Chad West lashes out after he posted on Facebook that he was on the receiving end of “several calls and messages last night from neighbors who experienced 2, 3, 4 and even 6-hour waits at the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center yesterday for their COVID19 vaccination appointments.”
Council Member West seemed dismayed at the Mayor, but the entire City Council has been acting as one observer noted “like a bunch of petulant children.”
This local political actist noted “if the Mayor and City Council had to rely on one another for mutual survival, they’d all be done six months ago. Every one of them is more interested in their memo or tweet to score political points than in listening and fixing problems and they are ignoring people with the experience to do help.”
Chad West Lashes Out – In Wrong Direction?
The angry Facebook post came the same day Dallas County reported 1,617 new COVID19 cases and a dozen deaths.
In late January, Dallas County Commissioner’s Court voted 3-0 with two abstentions to prioritize vaccine distribution to certain zip codes leaving black and brown citizens in other areas at the end of the line. An emergency meeting was required after the decision once the Texas Department of State Health Services reminded Dallas County of their obligations under their hub contract to serve everyone.
Dallas Police Department Senior Corporal Keith Huber was arrested for Family Violence Assault – Bodily Injury. He was transported to the Waxahachie Jail.
Keith Huber photo from Waxahachie Jail. A previous picture incorrectly listed Stephen Vineyard who is subject of a second story forthcoming.
Senior Corporal Huber has been with the department for nearly two decades – coming on the force in May 2002.
Huber was also charged with assault causing bodily injury of a family member in October 2016 for a September 2016 incident. Huber turned himself into the Ellis County Sheriff’s Department on Friday in connection with that incident. Those charges were dismissed in November 2018.
Keith Huber – Not Only Officer With Incidents
Dallas Police have suffered numerous officers acting poorly in the past year.
Additionally, a DPD Officer arrested in Fort Worth has an interesting history. Dallas police officer, Senior Corporal Daniel Collins, was arrested Thursday on a charge of transportation of child pornography, officials said. According to his Facebook page he appears to also be a self avowed “ISIS hunter.”
Another officer, Brian Deininger, continues to lead field sobriety training despite his own issues with alcohol impairment behind the wheel.
The Business and Community Lenders nonprofit is accused of threatening a local nonprofit with withdrawing a grant made by the City of Dallas when the grantee asked process questions that were not identified in the initial proposal submission. In the taped conversation the Director of Entrepreneurship, Brian K Marhshall, is heard saying “if you don’t stop asking questions we will just withdraw the grant.” (The conversation provided to Other Side Dallas has gone to a notary for transcription for legal purposes.)
In November, the City of Dallas advertised the B.U.I.L.D Small Business Grant Program. As of late December applicants had not heard from city staff.
As the city advertised, B.U.I.L.D. (Broaden Urban Investments to Leverage Dallas) launched the B.U.I.L.D Small Business Grant Program to assist small businesses impacted by the economic downturn caused by the global COVID-19 pandemic. The program will provide businesses in the city of Dallas that have fewer than nine employees, or a 2019 payroll of less than $250,000, with a one-time grant of up to $3,000.
As we reported in the middle of January, several businesses expressed concern about issues with the grant. Their complaints ranged from the city missing its own deadline of late December notifications and not also changing standards after the application period.
BUILD Grantees Not Only Ones Concerned
In addition to the threats and changing standards, it is not clear who is funding this program. The City of Dallas who advertised the program has denied funding the program and referred the issue to JP Morgan Chase. Their media relations staff say they did not fund this program either.
Further, City of Dallas staff stated they had no responsive documents when asked about how BUILD grantees’ applications were scored and decisions made, that the decisions were for funding, etc.
Dr. Eric Anthony Johnson, Director of Economic Development for the City of Dallas has refused to respond to numerous requests for comment about his BUILD grantees program. Additionally, Tennell Atkins, Chairman of the City Council Economic Development Committee has refused multiple requests also.
As reported on Townview Magnet‘s news page, Dallas Independent School District is holding a Learning Loss Town Hall this Thursday night, January 21, 2021 to discuss district efforts to mitigate the loss of learning by students hit hard by the pandemic.
