03/07/02   Letter to Plan Commissioner Larry Wheat 

Regarding La Guira Club's SUP for a Dance Hall.

The following message regards the La Guira Club, which occupies the building that was for years a successful Steak and Ale restaurant on the Bachman park side of Northwest Highway in our neighborhood.

For at least three years, we've been trying to get the City of Dallas to enforce the ordinances that do not allow a dance hall at this location. They've been operating illegally as a dance hall for all this time, and the community has gotten no response from our city.  NOW they come and ask for an SUP.  How many exemptions from zoning can we suffer in the Bachman area?

I spent an hour on the phone today with Richard Brown, the Planning and Development staff member who is  recommending approval for La Guira's SUP.  I was at my computer and took copious notes as we spoke. It is very sad, to hear how brainwashed Planning and Development staff members are in this lockstep anti-neighborhood policy that isn't written, but is definitely the order of the day in this department.

 It is WRONG--bad policy, bad government, bad in every way that Planning and Development department  (unwritten) policy is that the staff will speak and meet with the applicant and the applicant's representatives,  with the DPD, with other entities, but CANNOT, by policy, "take the pulse" of the community (Mr. Brown's words) and factor that in to their recommendation to the Commission.  Mr. Brown was very clear on this point. Why is the community left out of the information-gathering phase that leads to staff recommendation?  We have valid input as to compatibility and other pertinent issues. We have video tape!

Brown stated that he spoke with Sgt. Neby, and there were no police reports at the location.

OF COURSE there were no police reports---because when we report disruptive and dangerous events, the police don't come!!!  They're so busy with other 9-1-1 emergency responses that they don't make it to these clubs on these "neighborhood nuisance" calls.

PLEASE deny this request WITH PREJUDICE. We need someone to be on the side of this beleagured community when it comes to the endless stream of businesses wanting to get exemptions from existing zoning to operate yet another dance hall/night club in our family neighborhood.

Planning and Development staff sells us down the river, every time.  Just look at what Mike Coker is doing now.  Cheryl Peterman, while still the head of the department, testified on the record, before the entire city council that our neighborhood is "not a neighborhood--it's just a bunch of businesses along a state highway."

I'd give anything to be able to be there tomorrow to testify in person, but as you know, most people with regular jobs can't come down to City Hall during the business day, just about every darn week, as would be required to successfully show our community opposition to the ENDLESS stream of requests for SUP's and Dance Hall permits and on and on and on from all these topless clubs and renegade night clubs that infect our area and keep positive redevelopment out.  

Win this one for us, please!  Denial, with prejudice.