Tennell Atkins

Some Dallas Council Members Want to Keep Protecting Yellow Cab from the Free Market

Dallas City Hall has come a long way over the past 10 months. Last year, it was trying to chase Uber out of town with vice stings and surreptitious regulations. Now, it's put forth some generally sensible recommendations to streamline the governing of the "transportation for hire" industry and put a ... More >>

Councilman Atkins, Quite Contrary, How Does Your District Grow?

Can't let this pass without at least pointing out the irony. Last Sunday Dallas City Council member Tennell Atkins was all over The Dallas Morning News opinion pages with an essay on the importance of public incentives for private developers in under-served areas of the city. He wrote: "Evidence of ... More >>

Update on City Hall's Outhouse Policy for Southern Dallas

Small update here on the part of Dallas to which City Hall refuses to extend sewer service. We have spoken about it here several times. It's an area abutting the brand-new University of North Texas campus near Interstate 35E and I-20. DART is building a new rail station right there, but the station ... More >>

Landowners Fear Dallas' "Grow South" Plan Will Cut Them Out

They want the city to change course and build sewers to boost property values.

So Is "Grow South" About Helping the People or Just the Real Estate?

Here's a question about the big initiative to spur development and employment in the city's heavily poor and minority southern hemisphere. Does it really benefit southern Dallas to redevelop it if before you do so you manage to get all the land out of the hands of the people who own it now? We're t ... More >>

Tennell Atkins' Opponent In City Council Race Accuses Him of Destroying Her Campaign Signs

Subrina Brenham, the businesswoman challenging Tennell Atkins in the District 8 City Council race, was driving along Lancaster Road this morning when she noticed something odd: One of her campaign signs, the large rectangular variety you see plastered on the sides of buildings and fences, had been c ... More >>

Golf Course Plan Needs a Strong Long Game

Here's hoping golfers take their eyes off the ball and see southern Dallas' desperation.

How Did No One Notice the Landfill Hemorrhaging Cash? Budget Cuts.

Last month, a report from city auditor Craig Kinton's office enumerated what it politely termed "deficiencies" in the operation of the city's McCommas Bluff landfill. There were a lot of them, since the landfill didn't really have much in the way of procedures to safeguard cash, prevent embezzlement ... More >>

How Mayor Rawlings Saved Face, Kept Some Black Friends and Screwed Some Hispanic Ones in the Process

Oh, wouldn't you know it? Leave it to me to get all gooh-gooh-eyed and sweety-feets about things. Then cruel reality comes crashing in. It's because I'm just too innocent of heart. Just yesterday, I had my zither out singing softly to you about how the mayor had done the right thing in the municipa ... More >>

City Council Dismisses Concerns About Burning Garbage, Adopts Long-Term Plan

Many people were not happy when the city unveiled its long-term solid waste management plan. It's goal of achieving zero waste by 2040 was admirable enough, but the plan pushed consideration of such measures as a plastic bag ban, mandatory recycling and increased composting efforts out a decade or m ... More >>

Atkins: Inland Port is Two Years Behind, Will Be Four if Nothing Changes

The Inland Port, the sprawling warehousing and transportation center meant to be an economic boon for southern Dallas County, has never really taken off. It opened in 2005 and has seen some development, but the project was stalled by a rocky economy and the bankruptcy of its largest property owner, ... More >>

On Flood Control, Dallas Better Think Nationally or Be Ready to Drown Locally

Man, talk about whistling past the graveyard. At yesterday's Dallas City Council meeting, council members Tennell Atkins and Delia Jasso asked good questions about the city's flood control plans, and City Manager Mary Suhm and her assistant, Jill Jordan, gave good answers. But it was all deck chairs ... More >>

Perennial Dallas Mayoral Candidate Edward Okpa Is Not Impressed EBJ's Running Again

​From what I can tell, Jessica Huseman and Shawn Williams were the sole media members to attend Eddie Bernice Johnson's campaign kick-off held yesterday at the beleaguered Southwest Center Mall. The event was also attended by three council members: Pauline Medrano, Vonciel Jones Hill and Tennell A ... More >>

