Uptown Love

This hardworking organization ensures Uptown Dallas stays awesome

Imagine your favorite Uptown Dallas activity. Is it brunch in West Village? Window-shopping while strolling through Dallas’ most walkable neighborhood? Chances are you regularly enjoy aspects of this enclave, but do you know who maintains those 30,000 blooming flowers, 42 trash cans, and 4.5 miles of track for the McKinney Avenue Trolley?

The City of Dallas does its part, but it’s the nonprofit management organization Uptown Dallas Inc. that goes above and beyond to make sure the neighborhood is as safe and beautiful as possible.

Nearly 19,000 people call Uptown home, and that number swells every day as people flood in to work, eat, shop, and play. The Public Improvement District known as Uptown Dallas Inc. helps out the city in ways which you’re probably not even aware.

For example, those off-duty police officers strolling and biking around the area to head off any disturbances? That’s UDI. Beautifying and maintaining Uptown’s 58 acres of green space? UDI again. Sidewalk repair and public art installations? Yup, you guessed it.

Close to 600 acres comprise Uptown, less than a square mile that’s bordered by North Central Expressway and Turtle Creek. Among its popular entertainment destinations can be counted West Village, the Quadrangle, and the Crescent, as well as a significant portion of the Katy Trail.

UDI hosts a variety of events as well, bringing the Uptown community together with everything from outdoor movie screenings to happy hours to festive holiday get-togethers.

Nature-filled enclaves also exist, in the form of the recently refurbished Griggs Park and charming Anita Phelps Park. Those pretty medians on Cedar Spring Road are also under UDI’s jurisdiction, which explains why they always look so fresh.

If it seems like this magical service is too good to be true, take a moment and pat yourself on the back. You’re responsible if you’re an Uptown property owner, as you opt to pay a special assessment that funds UDI. So congrats, Uptown, and keep up the good work.

Uptown Dallas Inc. works hard to keep the neighborhood safe, clean, and looking its best.

Photo courtesy of Uptown Dallas Inc.

Uptown Dallas Inc. works hard to keep the neighborhood safe, clean, and looking its best.

promoted uptown

family values

Dallas sees Texas' biggest one-year jump in cost of raising kids

Courtesy of SmartAsset/iStock

Raising a child in Dallas will cost parents over $23,000 this year.

Raising a child is not an easy or inexpensive feat, and a new study has determined Dallas parents are saddled with the second-highest costs for childrearing in Texas, with expenses jumping higher than any other metro statewide since 2025.

SmartAsset's latest report, "Cost of Raising a Child in Major U.S. Metros – 2026 Study," calculated year-over-year changes in the annual cost of raising a child (factoring in childcare, additional housing costs, food, transportation, medical costs and other necessities) in the 48 largest U.S. metro areas. MIT's Living Wage Calculator was used to compare the living costs of a household with two working adults and one child to that of a childless household with two working adults.

Childrearing costs in Dallas-Fort Worth have grown 4.5 percent since last year, totaling $23,340 for a family of three in 2026. That's over $1,000 more than what it took to raise a child in 2025, and it's $1,414 higher than what it took in 2024.

This is how SmartAsset broke down the cost for raising a child in Dallas:

Cost of childcare: $10,736
Cost of food: $1,826
Other expenses: $10,778

Though Dallas has the second-steepest costs for raising a child in Texas, the metro is actually much more affordable than most other places in the U.S.: DFW ranked 39th in SmartAsset's national list of cities with the highest childrearing costs in 2026, making it the 10th most affordable U.S. metro for raising a family.

San Francisco-Oakland-Fremont in California topped the list with the highest childrearing costs in the U.S., at $43,171. The cost for raising a child in this California metro soared nearly 11 percent higher since last year.

Memphis, Tennessee ranked dead last as the most affordable U.S. metro for raising a child in 2026. Families will spend less than $20,000 to raise a child in Memphis, only 3.24 percent more than what was needed in 2025.

Raising a child in other Texas metros
It may come as no surprise that Austin is the most expensive place to raise a child in Texas, and it appeared as the 31st most expensive U.S. metro for families. Parents will spend nearly $25,000 to raise a child in the state's capital city, which is $703 higher than it was a year ago.

Meanwhile, San Antonio-New Braunfels is the most affordable metro in the Lone Star State for raising a family, and it's the third-most affordable place for raising a child nationwide. San Antonio parents will spend $21,393, or $448 more than last year, on their childrearing costs.

Houston also ranked among the top 10 most affordable U.S. metros for raising a child, landing in 7th place nationally, with childrearing costs adding up to $22,605 in 2026. That's only $737 more than last year.

The top 10 most affordable U.S. metros for raising a child in 2026 are:

No. 1 – Memphis, Tennessee ($19,922)
No. 2 – Nashville, Davidson-Murfreesboro-Franklin, Tennessee ($21,216)
No. 3 – San Antonio-New Braunfels ($21,393)
No. 4 – Birmingham, Alabama ($21,684)
No. 5 – Virginia Beach-Chesapeake-Norfolk, Virginia ($22,314)
No. 6 – Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, Georgia ($22,470)
No. 7 – Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands ($22,605)
No. 8 – Richmond, Virginia ($22,658)
No. 9 – Louisville/Jefferson County, Kentucky ($23,270)
No. 10 – Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington ($23,340)

family dallas fort worth arlington smartasset reports livability