Dallas, TX
Dallas condo owners live for a year with no walls — just a tarp
Two neighboring Dallas residents are living without walls.
That’s not hyperbole. The exterior walls of their condos have been removed and replaced with a large tarp. It’s been like that for a year.
No walls, only a tarp.
The homeowners association ordered the wall removal, citing mold and other problems. But the units also suffer from serious foundation issues.
Residents say they’ve endured this open-air existence because they believe they have no choice.
Where are they going to go? Who will buy their money pits with all these problems?
Carol Sullivan considers herself the fortunate one — at least she still has her interior walls. Her neighbor, Kate Phelan, isn’t so lucky. She’s missing both exterior and interior walls.
Both women blame the HOA, which authorized the wall removal and promised to rebuild. They say that promise has since vanished.
HOA Follies
In today’s episode of The Watchdog Presents HOA Follies, we go to the Lake Highlands neighborhood of Dallas — specifically to the 72-unit Oak Hollow Condominiums off Skillman Street.
The competition to be spotlighted on HOA Follies is fierce. The battles are constant, and that includes fighting outside management companies hired to run things.
In these squabbles, lies are told, stories are made up and the mantra that there are two sides to everything is proven false. In HOA disputes, there are often eight sides to every saga.
I cannot tell you the HOA side because the management group, Veracity of Plano, declined to speak to me. Veracity also declined to allow me to speak to HOA board members.
The word veracity, by the way, is defined as a devotion to the truth.
‘Terrified’
Sullivan says one holdup is the condo bosses demanding that doors and windows be removed during repairs.
“I’m terrified,” Sullivan says, fearing that once they are removed, they too won’t get put back.
Phelan describes constant dirt filtering in — weeds, grass and bugs. She’ll clean a room, then five minutes later, it’s all back. Especially the bugs.
“It’s like National Geographic in there,” she says.
How does she deal with it? Sometimes, she explodes.
In a draft she sent to Google reviews, she called the condo bosses “evil, sadistic, harassing, bullying, delusional, incompetent.”
“I don’t know what else to do, Phelan said.
Mold
Both women complain of sickness that they attribute to mold.
Health-wise, they shouldn’t be living there.
Phelan says her insurance company told her the responsibility is with the HOA. Her insurance will not fix interior issues until the outer walls are replaced.
Under Texas law, an HOA is responsible for the exterior common areas, while a condo owner is responsible for the inside.
Because the association removed the entire rear wall, they may be responsible for the follow-through, Phelan argues.
Solutions
What do you do in a situation like this?
Unfortunately, get a lawyer. Both women have hired a lawyer to help them. Several other owners have jumped in.
Phelan admits she was out of her league when house shopping. She didn’t know what to look for. She felt rushed. She saw problems before buying but didn’t think they were this bad. She paid $143,000.
Both women still pay $475 in monthly maintenance fees.
They neglected to file a formal complaint with Dallas’ code compliance department. An inspector might come out and write up violations.
Under city code for substandard structures, property owners are required to keep structures in good repair. Violations can be written for peeling paint, leaking roof, electrical and plumbing problems, holes in the wall, floor and ceiling, and decayed wood.
In some HOA’s, residents vote out existing members, and then fire the management company. I’ve seen it happen, but it’s rare.
Mostly, what’s needed is for condo bosses to live up to their promises. They need to display a devotion to the truth.
Without walls, condo owners use cardboard to provide safety from the elements.
Courtesy of Kate Phelan
Editor’s note: See World Cup standings and scenarios updated in real time
The Socceroos live on at the 2026 World Cup.
Australia and Paraguay played to a 0-0 draw on Thursday night, which was good enough for Australia to secure second place in Group D and advance to the knockout stage of the tournament. Paraguay is likely to advance as a high-ranking third place team, but nothing is confirmed at the moment.
SHOP: Australia round of 32 World Cup tickets
Australia will head to Dallas where they will play their first elimination match on Friday, July 3 against the second-place team from Group G.
While we don’t yet know Australia’s opponent, we know the location, date and time of the match, which means tickets are already available. Here is everything you need to know in order to buy Australia World Cup tickets in Dallas.
Shop Australia Round of 32 tickets
Australia round of 32 World Cup tickets
As of publication, the cheapest round of 32 ticket to see Australia in Dallas on Friday, July 3 is $937. Any ticket for less than $1,000 at this point in the tournament is a steal considering most other prices.
