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Dallas Public Library Introduces Homeless Community Through New Podcast

Bethany Erickson
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The Dallas Public Library's latest podcast, "On the Block," aims to provide a voice for the city's homeless population.

Joy and Kevin met at a homeless shelter in Texarkana. Joy is a registered stockbroker and Kevin is a minister who says he intended to go it alone, but “God had decided to bring Joy into my life—we fell in love.”

The couple assessed their strengths and recently hopped a Greyhound bus for Dallas, spending their first night sleeping outside near The Stewpot.

The two recently sat down with Dallas Public Library staffers to talk about their experiences in a new podcast. Library officials hope it will offer insight into the city’s unhoused population.

“There are a lot of preconceived ideas about people who are experiencing homelessness and why they are in that situation,” said library community relations administrator Melissa Dease. “The podcast is a way to share their stories and hopefully increase understanding and empathy.”

Dease said the new podcast is part of the library’s ongoing homeless engagement initiative, which launched in 2013. Hundreds of members of the city’s homeless community use libraries to access computers and the internet, books, and for a place to escape the heat or cold. The library also offers mentorship and personalized assistance programs.

Education

Dallas ISD Will Soon Have a Student-Operated Food Truck

Nataly Keomoungkhoun
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Curbside Delights, the student-led and operated food truck, was designed by Dallas ISD graphic design students. Dallas ISD

When 18-year-old Melvin Hicks graduates from Moisés E. Molina High School, he wants to work in a restaurant.  He’s a senior in the school’s culinary arts program, which teaches students how to cook, manage a restaurant, and develop other skills required for a career in the hospitality industry. Hicks wants to one day become an executive chef and own a restaurant.

But this spring semester, Hicks is trying to get a food truck up and running with his classmates. In January, Dallas ISD unveiled a new student-operated food truck, the first of its kind in Texas. Hicks—along with DISD high school students from Molina, Bryan Adams, and Skyline—is learning how to start a food truck from the ground up.

“I’ve never operated a food truck before,” Hicks says. “Once I get there, it’s going to humble some people—it’s going to humble me as well. The more I know, the more I realize I don’t know. So, there’s just more to be discovered about it.”

The food truck, which the students named Curbside Delights, was created in partnership with TurboTax parent company Intuit, says Jason Hamilton, the district’s career and technical education coordinator. The financial software giant donated a fully operational food truck with a commercial-grade kitchen, and students will use Intuit products to help them learn the business and finance sides of the operation. Hamilton says he is aiming for Curbside Delights to debut in late April or early May. It’s expected to be fully functional for the 2024-2025 school year. Intuit has entered into similar partnerships with school districts in three other states, but Dallas is pioneering the project in Texas.

Hamilton has more than two decades of hospitality experience, including 18 years as an executive chef. His job with the school district is to manage the food truck initiative. The plan is to start with the three high schools—all of which have culinary arts, business, and graphic design programs—and then expand to another six schools.

Students and teachers within those three career programs have been collaborating on the truck’s design, its business plan, a menu, and the necessary permitting work. (Last September, House Bill 2878 went into effect to make permits easier for food truck operators, and the city of Dallas in 2022 rewrote its code to be more friendly to these operations.) Business students will handle marketing, point-of-sale operations, and budget management. The graphic design students will design the menus and promotional materials, and culinary arts students will come up with the dishes on the menu, manage truck operations, prepare and serve food, and clean.

The money the students make will go back into the program to support the Career and Technical Education pathways that are involved with the project.

Leading Off

Leading Off (3/18/24)

Zac Crain
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Mavs Take Down Denver on Ridiculous Kyrie Irving Left-Handed Hook Shot. Here it is from every angle. Irving said after that he thought he’d gotten closer, but it was officially 20.1 feet, a distance from which many people couldn’t hit a regular shot in five tries. They were in position to win on that shot thanks to a game-tying three by Luka Doncic, after the defending-champion Nuggets came back from down 13 in the fourth. Big W for your boys—they are almost out of the play-in stage in the volatile Western Conference now.

Stars Unveil Mike Modano Statue. It’s by the same studio that made the Dirk Nowitzki statue and, yes, it features his jersey flapping behind him as the Stars legend speeds up the ice.

Cooler Weather to Begin This Week. Cool as in temperature not as in temperament, although you can layer when it’s in the 50s, so that, too, kinda.

Mega Millions Jackpot Is Sixth Largest. That would be $875 million, with a cash value of around $413.5 million. Drawing is Tuesday. If I win, I’m gonna buy a boat. And then sink it, because I don’t like boats.

Dallas History

D Magazine’s 50 Greatest Stories: The Tragic End of Architect George Dahl’s Life

Matt Goodman
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George Dahl oversaw the design and construction of 26 Art Deco buildings at Fair Park, including the Hall of State. Josh Blaylock

George Dahl was one of the architects who built Dallas. He certainly was the drive behind Fair Park, leading the planning and construction of 26 Art Deco-style buildings ahead of the 1936 Texas Centennial Exposition. He divided the park into four sub-districts, centered upon the 700-foot-long Esplanade that led to the ornate Hall of State.

