TREC board members recently boarded a bus to tour three places in southern Dallas where TREC Foundation has invested funds and TREC members’ have donated time. I really didn’t know what to expect, but the day was even more interesting than I hoped.
Jubilee Park and Community Center
Our first stop was Jubilee Park and Community Center, an area transforming against great odds. In a neighborhood that used to be rife with drug addicts, criminals and prostitutes, homeowners are now taking pride in the area and it shows. There is a nice Community Center, as well as some charming homes rented by local seniors. TREC Foundation helped finance several new quality, affordable (LEED silver-certified) homes that are owned and occupied with evident great pride by working families able to buy the homes at a fraction of the actual cost to build them.
Someone shared the story of an area resident saying they would know the transformation was working when people put out flower pots, since, in the past, such a thing would be stolen instantly. There are now flower pots! The director of the organization is impressively dedicated and enthusiastic. He even got the United Arab Emirates to donate a soccer field! It was uplifting to see what is happening in this area.
Frazier Revitalization, Inc.
The Frazier Revitalization area was eye-opening. This district is compared to the lower 9th Ward of New Orleans, being home to a disproportionately high rate of single-parent households, low education levels, joblessness, families living below the poverty line and residents with criminal records.
An impressive and heavily-used Parkland primary care facility opened in the area about a year ago and it is a great step forward. There were several hundred people there to receive services while we toured- including lab work, x-rays, psychiatry, nutrition counseling, women and infant specialty health, general medical care, weight management, and even a pharmacy and mobile mammography center.
The president and CEO of Frazier Revitalization, Inc., Dorothy Hopkins, has a deep passion for positive development in this area. She is working with the New Urban Council on innovative plans to spur local entrepreneurship and continue the push to change the cycle.
St. Philip’s School and Community Center
St. Philip’s School was our last stop. The facility houses the school, a drop/load zone for Meals-on-Wheels, a children’s medical facility, a recreational facility for seniors, a North Texas Food Bank community pantry (recently expanded), sports fields, and much more.
A building has been purchased for the next phase of campus expansion, which is to remodel a former nightclub across from St. Philip’s football field to serve as a new athletic field house that will serve hundreds of student athletes each year.
A couple of things struck me about this place:
- There are over 50 basketball teams that operate through the main facility gym- wow! What a great way to give kids an alternative to being on the street.
- Best of all, the St. Philip’s staff member leading our tour stopped a random group of students and asked them to recite the St. Philip’s creed. Ranging in age from about 6-12, they all stood tall and spoke this lengthy creed with a confidence and conviction that just about brought me to tears. They start learning the creed in pre-K and by the time they are in second or third grade they know it by heart. It was deeply inspiring.
The bus tour made for a great day. TREC Foundation is out there making an impact, and those in the community doing the heavy lifting know who we are. It made me genuinely proud to be a TREC member.
Kennis, a Dallas-based apartment developer, has been involved in many aspects of commercial real estate, including development, lending, investing, and buying/selling of office, retail, industrial and multi-family properties. She founded Portfolio Development, LLC in 2001 after almost 20 years in the commercial real estate industry.