Australia Round of 32 opponent
As the runner-up of Group D, Australia will take on the second-place finisher from Group G. Australia’s opponent will be finalized on Friday, but given the current standings it could be any of the following four teams:
- Egypt
- Iran
- Belgium
- New Zealand
Shop Australia Round of 32 tickets
Australia World Cup schedule
- Australia vs. Turkey – WIN 2-0
- Australia vs. United States – LOSS 2-0
- Australia vs. Paraguay – DRAW 1-1
- Friday, July 3 – Australia vs. Group G runner up at AT&T Stadium in Dallas (round of 32) – Shop tickets
World Cup Group D Standings
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Editor’s note: See World Cup standings and scenarios updated in real time
Ivory Coast is headed to the knockout round at the 2026 World Cup.
With everything on the line Thursday afternoon, the Ivory Coast played perhaps its best match of the tournament so far to lock down second place in Group E and advance to the knockout stage of the tournament. Ivory Coast will head to Dallas where they will play their first elimination match on Tuesday, June 30 against the second-place team from Group I.
SHOP: Ivory Coast round of 32 World Cup tickets in Dallas
While we don’t yet know Ivory Coast’s opponent, we do know that it will either be France or Norway, meaning either way the African squad will have to defend against one of the best goal scorers in the world.
Here is everything you need to know in order to buy Ivory Coast World Cup tickets in Dallas.
Shop Ivory Coast Round of 32 tickets
Ivory Coast round of 32 World Cup tickets
As of publication, the cheapest round of 32 ticket to see Ivory Coast in Dallas on Tuesday, June 30 is $895, making this one of the cheapest tickets for the round of 32.
PRODUCT CARD
Ivory Coast Round of 32 opponent
As the runner-up of Group E, Ivory Coast will take on the second-place finisher from Group I. Ivory Coast’s opponent will be finalized on Friday, but given the current standings it will be either France or Norway.
Shop Ivory Coast Round of 32 tickets
Ivory Coast World Cup schedule
- Sunday, June 14 – Ivory Coast vs. Ecuador – WIN 1-0
- Saturday, June 20 – Ivory Coast vs. Germany – LOSS 2-1
- Thursday, June 25 – Ivory Coast vs. Curacao – WIN 2-0
- Tuesday, June 30 (Round of 32) – Ivory Coast vs. Group I runner up at AT&T Stadium in Dallas – Shop tickets
World Cup Group E standings
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Oftentimes, it’s a good idea to extend players early. The Dallas Cowboys have learned this the hard way as they’ve allowed negotiations with key contributors such as Dak Prescott, CeeDee Lamb, and Micah Parsons to get out of hand.
Prescott was able to use his leverage to land a contract worth $60 million per season, which was a record at the time. Lamb held out during that same offseason, eventually landing a deal worth $34 million annually, whereas Parsons forced his way out after his negotiations stalled.
To their credit, the Cowboys might have tried to avoid more issues by signing a few players early. That includes guard Tyler Smith, who landed a four-year, $96 million extension in 2025. That has proven to be a home run, but the same can’t be said for another one of their big extensions.
Dallas decided to lock up cornerback DaRon Bland, signing the former fifth-round pick to a four-year, $92 million extension. This was a surprise move from the Cowboys since Bland was coming off a frustrating season, which was marred by a foot injury. The Cowboys were banking on Bland returning to the form we saw in 2023, but that wasn’t the case.
Bland continued to struggle with durability and wasn’t the impact player we saw during his breakout season when he was on the field. Now, he enters his fifth season in the league with a hefty price tag, and there are questions about his long-term status with the team.
DaRon Bland’s cap hit in 2026 is a problem
According to Over The Cap, Bland has the fifth-highest cap hit on the team this season. Bland, who is earning an annual average salary of $23 million, has a hit of $17 million this year.
The good news for the Cowboys is that they seemed to protect themselves slightly with this deal. While they can’t feasibly move on in 2026, even if Bland loses his starting job, they do have a way out of his deal next year.
Dallas can release Bland ahead of the 2027 season while absorbing a dead cap hit of $12.941 million. That would essentially make his deal a two-year contract for $36.355 million. That’s still not an ideal situation for the Cowboys, but that’s also what happens when the front office rolls the dice.
It’s also an unfortunate trend, as the Cowboys decided to extend Michael Gallup and Terence Steele while coming off injury-plagued seasons, and the results weren’t much better.
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