Dallas, TX
Dallas library could be off the chopping block after public opposition
A Northeast Dallas library recommended to be closed amid city budget cuts will likely stay open after community opposition to the plan.
The Dallas City Council on Wednesday tentatively signaled support for shifting money in the coming budget to stave off shutting down the Skillman Southwestern Library, though several members expressed concern over the cash source and uncertainty over how the branch would be funded moving forward. The approval was non-binding and won’t be official until the City Council approves a final version of the nearly $5 billion budget on Sept. 18.
Council member Paula Blackmon, who represents the area and proposed moving more than $485,000 from nearly $6 million planned to go toward an incentive fund to improve infrastructure in underserved areas, said an outcry for the library at a recent budget town hall meeting helped drive her to find a way to get the nearly 20-year-old branch off the chopping block.
She vowed the community would work to improve low attendance at library events, which made it a target for closure. She added the support opened her eyes to “many people that do love this library.”
“I didn’t realize how excited and how energized the community was until you tell them you’re going to take something away,” Blackmon said. An online petition protesting the library closure idea had more than 3,100 signatures as of Wednesday.
It’s unclear how the branch will be funded beyond the next fiscal year, which runs from Oct. 1 to Sept. 30.
Interim City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert last month recommended closing the library in her initial budget proposal to prevent impacts on Dallas’ almost 30 other branch locations. The Skillman site, she said, sits within roughly three miles of a trio of other libraries. The city expected to save $485,000 by closing the library, one of the city’s smaller branches. It was part of other planned library system cuts expected to save $1.9 million overall in the new budget.
Tolbert said Wednesday city officials would look into ways to find the money to keep the library open if the City Council desires.
Public library system director Jo Giudice told council members her department’s budget wouldn’t be big enough to support all the libraries being open at least six days a week if Skillman Southwestern remaining open is part of the spending plan.
“This choice enabled us to keep every other location from reducing their hours,” she said of the Skillman Southwestern closure plan. The city was proposing eventually selling the shuttered building, redistributing most of the library’s collection to other city branches, and setting up book vending machines for residents in the area.
The money to save the library could come from the city’s infrastructure investment fund, which the council approved last year to boost residential and commercial development in southern Dallas and other underserved areas. The program is funded yearly with money from expired tax increment financing districts.
Developers can get reimbursed for project costs to install infrastructure, such as water and sewer line connections, sidewalks and lighting, or related work, such as demolitions and property remediation.
Tolbert said the fund has roughly $6 million. City officials last year estimated the fund could grow to more than $199 million by 2033.
But several council members worried about taking money from a fund meant to help underserved areas. Council member Carolyn King Arnold noted the city touts using equity and data in its decisions, including in selecting the Skillman Southwestern branch for closure.
“We’re either going to stick to being data-driven, or we’re not,” Arnold said. “We can’t be selective about which data we choose to use. Either data matters or it doesn’t.”
Giudice told council members during an Aug. 19 committee meeting that the Skillman Southwestern branch typically has few visitors who stay for a significant amount of time.
Most users order items online and pick them up, the area doesn’t have a lot of foot traffic and computer usage there ranked near the bottom among libraries around the city, Giudice said during the meeting last month. She also said city data showed the library is in an area that has lower levels of poverty than other area other branch locations.
Despite that, the library is highly used, according to city data. An April memo to the mayor and City Council showed the Skillman Southwestern library branch ranked eighth out of the city’s 30 libraries in circulation last fiscal year. The number of items checked out for the first time and renewals at Skillman Southwestern more than doubled the next closest branch, the Vickery Park library, the memo said.
Giudice told council members Wednesday that the library ranks seventh in circulation this year.
Supporters of the library branch told council members the site is a treasured part of the community, more accessible than other branches miles away and vital to the development of children in the area. They suggested holding more events after work hours and on weekends to boost attendance.
“This library is important to us,” said area resident Margaret Watson. “A vending machine can’t replace it.”
