University Park is About to Look Like Vegas, Only More Bars and Women
If I didn’t already know better, after checking the mail this weekend I’d think my kids were about to bike past strip clubs and blinding neon bar lights to get to school each morning. C’mon guys, all of this is starting to make me think you’re either really paranoid or you haven’t read the propositions.
By Merritt Patterson
Oct. 25, 2010 | 11:47 am | 60 Comments | Comments RSS
60 comments to "University Park is About to Look Like Vegas, Only More Bars and Women"
Anyone who would willingly lend their name to such misleading propaganda clearly is showing their own level of honesty. They’re as dishonest as the mailer that is going out. Not a single one of the things pictured in that mailer would be legal. There was even a picture of people at a topless bar on it!!
Dick Davis is really trying to tell us that if these propositions pass, there will be topless bars in town? Why do we elect people like this? As mayor, if he is against a proposition, he should be taking a credible approach to it, not a dishonest one. Dishonest approaches are for dishonest people.
Does a newspaper’s blog operate under the same ‘rules’ for journalistic integrity? (I’m asking because I really don’t know the answer to that.) Just seems that this is more about promoting one side of an issue than providing balanced reporting.
And, for everyone that will say “Merritt is not a journalist”, I know that. But, she is still operating under the PCP and representing them.
Cheers @UPDad – what you said.
And, rallying folks against these propositions with misinformation but not taking a stand against the massive weekly keg parties going on right in the middle of SMU’s campus. If there’s really a concern over substance abuse there, why don’t the Mayor and SMU President convene a task force to ban alcohol on campus?
See Dick (Mayor Davis of UP) Mislead
See Dick Misinform
See Dick Misguide
Don’t be a Dick!
As for the propositions themselves, anyone who thinks they’ll turn UP from Bedford Falls into Pottersville is being caught up in the worst kind of misleading hype.
Check out the TABC website…take a few minutes to read the “liquor code” of our state. The pictures in the mail are actually quite reasonable for what could come. But the most immediate problem is that the businesses already established can begin to sell on or about November 3. Visit your nail salon soon, and you will be able to pick up your favorite bottle of wine along with your mani-pedi! The city is powerless to stop any of it.
Get ready for the beer barn nearest you, it is coming!
Some of our past and present civic leaders are defending private club rules that were intentionally designed to be flexible enough to skirt the State mandated dry area rules. Our city doesn’t have one single local ordinance governing the sale of alcohol. Meanwhile the town of Highland Park is making front page news addressing the real problem: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/dn/latestnews/stories/101710dnmetunderagecriminal.29addfe.html
Why don’t you put some thought into that?
then vote yes,
for turning our
fair city into
a gated community.
I agree with “I’m thinking it through” about the disrespectful, condescending, and insulting comments by some on that side.
They might find value in learning to disagree without being disagreeable. Just a thought.
As for the off-premise question, does anyone really believe that buying alcohol at the 7-11 across from SMU or the Tom Thumb in Snider Plaza is any different from buying at the 7-11 on NW highway? Maybe these brown bag toting guys bring it in a cooler from 10 miles away? If you make the decision to drink and drive, the location of the purchase doesn’t change the equation much for me. After all, we have moms who are busted in the carpool lane for DUI, don’t we? Bet they don’t buy it in a brown bag from the 7-11 either. According to Merritt, they’re sucking it down at an already licensed premise in between ballet and carpool, and I didn’t hear anyone screaming to shut down the restaurant.
The prediction of strip bars and dives at every corner is ridiculous. For those of you who believe obtaining a liquor license is a picnic, think again. It is more fun to bang your head against a brick wall than to deal with the TABC. The application process is lengthy, expensive, and not always logical.
“Pro-bars side”? Cute. Wrong, of course, but cute. Now let’s talk facts. The “Pro-bars side” has raised issues with both the facts that the “Pro no control over alchohol sales, hypocrytical SMU president, special interest money backed ex mayors side” have presented, and the manner (Beale Street? Vegas) that they have presented them. Would you care to address those facts?
In a world series region, where our champs have the class to spray each other with ginger ale in public (so awesome) and our MVP gives credit first to his Lord (not mentioned in any of the media reports…) it’s ok to vote no to alcohol sales. No Nascar posters in my Tom Thumb.
And anyone have insight on why we can’t pray in schools, but we can vote in a church? IJS.
Your problem is that you think that you are entitled to intentionally mischaracterize and distort, because you think it is for some greater good. Why do you think that you are entitled to respect when you do that? That mailer showing strippers and Beale Street in Memphis contained so many mischaraterizations, distortions and things that were objectively untrue, yet you don’t distance yourself from it. Have you seen anything like that from the people that are for these Propositions? Nope and you won’t.
I have a lot of respect for most of the people that disagree with me on this subject, but N.F. your personal actions are not entitled to respect and the actions of the people that produced that mailer are not entitled to respect. And to top it off, I personally don’t like specifically you pontificating after you are among the worst offenders.
Sorry folks but this guy knows better.
