Dallas used pandemic relief funds to fix houses and upgrade infrastructure in neighborhoods within Oak Cliff and elsewhere. Years later, some residents ask what went wrong.
Category: Public Services
Posted inPublic Services
The Public Won’t Be Seeing the State’s Report on Foster Care Problems
A judge this week allowed a report on North Texas’ troubled foster care provider to be sealed.
Posted inPublic Services
How Texas’ Foster Care Fix Fell Apart in Dallas
Lawmakers tried to help abused and neglected kids by privatizing the system. But in North Texas, many problems persist.
Posted inPublic Services
A New Park Is Coming Near You
The 40-acre Judge Charles R. Rose Park, in the Highland Hills neighborhood just north of Interstate 20, features a restored Blackland prairie, hike and bike trails, playgrounds, and an outdoor classroom. But Molly Morgan, the Texas director of the Trust for Public Land, which developed the park, first mentions the pavilion. The park planners didn’t […]
Posted inPublic Services
In Dallas County, Stalled Paperwork Keeps Teens Homeless
Many young people aging out of foster care can’t access housing assistance because of the failures of government officials.
Posted inCriminal Justice
Dallas’ Juvenile Justice System Was Broken. Have County Leaders Fixed It?
The length of time child defendants spent incarcerated in Dallas County awaiting their cases to be resolved declined by 59 percent in two years—moving the juvenile justice system closer to meeting national standards for the first time since at least 2018. The average number of children held behind bars last year who were awaiting sentencing […]
Posted inPublic Services
What’s Really at Stake in November
Good morning and congratulations. You made it through the primary elections. Your phone should stop vibrating through your pocket any day now—except for, maybe, the voters who will return to the polls in the May runoff to determine candidates like attorney general. The Dallas results came late: The county GOP’s decision to hem voters into […]
Posted inPublic Services
The Way We Measure Poverty Is Broken
The formula that gauges each city’s poverty rate remains tied to the America of 1963. Economist Cullum Clark explains what that means for families living in Dallas.
Posted inCriminal Justice, Health, Housing, Neighborhoods, Public Services
These Stories Will Shape Dallas in 2026
The new year is here, and we are highlighting seven topics we’ll be watching closely.
Posted inPublic Services
This Thanksgiving, a Break and Reflection
A quick story about a thousand people who came together on a rainy Tuesday night to help untangle some of the region’s knottiest issues.