05/28/02   PALLADIUM VOTE OUTCOME

To:  Dallas City Council;  Dallas City Hall

Reference:   9-6 5/22/02 Vote 

Hello Council Representatives:

The vote is complete on the Palladium issue.  I applaud those who, along with our Mayor, voted against the project.  

One significant event during the hearing and subsequent vote troubled me most.  Many of the developers, businessmen and core interest groups pleaded to the Council not to take from the City core and give to a fringe development.  Several who spoke against the project had, over the years, invested hundreds of millions in our City.  Now, they will witness a shrinking of the core districts and division of available funding.  Retaining current tenants in the core districts will be difficult.  

As for the citizens of Dallas who would be retail customers --  How many would drive to the new Victory area and pay $5.00 to $8.00 or more to park for the opportunity to shop?  How many would take DART to shop and be confronted with carrying packages on the bus to their homes?  The additional fire and police protection and facilities required to service another area of downtown are somewhere in the budgets (it is assumed).

Thank you for your "NO" vote:  Laura Miller, Lois Finkelman, Sandy Greyson, Mark Housewright,
Veletta Lill, Mitchell Rasansky and for the developers that spoke out against the project.  

Those voting for the project will perhaps not be in office as the financial problems develop.  However, we will all be paying higher taxes and realizing quality of service degradation as a result of this unfortunate vote in favor of the developers from New York.  Those voting YES listened to New York and did not listen to Dallas developers who know and understand the needs of our city.

Looking forward, it is difficult to envision how such a divided city will fare in these very poor economic times.  We can be encouraged that the vote was not 13 to 2, but improving at 9 to 6.

Regards,

Rad Field
District 11