Rising to the top

Buzzy Dallas neighbor crowned best U.S. place to live by New York Times — sort of

Developments like Glade Parks have made Euless a shopping and dining destination.

Photo courtesy of Glade Parks

So long to that old, unfortunate nickname "Useless." The city of Euless is now officially Dallas-Fort Worth's hottest city, having just been crowned The New York Times' best place to live in the U.S. — well, sort of.

Times opinion writer Farhad Manjoo and several colleagues recently collected data for thousands of towns and cities covering more than 30 metrics, such as school quality, crime rates, and affordability. They then used that data to create a quiz allowing readers to determine where they should live based on the criteria they select.

When Manjoo picked criteria for himself — jobs, climate change, racial diversity, and affordability — Euless rose to the top, claiming the No. 1 spot.

Another DFW community, Edgecliff Village, ranked two places behind, at No. 3. Nestled in between them was Woodlawn, Ohio, a suburb of Cincinnati.

Those three communities were a 90 percent match for Manjoo’s criteria.

And five more Texas communities — all in Dallas-Fort Worth — tied for an 87 percent match: Cedar Hill, DeSoto, Garland, Grand Prairie, and Mesquite. (Notice that Flower Mound, Frisco, and Plano — the usual cities that tend to steal a lot of the spotlight when it comes to North Texas communities appearing on the seemingly endless slew of best-places-to-live lists — failed to make this one.)

Both Euless and Edgecliff Village earned a score of nine out of 10 in the jobs category. Edgecliff Village edged out Euless in the climate risks column (nine versus eight, respectively), and both scored 10 out of 10 in the racial diversity category.

Cedar Hill, DeSoto, Garland, Grand Prairie, and Mesquite notched identical scores in Manjoo’s three categories: eight for jobs, eight for climate risks, and 10 for racial diversity.

Two non-Texas cities round out Manjoo’s list: Brooklyn Center, Minnesota (a Minneapolis-St. Paul suburb), and Forest Park, Ohio, a Cincinnati suburb.

For the list, Manjoo sorted affordable communities by assigning one or two dollar signs (out of a possible four). All 10 communities on the list received one or two dollar signs, but Manjoo didn’t specify the dollar signs attached to each of the 10 “winners.”

Obviously, Manjoo’s ranking is subjective. If you take the quiz, your results could be markedly different from the ones Manjoo, who lives in Northern California, came up with. But in general, Manjoo’s ranking sheds a positive light on DFW’s quality of life.

The opinion piece laying out Manjoo’s thoughts about the best places to live carries this headline: “Everyone’s Moving to Texas. Here’s Why.” (As if we needed The New York Times to drive even more out-of-staters to Texas.)

“For the many hypothetical life scenarios I ran through our quiz, the suburbs around Dallas — places like Plano, McKinney, Garland, Euless, and Allen — came up a lot. It’s clear why these are some of the fastest-growing areas in the country,” Manjoo writes. “They have relatively little crime and are teeming with jobs, housing, highly rated schools, good restaurants, clean air, and racial and political diversity — all at a steep discount compared to the cost of living in America’s coastal metropolises.”

That’s the kind of glowing language you might see on the websites of DFW chambers of commerce — language that could entice even more Californians and other out-of-staters to land in the Lone Star State.

“Texas, now, feels a bit like California did when I first moved here in the late 1980s — a thriving, dynamic place where it doesn’t take a lot to establish a good life. For many people, that’s more than enough,” Manjoo writes.

But back to Euless. Anyone who's watched the business boom the last few years could tell it was heating up. The Glade Parks development, in particular, has become a prime destination for restaurants and retailers.

Here's Manjoo's complete top 10 list from The New York Times:

1. Euless
2. Woodlawn, Ohio
3. Edgecliff Village
4. Garland
5. Grand Prairie
6. Mesquite
7. DeSoto
8. Cedar Hill
9. Brooklyn Center, Minnesota
10. Forest Park, Ohio

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Heat Wave News

Dallas pet owners should take these steps with oncoming heat wave

SPCA

Keep your pets hydrated. Consider putting out a kiddie pool.

