Leading Off (9/4/08)
1. As part of a city-wide belt-tightening, the City Council is looking to dramatically cut the funds dedicated to partial street reconstruction and major asphalt repairs. Still, somehow the city will only fall slightly short of its goal to have 87 percent of streets certified as “satisfactory” by 2010. So, apparently, instead of spending money on asphalt and concrete, they’ve diverted the money toward the hiring of some sort of magic street faeries. Either that, or no one is clear on the definition of “satisfactory.”
2. State District Judge Bruce Priddy just got served by the state bar with a three-month suspension from the practice of law for “professional misconduct.” Silver lining: he can still be a judge. Seems to me like that sort of creates automatic grounds for appeal in any of the cases he presides over, but it probably doesn’t. I’m sure someone will let me know in the comments, which, by the way, I’ve turned on.
3. Fire! Fire!
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I hear they hired the same fairy the DISD hired to “make Dallas ISD the top school district in the nation by 2010″.
We have money to fund all the artsy fartsy stuff for the elite and unemployed artists, but no $$ for the streets that Joe Taxpayer uses?
We spend millions duplicating County health programs, and we spend millions offering arts and reading programs for DISD students, but no $$ for our streets?
My DISD taxes are outrageous, and the elementary school (David G Burnet) in my neighborhood is in dire need of maitenance and equipment. Where does Dr. H spend our money? Why does City Hall subsidize the DISD when they get a lot more property tax than the city?
Fix my streets here. Fix my streets now.
OH! Can the magic street fairies come and fix our driveway? Z, please look into that.
Sharon, artsy fartsy stuff isn’t for “the elite.” It’s a lot cheaper to go to the symphony than to a Cowboys game. So are professional sports teams for “the elite”?
Other than that, I agree with you.
I wish the faeries could reimburse me for the cost of new tires and alignment. I drive mostly around Lakewood and the intersection of Mockingbird and Abrams is particularly bad.
#1- I thought Laura Miller fixed all that.
“Faeries”? I guess technically it’s correct, but reminds me of Scarborough Faire.
@mm: Then mission accomplished.
I’m glad our mayor and city council have their priorities straight – that convention center hotel should be the absolute last idea they scrap as they “belt-tighten”.
A really good idea would be to change the name on streets that already have perfectly good names. That way companies that have perfectly fine letterhead printed up can have it reprinted, thus spurring the local economy, thus leading to higher sales tax collections. Also, it will make some of our leading cultural institutions now have addresses that will make them sound like they’re in the barrio. Smart move.
Or, I don’t know, cave to a vocal minority and ban smoking in bars, when it could be another source of revenue if they required businesses that want to continue to allow smoking purchase a permit, either at a fixed rate, or based on a percentage of sales.
Good idea, Bethany. Keep ‘em coming!
Here’s one. How about we build some new highways using tax money, then charge taxpayers to use the roads they paid for. But then let’s take that money and let it got to an outside, quasi-governmental third party that can spend it as it sees fit, rather than using the funds strictly for the repair of those highways or to fix the other roads in the city.
Oooh…after we do that, can we just make it rain?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DOK0HXS5a4w
If they are going to hire Scarborough Faeries to fix the streets, the City should just go full on and hire CARNIES to fix the streets. I spend about 30 minutes a day at the Garland Buckner intersection because of construction and it would be just awsomly entertaining to see fire breathers heating asphault, stilt walkers fixing street lights, and The Worlds Fattest Man leveling concrete while I wait.
who needs curbs and roads without potholes when you can have a convention center hotel that few citizen’s will ever use
nice, clear city streets, schmeets, gimme a toll road in a flood plain. that’s what i need.
misused apostrophe there…oopsy…too much typing today. must stop
4:20 yet?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZHdjqsSSa_A