Good evening:
Last week’s City Council votes locked in big pieces of the city’s economic development and transportation strategy, from a (revised) public investment in the Dallas Wings to a regional funding deal with DART that will ultimately keep billions in transit dollars on track — even as CEO Nadine Lee has announced she won’t be coming along for the ride.
Meanwhile, early conversations around a potential new Dallas Mavericks arena in Downtown are no longer hypothetical, while the city’s latest housing data is forcing another hard conversation this week about growth, affordability, and whether Dallas is willing to change the rules to keep up.
The long-running debate about how Dallas grows — and who benefits — continues.
📖 Table of Contents
🗞️ Highlights From Last Week: Meetings, Memos, and Media of Interest
Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) CEO Nadine Lee informed her board members this week that she will not seek an extension of her contract, which ends in September. She tells WFAA in the above interview why she made the decision, and what she is most proud of having accomplished during her tenure.
Dallas City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert confirmed in a statement on Friday that she has met with the Dallas Mavericks and Stars leaders throughout her time as city manager. Those meetings have included discussions of “the teams’ need for a modern fan-friendly arena experience.” Her statement came after Mavericks CEO Rick Welts reportedly said Tolbert told him over a year ago that City Hall would likely be an available site for a new basketball arena and entertainment district. Read more from The Dallas Morning News.
On Wednesday, March 25, Dallas City Council members voted to:
Defer to April 8 a vote on Item 10, a $90,000 construction manager at risk contract with Linbeck Group, LLC, for preconstruction and construction services for the Dallas Zoo Safari Trail project. The project will transform significant acreage of the old zoo monorail line into immersive habitat experiences, embedded classrooms, and event spaces.
Approve Item 12, adoption of the White Rock Lake Master Plan, which is intended to guide future development and improvements at the park.
Approve Item 54, an Interlocal Agreement with DART to establish a six-year General Mobility Program for Dallas to receive a projected $211 million from the agency to fund eligible transportation projects. This was a key part of the regional compromise agreement that convinced the cities of Plano, Farmers Branch, and Irving to cancel May withdrawal elections. Learn more from KERA News.
Defer to June 24 Zoning Item 26, a proposed rezoning for what started as a planned 25-story mixed use luxury tower on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in the heart of South Dallas. Dallas Morning News columnist Robert Wilonsky reported last year that the folks behind the project now say it will instead be scaled back and focused on market rate and affordable housing.
Five Dallas City Council members want to recognize April 10 as Dolores Huerta Day, in recognition of the 95-year-old labor leader who was long celebrated alongside Cesar Chavez. In the wake of sexual abuse allegations against Chavez, Dallas and cities across the country are wiping away acknowledgements of the late labor leader. Council members here are also seeking to rename Cesar Chavez Boulevard and end recognitions of him on the official City calendar.
City Plan Commissioners approved a planned development district amendment to allow for a long-planned Uptown Central Market, restaurant, and retail uses, with a garage along McKinney Avenue between the two Lemmon avenues. The site was once home to an Albertson’s that closed a decade ago. The proposal now goes to City Council.
Check out the complete city manager memo packet for Friday, March 27, 2026.
🔢 Number of Interest
$215.1 Billion
Dallas taxable property value for the current fiscal year, the 13th consecutive year of growth in combined residential, commercial, and business personal property values. Read more in this City of Dallas fiscal 2025 Annual Comprehensive Financial Report.
🤝 Meetings of Interest: March 30 - April 3, 2026
Tuesday, March 31
🏡 Special Called Housing and Homelessness Solutions Committee, 1 p.m., 6ES Council Briefing Room, Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla St.
Briefing: Proposed Amendments to Dallas Housing Resource Catalog
The city is moving to tighten oversight of its housing incentive ecosystem — particularly the Dallas Housing Finance Corporation (DHFC) and Public Facility Corporation (DPFC), which have quietly become major players in subsidized development. The proposed changes add clearer rules on where projects go, how tax exemptions are used, and how deals get approved, including new requirements for council notification and, in some cases, supermajority votes.
2.83 MB • PDF File
🚌 Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) Board Administration Committee, 3 p.m., DART Conference Room C - 1st Floor, DART HQ, 1401 Pacific Ave. Dallas, TX 75202
Committee members will discuss appointment of an interim president and CEO, as well as a draft job description for the position.
Wednesday, April 1
🗣️ City Council Briefing, 9 a.m., Council Chambers, 6th Floor, Dallas City Hall, 1500 Marilla St.
Briefing: Proposed Street Feeding Code Amendment
City Hall may be close to taking a step it’s avoided for years: putting guardrails on unsanctioned street feedings that are increasingly concentrated in Downtown and other high-traffic areas. The proposed ordinance to be briefed to City Council members requires permits, basic food safety standards, and accountability for cleanup — a direct response to a growing, largely unregulated system. Downtown Dallas, Inc. (DDI) personnel are often left to clean up the mess left behind by the mass feedings on the south side of Downtown.
3.11 MB • PDF File
At 116 pages, the City’s latest housing briefing makes at least one thing clear: Dallas is not building enough housing where it’s needed, and the consequences are piling up. Of note:
Dallas is short 46,000 units for lower-income renters.
Landlords filed nearly 28,000 eviction cases last year.
Nearly 90% of very low-income renters are housing cost-burdened, meaning they’re spending more than 30% of their gross income on housing expenses.
Staff is floating a new “Dallas is Home” framework. One key question is whether council members will be willing to touch zoning, land use, and production at scale.
Thursday, April 2
✈️ Dallas Fort Worth International Airport Board, 8:30 a.m., Board Room, DFW Airport HQ, 2400 Aviation Drive, DFW Airport, TX 75261
Action items include a contract amendment up to $300 million tied to delivery of the Terminal F and Skylink Station. “This action is a not-to-exceed amount to ensure the project remains on schedule while we continue to negotiate cost with the contractor,” the background material notes. The airport and American Airlines last year announced an accelerated and expanded scope to include 31 gates at a total cost of $4 billion.
🗣️ Quote of Interest
It has been the honor of my career to lead this extraordinary organization. Together, we navigated one of the most challenging periods in transit history and emerged stronger, more focused, and better positioned to serve our growing region.
A note to readers: Meetings of Interest is an independent newsletter curated and authored by The GoldHam Group Managing Partner Scott Goldstein and edited by GoldHam Managing Partners Sam Goldstein and Vana Hammond. The content, perspectives, or commentary presented herein reflect the views of the author alone and do not necessarily represent the views, policies, or positions of any other organization, institution, or individual, unless explicitly stated otherwise. Any affiliations are for identification purposes only and do not imply endorsement.
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Have a great week.
Best,
Scott Goldstein
Managing Partner
The GoldHam Group
Sam Goldstein, Scott Goldstein, and Vana Hammond are co-founders of The GoldHam Group, a southern Dallas-based boutique communications, events, and public affairs firm.
