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12/06/07 from her
political grave to put a family out of business.
This may be the Christmas
season, but there are some frightening doings at City Hall.
It hasn't been all that
long since Bill Blaydes tried to steal Jack Pierce's land where he has operated
Hollywood Overhead Doors for over 50 years. But, here we are 6 or 7 months
later and another long-time Dallas business is being forced out of its location
of 61 years by politicians.
As a reminder of what happened to Jack Pierce:
Council thwarts Bill
Blaydes' land grab plans;
Jim Schutze's
The Good Laura
(DallasObserver.com);
and
Taking other people's property.
My favorite comes in Mr. Pierce's own words.
Pierce testimonial.
CBS11's Steve Pickett had a short,
but important story on Wednesday
about Woodard Paint & Body being forced off their Ross Avenue
property where they have operated since 1946.
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(12/05/07) DALLAS (CBS 11 News) ―
As Dallas continues
redevelopment and growth in the inner city, some longtime businesses
say they are being pushed aside and forced out of business.
Ross Avenue had two dozen
auto-related shops on one strip. They all must shut down, including
at least one family operation.
The signs that advertise
Woodard Auto Repair have as much history as the Ross Avenue street
the business sits on.
Allen Woodard continues the
legacy his grandfather built. But something else is being built on
Ross and its forcing Woodard
and others out. The city council has approved a rezoning of this
part of Ross Avenue to make way for more residential development.
Any type of auto business must move.
The city defended the change
as an appropriate transition for an area that leads into downtown.
Allen Woodard wants to stay and continue what his grandfather
started. But at the moment, he has to move out. |
This ticks me off on so many
levels. When I lived in Oak Lawn and worked Downtown, I had my cars
restored at Woodard several times. My boss recommended them to do the
needed body work after my Mustang was
hit by an uninsured motorist. The insurance appraiser also recommended
Woodard. After they made my car look like new, I recommended them to several
people over the years. Not one person ever told me they were disappointed
in the service they got from Woodard.
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That first time I tried to find them (before cell phones and GPS things), I
drove past their Ross Ave. location two or three times because it did not look
like any car repair place I had ever seen. Wrought iron fence with a water
fountain. This was back in the late 70's, and Woodard was an oasis on what
was a pretty sorry looking Ross Ave. |
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Anonymouse (12/6/7):
When Mr. Woodard received his
notice, he was encouraged by Plan Commissioner
Neil Emmons (District 14) and former Councilwoman Veletta Lill (District
14) not to cause a big fuss because Woodard
would be taken care of down the road. Mr. Woodard
called Lill some months ago,
and that’s when he started to worry.
He had to file for a Special Use
Permit now to protect his retirement and the future of his employees.
Some of Mr. Woodard’s employees have been with his company for his
entire adult life and would be really negatively
impacted by this. It’s ironic they’ll
have to be approved by SUP and will have to go through this process all
the time.
My dad has known them for many
many years and shares your impression of them
from the 1970s. They have a really nice looking business and there are
NEVER cars stored outside. |
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They not only did not abandon East Dallas or Ross Ave. when almost everyone else
had, the Woodard family improved their piece of the street frontage. To
reward their loyalty, City Hall is now going to force them out of business.
That is just not right!
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This is not an overnight thing, however. Just before Princess Velveeta
Lill went out of office, she did a Bill Blaydes type run and got the area
rezoned to make their operation illegal at that location. I am not saying
the Woodard family did not get proper notification of the zoning change, because
I don't know. They probably did since city staff is very conscientious
about advertising zoning changes. Whether they understand the notification
is a whole other matter. |
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Paul
Woodfield (12/6/7):
I used them several times for auto body repairs. They were
always friendly, honest and easy to deal
with. I would be sorry to see them go.
I've sent several friends there, and no
one has ever had any complaints. They would
be missed.
