Articles for January 21st, 2010
Conservation League Throws Hail Mary in The Fight to Save Oak Cliff Christian Church
Standing outside the 68th Civil District Court, attorney and past president of the Old Oak Cliff Conservation League, John McCall Jr. announced a small victory in the fight to save Oak Cliff Christian Church from demolition.
“We got what we came here for and that was time,” said a hopeful McCall. “We actually got more than what we came here for and we’re going to get records.”
District Judge Martin Hoffman put his seal of approval on McCall and DISD attorney Robert Luna’s Rule 11 agreement to halt demolition of the church until Feb. 5 — that’s when they’ll meet again at Hoffman’s court (10 a.m. sharp) to hear arguments for and against a temporary injunction on demolition. Part of that agreement will also include a 5 p.m. Jan. 29 deadline for DISD to hand over financial documents that prove more than $21 million in federal relief funds weren’t used to purchase the church and other properties being acquired for a new Adamson High School. Luna said DISD used funds from a 2008 bond money. [Here's why the federal funds angle is a no go for DISD]
In sports terms, the preservationists — the Old Oak Cliff Conservation League and Preservation Dallas — got some time put back on the game clock. Just enough time to throw one last Staubachian pass and hope to find their miraculous Drew Pearson game-winning touchdown catch in the form of DISD’s violation of the The National Historic Preservation Act.
Jump if you’re like me and you enjoy hearing lawyers discuss strategy and other “inside baseball” tidbits. (more…)
The Pleasures of Working Downtown
Moments ago, as I was standing on Ross Avenue, in front of the DMA, waiting to be picked up, I got to meet Jaume Plensa. His exhibit “Genus and Species” opens at the Nasher January 30 and will be the museum’s first show of work from a living artist. The Nasher’s Jed Morse was walking Plensa and an associate to their hotel and introduced us. I asked Plensa how he liked Dallas so far, and he gave me a look like I’d just asked him what he thought of a book after he’d only read the first page. Plensa has been in town long enough to drive from the airport to the Nasher — that’s it.
Anyway. Cool encounter. I feel my D Spot tingling.
USA Film Festival Must Join the 21st Century, ctd.
What’s sad about the lack of info on the USA Film Festival’s website is that this weekend’s KidFilm fest is actually packed with some really great stuff (they kind of bury the schedule, but you can find it here). The people at KidFest were kind enough to forward along some screeners, which I took in with my four- and two-year-olds. Their thoughts – as well as my own – will be found on this blog tomorrow. So stay tuned, as they say. Sneak peak: if you have kiddos – especially in the two to four range – make room on your weekend calendar for the Mo Willems tribute, which is on Saturday at 3 p.m.
Forensic Science Panel Delays Willingham Case
Remember the commission that was going to consider whether executed prisoner Cameron Todd Willingham may have been innocent of setting the fire that killed his daughters, the one whose members Gov. Ricky replaced just before they were going to consider the case last fall?
Well, the new members are meeting next week, and they don’t have Willingham on the agenda. The new commission chair says they will get around to considering the matter. But probably not until this summer.
Say, when is that Republican primary?
D Staffers Attempt to Fill Up Internet
This is the 20th post of the day. (And that’s with a conspicuously silent Wick.) What, exactly, is everyone here procrastinating from doing?
Good News for People Who Breathe in North Texas
It’s a busy day for the Downwinders at Risk folks. First came the news earlier today that the feds are back in Midlothian, doing what they can (hopefully) to clean up the cement kilns that contribute to air pollution all over North Texas. Now comes news (full release after the jump) that for the first time in the United States, a cement kiln will be outfitted with something called a Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) system. It’s a pollution-control measure, and it’ll be used in Illinois.
So why should you care? Because, as the Downwinders note, the move is “stunning and unexpected,” and it will force the Midlothian cement kilns to install the same measures — which they and the TCEQ previously claimed were “technically infeasible.” Here’s what Jim Schermbeck, the head Downwinder, had to say: “It’s a severe understatement to say that this is a rebuke to TCEQ and the three cement plant operators in Midlothian. And I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t a huge vindication for our work, and the work of Dr. Armendariz [the newly appointed EPA regional administrator].”
Bottom line: this is very good news for North Texas.
USA Film Festival Must Join the 21st Century
Or even just the late 20th century, for that matter. I have some affection for the USA Film Festival, which has roots at SMU and used to be the only full-service, year-round movie organization in Dallas. I have that affection because my wife used to work there.
I was concerned that they wouldn’t be able to survive when AFI Dallas (now minus the AFI) stepped up and launched its efforts with what had been USA’s turf: a spring movie festival. I was worried for USA’s future when I saw that this new “Dallas Film Society” was recruiting its own membership, and felt even more so with news of the recent hiring of Tanya Foster, which signals that they’re targeting the same Park Cities/North Dallas fund-raising base that’s long supported USA.