The Neiman Marcus building downtown, the First National Bank building, the Statler Hilton, the old Dallas Morning News ‘Rock of Truth’ building, the News’ new digs in the old library, WFAA’s low-slung modern structure next door—all Dahl.

Which is part of why this magazine commissioned the writer David Bauer to follow the messy family saga that capped off the end of his life. His daughter, Gloria, and her husband, Ted, asked a court for guardianship of the 83-year-old architect in 1978. The Akins didn’t believe him to be competent to manage his finances and other business, and were concerned that his decision to marry the younger Joan Renfro was fueled by her manipulation. Dahl argued that his family was coming after the trust belonging to his late wife, of which he was the sole trustee.

The Akins wanted a court to remove Dahl as the trustee, which ultimately failed. A lower court affirmed the decision. Ten years ago, when we featured this piece as part of our 40 greatest stories package, my former colleague Jason Heid dialed the Dallas lawyer and judge Ted Akin, Dahl’s son-in-law.

He called the decision “one of the most tragic miscarriages of justice,” one that “changed precedent that dated back to 1750 in England.” The ruling resulted in the dissolution of the trust, and Dahl took control of its millions of dollars. Akin argued that the judges were hemmed to a Supreme Court ruling that made it “easier for plaintiff’s lawyers bringing similar suits in the future than in the true merits of the case.”

Here’s how Jason summed up the end of Dahl’s life, in the years after Bauer’s story was published:

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People are coming to North Texas, but they are not moving to Dallas. The regional success story told in this week’s Census data dump—8.1 million people now call the region home for the first time—is not actually a tale about the center of our metro area, Dallas County, which charted a meager growth that was outpaced by even Kaufman County.

Dallas County added about 4,300 people in 2023, only because there were about twice as many births as there were deaths. Last year, more people decided to leave Dallas County than those who moved here. The most populous county in North Texas lost more existing residents than all but seven other counties in the nation. The domestic migration numbers are particularly depressing: 34,330 U.S. residents packed up and left. Luckily, about 19,000 people moved here from other countries, making Dallas’ loss 15,057. The 39,000 babies who were born last year is the only reason the county had any population growth.

Compare that to Collin County, which welcomed 28,886 new people. Or Denton County, where 23,090 now have new addresses. Tarrant County added another 14,000. I jabbed at Kaufman, but by percentage, it’s the fastest growing county in the country. It added about 12,000 new people, a 7.6 percent increase. And remember, those numbers do not include births; they are the raw totals of the human beings who made a decision to move to one of those suburban counties.

New Call for Pedestrian Mall on Akard Downtown. A pedestrian’s death at Akard and Commerce streets downtown last year has prompted a push to call for removing cars from Akard. More than 1,000 people have signed a petition. The city, of course, says it’s not that easy.

Denton, Collin Counties Hoarded All the Rain. Severe storms steered clear of Dallas proper, but a small tornado touched down in Collin County and hail pelted our northern neighbors. Little Elm and Frisco reported golf ball-sized hail. Rain is possible today and tomorrow, but the chances are lower. Highs will be in the 60s today.

Jerry Jones Defamation Lawsuit Dismissed. Alexandra Davis has alleged that Jerry Jones is her biological father and sued him for defamation, alleging that he portrayed her as an “extortionist.” A district judge ruled that the 27-year-old Davis did not prove that Jones acted with actual malice. The lawsuit has gone back and forth for months, but the dismissal does not affect a pending paternity suit.

Golf

Oak Cliff’s Cedar Crest Golf Course Gets a Piece of Its History Back

Bethany Erickson
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Stuart A. Markussen, CEO of RLG Consulting Engineers, presented Ira Molayo, Cedar Crest's general manager, with a framed reproduction painstakingly made to scale by the engineering firm Myers & Noyes. Courtesy RLG Consulting Engineers

Dallas’ Cedar Crest Golf Course opened in 1919, and since that time, the original design of the course has evolved. Because of a clubhouse fire in the 1980s, the city lost many of the original documents, including the original topographical maps. Last week, Stuart A. Markussen, CEO of RLG Consulting Engineers, presented Ira Molayo, the golf course’s general manager, with a framed reproduction painstakingly made to scale by the engineering firm Myers & Noyes.

More Chaos at Police Oversight Board. The volunteer board, which began in 2019 as a way to independently investigate civilian claims of police abuse or overreach, was issued a summary of a legal opinion that raised questions about what it can and cannot do. Since then, the city has given few clarifying details and the board is under the belief that if the police department chooses to not investigate a case, neither can they. A Wednesday night meeting was supposed to allow board members to question city employees, but no city officials were present. It went about as well as you’d think.

Dallas Police Officer Shot During Pursuit. The cop was shot in the hip after following a car whose driver was driving “erratically.” The suspect shot at an officer in an unmarked car who was “working in a covert capacity,” according to NBC 5, and the bullet came through the door and hit him in the hip. The police helicopter and other patrol cars followed the vehicle and arrested five suspects. The officer is recovering and is stable.

