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Park proposition nixed by council

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Squire Park won’t face the same fate as Joya, at least not as a result of the upcoming May bond election.

The $2 million of improvements for Squire Park and $1.5 million for the trail and connectivity bond propositions were removed from the proposed ballot for the May 4 election after respectful but passionate discourse during the Feb. 6 Farmers Branch City Council study session and city council meeting.

Mayor Terry Lynne said he didn’t like forcing the 11th hour conversation but, after multiple conversations with groups of people at the Bond Town Hall, State of the City and meetings with private groups of residents, thought it would be irresponsible to not have a conversation about the bond propositions based on feedback he had received.

“I think it would be a huge mistake to put items forward that we know that citizens are not in favor of or that we know might fail,” he said.

The city had until Feb. 16 to call a bond election for May. 

Specifically, Lynne said he was concerned that everyone in the city was not in favor of the Squire Park improvements after seeing the effect of Joya’s grand opening Jan. 20, which has since led to issues with broken equipment and parking due to the park's popularity.

If a bond proposition fails in an election, the city council cannot bring it before voters again for three years.

“In addition, the optics of an item failing and then council trying to circumvent the process by trying to take money in the city budget and approve it for something that was voted down by residents, you have a situation that is very similar to what happened to the library a few years back,” Lynne said. “That was stopped by a citizen-led petition. That was not very good. It didn’t do our city any favors.”

In the study session before the city council meeting, he proposed reducing the propositions for the May ballot to just the Demo-Rebuild program, which was originally slated for $500,000; the Branch Connection remodel, which was slated to receive $2 million; and the Water Infrastructure Improvements, which was also slated to receive $2 million. He suggested reallocating the $3.5 million from the Squire Park Improvements and Trail and Connectivity proposals to those three propositions.

Councilman David Merritt was not in favor of changing how the propositions were funded but ultimately voted to reduce the propositions from the three to five.

“We have the opportunity to put this in front of the voters and allow them to have their say on how the money is being spent,” he said. “It is a unique opportunity with these bonds coming complete. The overall effect of this on the average homeowner was about $20 on their annual tax bill. If we did nothing, they would have their tax bill reduced.”

By contrast, Councilman Richard Jackson was concerned that if voters defeated a proposition, the city would lose the opportunity to work on the proposed projects for three years.

“I’m supportive of leaving it the way it is and letting the voters speak to it, but … if any of these don’t pass … we lose that opportunity for that bond amount to spend on that project so it will be a lost opportunity.”

After several hours of discussion during the two meetings, the council voted 4-1, with Councilman Omar Roman opposing, to leave the Demo-Rebuild proposition at $500,000, the Branch Connection remodel at $2 million, and move the remaining proposed bond money to fund the Water Infrastructure Improvements proposition for $5.5 million; passing Ordinance No. 3849 calling for a special bond election to be held May 4.

Squire Park

All of the council members agreed to move the $1.5 million Squire Park improvements from the bond because they had received similar feedback about concerns about other park improvements.

Councilman Martin Baird said that while he was for parks and trails in general, he was not in favor of going into debt to fund them. He said the city should go into debt for only infrastructure needs, not for entertainment purposes, especially when there is already $1.2 million in the budget to pay for improvements to Squire Park.

“When you go to Six Flags, you don’t go into debt to buy a ticket,” he said.

Trails and Connectivity

Roman said the original discussion about using bond money for the trails and sidewalks was specifically to widen the sidewalks along Valwood Parkway and connect to an existing trail, which would increase public safety and walkability for the neighborhood. The $2 million proposed bond was not enough funding to completely fund the project but would make the area safer.

“If we can expand the sidewalks and make it a little bit more livable for the people there, that slows traffic down, that promotes public safety, that’s a permanent solution to the speeding issue,” he said. “We have an opportunity to create a permanent change that is going to increase and enhance the quality of life for those individuals who, representative after representative, have shared those same concerns, but no one has done anything about it.”

He suggested changing the label of the bond to reflect the public safety aspect of the improvements.

During the city council meeting, Councilwoman Tina Bennett-Burton agreed that if the proposition for trail and connectivity project were kept, the language needed to change.

“If we do the trails and connectivity, it has to be very explicit for where we’re going to use it geographically,” she said.

Demo/Rebuild Program

The Demo/Rebuild Program, along with a connected but separate program called the Neighborhood Renaissance Program, brought more conflicting opinions among the councilmembers.

Director of Economic Development Allison Cook explained the difference between and the history of the programs.

Also known as the Neighborhood Revitalization Program, the Neighborhood Renaissance Program started in the 1990s as a way for the city to buy groups of lots to resell to developers as a way to counteract gentrification by limiting the size of the homes. The city designed the homes, keeping them under 1,900 square feet to limit the value the Dallas County Appraisal District assigns to them.

Five lots in the program were recently sold to Builders of Hope, with ground-breaking expected soon, she said. 

Cook said the program is for city-owned lots only and that the public sector can do whatever they want as far as what is built on lots in the city.

By contrast the Demo/Rebuilt Program provides grants and tax rebates to residents and builders who demolish old homes and build new ones. 

That program is the one in the original Demo/Rebuild Bond Proposition, but Lynne suggested expanding proposition to include both programs.

Because a strategy session was planned for Feb. 8, Roman and Bennett-Burton asked to wait before adding funding to that proposition.  

Bennett-Burton said the Demo/Rebuild Program concerns her and wanted more discussions before more money was added to the program.

“I think it goes back to that missing middle house,” she said, referencing a report to the council during the study session by Planning and Zoning Commission Chair Amber Raley. “You don’t want to gentrify. You don’t want large McMansions over there … We need have a conversation about that.” 

In the vote, the council left the funding for the proposition regarding the Demo/Rebuild program at $500,000.

Water Infrastructure Improvements

The proposition concerning Farmers Branch’s water infrastructure received very little debate. The councilmembers seemed in consensus that the infrastructure was a large and on-going issue for the city. Bennett-Burton said the Environmental Protection Agency requires the city have a plan by October for replacing all water lines installed before 1980. 

Funding from removed propositions were added to the Water Infrastructure Improvements Proposition, so that proposition totals $5.5 million.

Branch Connection

There was no discussion about changing the bond proposition of $2 million for completing the remodel of the Branch Connection. The council’s vote included leaving the proposition as it was originally written.

Upcoming Bond Town Halls

  • Tues., Feb. 13 at 6 p.m. at Mercer Crossing Amenity Center, 1801 Mercer Parkway

  • Tues., March 12 at 6 p.m. at Fire Station #2, 4060 Valley View Lane 

  • Tues., April 9 at 6 p.m. at Manske Library, 13613 Webb Chapel