Scared of DISD Taking Homes, Jubilee Park-ers Take Their Case to County
Photo and Story by Daniel Rodrigue, Dallas Observer – Today's standing-room-only meeting of the Dallas County Commissioners Court was uneventful for the most part, with all the juicy talk about pay raises and surety bond increases saved for closed session.
But just before the meeting was called to a close, things got interesting when a pair of residents from Jubilee Park in South Dallas spoke to the court in an effort to "bring awareness" to their plight — the Dallas Independent School District's plans to raze some 20 homes to make way for a new O.M. Roberts Elementary. It's not the plan that has some residents so incensed; rather, they're furious over the district's low-ball offers.
Shawn Busari — terrified, she said, of the district claiming eminent domain — told the court her family had been in Jubilee Park since 1954. "Where do we go or build for $50,000?" she asked the commissioners, who made it clear this was really an issue for DISD.
"I will go to Mr. Obama," said Jewel Floyd, who added that she hoped she'd find someone willing to listen before it got that far — meaning John Wiley Price. "Mr. Wiley," the self-described "old-time" resident said, "why are they going to take our houses?"
It proved a rhetorical question. But afterward, the two were swarmed by media members attending today's meeting. (Maurine Dickey also came over — she suggested they call Schutze.) The two had an important announcement: Jubilee Park residents will "peaceably assemble" (with signs, of course) outside DISD's Ross Ave. HQ on Thursday, before the school board's 5:30 p.m. meeting.