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Preservationists Say These Six Historic Places In Dallas Are The Most Endangered

Five stories North Texas talking: Texas ranks as one of the best places for teachers; State Rep. Dawnna Dukes is leaving her post come January; take a look at southern Dallas' proposed deck park; and more.

Preservation Dallas released six endangered historic places Monday that include one or more buildings that face imminent auction, proposed construction and most of all, uncertainty. The nonprofit organization releases a regular list to bring awareness to the places in Dallas that don’t play a part in its award-winning skyline but would lessen the architectural landscape if they were gone.   

The six endangered places include: Historic buildings along the proposed DART D2 line, Elbow Room on the edge of Deep Ellum, historic buildings at Fair Park, Penson House in Highland Park, Polar Bear in Oak Cliff and Williams House in University Park.

See photos of some of the endangered sites in the gallery above, read more about them and check out the 2015 list. [Preservation Dallas]

 

  • Texas is the eighth best place for teachers in the U.S., according to a WalletHub study. The personal finance website evaluated all 50 states and Washington D.C. across 16 metrics that either pertained to “job opportunity and competition” or “academic and work environment”. Out of a possible 100, Texas scored 60.17. The state ranked No. 1 with job opportunity and competition, but was brought down slightly by its academic and work environment rank: 28. New Jersey took the top spot for teachers and Hawaii ranked last. Explore the study. [WalletHub]
  • State Rep. Dawnna Dukes, D-Austin, is resigning in January, she said Monday. The Texas Tribune reports: “The 11-term state representative said her resignation was a result of health issues related to a 2013 car accident and concerns over caring for her 9-year-old daughter. Her announcement comes as the Travis County District Attorney's office is conducting a criminal investigation into her alleged misuse of staff and government funds.” Dukes will be on the November ballot, and if she beats Republican Gabriel Nila, Gov. Greg Abbott could call a special election to fill her vacant seat. [The Texas Tribune]

 

  • Nine people were injured in an early morning shooting in West University area of Houston Monday. The gunman, formally identified by authorities as 46-year-old local attorney Nathan DeSai, was shot by police at the scene in a strip mall parking lot near the corner of Wesleyan and Bissonnet Streets, KUHF reports. Houston Police Chief Martha Montalvo confirmed Monday that there were additional weapons in the suspect’s vehicle. [Houston Chronicle, KUHF]
  • The proposed $118 million deck park in southern Dallas has all the bells and whistles plus its critics. The proposed park spans I-35 between Ewing and Marsalis Avenues and includes an event lawn, performance stage, dog park and more. Dallas Observer reports the city has $40 million for the park but the rest is unfunded. “Carolyn Arnold, whose Dallas City Council District 4 is partially adjacent to the proposed park, has called the decision to build the park "dictatorial" and questioned the appropriateness of trying to come with $78 million to build it when southern Dallas has so many other needs.” [Dallas Observer]