Dallas, TX
Dallas’ poverty-fighting CitySquare out of funding and will close at year’s end
Dallas nonprofit CitySquare — for decades a leader in the battle against poverty and homelessness — has run out of money to do its work and will go out of business at year’s end.
In an interview Friday with its leaders, I learned CitySquare will devote the rest of 2024 to transferring its many programs, which serve 27,000 people annually, to other neighborhood providers.
CitySquare also expects to turn over its Opportunity Center campus, across Interstate 30 from downtown, to another operator as a hub for poverty-fighting organizations.
“We didn’t have the time we needed to really right the ship,” said CEO Annam Manthiram, who arrived in late August in hopes of creating a new identity for CitySquare. “We kept thinking fundraising would come back early this year and thought the brand was stronger than it was.”
CitySquare’s long-time visionary was Larry James, a champion of the poor who in 1994 became head of the fledgling Central Dallas Ministries, as the nonprofit was originally known.
James grew the operation into a powerhouse responsible for many good works in Dallas — permanent and temporary housing, food resources, health care and job creation. He also educated policymakers and led anti-poverty efforts at the behest of elected officials.
CitySquare was synonymous with James, perhaps too much so. Once he moved from his CEO job to a board seat in 2021, community members who long supported his work also began to move on.
Ongoing cuts in operating costs, staff and programming in the last year or so haven’t kept up with the “millions of dollars decline” in giving, said board chair Lewis Weinger.
Weinger and Manthiram told me CitySquare’s prospects were further hurt by a lack of financial transparency to the board and donors after James’ retirement and by “culture-workplace issues.” They said they could not provide details of those issues because of HR considerations.
This month, the leadership team and board decided the best outcome for the neighbors who rely on CitySquare’s services was to go public with plans to cease operations and enlist partners to take over the work at year’s end.
CitySquare’s main campus, on Malcolm X Boulevard just south of Interstate 30, provides services such as a food pantry, workforce training and a community resource center. Also on the site are 50 cottages that shelter a fraction of the 500 neighbors in its housing programs.
The best news in this grim moment is that local philanthropic foundations have CitySquare’s back and will provide funds to carry the nonprofit and its programs through the year.
Wayne White, president and CEO of the Communities Foundation of Texas, told me Friday he and others have met with CitySquare leaders to determine how best to ensure neighbors don’t lose services. He said his team “is committed to working with funders and nonprofits to address the gap that will exist once CitySquare winds down their work.”
When I profiled Manthiram in February, she had a sense of the financial problems, but she believed she would have three years to turn things around. “I didn’t anticipate as big of a budget shortfall as actually existed,” Manthiram said, “and the board didn’t know the budget deficit was as large as it was.”
For example, the board had been told the shortfall in CitySquare’s $39 million budget for 2022 was $1.6 million. Manthiram discovered the deficit was $3.2 million. Despite her cost-cutting after arriving in the last quarter of 2023, the nonprofit expects final numbers to show it finished last year with a $2 million deficit.
The previous CEO, John Siburt, took the job in January 2021 after serving as CitySquare president for five years. He left in December 2022 and is now president of Timberview Farmstead in Fort Worth. CitySquare’s chief financial officer and chief development officer at the time, both of whom had been on staff for only a couple of years, also left in 2022.
“There was no intentional hiding of the financial situation,” Siburt told me Saturday. He did not comment on the workplace-culture issues beyond saying “the need to change the CitySquare model created tension at times.”
In separate interviews, Siburt and James said CitySquare’s aggressive attempts to keep people housed during the pandemic triggered an unsustainable financial picture. “I took responsibility for overextending us during COVID,” Siburt said. He later chose to leave the organization “out of a belief that both CitySquare and I could benefit from a fresh start.”
James said the nonprofit many times tried to do too much. “We would see the need and we were sure filling that gap was the right thing to do.”
For example, with struggling residents further crippled by COVID, CitySquare paid the rents and mortgages of hundreds of people and operated 1,000 apartments as permanent supportive housing. Once pandemic-related funding dried up, the nonprofit continued the program with the misguided belief fundraising would catch up.
Weinger described it like this: “Larry could pick up the phone to a few very generous donors and say, ‘This is the check I need each of you to write.’ We didn’t have that path forward any more.”
After James’ departure, Weinger said, a lack of faith and mistrust developed. “It became sort of a Catch-22 that, once Annam was on board, didn’t give her the time to show what we could do.”
Manthiram didn’t uproot her two school-age sons and leave a good job running an Albuquerque homeless services agency to be part of closing down a venerable nonprofit in Dallas.