But when I get an e-mail from the Angelika Film Center today touting USA’s 26th annual KidFilm program (this Saturday and Sunday), and when that e-mail says I can log on to USAfilmfestival.com for a full schedule of the screenings, and when I check out the USA site and see that it’s the same rudimentary set-up they’ve had for years, my sympathies fail me.
Chelsea Handler: “Dallas Is Full of Lesbians,” Ctd.
A FBvian who used to work here reminds me that Eric Celeste not that long ago interviewed Ms. Handler for an online-only story, the full text of which follows after the jump. But she mentioned the Dallas lesbians back then, too.
2009-10 Dallas Mavericks: Looking Back on Our Look Ahead
Just before InsideCorner went the way of SAGA, Eric and I took a shot at previewing the coming Dallas Mavericks’ season. With said season now halfway over, I thought it was worthwhile to see if we were onto anything.
Chelsea Handler: “Dallas Is Full of Lesbians”
I’m a little behind on this but, but an alert FBvian just pointed me to this post by Uncle Barky concerning the very funny Chelsea Handler’s recent appearance on The Jay Leno Show. Dallas lesbians, lemme here from ya.
Kyle Bass Looks to Japan for His Next Big Score
Hedge fund operator Kyle Bass has done well for himself. I spoke this morning to a fellow who had recently visited Bass’ out-of-town getaway, where he has built a top-notch private golf course. We wrote about Bass in April 2008, when he turned a $110 million investment into $700 million by shorting firms that were caught up in the subprime mess. Now he has his sights set on countries carrying a lot of sovereign debt. He figures prominently in a story about countries that might go bankrupt in the current issue of Forbes. Here’s the lead of the story:
Kyle Bass has bet the house against Japan — his own house, that is. The Dallas hedge fund manager (no relation to the famous Bass family of Fort Worth) is so convinced the Japanese government’s profligate spending will drive the nation to the brink of default that he financed his home with a five-year loan denominated in yen, which he hopes will be cheaper to pay back than dollars.
Bass has made some investments that didn’t work out. He’s not infallible. But a lot of people are watching the bets that his Hayman Advisors is laying now.
Parkland’s Bum Rap on Executive Pay
Many people, including even Ross Perot, are upset with some of the huge bonuses paid out on Wall Street. But the incentive pay for execs at Parkland Hospital, including CEO Ron Anderson, seems like a different matter entirely. The hospital not only reduced ER wait times, it also improved billing processes and boosted net income. That’s called performance. Why would anyone begrudge these payouts–or salary increases for the rank-and-file–especially since Parkland is struggling valiantly to cope with patients, and social problems, the rest of us would just as soon ignore? (Anderson and Parkland, BTW, are scrutinized in a great story by Charlotte Huff in the new issue of D CEO.)
Mavs CEO: Two More Good Years For Dirk
While Dirk Nowitzki of the Mavericks may have rescued NBA basketball in Dallas, nothing lasts forever. “Don’t tell Mark [Cuban], but we have two years left before Dirk starts to slip a little,” Mavs president and CEO Terdema Ussery told a crowd this morning at The Fairmont Hotel. Ussery (pictured) made the remark about Nowitzki, who turns 32 in June, during a keynote speech for The Real Estate Council Foundation.
Texas on Fortune’s ‘Best Companies to Work For’
Fortune magazine released its list of the best companies to work for today. Four North Texas companies made the cut: Shared Technologies (No. 33), Container Store (No. 36), TD Industries (No. 39), and Balfour Beatty Construction (No. 76).
When I read the DMN’s headline about the story, “Texas has 2nd most firms on Fortune’s ‘best places to work list,’” it struck me that that’s one of those statements that sounds like it’s significant, but isn’t really.
Texas is the second-biggest state, in terms of population. It had the second-most companies on the list. California is the biggest state. It had the most companies. New York is the third-biggest. It had the third-most companies. That’s all exactly as you would expect. Looks like that’s been the state of affairs for the last few years, at least.
Two Erstwhile Local Musicians Give Me an Excuse to Write About the New Pornographers
First excuse: St. Vincent’s Annie Clark will appear on the New Pornographers’ forthcoming record, Together, set for release on May 4. If it’s at all like the Canadian supergroup’s previous four albums, it will be well worth looking into. At the bottom of the post that lives inside that hyperlink I just made, you’ll also note that New Pornographers leader A.C. Newman will appear at a Haiti benefit at Brooklyn’s Bell House on January 27. Joining him onstage is the second excuse: Old 97’s frontman Rhett Miller.
Home |
Masthead |
News from D |
About Us |
Contact Us |
Subscribe |
Advertise |
Privacy Policy |
Customer Service |
Awards | Archives | Reprints | d custom | Jobs | Advertiser's Index
Awards | Archives | Reprints | d custom | Jobs | Advertiser's Index