Driving News
Downtown gets new DART rail and West End park plus more Dallas news
This round of Dallas news features a couple of downtown items including a yes vote on a new DART line and a park that's newly opened. A street near downtown will be renamed, and a prominent Dallas lawyer is running for Texas Attorney General.
Here's what happened in Dallas this week:
West End park
West End Square, a new public park at 607 Corbin St. in the West End Historic District in downtown Dallas, has opened. Formerly a parking lot, it's now a space wrapped on three sides by a steel trellis that encloses porch swings, a 50-foot-long table with charging stations and Wi-Fi, and an arcade that will host performances and artwork.
Downtown DART
At its March 24 meeting, the Dallas City Council approved D2, the second DART rail line that will go through downtown Dallas. The goal is to reduce the congestion that occurs through downtown with only one line.
The planned route includes three subway stations and two above-ground stations between Victory Park and Deep Ellum, with service on the green and orange lines. The project has been on the books since 2007. Construction is supposed to start in 2022 and be operational by 2028.
There's still debate about whether it will be streetside or underground, but that decision does not have to be made right now.
Botham Jean Boulevard
The city of Dallas will hold a ceremony on March 27 at 12 pm to unveil a renamed street in memory of Botham Jean, who was shot and killed in his home by Amber Guyger, an off-duty police officer, in September 2018. "Botham Jean Boulevard" will include the stretch of South Lamar Street between Interstate 30 and South-Central Expressway.
Attendees will include Botham Jean's family, his college singing group "Good News Singers" from Harding University, and civil rights/personal injury attorney Ben Crump.
COVID-19 tests at home
DoorDash is now delivering two COVID-19 home collection kits: The Vault Health COVID-19 Saliva Test Kit for $119 and the Everlywell COVID-19 Test Home Collection Kit DTC for $109. These are newly available in Dallas, one of 12 U.S. cities including Chicago, Cleveland, and Denver.
Merritt for AG
Dallas lawyer Lee Merritt is running for Texas Attorney General, which he announced on Twitter, stating, "I am running for Attorney General of Texas. Texas deserves an attorney general that will fight for the constitutional rights of all citizens." Merritt has represented parties in a number of prominent cases including the families of Botham Jean, Jordan Edwards, Atatiana Jefferson, and Marvin Scott, all of whom were Black and were all killed by the police.
Best of luck against Texas' current Attorney General Ken Paxton, who is being sued by Twitter and is under investigation by the FB over whether he used his office to help a wealthy donor who is also under federal investigation.