Dallas weather is about to take a serious turn, and the SPCA has valuable advice on what steps pet owners should take. It's easy to forget that animals get hit hard by the heat, and especially in Texas: A report by Veterinarians.org found that Texas was No. 1 on the list of states with heat-related pet deaths. Based on data they compiled from 2018-2022, Texa had 40 reported heat-related pet deaths — more than six times the national five-year average.

In a statement, SPCA of Texas Interim Chief Veterinarian Valarie Tynes, DVM, DACVB, DACAW reminds pet owners that their pets have very few ways to cool themselves down.

“As a veterinarian, I’ve seen far too many cases of dogs and cats suffering from heatstroke, often brought into the emergency room when it’s already too late," Tynes says. "Our pets have very limited ways to cool themselves down. They can sweat a small amount through their paw pads, but their main way to release excess heat is by panting. Panting helps pets cool off through the evaporation of moisture, but it only provides limited relief, especially during extreme temperatures."

Tynes says that, when the body can’t shed heat fast enough, serious internal damage begins to occur.

"The proteins and chemicals that keep the body functioning start to break down," she says. "I’ve seen heat affect the kidneys and brain—organs and processes that are incredibly sensitive to high temperatures."

Breed, overall health and environment all can influence how at-risk a pet is, but one thing is always true: prevention is critical. Please don’t underestimate how dangerous heat can be.

Tynes advises pet owners to keep pets in cool, shaded areas, provide plenty of fresh water, and avoid walks or outdoor activity during the hottest parts of the day.

Here are some proactive measures to keep pets safe and comfortable during these sweltering days:

Keep your pets hydrated
Make sure your furry friends have access to fresh, cool water at all times. Consider placing multiple water bowls around your home and refill them regularly. If your pets must be outside during the day, make sure there are plenty of shady spaces throughout the day and several shaded, nontippable water bowls filled with ice water. Do not use metal bowls outside.

If possible, a small wading pool filled with cold ice water and placed in a shaded area outside is preferred. This not only allows pets to drink but also to cool off in the water when overheating.

Schedule exercise with your pets wisely on warm days
Give your pet plenty of water before and after walks or playtime. Be sure to avoid strenuous activities during the hottest parts of the day. Early mornings (before 10 a.m.) or late evenings (after 5 p.m.)—when temperatures are lower—are ideal for walks or playtime.

Hot pavement can burn paw pads, so opt for walking on grassy areas. Consider using paw wax or booties to shield sensitive paws from hot pavement, rocks or sand that can cause burns and blisters. If you cannot hold the back of your hand on the pavement for five to 10 seconds, the pavement is too hot for your pet.

Make sure your pets have plenty of shade
If your pet spends any time outside, be sure it has plenty of shade so he or she can get out of the sun. This is where the ground or grass will be coolest—under a tree, an umbrella, or a simple, open structure. Do not tie or restrain the pet so that it cannot move between shady spots as needed.

If it is really hot and humid, bring your pet indoors and into air-conditioned areas.

Never leave your pet in a locked car
No matter what, even if you think you will be away from the car for just a few minutes, do not leave your pet unattended in a parked car. The car can absorb enough energy within minutes to become a death mobile. A cracked window or two is not enough to prevent heatstroke when it’s hot, or even warm. It is also not enough to park in the shade on a hot day and leave all the windows and even sunroof open.

While weather in the 70s may seem harmless, a Stanford study showed that in just an hour, a car’s temperature rose to 116 degrees internally when left out in 72-degree heat. It is not recommended to leave the air conditioner running in a car for your pet. Oftentimes the air conditioner malfunctions, leading to overheating inside the vehicle.

Heatstroke is a serious and potentially life-threatening condition that can affect pets when they are exposed to high temperatures and excessive heat. Dogs and cats cannot regulate their body temperature as efficiently as humans, making them more susceptible to heatstroke. It can occur in as little as 10-15 minutes, especially in hot and humid environments or when an animal is left in a parked car.

Symptoms of heatstroke in pets include excessive panting, drooling, rapid breathing, lethargy, vomiting, diarrhea and collapse. It is crucial to act quickly if you suspect your pet is suffering from heatstroke. Move them to a cool and shaded area, offer fresh water, and use cool (not cold) water or damp towels to gradually lower their body temperature.

Then take the pet directly to an emergency veterinary clinic. Heat stroke can be fatal and can come on very quickly, so it’s best not to take any chances.

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