During the Dallas City Council meeting Wednesday, two council members suggested the City should spend billions of dollars on South Dallas infrastructure.
While considering a now-passed proposal to offer tax credits to Tom Thumb to build a grocery store in the Redbird neighborhood of Oak Cliff, District 12 Council Member Cara Mendelsohn of North Dallas expressed concerns with the size and cost of the tax credit being approved.
“When I saw the number I said, ‘That’s a lot of money!'” said Mendelsohn.
District 8 Council Member Tennell Atkins, who represents the southernmost region of Dallas, suggested in response that some on the council were working in the interests of their own district rather than in the interest of the whole city.
“It’s amazing that I’ve been talking about the tale of two cities for the last twenty years. I’m sick and tired of saying how much money we need to go to Southern Dallas. Whether it’s grocery stores, infrastructure, underserved areas,” said Atkins.
Atkins went on to say that millions in investments for South Dallas infrastructure would not be enough.
“We need billions of dollars in the southern part of Dallas!” he exclaimed. “We need to look at the history of the southern part of Dallas. If you’re going to grow the southern part of Dallas, you need billions of dollars.”
Council Member Casey Thomas II weighed in to agree with Atkins.
“I’ve lived the historic neglect, and I represent individuals who’ve committed to spend their life in an area that has been historically neglected,” Thomas said.
He claimed that there should be no limit to the amount of taxpayer money spent in South Dallas.
“There’s no way you can put a dollar amount on how much is enough. Councilman Atkins said billions. The question may need to be, how much money was spent in North Dallas? What is the value of North Dallas as a result of the money invested by the City of Dallas?” Thomas asked.
Mendelsohn pushed back later in the meeting during a debate over housing, suggesting the council member’s rhetoric toward North Dallas was fueling racial tensions rather than reducing them.
“The focus has not been at this council on addressing poverty issues. It’s solely on exacerbating racial issues, in my opinion,” she said.
The 2022-2023 Dallas City Budget totals $4.51 billion, mostly spent on essential services like the Police Department and Dallas Fire-Rescue. The City is required to balance its budget each year, suggesting that billions in spending would be funded through steep property tax hikes or severe cuts to existing City services.
Neither Atkins nor Thomas was specific about the spending they would seek in South Dallas or how it would be funded.
The Dallas Express contacted the offices of Casey Thomas II and Tennell Atkins for further details on their comments, but neither council member responded by the publication deadline.