FC Dallas returns home this weekend looking to build off last week’s road result as Real Salt lake comes to town for another important Western Conference matchup. With the schedule beginning to pile up before the summer World Cup break in June, grabbing points at Toyota Stadium feels more important than ever right now.
RSL arrives with one of the more balanced attacks in the conference and enough pace to punish mistakes in transition. For Dallas, this one is about staying organized defensively, controlling the midfield battle, and continuing to find consistency in the final third. If those three items can be checked off this weekend, there’s a real opportunity to keep the momentum moving in the right direction before a long summer road trip.
Let’s dive into some notes, predictions, and more.
TL;DR: Match Preview
Quick hits before kickoff.
- Score prediction: FC Dallas 2 – 1 Real Salt Lake
- Key player to watch: Petar Musa – To make the World Cup roster later this month for Croatia, Musa has to continue scoring here and guide the team to a big home win.
- Why this game matters: The next two are at home and after that there are nine straight road games. Dallas has to bank some points at home while they can before the long summer road trip.
FC Dallas Notes:
All-time vs RSL: FC Dallas holds a 24-15-13 all-time regular-season record against RSL. Dallas has scored 79 goals against Salt Lake. RSL has scored 63.
Home record vs RSL: Dallas has a solid 14-2-8 at home against RSL in regular season meetings. Dallas has scored 44 home goals against RSL. Salt Lake has scored 23 goals at Toyota Stadium versus Dallas. Dallas last won at home versus RSL on April 16, 2023. Jesús Ferreira and Bernanrd Kamungo scored for Dallas that night.
Homegrown clock: Homegrown keeper Michael Collodi was the only HGP earning minutes this season until Nolan Norris joined him on the field. Collodi has played the full 90 in each match, while Norris has been in and out of the lineup. Norris also has one goal on the season. Caleb Swann also made his debut off the bench in New York. Together, they have played 1595 minutes. To add more perspective here, Dallas HGPs only accounted for 1683 minutes in 2025.
What to Watch For: FC Dallas vs. Real Salt Lake FC Dallas returns to Toyota Stadium riding momentum from a historic road win in New York, but RSL arrives with one of the most dangerous young attacks in MLS. Here’s what to watch when the Burn host the Claret-and-Cobalt on Saturday.
Notable season stats:
- FCD is 7th in crosses in MLS with 144.
- The Burn are 6th in total distance covered in MLS with 286.24 km (800 miles).
- FCD is third in MLS in aerial challenges won with 171.
- FC Dallas is 9th in MLS in xG with 18.81.
- FCD is 8th in MLS in shot efficiency with 1.19.
- Musa is 4th in MLS in xG with 7.77. He also ranks tied for 4th in MLS in shots with 40.
Potential FC Dallas Lineup:
With another three-games in seven days stretch coming up, Eric Quill will likely go with as strong of a lineup as possible in these next two home games.
Formation: 3-4-3
Projected Starting XI
Availability & Disciplinary Report
⚽
Disciplinary Report
Suspended: none
Suspended with next yellow card: none
Suspended with next two yellow cards: Osaze Urhoghide, Nolan Norris
🗒️
Availability Report
Season-ending injury list: Kaka Scabin
Out: Anderson Julio (Lower leg), Bernard Kamungo (lower leg)
Questionable: none
On Loan: Tsiki Ntsabeleng (Mamelodi Sundowns FC), Enes Sali (Al-Riyadh), Malachi Molina (Nashville SC), Geovane Jesus (North Texas SC), Enzo Newman (North Texas SC)
Unavailable (off-roster): Daniel Baran, Jaidyn Contreras
International duty: none
Real Salt Lake Notes:
Key player for RSL: Diego Luna
Scouting Real Salt Lake: What FC Dallas Needs to Know 🔎 A detailed scouting report on RSL ahead of FC Dallas’ 2026 showdown, breaking down formations, key players, tendencies, and tactical edges.
