Sam's Club Protest
Neighborhood group wins small but important victory in Sam's Club battle
In the ongoing struggle surrounding the proposed Sam's Club off US Highway 75 and Haskell Avenue, the little guys won another round.
The East Village Association, which is the group that's trying to stop Sam's Club from entering its neighborhood, got a tiny nudge forward from Judge Phyllis Lister Brown; she denied a motion filed by the City of Dallas and Trammell Crow to dismiss the association's lawsuit.
The City of Dallas and Trammell Crow claimed that the East Village Association didn't have the right to file a lawsuit, but the judge disagreed. Alex More, who is working with the association, says it was a small but important victory.
"The city and Trammell Crow were arguing that, because the plaintiff is a neighborhood association and not individual property owners, for those reasons and a few more, the court should dismiss lawsuit altogether and throw it out," More says. "But the court said that the East Village Association has the standing or the ability to continue the lawsuit and proceed with its claims.
"The punch line is that the defendant was claiming that this needed to be thrown out for technical reasons, but the court disagreed and the East Village Association gets to continue its battle," he says.
The East Village Association protests what they describe as a misrepresentation by Trammell Crow Co., whom they say fast-tracked a proposal through the city's planning commission in a stealthy manner. Despite the neighborhood group's efforts, the Dallas Plan Commission gave its approval to Trammel Crow Co. to move forward with permitting and construction in July.
That hasn't dimmed the group's determination, who are welcoming donations for their legal fight, and who will hold a rally on November 13 to keep the public awaren of the issue. The rally will take place along the northbound service road, between Henderson and Carroll, exact location to come.
The next date to circle on the calendar is January 5, 2015, when the court will hear the East Village Association's Motion for summary judgment. They don't have a trial date yet. If the case proceeds to trial, they expect it won't come until July 2015 or later.