What to Expect From the Weather Today. This morning will likely be cloudy and humid. The rain will begin at some point between noon and 4, after a dryline and a cold front are able to puncture the cap that’s keeping the rain away during the a.m. hours. The rest of the evening will be marked by scattered storms, some of which could be severe. Hail is more likely than tornadoes, but both are low risks. Rain will continue throughout Friday and Saturday before clearing out on Sunday.

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Dallas History

John ‘Lucky’ Luckadoo Is a Master of the Air

Mark Dent
By Mark Dent |
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Maj. John "Lucky" Luckadoo, WWII pilot, 100th Bomb Group, holds his hand on his chest as the the US Air Force Color Guard from Joint Base Charleston presents the Colors on Friday. May 26, 2023 during the Flags for the Fallen opening ceremony at the National Museum of the Mighty 8th Air Force. Richard Burkhart/Savannah Morning News / USA TODAY NETWORK

John “Lucky” Luckadoo may be the most popular man in Dallas. In January, he met Tom Hanks and Steven Spielberg at the Hollywood premiere for Masters of the Air, an Apple TV+ miniseries depicting World War II’s 100th Bomb Group. On The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, actor Austin Butler named-dropped Luckadoo. “I’m sorry — what’s his name?” Colbert responded. “Yeah. Amazing,” Butler said. 

Luckadoo is one of the last living members of the 100th Bomb Group. Some 80 years ago, he flew 25 combat missions in Nazi-occupied Europe in a B-17 Flying Fortress, acting as pilot and co-pilot in near-impossible circumstances. The 100th Bomb Group earned the nickname the Bloody Hundredth from its severe casualty rate. Around 77 percent of its original members were wounded, killed, or captured. The total number of casualties of the group’s parent division, the Eighth Air Force, was 26,000 — a casualty rate of about 67 percent. 

“What the 100th lacks in luck, it makes up for in courage,” 100th Bomb Group leader Lt. Col. John Bennett once remarked.  

Luckadoo, like his peers, had courage. But he also had luck (his biography is titled Damn Lucky). He turns 102 on March 16, can still drive, and lives independently at Presbyterian Village North in North Dallas, where he’s been watching most of the episodes of Masters of the Air with the community. The show’s finale is set for March 15, the same day Apple TV+ premieres a Hanks-narrated documentary about the Bloody Hundredth, featuring Luckadoo.     

I met up with Luckadoo in early March to talk about the grim realities of serving in World War II, his life in Dallas, and how it felt to have his story told by Hollywood. (Our conversation has been edited for brevity and clarity.)

The Elm Fork of the Trinity River Needs Help. This week’s rains washed out trash and the belongings of many homeless people into the Elm Fork of the Trinity River. This portion of northwest Dallas, north of Walnut Hill Lane on Harry Hines, is also a favorite location for illegal dumping. That mess gets washed away, too. Philanthropist and parks champion Garrett Boone and compatriots like Greenspace Dallas’ Rick Buckley have a Sisyphean task of cleaning it up and waiting for more to come. Sharon Grigsby put on her waders to survey the scene

Airlines Fed Up With Boeing. Boeing’s problems are now affecting the bottom line of Southwest Airlines, which had to adjust its financial forecast and its capacity expectations to navigate the company’s delivery delays.

Patient Information Leaked at UT Southwestern. UT Southwestern Medical Center announced a data breach that affected a little over 2,000 patients. The leak included addresses, “medical information,” health insurance details, and birthdays. The system blamed the issue on the unapproved use of software and not a cyberattack.

Rain Returns Overnight. Expect a dry day today with highs of 80. Rain will begin overnight around 10 p.m. and continue into Thursday morning. Then it’ll douse us all day tomorrow; some of the storms have the potential for severity.

Music

Two New Dallas Music Videos for Your Ears (and Eyes)

Tim Rogers
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"Peace of Mind" (left, from Sunrise Academy) and "Pour the Night" (Beekeeper Spaceman)

First up, we’ve got Beekeeper Spaceman, the chillwave band fronted by SMU English prof Greg Brownderville, native of Pumpkin Bend, Arkansas. “Pour the Night” was filmed on Super 8 at the Texas State Fair. KXT needs to be playing this tune, if they aren’t already:

Next up we’ve got “Peace of Mind,” by Sunrise Academy, an effort from Julian Sol Jordan, who is the son of Jessica Jordan from the Polyphonic Spree, and Josh David Jordan, director of the movie This World Won’t Break. The video was filmed at White Rock Lake.

Urbanism

Dallas: The City That Hates Pedestrians, Pt. 50

Matt Goodman
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The oh-so-walkable McKinney Avenue.

This image comes courtesy a perambulating FrontBurnervian who found a mind-boggling scene in Uptown, which is supposedly the city’s most walkable neighborhood. Let’s walk through this one. The full-flavor image is below.

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