Anybody remember the bar called “Ten” on Milton in Snider Plaza about 6-7 years ago? It was where Questcare is now. Anyhoo, one of the Dallas Mavericks thought it would be fun to open a bar in University Park and thanks to our slippery private club rules, he could and did. They had huge parties after the games, young people ended up out in the street, drunk, puking on neighbors yards and leaving beer bottles in front of the health food store. They sold a ton of liquor but not a lot of food BECAUSE PRIVATE CLUB RULES DO NOT REQUIRE FULL FOOD SERVICE. They were in compliance with private club rules and city was powerless to shut them down. They were finally thrown out by the landlord for being late on their rent. All of that courtesy of private club laws and no local ordinances.
I’m voting FOR the proposals. I am not “pro-bars”. Nothing in the proposal provides any advantage to a bar opening, and as Max points out, would make it even harder. I do know I don’t like to have my driver’s license swiped when I order a beer at Peggy Sue’s–I’m not sure why I don’t like it, other than it’s an extra step, but I don’t.
People who say that those pictures are “quite reasonable” are certainly not familiar with the existing codes in the city. I wonder how fast Max Fuqua would get shut down if he put up a neon sign on his store.
Probably most importantly, history shows me that when the Former Mayor’s Council, or whatever it is called, starts trying to force through some legislation by pounding us with mailings & phone calls–it is because someone else behind them with the big funds is instructing them to, and it is probably NOT for the good of the city as a whole. How can they in once breath say that the increased sales tax would be negligible, and in another say that there would be hundreds of new places selling alcohol and that our city would suffer from increased drinking?
LifeLong Parkie, I’m very interested in what you say about the illegality of the side in favor of the propositions. Could you give me more information, or just point me to the public information so I can see for myself. So far the only touches they’ve had on me is one mailing and one contact with someone asking me to sign the petition to get it on the ballot. If they’re doing things illegally, I’d like to know what it is as it could change my decision.
This past Sunday in Bible Study, we ran through a list of Christ’s miracles and of course one of those included turning water into wine. I guess he could have turned the water into milk and it would have been just as miraculous, but Christ chose wine. Makes you think doesn’t it?
the give and take of viewpoints is what makes this blog worth reading. are you suggesting that those with different opinions not participate?
I also do it every time I nearly get run off the road by someone with their silver “fish” emblem on their car.
So is it the private clubs who are funding the anti campaign? Or the Baptists!?!?!?
I can certainly guess. Any businesses right on the perimeter of UP who sell alcohol to start with. Think the Centennial in Preston Center wants competition? They would certainly fund the status quo (I’m not saying that they funded this, just an example). People who are concerned about SMU students being able to walk to the UP Tom Thumb to get alcohol. People who really don’t understand what the propositions mean (such as my wife, who has not researched the issue and states “I don’t see any benefit to having alchohol in UP”).
I certainly don’t know exactly who, but I can be certain that this all has to do with money. On both sides, since money is also the reason someone floated this proposition in the first place (tax income, business income, etc.)
Parties that may be unfavorably impacted by a “yes” vote include Sigel, Centennial, Goody Goody and other Class B retailers which buy beer and wine from distributors and sell it to restaurants (private clubs). Instead restaurants will be able to purchase beer and wine from the distributors, cutting out the Class B retailers. Someone please correct me if my understanding is incorrect.
Other retail entities, including grocery and convenience stores, without establishments in UP may also be unfavorably impacted by a “yes” vote.
D, how dare you suggest that just because a liquor store chain has locations on the east, west, north and south borders of University Park that they would oppose the propositions.
And shame on you, Sharpay, to suggest that losing restaurant sales to the big distributors would also be a reason for exisitng liquor stores to oppose the propositions.
Get real people! The owners of those chains probably live here and just don’t want beer sales in their backyard. It is about integrity and not money.
Liquor stores donate to keep Dallas’ dry areas dry
10:32 AM Tue, Oct 26, 2010
Steve Thompson/Reporter
Attorney Andy Siegel, who has led the fight against expanding alcohol sales in Dallas, has said he represents ministers, neighborhood groups and liquor stores.
But those first two groups are absent from the campaign finance report filed yesterday by the political action committee fighting the Nov. 2 referendum that could make all of Dallas damp.
The campaign finance report by No Alcohol PAC/Neighborhood For Safety lists two donors: Goody-Goody Liquor and Vantex Enterprises, which is the parent company of Centennial Fine Wine and Spirits.
Goody-Goody and Vantex donated $15,000 each. The money went mostly to signs, advertising in Elite News and on the radio, and to a southern Dallas company called Workers and Poll Pushers.
The pro-alcohol expansion group, Keep the Dollars in Dallas, recorded $110,850 in contributions , mostly from people and entities associated with real estate and restaurant groups.
http://cityhallblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2010/10/liquor-stores-contribute-to-ke.html
I can’t tell – are you being sarcastic or for real?
It’s a shame that Dick Davis, the other former mayors and the president of SMU are following this same pattern. Shame on them. I am embarrassed to share a neighborhood with these scumbags.
