ve lost, some of the houses that we’ve lost,” he said.
Arnold told the Observer that, ideally, she would have created a package for Tenth Street to include items like home and street repairs, but the way the bond money can be spent won’t allow her to do that. Instead, she’s using some of her $5 million in district-specific funds to invest in parks and recreation so that the Dallas Zoo can have programming about the neighborhood. She said the district is partnering with the zoo and the Park and Recreation department to make this happen. “It’s like a cultural hub, if you will, that preserves some of the history of historic Tenth Street,” she said. “I think that’s very, very key because the zoo, of course, is a neighbor of Tenth Street.”
She added: “I think we’re in a good position now with a formula that will get us on the right track. You know, we’re not going to be able to wave a magic wand in the next three days, but I think we’re on the right track.”
Arnold said that investments made with American Rescue Plan Act money for home renovations and repairs, along with funds from the 2017 bond, should help Tenth Street stay afloat. She said the city offers legal assistance to residents to help get their deeds untangled, which aids in applying for home repair assistance. “We’ve dealt with a lot of tangled titles,” Arnold said.
She said the city has made other efforts to preserve Tenth Street over the years. For example, in 2019, the city halted spending on some of the speedy demolitions that were destroying homes and other historic structures in the neighborhood. Now, the city is considering getting rid of the rule that allowed for those demolitions in the first place. “I think we are on the path, a very good path of trying to strengthen the bones of that community,” Arnold said.
