Dallas city leaders announced on Tuesday a new partnership aimed at improving blighted and crime-ridden neighborhoods.
Economic Partners Investing in Communities, or EPIC, includes the Dallas Police Department, GrowSouth, Safer Dallas Better Dallas, Communities Foundation of Texas and Dallas Area Habitat for Humanity.
Habitat CEO William D. Hall said the new alliance would partner with key stakeholders in neighborhoods citywide and raise money for its projects.
“The primary reason for this is to have a discussion about the city neighborhoods," Hall said. "How do we make them more secure? How do we build them? And how do we create more investment?”
To help with those efforts, Safer Dallas presented Police Chief David Brown with a $300,000 check for the department’s crime-fighting initiative in two of the city’s hot spots.
Chief Brown said the check and partnership would go a long in helping combat crime.
"Economic development is the smartest way to build our way out of crime in Dallas," he said. "So, this is not a pipe dream."