It’s fine to oppose the two propositions, but why do so many of the “against” people feel the need to lie about the consequences if their side loses the vote?
I hope Park Cities People has the editorial courage to take its coverage beyond the typical “on one hand/on the other hand” stories that practically write themselves. You need to drill down to the facts, separate the facts from the lies, and – most importantly – call out the liars.
P.S. Snider Plaza had a porno theater in the 70s and early 80s. Whatever happens, we will survive, ok?
I’ll drop by for some yogurt with the kids. I appreciate your donation to the schools, and I also appreciate your willingness to provide good information on the issues at hand. But in my case, I wish your information was provided in a less condescending manner or with less disdain for those who might (or in my case, for the most part might not) disagree with you. I choose to remain anonymous on blogs and on many political issues in deference to extended family that live in UP. I’d be happy to elaborate more in person (and no, I am not related to any former or current mayors). I don’t think I know Kelly Walker, but as I mentioned in my comment, the concerns with people purchasing beer, consuming it onsite in a parking lot and then driving through the community were originally expressed to me by a neighbor. As for HPHS classrooms, I don’t believe we were ever in the same classes. As I posted above I graduated in 1988 and at HP spent most of my time “thinking it through” back then too so I probably had my head in book or on the court/field. When I stop by, I’ll take the time to introduce myself so my anonymous blogging does not continue to “bug” you.
I am a third generation Park Cities native and I love UP! My family has done business in Snider Plaza for over 60 years. I was awarded Citizen of The Year this past July for giving back to our commercial areas that are such an important part of who we are as a community. I am not involved in this effort to damage our city, but to make it better.
Since I have no financial interest in this, the main reason I signed on is because I researched the law and found out just how loose the private club rules really are. They need to be tightened up, plus citizens were asking for relief from Unicard. I also got involved because one of our city’s main goals stated in our master plans is to find ways to increase sales within the limits of UP. The measured step of adding beer and wine to our grocery shelves would accomplish this and as we saw, over 3000 citizens were calling for it.
I absolutely respect that you have a different opinion and that’s what voting is for. Lets speak the truth, present the facts and allow voters to decide. Meanwhile, we can also have a little fun in the blog while we are at it!
I can completely understand your logic concerning “keeping things the way they are.”. There’s nothing wrong with that, and if that’s your reason for voting No, then good for you. That’s a perfectly good reason.
As for your other comments, I can see your point about name calling, but exactly how is anyone supposed to point out the lies and disinformation being put out by these leaders without basically saying “These are lies”. There’s nothing wrong with saying that. They aren’t misspeaking, or being “misquoted” or “taken out of context”, which is always a popular excuse.
Both Dr. Turner and the former mayors have explicitly distributed written materials that do not tell the truth about what we are voting on. They are “lying”. Simple fact.
And I don’t have a problem calling them on it, and I don’t feel that it’s a low blow or uncivil to do so.
Don’t let the businesses neighboring UP which are funding the robo calls succeed. Support the sales tax revenues and business owners in our city. Blackie for mayor!!!
Again, if you have a heartfelt opposition to the propositions, then by all means express your view and vote against them. That is respectable. That I can accept. What I won’t accept are people who are – or were – in a position of public trust leaving voicemails and sending flyers to my home that insult my intelligence and lie to me. It is those people who deserve mockery and disrespect. If you have to lie and cheat to win, then you don’t deserve my vote.
That mailer caused such a reaction, that sometimes we forget what this is about and what the true effect will be. We have numerous examples to look at, but the closest to home is Highland Park. It’s not a godless society over there and no, Deno the Cobbler does not sell booze and Starbucks which has locations around the country does not sell booze.
Some people want to control people and things so much, that they have no problem inconveniencing the rest of us. They think that making us drive a couple of miles is no big deal, primarily because it makes them feel better about themselves, even though the only thing that it accomplishes is inconvenience. Who cares if people are buying other goods besides wine when they are over there and that hurts U.P. businesses? They think that keeping the unicard system in place is ok, because it makes them feel better about themselves, even though the only thing it accomplishes is inconvenience. Who cares if it inconveniences customers by making them fill out a card and the local restaurant smaller restaurants by costing them money? Who cares if some of those little places come and go? Who cares that some people are concerned about their identity being sent to the State when they purchase a drink? The funny thing is that most of them drink also. It is about freedom.
I have to honestly say that I didn’t have much opinion on this when it all started out. The ad blast from the “Against” side and all their misrepresentations (which is what Merrit’s original post was about–not whether to vote for or against) did have me leaning. But after reading the facts presented, that’s what convinced me to vote Yes.
Those facts were not “fear of hypocrites” or “convenience” or “name calling”. They are things such as the fact that this makes selling alcohol HARDER than the current setup. They are things like the fact that a YES vote is how things have been in HP for years and that place is fine.
Many people have covered the fact that comments in this blog can get negative, but frankly, out of all the comments I’ve seen on four or five different blog entries on this issue, yours has been by far the most offensive to me.
I can hear you all getting ready to type….before you do, let me put in a plug for HPUMC AA groups…
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