Tune In Now For Today's Redistricting Fight

​Anna, of course, is at today's council briefing, where, Mayor Mike just said, they're going to spend the next 90 minutes or so fighting over the three council-submitted redistricting maps. She'll recap later today -- the mayor said they oughta wrap the chat at 11:30, though it could go longer. Bu ... More >>

For Your Late Wednesday Listening Pleasure: Elliott Smith, Between the Bars at Trees in '99

​We had hoped to end the day by telling you which redistricting map the city council's going to send to the Department of Justice. That will not happen, at least not in the next little while: After Mayor Mike Rawlings took council members Tennell Atkins and Delia Jasso into a back room to hash out ... More >>

Inland Port, Executive Airport Land on Council's Radar During Talk of Economic Development

​Before the council's Economic Development Committee got 'round to talking about Dallas's employment figures -- and it was a brief briefing -- familiar Unfair Park figure Karl Zavitkovsky, head of the Office of Economic Development, gave the council an hour-long-plus overview of what his office of ... More >>

Eight Outta 15 Council Members Like This Map, Which Caraway Says Still Needs "Tweaking."

​Another redistricting post, I know. Settle down. But this one's especially interesting: Dwaine Caraway, Tennell Atkins and Carolyn Davis have made it very clear that whatever the redistricting map ends up looking like, they want four "winnable" African-American districts. At last week's forum, th ... More >>

"Sounds Too Good to Be True": WFAA Sifts Through a Few Issues With Flow Control

​The council may or may not vote on that ordinance involving the redirecting and recycling of solid waste today. It all depends where flow control falls on the action-packed agenda, which includes passing the budget (that should go smoothly) and debating Yucatan and Service Bar's denied-at-CPC spe ... More >>

"Please, Respect": Council Seems to Settle on Combo Platter During Redistricting Meeting

Photo by Anna MerlanRoy Williams, whose lawsuit helped lead to 14-1, addresses the council during Saturday's redistricting meeting.​As the redistricting process goes on (and on and on), you might expect the public to become less involved, especially when a meeting takes place late on a college-foo ... More >>

Your First Look at the 10 (!) Amended Redistricting Proposals Submitted by Council

One of two maps submitted by Mayor Mike. All 10 are available here.​In the end, it would be quicker to name the council members who didn't submit amendments to the Redistricting Commission by Monday's 3 p.m. deadline: Sheffie Kadane, Angela Hunt, Jerry Allen and Sandy Greyson. Everyone else had so ... More >>

Pure Imagination: At Its First Meeting, Council's Arts & Culture Committee Talks New Revenue

​I'm dialed into the inaugural meeting of the council's Arts, Culture & Libraries Committee, tasked by Mayor Mike, as you'll recall, with finding "alternative funding sources" to help make Dallas "a smart, cultured and creative city." And God bless her, Maria Munoz-Blanco, director of the city ... More >>

Your Water Bill's Going Up This Year. And the Year After That. And the ... Well, You Get It.

Click to embiggen ... or just go to Page 29 in this budget briefing.​I mention this in the comments below, but the 5.91 percent increase in our Dallas Water Utilities bill comin' this fall won't be the last one any time soon. Matter of fact, per this morning's council briefing, this is but the fir ... More >>

City to Discuss What to Do After State Supremes Razed the Reason for Tearing Down House

​Behind closed doors this afternoon, the back-to-work Dallas City Council will be briefed by city attorneys on a handful of lawsuits, all of which we're quite familiar with: City of Dallas v. Museum of the American Railroad (which, last we looked, is close to being settled); Marcus Wood, et al. v. ... More >>

More Trash Talk as Council Dumps, For Now, Proposal to Take All Solid Waste to McCommas

It's possible Atkins's Mavs Fever also has him worked up about trash dumping.​Since we're about to get all Dallas City Hall up in this piece, a programming note: We were planning on doing another liveblog from tomorrow's meeting of the Ad Hoc Gas Drilling Task Force Nominating Committee (band name ... More >>