Disciplinary Report
Suspended: none
Suspended on next yellow card: none
Availability Report
Out: Jesus Barea (knee), Emeka Eneli (knee), Ari Piol (Achilles)
Questionable: Juan Jose Arias (groin), Justen Glad (groin), Lukas Engel (hip)
International duty: none
Big game this week for FC Dallas. Before we get into it, members have the full scouting report, projected lineups, and injury report. If you want to go into Matchday actually knowing what to watch for, now’s the time.
→ Join Big D Soccer
A mystery trust bought one of the most expensive homes in Texas this week — just months after buying another multimillion dollar property nearby.
The Lost River Trust bought the mansion at 4815 Saint Johns Drive in Highland Park from Dallas entrepreneurs Melbourne and Jamie O’Banion on May 5, according to county records. The final sale price is undisclosed, but the sellers had the home listed for $24.9 million at the time.
The six-bedroom, eight-bathroom home spans 11,433 square feet on a 0.6-acre lot, according to the listing. It was built by Mark Molthan and designed by Tom Weber. They listed the home on March 23 for about $2,200 per square foot.
Allie Beth Allman, founder of the eponymous brokerage, represented the sellers. Damon Williamson with The Agency represented the buyer, according to Redfin.
Just two Dallas homes last year sold with listing prices higher than $25 million, though both sold for well below what they asked. The trust of the late Fortress Investment Group CEO Josh Pack sold his former home at 6601 Hunters Glen Road for $30.5 million after asking $35 million, and manufacturer Guinn Crousen sold his home at 4000 Euclid Avenue for $25.5 million after asking $33 million.
Only six homes in Texas are asking a higher price, according to Zillow. Two effectively tie with the home on Saint Johns Drive: a spec mansion on Strait Lane that’s asking $25 million, and another new construction at 4 Lana Lane in Houston that’s asking $25.5 million.
The Lost River Trust bought another luxury home just six months ago. On Nov. 14, the trust purchased the home at 3709 Euclid Avenue, a four-bedroom, six-bathroom, 5,845-square-foot house that was asking $14 million when it withdrew from the market in September. It’s about half a mile south of the home on Saint Johns Drive.
Melbourne O’Banion is the CEO of Dallas-based tech startup Bestow, which produces software for life insurance companies. His wife Jamie O’Banion is the founder of Dallas-based cosmetics company BeautyBio.
The Crespi Estate at 5619 Walnut Hill Lane, listed by the Cox Family for $64 million, remains the most expensive home on the market in Texas.
Read more
Dallas entrepreneurs Jamie and Melbourne O’Banion list Highland Park mansion for $25M
Estate of late Dallas plastic surgeon Sam Hamra sells historic Highland Park teardown to mystery buyer
Robert Vaughn buys University Park spec mansion that asked $26M
DALLAS – Thunderstorms will roll through parts of North Texas on Friday. Thankfully, none should be severe. Mother’s Day could be a different story.
Friday Forecast
According to FOX 4 Weather Meteorologist Berkeley Taylor, a cluster of thunderstorms will work their way east across the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex on Friday morning.
Everything is well below severe limits, just with lots of lightning!
Scattered showers and thunderstorms will move in and out through the day on Friday. Coverage is about 20%.
An isolated strong storm or two can’t be ruled out, but the overall threat is low.
Temperatures will be in the 50s and 60s for the morning, before climbing into the 80s by the afternoon.
Weekend Forecast
Saturday will look similar, with even lower coverage expected.
Sunday presents the best chance to find rain and storms – about 50% as a cold front moves through North Texas.
North Texas is under a Level 2 out of 5 risk for severe weather. The biggest concerns will be with wind and hail.
Timing-wise, the front looks to move through in the afternoon/evening.
7-Day Forecast
Once the front is south of North Texas on Mother’s Day, the rain should come to an end, and it will stay dry into next week.
Temperatures will start to warm into the upper 80s and low 90s by midweek next week.
The Source: The information in this story is from the FOX 4 Weather team and National Weather Service.
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