Lorlee Bartos was outta town last week when we posted our follow-up to our follow-up to our November story about the money pit that is the Bama Pie Co. building in Fair Park. But Bartos, a former board member of the city's Community Development Commission, has something to add to the discussion about how Derrick Mitchem got $364,000 in 2001 ($29,000 from the South Dallas/Fair Park Trust Fund, $45,000 from the South Dallas Development Corp. and $290,000 from the city in community development block grant money) and, so far, hasn't done much with it except pave a driveway and turn a proposed motorsports museum into a trash dump.
"I can't tell you how many times I voted against Bama Pie and tried to get the money put back into the pot for other uses.The rule is that money from CDBG must be obligated within a year and spent within two or it is eligible for re-programming, which I kept wanting to do.
But the board is only citizens and subject to being overruled by the council. And this, like the rest of the city stuff, is subject to the fiefdom rules: It's in my district, I get to decide."
Why, whatever could she mean? --Robert Wilonsky