Mike Rawlings Gives Good Beachhead

Courtesy Mike Rawlings campaignCouncil members Tennell Atkins and Vonciel Jones Hill with Mike Rawlings at Southwest Center Mall Friday​Mayoral Mike Rawlings just posted to his campaign website his Southern Sector Development Plan, which kicks off by ID'ing what the former Pizza Hut CEO and Park B ... More >>

Rawlings Nabs Top Spot as Mayoral and City Council Candidates Pick Ballot Positions

Photos by Sam MertenThe selection of the top spot by mayoral candidate Mike Rawlings turned out to be anticlimactic because it was the only envelope left.​City Secretary Deborah Watkins and her staff oversaw the selection of ballot positions this morning in the Flag Room at City Hall, as mayor ... More >>

Says Tennell Atkins, "Ultimate Super Bowl" Party Is Still On at Southwest Center Mall

Photos by Patrick MichelsTennell Atkins says the Ultimate Super Bowl party's still on at Southwest Center Mall, where, apparently, it's still Christmas. Now, he says, it'll be indoors.A day after WFAA-Channel 8 spread the word that the enormous Ultimate Super Bowl party planned in the Southwest Cent ... More >>

It's a diary of a mad year as Buzz recalls a P.O.'d 2010.

Mayor Had to End Tax Hike Briefing Before It Began When He Found Himself Sans Quorum

Patrick MichelsTennell Atkins​Well, I was about to tell you to tune into the tax-hike briefing, which was about to get underway, like, five minutes ago. But then the damnedest thing happened: As the briefing was getting going, there was much giggling. Much guffawing. Then, the briefing stopped. Th ... More >>

Climbing K2: Liveblogging the First City Council Meeting After Summer Break

Patrick Michels​Welcome back to Wednesdays at City Hall, Friends. It's the full council's first voting session at the horseshoe after their summer vacation, and no doubt all of them labored for hours last night trying to figure out what they were going to wear this morning to show their friends ho ... More >>

At Paul Quinn College, It's: So Long, Old Dorms! Hello, Lacrosse and Gardens!

Photos by Patrick MichelsTrammell S. Crow, donated $1 million for the demolition of 13 abandoned buildings at Paul Quinn College, takes down the first chunk of the old T.M. Chambers House Tuesday morning.The football field's already given way to a Pepsi-sponsored urban farm at Paul Quinn College, an ... More >>

Liveblogging Today's City Council Meeting, That Is, At Least Until They're Done Talkin' About the Interesting Stuff

Sam MertenCity Manager Mary Suhm and Mayor Tom Leppert early this morning at today's city council meeting.​With my trusty laptop in hand, I prepared to liveblog the heck outta today's city council meeting -- the last one before the council leaves for its July recess and then returns to tackle ... More >>

Liveblogging the Council Briefing During Which They're Discussing Hiking Your Water Bill

If you've never met the director of Dallas Water Utilities, here she is: Jody Puckett​Walked into today's city council briefing a couple minutes late to catch Tennell Atkins talking about how Dallas needs "classy," and then they gave a long and lengthily introduced award to Wal-Mart wherein everyb ... More >>

Former Local Track and Field Star Athlete, Now Homeless, Recognized by City Council

Patrick MichelsCouncil member Tennell Atkins, who honored an old friend at yesterday's council briefing​The pre-lunch portion of yesterday morning's Dallas City Council briefing offered up at least one heartwarming, non-yawn-inducing moment as one of Dallas's homeless was recognized, if at lea ... More >>

While Chief Kunkle Isn't Planning on Slacking Off, Don't Park Your Car at Baby Dolls

Patrick Michels​Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle was at City Hall this morning for the first time since announcing his surprise retirement last week. Ostensibly, he came to discuss the newly updated crime statistics, but he kicked off a briefing of the city council's Public Safety Committee by dis ... More >>

Several Council Members Say That, You Know, a Teensy-Tiny Tax Hike Ain't a Bad Idea

​Speaking of the council and the budget and fees versus taxes ...As we mentioned yesterday, Tennell Atkins's budget amendment called for a 1-cent property tax increase -- which I didn't think would get terribly far, given council members, the mayor and the city manager's oft-repeated vows not to r ... More >>

The City Council's Budget Wish List

Natalie Dee​Curious to see which council member wants what program reinstated to City Manager Mary Suhm's proposed FY2009-2010 budget, which the council will vote on one week from tomorrow? Then you're in luck: Tomorrow, the council will discuss during its briefing session their budget amendments, ... More >>

Council Members (At Least Those Without Rent Homes) Supportive of Registration Idea. Except Dave Neumann, Who Blasts "Tax."