After engaging with more than 10,000 stakeholders and getting feedback from teachers and campus leaders through multiple virtual community meetings, Dallas ISD is proposing three calendar models that would provide more learning time for the students that need it the most.
Dallas ISD started exploring the possibility of potentially adding learning time for certain students after data showed the devastating impact the pandemic could have on students. Earlier this year, Dallas ISD Trustees voted to lower academic standards for passing. It appears they are not reversing course.
Dallas ISD officials wrote more than 10,000 parents, teachers and community members responded to a survey asking for input, and numerous virtual forums solicited input from campus staff, district leaders and community stakeholders.
In addition to COVID19, district officials are hampered by Austin directives contrary to local needs.
Learning Loss Town Hall Registration
Do you have questions about Dallas ISD’s plans to mitigate learning loss?
Dallas ISD leadership will be on the call at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, January 21, in a TeleTown Hall meeting to discuss the district’s efforts to mitigate learning loss by adding learning time for students who have been disproportionately impacted by the COVID19 pandemic.
Dallas ISD families will receive a call to participate, but if you want to make sure you are on the call list, register here.
NOTE: Registration ends three hours before the start of the meeting.
It was attacked by County Judge Clay Jenkins as potentially illegal and now Texas has agreed.
In a strongly worded email to Commissioners, Texas health officials said, “While we ask hub providers to ensure the vaccine reaches the hardest-hit areas and populations, solely vaccinating people who live in those areas is not in line with the agreement to be a hub provider,” wrote Imelda Garcia, an associate commissioner of the Texas Department of State Health Services.
She continues, “If Dallas County is unable to meet these expectations, we will be forced to reduce the weekly vaccine allocation … and no longer consider it a hub provider.”
In addition to the state action at least two attorneys were preparing motions to stop the new vaccine rollout.
COVID19 Politics At 1500 Marilla
Meanwhile, Mayor Eric Johnson sent a terse memo to City Manager TC Broadnax regarding city vaccination rollout and individual council members seeking vaccine registration hubs.
The Mayor’s memo was immediately attacked as another COVID19 politics power grab by Adam Bazaldua in both personal posts and posts to the Other Side DallasFacebook group.
The two City Council colleagues have been described by another City Council member as “the two boys in the sandbox who can’t get along because neither gets enough attention” from their mother.
“They both just complain about the other and neither does his homework,” the source said.
Dallas County Commissioner’s Court recently authorized what amounts to COVID19 Discrimination in their vaccination distribution plan. Commissioners openly stated the decision was based on race in designating eleven zip codes to receive the vaccine on a priority basis.
On February 1, 2021 those eleven zip codes – 75149, 75150, 75210, 75211, 75215, 75216, 75217, 75227, 75228, 75241, and 75243 – will receive the vaccine. Persons outside those zip codes will not.
Judge Clay Jenkins stated this “will stop shots for everyone else for ‘foreseeable future’.”
The decision is based on data from Parkland Hospital and a new layer on top of existing prioritization. Parkland Hospital reported hundreds of tests stolen this summer due to poor security procedures prior to Dallas becoming a pandemic hot zone.
COVID19 Discrimination
Jenkins also said, “I’m sure we’ll hear from the state of Texas and every suburban city in Dallas County as well as parts of the city not in those 10 ZIP codes.”
Can the City of Dallas expect more Economic Development bait and switch from the department led by Dr. Eric Anthony Johnson? It appears so when it comes to offering grants and then making the checks impossible to obtain.
In November, the city launched the BUILD grants program offering $3000 microgrants to small businesses and nonprofits hit hard by COVID19. The notice said checks would be out by December 28, 2020. Until we inquired last week through a Public Information Request no one had received notice.
One education based nonprofit noted they received notification Friday and were then given one businesses day to agree to additional terms and conditions not originally outlined in the program. Their reaction to this bait and switch was outrage.
In an email to Carolyn King Arnold the group noted they are already doing the city and county’s job by providing for homeless students who are not receiving services through City of Dallas.
