Coronavirus News

4 nonprofits chosen to disburse COVID-19 rental assistance funds in Dallas

The Coronavirus Relief Fund will help with short-term assistance on rent.

Tomasz Zajda/EyeEm/Getty Images

Four nonprofits will help the city of Dallas deploy a federally funded short-term rental assistance program.

The CARES Act Coronavirus Relief Fund (CRF) Emergency Short Term Rental Assistance Program is a partnership between the city of Dallas and that will help families in need.

Six nonprofit organizations requested funds. The City chose four of those, to receive a combined total $1.5 million. Those include:

Human Rights Initiative
Voice of Hope
Refugee Services of Texas
The United Way of Metropolitan Dallas collaborative, which is comprised of Catholic Charities of Dallas, Metrocrest Services, Harmony CDC, The Wilkinson Center, and the Salvation Army

Here is the money trail:

The Department of Housing & Revitalization allocated $6 million to DHA and local nonprofits to administer the short-term rental assistance program.
DHA received $4.5 million through an interlocal agreement and presented a plan distributing funds through regular lottery drawings in City Council districts.
The remaining $1.5 million was distributed among these four nonprofits.

The breakdown of who got how much is listed online.

"We recognize that the need is greater than funding will allow, but we believe that distributing these funds to organizations with a diverse geographic reach, we will maximize the opportunity to assist as many residents as the funding will allow," said Chief of Economic Development and Neighborhood Services Dr. Eric A. Johnson in a statement.

The assistance programs will open in the coming weeks. If you're seeking a piece, they recommend you regularly visit participating nonprofit websites to learn when applications are available.

The city is also partnered with the Dallas Independent School District who will inform potential candidates on their digital channels.

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Turkey Day news

Dallas eats up top-5 rank on list of best cities for Thanksgiving

Photo courtesy of Razzoo's

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Dallas is sitting at the head of the table as one of the best places in the country to celebrate Thanksgiving this year, a new study has revealed.

Dallas ranked No. 5 out of 100 of the largest U.S. cities in WalletHub's annual "Best Places to Go for Thanksgiving" report, published November 12. The city made a huge leap over its 2023 ranking as No. 17, and remains the highest-ranking Texas city.

The study analyzed each city based on 18 metrics to determine the best places for Thanksgiving, such as the number of pumpkin patches per capita, the average cost of a Thanksgiving dinner, the number of volunteer opportunities, the average weather forecast, and more. The metrics were then organized into five overall categories to determine the rankings.

The category that Dallas ranked the highest in was the number of celebrations and traditions (No. 2), and the average weather forecast during the holiday period (No. 9), while the lowest-ranked category was for safety and accessibility (No. 82). Other categories that determined Dallas' overall ranking were affordability (No. 60), and a "giving thanks" rank (No. 26).

Dallas restaurants are getting prepared for their big Turkey Day feasts, and CultureMap has rounded up a thorough list of all of the local restaurants hosting holiday feasts, from brunch to dinner.

"The best cities for celebrating Thanksgiving all have an abundance of high-quality restaurants and places to buy festive decorations, and their residents get very excited for the holiday based on their Google search history," said WalletHub analyst Chip Lupo.

By Thanksgiving on November 28, Dallas will be fully decked for the December holidays. Dallasites who will have extended family in town during Thanksgiving weekend can take in of all the marvelous Christmas lights brightening the city. Dallas-Fort Worth goes all out for the most wonderful time of year.

Across North Texas, three Dallas-area cities also made big improvements from their 2023 rankings. Irving moved up 10 spots to claim No. 19 this year, and Garland jumped up 21 spots on the list as No. 34. Arlington made the biggest improvement in the region, moving from No. 78 last year to No. 55 this year.

Meanwhile, Plano and Fort Worth slipped in the rankings, falling into No. 44 and No. 45 in 2024, respectively. Plano previously ranked No. 38 in 2023, and Fort Worth was No. 36.

San Diego, California (No. 1) topped the overall list of best places to go for Thanksgiving this year, followed by its Golden State neighbors San Francisco (No. 3) and San Jose (No. 4). Atlanta, Georgia (No. 2) rounds out the top five.

dallas fort worth thanksgiving wallethub rankings