Another One Bites the Dust...

As of today...Southern Comfort Motel MUST close! The City of Dallas ordered the motel closed after a series of hearings and resistance and fight from the owners. This is yet another of the drug infested, prostitute filled filthy motels located in our community.

The owners of Southern Comfort appealed to district court after they lost their fight with the City. The judge today after weeks of waiting, finally issued his decision..and the judge sided with the city and most importantly, the community! So if you drive down Lancaster Rd. and see rooms being rented, notify me, notify the city, notify somebody!

This was a win for our community as this motel sits across the street and next door to elementary schools, the Urban League, the VA hospital and homeowners. It has been unfortunate that a new school was built around this foolishness (as was Townview High School- but that's another post!) and young children have to walk past women scantily clad selling their bodies in broad daylight, drugs being sold out of the motel, countless suicides, committed in the motel, assaults, drug overdoses and the list of crimes goes on.

I have attended many of the hearings dealing with these "hot sheet" motels and it makes me tear up every time to hear the owners drop excuse after excuse and not own up to the fact they they contribute heavily to the blight and filth in our communities. I've heard it all from " we can't help it that these kind of people live in that neighborhood..to that didn't happen on my property (when clearly there are police reports 20 miles long for just a few months at the motel property's address). It is also refreshing each time that I witness ministers, young persons and seasoned persons of the neighborhood come down to speak out against the negative forces in their community and not be afraid to tell it how it T-I IS!!!!

There is hope and there are concerned citizens in every community who are fed up and learning how the process works and how they can help clean up their own community and neighborhood themselves! Once we begin to take interest in our neighborhood and educate ourselves on the process and get involved, then you would be amazed at the help that comes to our aid!

I have been asked many times what "hot-sheet" motel means and I can not take the credit for penning the phrase, that goes to Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Caraway. However it references the hot sheets that are found on the beds in these trashy motel rooms, where rooms are rented by the half hour and hourly.

The word is out and the motels that are not good neighbors have all gotten the memo that they MAY be next! But it will take concerned citizens to step up and take action to get the ball rolling! Yes crime has been around a long time and yes crime will continue to be around a long time, but as the drug houses come down and the filthy motels go down and crime is driven out of our communities to make room for economic development- then hope continues to carry on through the lives of the children growing up in our community.

I attended a hearing yesterday for yet another motel in Oak Cliff and this was the first one I'd attended where the motel owner was an African American. Let me just say that I was not only embarrassed, offended and in shock, but it was a scene indescribable!

I would hope that every eye that has opportunity to read these words would begin to take active interest in the community that you live and take some step towards producing positive progress!

Let's Go To Work!