Bait and Switch – Again
The bait and switch grant issue is particularly hard because the City of Dallas provided $3M to a South Dallas grocer with almost no strings attached. It reeked of the economic devlopment problems of the old South Dallas/Fair Park Trust Fund.
The issue is particularly relevant as six different entities contacted Other Side Dallas to complain about process and response.
One person noted this is another example of the City of Dallas giving away dollars to politically connected friends of city council members. In October, city staff tried to sneak through a proposal to give the Lorenzo Hotel nearly $2M. It was only stopped when Council Member Cara Mendolsohn (D12) asked questions.
To date there has been no response to emails from several city council members including Tennell Atkins who spearheaded the $3M to the now closed Save U More grocer, and has been a major recipient of campaign cash from Save U More’s representatives.
Ditty Mayor Eric Johnson who also received sizeable contributions on the repeated failings of Economic Development.
Ditto Casey Thomas (D3) who also has been silent on the matter.
Ditto Adam Bazaldua (D7) who has ignored several requests to discuss this issue and the South Dallas/Fair Park Opportunity Fund Board from current and former board members.
The issue has not escaped notice though.
Calvin Johnson, a candidate for the D7 city council seat in May said,”When it comes to city programs that help small business we have to be better organized on announcing all the requirements upfront.”
“We must set achievable timetables and follow through effectively on the back end when the assistance is approved and granted,” he continued.
It is unclear why his opponent Bazaldua has not taken this opportunity given his progressive public profile for slashing the police budget in favor of social programs.
Ditto North Dallas. Council Member Lee Kleinman (D11) who has been arguing against the Dallas Police Department’s mounted unit for years – which costs the city roughly $125000 annually – had no comment about either the Save U More issue or bait and switch grant programs. Kleinman is term limited and
Two people were shot Monday afternoon in a Pleasant Grove convenience store incident.
Dallas Police Department officials said it happened Monday afternoon at the Mini Mart on Scyene Road near North St. Augustine Drive.
The two victims are in stable condition at a local hospital and police are not commenting further on motive.
Pleasant Grove Convenience Store Incident – Just One More?
While the shooting was happening, D7 Council Member Adam Bazaldua was tweeting about race issues with COVID19 vaccination sites.
He was a leading voice on defunding Dallas Police Department in summer of 2020, but a campaign insider said he is terrified of Kevin Felder or Tiffinni Young jumping into the D7 council race.
“Adam is dismissing Not My Son’s Tramonica Brown,” said another source.
The final budget partially defunded police overtime, but removed some of the pork projects that had been substituted originally.
The certification hearing on whether Zephi trevino will be tried as an adult will be held today.
Justin Moore is representing the Trevino family.
The focus of the story: 17-year-old Zephaniah “Zephi” Trevino and 19-year-old Philip Baldenegro. Both have been accused in the deadly shooting that happened in August 2019.
The young girl claims she isn’t guilty. Her family has said she was being sex trafficked by Baldenegro.
David Finn, Baldenegro’s attorney called the sex trafficking allegations a “smoke screen.”
Beyond The Certification Hearing
Beyond the certification hearing, Trevino’s case has attracted Hollywood attention from Jamie Lee Curtis, Demi Lovato, and now, Kim Kardashian West.
It has also attracted attention of political activists angry that Dallas District Attorney John Creuzot shared a Facebook post of another defense attorney stating why Trevino should be tried as an adult.
Who made the call to rescind yesterday’s memo about Dallas Police dispatch and who made the call to issue it unsigned? Those are the questions Dallas is asking this morning.
The second day of the New Year was a communications debacle as an unsigned memo came to light stating several calls with potential for violence would not be dispatched. Among them were burglary of a motor vehicle, runaways, and incidents involving child custody.
Rescind Statement And Investigation
Council Member Jennifer Staubach Gates issued her own statement against the dispatch orders stating the matter was internal and draft in nature. She said it was “premature for DPD to initiate these changes before briefing the Public Safety Committee and before the new Chief begins.”
Chief Garcia is scheduled to start work sometime in February and the next Public Safety Committee meeting is scheduled for January 11, 2021 at 1:00pm.
