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Following months of debate, the Dallas City Council’s plan to address the city’s costly issues left some individuals disappointed on Wednesday.
The city intends to propose a $1.25 billion bond referendum in May to address a $14 billion inventory of needs.
In straw votes, streets received the largest portion of allocation recommendations, followed by parks, while support for affordable housing was reduced.
The council’s recommendations followed over two hours of impassioned speeches from the public.
“Imagine the smile of a child who finally has a place to call home. You can make that smile happen,” advocated Robert Atwood, a supporter of affordable housing.
The Dallas Housing Coalition sought $200 million to bolster affordable housing in a city where housing expenses have been escalating.
City staff recommended $100 million for housing, a decision that drew disappointment from City Council Member Chad West, although it represents the largest allocation ever specified for affordable housing in Dallas.
“This is a substantial amount of money, and I feel like I’m giving keys to a Corvette to a new driver, and I just want to make sure that we’ve got guardrails,” expressed City Council Member Paula Blackmon.
Staff recommended $284 million for parks and recreation, with Mayor Eric Johnson supporting a Parks Coalition that sought $350 million.
Supporters of parks advocated for various projects, including allocating $30 million to the Dallas Zoo to upgrade exhibits by removing an old mono-rail.
While council members agreed that repairing streets deserved the largest $500 million share of bond money, they reduced the housing allocation to $61 million.
Councilwoman Carolyn King Arnold emphasized existing housing programs and took offense at the suggestion that the city was neglecting housing issues.
The final straw vote removed the staff’s recommendation of $28 million for City Hall repairs and added $75 million in discretionary allocations for City Council Members.
Councilman Adam Bazaldua expressed concern over leaving allocation decisions to individual council members, while Councilman Tennell Atkins highlighted the importance of discretionary funds in past bond referendums.
Additionally, $5 million was allocated for information technology capital investment following strong remarks from Council Member Cara Mendelsohn about the critical role of IT infrastructure.
The final vote on allocations and projects for the May bond referendum is scheduled for February 14th, pending approval from voters to borrow the allocated funds.