​If the Dallas City Council winds up passing an ordinance requiring rent-house owners to register with the city -- a proposal we mentioned Sunday and just discussed at the council's briefing -- it'll apparently have to do so without three members' input. In the middle of Code Compliance's presenta ... More >>

During Debate, Atkins Explains, Look, He's For Hotel Because He Didn't Want to Waste a Vote

Tennell Atkins and LeVar Thomas debated for an hour last night at Paul Quinn College in South Dallas, as the two candidates in the District 8 city council race offered opposing views regarding the inland port, the convention center hotel and giving more power to Dallas Police Chief David Kunkle. At ... More >>

That Last-Minute Effort to Delay Citywide Smoking Ban Just Got Kicked in the Ash

So much for Tennell Atkins's move to push back the citywide smoking ban till October 10. Atkins had insisted that some bars and restaurants have had issues securing city permits to build porches and patios in advance of the April 10 start date of the new ordinance's enforcement, which will "prohibit ... More >>

Food For Thought 4.6.09

"We're in a recession, hard times. We shouldn't be hurting business. I'm not saying, 'Let's take away this issue.' We're just saying, 'Let's give these businesses some time.'" (Tennell Atkins, member of the Dallas City Council, on an effort to delay the city's smoking ordinance, which bans lighting ... More >>

Who's No. 1? Dallas City Council Candidates Pick Ballot Positions.

City Secretary Deborah Watkins and her staff this morning in the Flag Room at City Hall announced the ballot positions for the May 9 city council elections, as Billy MacLeod, Victoria Walton, Tiffinni Young, John Jay Myers and Anita Dade gained an early leg up on the incumbents in their respective d ... More >>

Mayor Tom Leppert Isn't the Only One Who Made False Promises During the Trinity River Toll Road Campaign

In the comments of a blog item regarding council member Tennell Atkins's questionable campaign finance reports, someone using the name "joe" suggested that, along with being a hobbit, my motivation in digging around Atkins's reports was his support of the Trinity Turnpike and convention center hotel ... More >>

Buzz: City Council Member Tennell Atkins Needs Help with his Math

Something About Tennell Atkins's Campaign Finance Reports Doesn't Quite Add Up

With the city council campaign season heating up, we thought it would be worthwhile to take a look-see at some of the campaign finance reports of the incumbents to see how they've been spending their dough. Freshman council member Tennell Atkins emerged as our first subject after we noticed an unusu ... More >>

Mayor Tom, Talk Show Host?

Dunno when this was done, but as evidenced by this just-posted clip it's clear Tom Leppert has a future as an early-Sunday morning community-affairs talk-show host when he's done being mayor. His interview with special guest Tennell Atkins is a little, oh, Chris Farley for my tastes, but it's promis ... More >>

Why the New Smoking Ordinance Should Have Been Delayed, and Sorting Through the 10 Amendments

There's a line where government stops and the rights of the people begin, and when Mayor Tom Leppert and nine of his council colleagues voted to strengthen Dallas' smoking ordinance, that line wasn't blurred, they drove right past it as if it didn't even exist. But no matter where you stand on the i ... More >>

Mayor's Pro-Hotel Group to Make Its Bow Tomorrow at City Hall

Well, Merten called it yesterday, when he pointed out that Mayor Tom and Dallas Convention & Visitors Bureau reps would be making their case for that convention center hotel during a press conference tomorrow that's unfurling in the City Hall Flag Room smack in the middle of the city council's actio ... More >>

Deadbird

How vicious racial politics, mismanagement, and dirty dealing turned Dallas' Redbird Airport into a Third-World airfield

The exterminator

Black politico Dwaine Caraway sounds a lot like a redneck when it comes to slamming his enemies