Dallas must get every penny of federal infrastructure funds
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The city cannot build the future on local taxes alone.
Dallas is an aging city, and there is little question that taxpayers here will never be able to pay enough from property and sales taxes alone to catch up with the backlog of maintenance that we have.
Residents complain, and rightly so, about our streets, sidewalks, alleys and traffic lights, among any number of other concerns that, every bond program, we chip away at even as more potholes open up and more sidewalks crumble.
For that reason, we are supportive of a plan from Mayor Eric Johnson to set up a working group to coordinate efforts to capture as much money as Dallas can from three key federal infrastructure programs.
Johnson has set up any number of task forces around a variety of issues. And while we worry about the goal and purpose of some of these task forces, and whether they are duplicating work better done by city staff, this one appears much needed and correctly set up.
It will be led by Alan Cohen, who has done important work leading the Child Poverty Action Lab. Cohen gave us assurances that he is working closely with leaders in City Hall with the goal of coordinating efforts to leverage existing city funds to win the greatest share possible of available federal funds.
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Role of Junk Fees in the Dallas Rental Housing Market
During summer 2024, CPAL began to explore the role of junk fees in the rental housing market in Dallas.
- 56 out of 60 apartment complexes surveyed charged mandatory monthly fees (i.e., “junk fees”), in addition to the base rent.
- These fees cost renters, on average, $756 to $984 per year, further eroding housing affordability.
Housing in Dallas: A Framework for Action
This framework for action details the ways in which CPAL organizes its housing efforts across four dimensions.
- In 2017, 22,500 occupied housing units in the Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington Metropolitan Statistical Area (MSA) were classified as severely inadequate.
- Between 2008 and 2018, the DFW MSA lost 237,600 low-rent units (units renting for under $800), representing a decline of 42%.
Here's how Dallas leaders plan to deal with the third-worst child poverty rate among
Community leaders launch CPAL to address Dallas’ high rate of child poverty.
- According to the U.S. Census' American Community Survey data from 2011 to 2016, children that grow up in single-parent households are up to 3 1/2 times as likely to grow up in poverty.
- CPAL combines the clout of leaders and CEOs from major city and county institutions and systems (i.e. City of Dallas, Dallas ISD, Parkland Health and Hospital System, and Dallas Area Rapid Transit) with community-based partners.