But with no other apparent choice, she is determined CitySquare’s programs stay in place and its 85-member staff continues its work — eventually under other nonprofits. “My goal now is putting together a transition team to figure out which community-based groups are the best for the neighbors,” Manthiram said. ”Perhaps community partners will even more effectively lift neighbors out of poverty and homelessness than we’ve been able to do in the last few years.”
The Opportunity Center property likely will become even more valuable once the proposed redesign and expansion of I-30 is complete. CitySquare leadership is adamant any new owner maintain the programming without gentrifying the neighborhood.
CitySquare could have sold the building and land to provide funding to get through this year, Weinger said. “But then what about next year?”
Manthiram is heartened that this transition will put neighbors first and avoid gaps in services. “A favorite verse of mine is ‘With God all things are possible,’” she said. “Right now this feels like the right decision.”
Happy Saturday. Dallas Cowboys Nation. We’ve made it to the extended weekend with millions of people set to hit the road for Memorial Day Weekend, enjoy some cookouts, honor those who gave the ultimate sacrifice, spend some time with family, and soak in the unofficial kickoff of summer.
With the holiday weekend, there is no telling what kind of news will surface from Cowboys headquarters as players enjoy the break from OTAs, but in a few weeks, mandatory minicamp will kick off and the offseason will begin to ramp up.
MORE: 5 NFL stars you forgot played for the Cowboys during their career
It’s been an eventful week surrounding the team, with several players speaking out in support of head coach Brian Schottenheimer and the “energy” surrounding the team, so hopefully that is a sign of good things to come.
While we wait to see what the weekend brings, let’s take a quick spin around the internet and check out some of the news and headlines making waves online and across social media. Indulge.
Blogging the Boys takes a look at how Micah Parsons can solidify his standing atop franchise leaderboards in some key stat categories this season.
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When it comes to record-setting starts to their careers, there are very few in Dallas Cowboys franchise history (certainly modern history) that top Micah Parsons. The only legitimate argument in this sense may be Ezekiel Elliott.
Parsons is incredible, and we have seen him have all sorts of success through his first four seasons. To date he has racked up 52.5 sacks, time will tell if that is enough to earn a massive extension, and if he keeps up this average then he is going to continue to soar up the team’s record books.
Thanks to our friends at Stathead we can really look at history to see Parsons’ place in it.
2025 could see Micah Parsons really take hold of Dallas Cowboys history
As mentioned, Parsons has 52.5 career sacks to date. That is an absurd amount in just four seasons, but remember that he also missed a few games for the first time in 2024. Shockingly, Parsons’ 52.5 is not the most that any player has ever had through their first four seasons in team history. Pro Football Hall of Famer DeMarcus Ware has him beat out by one.
While Parsons missed time in the stretch that we are talking about so did Ware. Parsons feels like a unicorn in terms of production, but Ware was absolutely incredible early on in his own right.
For what it’s worth, Ware kept pace in his fifth season with the team. Following the 2009 campaign Ware sat at 64.5 sacks which is obviously the most that anyone has ever had in team history through their first five seasons. Harvey Martin came pretty close, though.
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Parsons’ career average from a sack standpoint is 13.125, so if we assume that he notches at least 13 of them then he’ll reach 65 and take down Ware. Obviously there is more that we all want from the team than for players to achieve individual milestones, but that something like this is in reach is still pretty cool. (Also a note… it must have been an error for Parsons’ name to be listed here. I tried a few times to adjust it, but we obviously know he has not played five seasons).
If we assume that Parsons reaches that point, he will also climb into the top 10 for all-time sacks while a member of the Cowboys. He trails the outgoing DeMarcus Lawrence by nine at the moment and that would be the person he pushes out of the proverbial club.
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This is perhaps the most stunning look at what Parsons has done to this point in his career. He is sitting on 63 total games played and if he suits up for every one in 2025 then he will total 80. But even then, the next-closest to him in that sense would be a three-way tie between DeMarcus Ware, DeMarcus Lawrence and George Andrie. Funny that both Ware and Lawrence each played 141 games for the team.
We are watching the beginning of one of the all-time careers in Dallas Cowboys franchise history. What Parsons has done and what we assume he will continue to do are astonishing. Hopefully he can add a championship to everything he is accomplishing as well.
With Pete DeBoer in charge, the Dallas Stars have positioned themselves as one of the NHL’s top teams.
DeBoer originally took over as Dallas’ head coach in 2022 and has since led the squad to three consecutive Western Conference finals appearances. Will this be the year DeBoer and the Stars get past the hump?
Here are 10 things to know about DeBoer:
1. The basics
DeBoer, 56, is a native of Dunnville, Ontario in Canada. He has 18 years of head coaching experience in the NHL, previously leading teams like the Florida Panthers, New Jersey Devils, San Jose Sharks and Vegas Golden Knights.
