Crime News

Dallas leaders launch initiative to ensure downtown is a safe place

Downtown Dallas skyline

Photo by Bryan Dickerson on Unsplash

The City of Dallas and a group of public and private sector leaders led by Downtown Dallas, Inc. (DDI), and the Dallas Citizens Council have launched Safe in the City, a campaign to improve public safety and address homelessness solutions in downtown Dallas.

According to a release, the work was commissioned by DallasNews Corporation Chief Executive Officer and publisher of Dallas Morning News Grant Moise and is based largely on a Boston Consulting Group (BCG) analysis conducted in 2024.

That work organized a group of business and civic leaders and public officials to address challenges with public safety, homelessness, and vibrancy and economic development.

“My goal was to pull a group of people together who had the collective resources and passion to ensure that we put downtown on a better trajectory to ultimately make it as safe and vibrant as we all want it to be,” says Moise in a statement. “With the right leadership in the room, we immediately got to work devising and implementing an action plan.”

The BCG report recommended six measures to ensure safety and security long term, which the Safe in the City campaign combines into three categories: Visible presence, visible interest, and vibrant downtown.

The measures include:

Increased policing and presence: Surveillance cameras and other technological infrastructure will be expanded for proactive crime detection and deterrence.
Increased coordination among police and security entities: All police and security personnel will have access to a shared communication channel to improve incident response and coordination.
Continue push for rehousing:
Expand Downtown Community Court
“De-magnetize” hotspots
Address needs associated with re-entry of formerly incarcerated individuals.

The initiative is in response to public safety and homelessness challenges post-pandemic, and concerns from residents and businesses. Coalition leaders stressed that work has been underway for nearly a year, leading to decreases in crime, and an “effective end” to street homelessness downtown.

“Over the past 15 months, business, civic, and nonprofit leaders were joined by police and security officials to study our challenges and come up with a series of sustainable solutions,” says DDI President & CEO Jennifer Scripps in a statement. “Thanks to our partnership with Dallas City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert and the Dallas Police Department, we are reporting a 29 percent decrease in overall crime in Downtown this year to date, as well as substantial decreases in quality-of-life reports that the DDI security, homeless outreach, and clean teams address.”

According to BCG projections, full implementation of the six-pronged strategy could yield over $4 billion in incremental property value and generate hundreds of millions in incremental tax revenues.

politics downtown

Big to-do

H-E-B to replace Ennis store with supermarket more than twice as big

newsroom.heb.com

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H-E-B is planning a major upgrade for Ennis grocery shoppers, with a new location that will be more than twice the size of the existing store, which has served residents of Ennis for more than five decades.

A forthcoming 112,000-square-foot Ennis H-E-B is planned for the corner of N. Sonoma Trail and E. Ennis Ave. The current store will remain open until the new location is up and running in late 2028, according to a news release. H-E-B adds that no plans have been made for the property that houses the existing store once it closes.

“We are proud to have served our neighbors in Ennis for more than 50 years," Mabrie Jackson, H‑E‑B’s managing director of public affairs, says in the release. "We hope our new store will continue to be an important part of this community.”

At Ennis' new H-E-B, shoppers can look forward to similar services, quality products, and low prices found in other H‑E‑B locations, the company says. The new store will include a full-service pharmacy with drive-thru and offer both curbside and home delivery services. H-E-B’s much-loved South Flo Pizza will be available at the new store, too.

Jackson adds that the personality and character of Ennis will be reflected in the store's design, a show of the "deep gratitude" they have for their loyal customers in the neighborhood.

The forthcoming Ennis H-E-B, now in the early stages will include:

Bakery featuring handmade artisan breads, cakes, and warm tortillas made in-store daily
Meat and Seafood markets with prime, natural, and organic meats, fully cooked options, and fresh seafood delivered daily
Extensive craft beer and wine selections
Healthy Living department with bulk food items, sports nutrition products, and supplements
Beauty department with a wide selection of cosmetics and other beauty essentials
Pet department featuring H‑E‑B brand Heritage Ranch pet food plus toys and treats
H‑E‑B Blooms department with custom arrangements and décor items
H‑E‑B Texas Backyard for live plants, pottery, soil, and outdoor gardening needs
H‑E‑B Meal Simple section with fresh chef-inspired meals made in store
Sushiya sushi made in-store daily and Asian grill items such as rice and noodle bowls
H-E-B South Flo Pizza, freshly made and handcrafted in-house daily

H-E-B, a chain consistently rated among America's best grocers by industry and consumer reports, has been in rapid expansion mode across DFW in recent years; many stores, including Dallas, Denton, and Carrollton, are in the works.

With $49.6 billion in annual revenue, the H-E-B grocery chain appears at No. 11 on Forbes' inaugural list of America’s 100 largest family businesses.

Founded in 1905, H-E-B operates more than 460 grocery stores in the U.S. and Mexico. The company says its annual sales exceed $50 billion. The company employs over 175,000 Partners in Texas and Mexico, and serves millions of customers in more than 300 communities.

h-e-b supermarkets grocery stores