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Being smart enough to keep a family business going since 1946 does not
necessarily make you smart enough to understand that some half-brain at City
Hall like the Princess of Preservation could change the zoning on your land
without your permission and put you out of business.
Jim Schutze
interviewed Jack Pierce in
The Good Laura.
Mr. Pierce told Jim of his bewilderment and
that his attorney had advised him there was nothing he could do to stop it
because the councilman over District 10 (Bill Blaydes) wanted it, and the rest
of the council would go along with what Blaydes wanted. Can you spell
w-a-r-d p-o-l-i-t-i-c-s? Mayor Miller and Councilman Rasansky saw
the item on the agenda, contacted Mr. Pierce directly and urged him to at least
speak to the council. Miraculously, Jack Pierce prevailed. Things
may not go so well for the Woodard family.
A mechanic should not have to be zoning savvy when he is only doing what his
family has done for 61 years in the same location. No responsible
businessman should have to constantly worry about being put out of business
because some politician wants to use his land for something else or to benefit
someone else. The operations at Woodard are inside a large enclosed shed.
City Hall has spent millions trying to revive Downtown and make it a place where
people want to live and work. Those people need a convenient place to get
their car fixed. Those people need a convenient place to get their shoes
repaired and other stuff. You can't expect people to set up permanent
roots in an area when they have to drive miles away to get basic services.
It's ironic that Princess Velveeta would be behind this travesty.
She named herself the "Princess of Preservation". Former Councilman John Loza named her "Velveeta". I combined the two names to get "Princess
Velveeta". She's supposed to be so big on historic preservation, but she
denies the history of Ross Avenue. The area where Woodward is
located was primarily covered with used car lots, like "Goss on Ross", etc. for
30 or 40 years. Those businesses may not have been up to Princess Velveeta's phony standards, but a lot of people
worked and made a living selling used cars to a lot of people who wanted to buy
them on Ross Avenue.
As a 61 year old business operating at the same
location all that time, Woodward Paint & Body certainly qualifies as historic by
Dallas standards.
This council could undo the wrong done by Princess Velveeta. Mayor Leppert is supposed to be such a friend to business. This would be an
opportunity to prove John Scovell right (for a change).
...
Addressing members
of the Dallas
Citizens Council at
the group's 70th
anniversary
luncheon, he praised
the council for its
support of the
Trinity River
Corridor project,
which voters last
month effectively
reaffirmed in a
citywide referendum.
The group donated
several hundred
thousand dollars to
an effort to defeat
a proposition that
would have blocked
the construction of
a high-speed toll
road within the
Trinity River's
levee walls.
...
John Scovell,
president and chief
executive officer of
Woodbine Development
Corp. and the Dallas
Citizens Council
chairman-elect, told
his membership that
Mr. Leppert and Mr.
Lowe – both former
Dallas Citizens
Council members –
are public officials
they can count on.
"We have
nothing to complain
about. They want to
work with business,"
Mr. Scovell said. "We're
changing back to the
good old days."
...
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Pretty spooky.
12/05/7
Gehrig Saldaña:
Glad Dave took note of the
"good old days"
comment. Maybe that means Dallas
city homeowners
can expect the Dallas' Business
Community will finally pay their fair (at least 50%) share of
Dallas' tax base. Is that is what
John meant? |
I don't think the Woodard
family can take a lot of comfort from Scovell's comments. They actually
pay their property taxes, which makes them very different from Ray Hunt and much
of the Dallas Citizens Council membership.
Please take a minute and call or e-mail your council member to get this
injustice to the Woodard family reversed. Tell them you don't think it's
right for City Hall to run a taxpaying business that offers a needed service out
of town.
Just remember, if a City Hall politician can wipe out a 61 year old business on
a gentrification whim, your property might be their next target.
Woodard Paint & Body is located in District 14, which is now better represented
by Angela Hunt. Here's hoping she comes to the Woodard family's defense
and puts a stake in the heart of any vampire that wants to steal the Woodard's
business.
sb
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