On the latest episode of The Dallas Express Podcast, host Sarah Zubiate-Bennett spoke with Craig Davis, CEO of Visit Dallas, about some of the things that stand to make an impact in Downtown Dallas.
Visit Dallas, a non-profit booster for the city, has been hard at work trying to build up Dallas’ profile to make it a world-class destination city for tourism and conventions. It was identified by The Dallas Express as one of the most influential community organizations of 2023.
A key topic of discussion on the podcast was the redesign of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center, which is slated to break ground this year.
“What that means is we’re finally going to be able to attract the type of clientele in the medical, financial, and pharmaceutical worlds that couldn’t touch us before because we simply couldn’t accommodate them. So we’re going to get a high-end customer opportunity for conventions downtown that we’ve never had before,” Davis said. “And along with a new convention center, we’re going to get a brand new neighborhood at the convention center. So the prospects are very, very positive for us to create something brand new for Dallas.”
Bennett raised some of the issues Downtown Dallas has historically faced and continues to grapple with, including the concentration of people experiencing homelessness. She cited a recent study conducted in January that found that many of the homeless were congregating near City Hall Plaza, which is just a short walk from the convention center.
“I’m not going to pretend that that’s not a question that we get asked by our customers. And so from our standpoint, the way that we look at this is that we would love a measure of control, [so] that we can keep our homeless population safe. Out of our convention center, people walk to their hotels, they walk to restaurants. … While you can argue quite rightfully that that’s the situation in every single big city and most small cities, the way that we kind of sell against other cities is we talk about how much less you find actually in Dallas compared to our competitor cities,” Davis said.
Surveys have shown that Dallas residents are dissatisfied with the City’s response to the issues of homelessness, vagrancy, and panhandling. Zubiaete-Bennett referenced the “one-stop-shop” homeless services model utilized by Haven for Hope in San Antonio, noting that she has been advocating for such a model to be brought to Dallas.
Crime has also been a serious issue in Downtown Dallas, which has seen high levels of motor vehicle theft amid the ongoing officer shortage at the Dallas Police Department.
Davis and Zubiate-Bennett also discussed the implications of Texas legalizing gambling as well as Visit Dallas’ rebranding efforts. Check out the full episode on The Dallas Express website or on YouTube.
