Dallas, TX

Dallas City Hall has a $168 million ‘tech debt.’ How did it get so bad?

Published

2 years ago

January 9, 2024

Dallas City Hall has a 8 million ‘tech debt.’ How did it get so bad?

Technology seems to become obsolete almost as fast as it’s invented these days, and Dallas City Hall has shown that keeping up is a struggle.

A lack of investment and effective management of the city’s technology infrastructure over many years has resulted in a buildup of projects that need money and attention. In December, staff from Dallas’ Information and Technology Services updated council members on a plan for more efficient management of technology resources. And, as with most such updates, there is a price tag attached.

It’s a good thing the city is finally working on this plan, but it took too long to get to this point. As of December, the city has about $168 million in what’s called “technical debt,” Bill Zielinski, Dallas’ chief information officer, said during the meeting.

Zielinski explained during the December presentation that having technical debt means having technology that doesn’t do what it needs to. Like any other kind of debt, it becomes increasingly difficult and costly to manage when it builds up too much. That can cause serious problems for the city and how it delivers services.

Last year’s ransomware attack, for example, affected police, courts, 311 and multiple city websites. It took months to clean up, and the city had to spend $4 million on a cyberattack detection system. It was a worthy purchase, but it shouldn’t have been made retroactively, and it highlights the need to keep on top of technology and to budget adequately to handle it.

We asked the city why this has taken so long to address. The city’s press office pointed to a Forrester Research survey indicating that a buildup of ineffective tech is common, and that Dallas IT staff have provided regular updates to the city about how to remediate it in monthly reports since August 2022.

Just because it might be a common problem doesn’t mean it should be a city problem. Effective management means being ahead of the pack, not part of it.

A technology accountability report from March describes a seven-year plan to address the problem, beginning with the highest priority areas first and gradually tapering off to lower ones. The idea is to get to consistent monitoring and management that the city should have already had in place.

During the presentation, Zielinski brought a complete map depicting all the city’s technical systems and which departments are using them. Printed out to a readable scale, the map was about 60 feet long with two rows, he said.

The city has nearly 900 independent IT systems used across over 40 departments, and Zielinski said that in his experience since 2020, there have been far too many application failures that have caused business loss. His goal is to reduce that as much as possible.

Better late than never, certainly, but we wish Dallas had a clearer management plan in place sooner to save both money and loss in time and work.

Budgeting and managing technology properly is part of every modern organization’s bread and butter work. Dallas needs to get this right every budget cycle.

We welcome your thoughts in a letter to the editor. See the guidelines and submit your letter here. If you have problems with the form, you can submit via email at letters@dallasnews.com

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Dallas, TX

McAllen Welcomes Texas Hockey | Dallas Stars

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6 hours ago

May 29, 2026

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McAllen Welcomes Texas Hockey | Dallas Stars

DallasStars.com is the official Web site of DSE Hockey Club, L.P. The Dallas Stars primary logo is a registered trademark and the Stars name and secondary logos are trademarks of the Dallas Stars. NHL, the NHL Shield, the word mark and image of the Stanley Cup and NHL Conference logos are registered trademarks of the National Hockey League. All NHL logos and marks and NHL team logos and marks as well as all other proprietary materials depicted herein are the property of the NHL and the respective NHL teams and may not be reproduced without the prior written consent of NHL Enterprises, L.P. Copyright © 1999-2026 DSE Hockey Club, L.P. and the National Hockey League. All Rights Reserved.

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Dallas, TX

At least three dead after fire destroys Dallas apartment complex

Published

18 hours ago

May 29, 2026

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At least three dead after fire destroys Dallas apartment complex

NewsFeed

A large fire destroyed an apartment complex in Dallas after crews responded to reports of a gas leak. Authorities say at least three people, including a child, were killed. Other residents are unaccounted for.

Published On 29 May 2026

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Dallas, TX

North Texas doughnut shops named among best in U.S.

Published

1 day ago

May 28, 2026

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North Texas doughnut shops named among best in U.S.

Jarams will always be top in our hearts.

Lauren Drewes Daniels

Arguments about the best doughnut shops can get heated. We have our own personal top 10 favorites. And we have issues with DoorDash’s list below. So, let’s dive right into this sweet, round confection with a hole in the middle.

For National Donut Day, which is Friday, June 5, for all those who celebrate, DoorDash has a roundup of the top 100-rated small and medium-sized donut shops on DoorDash. The list includes local businesses across 86 cities and 25 states.

To be considered for the Donut Day Dozens list, the bakery must be small or medium-sized, have fewer than 10 stores, and have at least 1,000 reviews. The shops with the highest average consumer ratings from April 2025 to April 2026 were chosen.

Of the 21 donut shops chosen across Texas, 13 are located in North Texas.

North Texas bakeries named best doughnuts

Morning Donuts – Dallas, TX
Baker’s Dozen Donuts – Cross Roads, TX
Busy B’s Bakery – North Richland Hills, TX
Donut House Plano – Plano, TX
Donut King #3 – Fort Worth, TX
Eagle Donuts – Crowley, TX
Earnest Donuts – Lewisville, TX
Four Seasons Donuts – Irving, TX
Jin’s Donuts – Farmers Branch, TX
Master Donut – The Colony, TX
Stacy Donuts – McKinney, TX
TWISTY DONUTS MANSFIELD – Mansfield, TX

A few misses

There are some obvious big misses here. Like La Rue in Trinity Groves, which apparently was left off because it has fewer than 1,000 reviews. We awarded this chef-driven shop Best Doughnuts in 2025 for pushing out top-tier confections every morning and a seasonal menu that will both win you over and break your heart. They’re also using only beef tallow in the fryers now.

And no Jarams? The shop on Preston Road has a 4.7 average rating on DoorDash, and it appears 4.8 was the cutoff. The family-owned Jarams is one of the best shops in Dallas.

As is Detour Donuts in Frisco. This is run by an ambitious young baker who draws long lines for themed doughnuts and a rotating menu.

Beyond North Texas …

The rest of the awarded donut shops were mostly located in Houston, with a sprinkle in San Antonio. Shops were listed in alphabetical order, and not with any sort of numbered ranking system.