Before landing in the NHL, DeBoer coached several teams in the Ontario Hockey League (OHL). He notably led the Detroit Whalers, Plymouth Whalers and Kitchener Rangers.
DeBoer and his wife, Susan, have one daughter and two sons.
2. His playing career
Before he took on the coaching challenge, DeBoer gained first-hand experience on the ice.
DeBoer, a center, spent much of his playing career in the OHL. He spent four seasons (1985-89) with the Windsor Compuware Spitfires before he was selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs with the 237th overall pick in the 1988 NHL draft.
DeBoer did not play in the NHL, moving on to the International Hockey League (IHL) after his stint in Windsor. He spent the last three years of his playing career with the Milwaukee Admirals.
According to hockeydb.com, DeBoer recorded 309 points throughout his playing career (regular season and postseason combined). His best season came in 1988-89, when he posted 91 points (45 goals and 46 assists) with Windsor.
3. Pete DeBoer, the lawyer?
That’s right. For a brief moment, DeBoer was preparing to start a career outside of hockey. During his early days as an assistant coach in the OHL, DeBoer was in law school.
Some of the connections DeBoer made in his playing days had a key role in how the rest of his professional career unfolded. Back when he was hired by the Stars in 2022, DeBoer spoke about where he would be if he wasn’t coaching.
“I might be in a small claims court somewhere,” said DeBoer, who has a law degree in both Canada and the United States. “Fighting a traffic ticket.”
4. Master of Game 7s
When it comes to win-or-go-home scenarios, DeBoer has found consistent success. When the Stars took down the Colorado Avalanche in the first round of the 2025 playoffs, DeBoer took sole possession of the best Game 7 record in pro sports.
At 9-0, with Game 7 wins with Dallas (three), the San Jose Sharks (three), the Vegas Golden Knights (two) and the New Jersey Devils (one), DeBoer broke a tie with two-time Stanley Cup champion Darryl Sutter (8-3) to stand alone in first place.
5. Has international coaching experience
Along with his NHL coaching, DeBoer has picked up experience working for Team Canada throughout his career. He was notably an assistant on the coaching staff for Team Canada during the 4 Nations Face-Off in February.
DeBoer previously won gold with the Canadian national team during the 2015 IIHF World Championship.
6. Has a preferred pizza place in Denver
When the Stars face the Colorado Avalanche in the 2025 playoffs, DeBoer’s routine for games in Denver became a hot topic of discussion. The head coach said he likes to walk from the team hotel to Ball Arena, stopping at a specific pizza place to grab a bite to eat.
DeBoer’s preferred location was SliceWorks, which serves a Big Mac pizza and a jalapeño popper pizza with grape jelly.
Stars beat writer Lia Assimakopoulos reviewed DeBoer’s selections during the Stars-Avalanche series.
7. Known for a strong defensive system
Throughout his Dallas stint, DeBoer has emphasized the virtue of a strong defensive system. In each of his three seasons as Stars head coach, DeBoer’s Dallas teams have finished in the top 10 in regular-season goals allowed.
In 2022-23, the Stars ranked third with 215 goals allowed. Dallas then ranked eighth with 232 goals allowed in 2023-24. That all led up to the 2024-25 season, where Dallas ranked sixth with 222 goals allowed.
8. Once had a tense exchange with a media member in Dallas
DeBoer wasn’t exactly thrilled with the Stars’ performance against the Edmonton Oilers in the 2024 Western Conference finals. The head coach’s frustrations boiled over when The Dallas Morning News’ Tim Cowlishaw asked about a slow second-period showing in a Game 5 loss.
“You can sit here and question our character if you want. That’s what you’re doing. You haven’t been around here all year, I haven’t seen you all year,” DeBoer said.
DeBoer asked for a redo the following day.
9. Has coached in Stanley Cup Finals before
If DeBoer can lead the Stars past the Western Conference finals, it would mark the coach’s third appearance in the Stanley Cup Final.
He led the New Jersey Devils to the Cup Final in 2012, then returned to the matchup with the San Jose Sharks in 2016. DeBoer’s Devils lost to the Los Angeles Kings in six games, while the Sharks fell against the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games.
10. Brings up young players
Throughout his coaching career, DeBoer has emphasized the development of young players. In San Jose, he helped oversee the growth of winger Timo Meier.
DeBoer is also credited with helping Tomas Hertl become a key contributor. The head coach’s impact is already felt in Dallas, as he has quickly boosted Wyatt Johnston into becoming one of the team’s most dangerous scorers.
Johnston finished the 2024-25 regular season with 71 points (33 goals, 38 assists).
Find more Stars coverage from The Dallas Morning News here.
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Cloudy, cool and gray today; weather slowly improves over holiday weekend
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