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Save downtown Dallas building destroyed by squatters? No, thanks

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Save downtown Dallas building destroyed by squatters? No, thanks


Summer was just getting started when Dallas City Council member Jesse Moreno set off alarm bells about a vacant city-owned building that had been vandalized and ravaged just blocks from City Hall.

That this happened under the noses of city leaders was embarrassing, but even worse, it was expensive. The building at 711 S. St. Paul St. was no longer suitable for public use, covered in graffiti, with its plumbing and wiring ripped out and its rooms reeking of feces and urine. It required a cleaning company to remove the biohazards throughout.

By Aug. 28, after intense debate, the City Council voted to sell the building at auction.

If you interact with City Hall regularly, you know that glaciers move faster. By those standards, the council’s decision to liquidate the property three months after the squatting and the vandalism came to its attention is, well, progress.

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So we couldn’t help but sigh in frustration when Dallas preservationists stepped in to say this building that no one but squatters paid any mind to for so long — not city officials, not the preservationists — is in a historic district recognized by the National Register of Historic Places. Wouldn’t it be a shame if it were demolished? The leader of a preservation group suggested the city advertise the availability of state and federal preservation tax credits along with the property.

Why complicate the matter? The city was right to stick to a basic advertisement for an auction Oct. 2. Find out what the market wants and sell off the property. Take care of this nuisance to residents and business owners.

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Under the council’s chosen two-tier bidding process, potential buyers will offer a price for the property as-is and one for just the land, with the understanding that the city would demolish the building before transferring the property.

As for this historic building, we’re not talking about John Neely Bryan’s original cabin here. The low-slung structure was built in 1947 and served as a regional plant for American Optical, an eyewear company. Not exactly the stuff of postcards (or city manager recruitment brochures).

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Perhaps there is a developer out there who would pay top dollar for an anonymous building that has been stripped of the infrastructure that made it functional — maybe someone who is passionate about the history of American eyewear manufacturing. That developer would have to apply for and agree to the strings attached to preservation tax credits, which require that properties be rehabilitated according to meticulous federal standards. That seems unlikely.

The city’s economic development department is right when it says that a one-story building is not the highest and best use for the land. This is an area that is set to be transformed by the redevelopment of the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center and where higher density is planned.

We often lament how the city doesn’t take care of its history, but the drama with 711 S. St. Paul St. is a chapter that City Hall should be eager to close.

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

2026 Dallas Cowboys schedule officially announced

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2026 Dallas Cowboys schedule officially announced


Behold the 2026 Dallas Cowboys schedule.

We knew coming into Thursday that the Cowboys would be on the road to take on the New York Giants in the season opener on Sunday Night Football, that Dallas is “hosting” the Baltimore Ravens in Brazil in Week 3, and that the Philadelphia Eagles would be in town for Thanksgiving Day. Now we know it all.

Among the first things that jump to mind is that bye week is late. Dallas isn’t on bye until Week 14, the Sunday of that week is December 13th for full perspective.

The Cowboys also only play twice in their own building, thanks to the Brazil game, before November. Sometimes those weird quirks show up in schedules and this is certainly one of them.

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It is interesting to see that the NFL gave Dallas the longest amount of rest possible after their Thanksgiving tilt. It hasn’t been uncommon for the league to have the Cowboys play on consecutive Thursdays, but perhaps that is a thing of the past.



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Dallas Approves $180,500 for New Botham Jean Boulevard Street Signs

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Dallas Approves 0,500 for New Botham Jean Boulevard Street Signs


A portion of South Lamar Street was officially renamed Botham Jean Boulevard in 2021.

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On Wednesday, the Dallas City Council approved funding that will replace highway exit signs and road signs marking Lamar Street with new signage honoring Botham Jean, the 26-year-old Dallas accountant who was fatally shot in his own apartment by an off-duty Dallas police officer in 2018. 

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The $180,500 in funding for 13 signs to be installed by the Texas Department of Transportation is the final step in the street renaming that was unanimously approved by the council in 2021. The new signs will be placed at exits along Interstate 45, State Highway 310 and U.S. Highway 175. 

Already, Botham Jean Boulevard signs run along the road in the Cedars, where Jean lived before he was killed. 

“This street on which he chose to live and the street on which he died can serve as a lasting memory of the upstanding resident who loved Dallas so much,” his mother, Allison Jean, told the council in 2021.  

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Jean was shot by Amber Guyger, a Dallas police officer, after she entered his apartment believing it was her own. A Dallas jury found Guyger guilty of murder in 2019 and sentenced her to 10 years in prison. She has also been ordered to pay the Jean family nearly $100 million in a civil trial, which accused her of using excessive force. 

The Jean family is seeking restitution from the city of Dallas because they argue that Dallas, as Guyger’s former employer, had a duty to defend Guyger and pay out claims brought against her. The Jean family filed suit against the city in April of this year.

On Wednesday, city council member Adam Bazaldua stated that the continued remembrance of Jean’s name is a reminder that “no one is above the law.” 

“This has never simply been about changing street signs; it has always been about commemorating a life that was taken too soon,” said Bazaldua. “When driving down Botham Jean Boulevard, we are reminded of the thousands of lives lost across the country each year to senseless gun violence.” 

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Bazaldua said that once city leaders were made aware that some signs from the initial 2021 street name change had not materialized, the horseshoe took steps to correct the oversight “somewhat promptly.” But he acknowledged that Wednesday’s funding came on the heels of community advocacy urging the project’s completion. 

Community leader Yafeuh Balogun said his organization, Community Movement Builders, began asking the city for the updated signs in September 2025. Addressing the council ahead of Wednesday’s vote, Balogun encouraged the horseshoe to vote in favor of the funds because it “would make no sense” to not follow through with the street renaming approved years ago. 

 “I think this is very powerful simply because driving here today, I still saw the Lamar Street Signs,” Balogun said. “I remember how powerful it was back in 2021 when the city council voted to rename Lamar Street to Botham Jean. I’d like to keep that legacy going.” 



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World Cup volunteers receive uniforms, new tickets released

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World Cup volunteers receive uniforms, new tickets released


We’re less than a month out from the start of the 2026 FIFA World Cup, and North Texans volunteering in the event have received their uniforms. FOX 4’s Peyton Yager has more on that and the new hospitality tickets released today.



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