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Content from our friends over at Barking Dogs

Monday, February 16, 2009

Parking for Lower Greenville residents will be easier for St. Patrick’s Day festivities

by Avi Adelman of Barking Dogs

When you look at the calendar, it's hard not to know that Barking Dog's favorite Jewish holiday is coming up in just a few weeks.

Nope, it's not Passover. It's St. Patrick's Day on Lower Greenville. Yeah, I can tell you are excited, too.

For the past few weeks, neighborhood residents and association leaders have been meeting and trading email with the Dallas Police Department, which is the point man for all things green at this year's event.

We've been counting police officers, drunks and trash containers. But most of all, we've been working on all the parking issues caused by 35,000 drunks assembling in a cage for about six hours.

Not all the fine points have been ironed out, but one big change has been approved. And if you live on a street with Resident Parking Only, you are so gonna love this.

Flashback to SPD 2008. There were a few new RPO zones around Lowest Greenville, thanks to the BelmontNA's take back the neighborhood program. As a courtesy to the drunks who would be invading the neighborhood early in the day but might find their car towed when they staggered back after RPO kicked in, all RPO streets were designated as NO PARKING streets. But our good intentions for the drunks ticked off some residents who were planning parties. Obviously a revision was required for next year.

Fast forward to 2009. There are now 15 RPO streets in the neighborhood (see map here), meaning more parties would be impacted if we blocked off all the parking again.

Is there a solution? Yes, Virginia you can have a party at your house this year.

For 2009 (and into the future), special bright yellow signs will be posted on RPO streets, telling the drunks (at least the ones who can read) the parking is just for residents who have RPO Hangtags (or guests who have temporary paper hangtags for that date only). BD has prepared a concept sketch of the new sign (see graphic).

The bars organizing the annual drunks in a cage event are paying for the signs, as well as thousands of the standard NO PARKING signs to be installed all over the Lower Greenville area (nine new streets have been added to the list for 2009). There's more work to do on other details of the event, but the final list of streets and other event details will be posted here and on neighborhood websites. Council Member Angela Hunt will prepare a neighborhood flyer for delivery a few days before the event.

This change in RPO parking was not appreciated by Lower Greenville NA. During the neighborhood meeting with DPD, LGNA President Pat Carr kept repeating the same tired old mantra that LGNA is in charge of all the streets south of Belmont Avenue and did not see a need for any changes. They continue to insist BelmontNA does not exist, that white is black, and up is down.

BelmontNA and Vickery Place NA submitted detailed requests to the City regarding changes in the how the event is managed this year, most of which have been approved by the City. LGNA just sat on their hands and submitted a count of NO PARKING signs for their streets.

Since LGNA does not have any RPO streets within their boundaries (north of Belmont), it was obvious to City Staff LGNA had no right to tell anyone how to manage RPO parking. LGNA opposes RPO since it does not want to piss off the restaurants (the same ones putting on the party) that donate prizes for their National Night Out and put money to their bank account (through payments to install NO PARKING signs before the event). BD's been helping LGNA residents who don't care what LGNA thinks to get their RPO petitions organized for filing this Spring.

If you live on an RPO'd street, now is the time to order your permanent and temporary hangtags if you want them by St. Patrick's Day. Get more information on BelmontNA's website - click here. Flyers will be distributed to residents on RPO streets this week.

BelmontNA will provide logistical assistance - forms, information kits, flyers - to residents anywhere in the Lower Greenville area who want RPO on their street. When available, we will help secure outside funding to cover some of the expenses (National Sports Lounge paid for the signs on 5600 McCommas, and Sofranos/Malibu/Service Bar paid all RPO expenses for 5500 Alta).

As of Friday afternoon, three more RPO petitions for streets within BelmontNA have been submitted to the City for review and surveys, and one more street is just a few signatures away from being submitted.

Pegasus News content partner - Barking Dogs

Staff
Verified User
Anonymous

Have RPO discussions replaced what sex drive you may or may not have had, Avi?

Wondering if you'll have a full blown interweb prostate massage should LGNA residents actually get an RPO passed.

Scott Doyle Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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Avi is once again taking a dump on everyone else who wants to have fun. Look, I understand you want to clean up your block, just dont go mussolini on everyone else around you either, especially in this economy.

Chris Kidd Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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I just want a piece of the inevitable black market for the temporary hangtags.

Mike Orren Staff

9 months, 1 week ago
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For some strange reason, I now want to go urinate in public.

threesheets Anonymous

9 months, 1 week ago
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Is it just me, or does anyone else think the kind of sh*t Avi always writes doesn't belong here? I'm always shocked when I click on what I think is a "News" story, only to find Avi's amateurish mud-slinging and name-calling polemics (can you tell someone in LGNA must have picked on Avi as a young boy?). At least file it under Editorials or something - don't treat it as a News story, cuz it just ain't.

SteveM Anonymous

9 months, 1 week ago
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Miko: I think it might be easier to just befriend some lonely shut-in.

SteveM: Well, you might feel differently if people drove up and down your street until 2am, and puked in your front lawn. Unless of course you moved in next to an area that's long been known for its collection of bars or something, you know, in which case you'd maybe expect some of that.

Pavel Lishin Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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He certainly manages to come off as childish.

luniz Anonymous

9 months, 1 week ago
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::befriend some lonely shut-in.

Pavel, this is is the first time I've heard you refer to yourself as "lonely"

Is this one of those "Cries for help" I hear about on Oprah?

Jason Rice Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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The dude with the mohawk is taking up for the scary old man that screams “GET OFF MY LAWN!” to everyone in Dallas? Aww, all the makings of a love story...

jtmbls Anonymous

9 months, 1 week ago
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I don't see much with people organizing to keep their hood clean, but perhaps they should take a lesson from New Orleans and St. Charles Street. Sometimes your whole neighborhood becomes the party and surely you knew that when you moved in.

I also agree with Chris, betting there isn't one bar or restaurant on Greenville that wants to discourage people from coming down there.

Travis Bush Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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"I don't see much with people organizing to keep their hood clean"

Short bus! I don't see much problem..

Travis Bush Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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Jason, if I lived on Lower Greenville, I wouldn't be a shut-in, I'd be a barfly.

Also, jtmbls, I'm doing no such thing - note the sarcasm in the last sentence there.

Pavel Lishin Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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Reading Avi's articles always makes me want to move out of Dallas.

Woody Rosen Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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*Jason, if I lived on Lower Greenville, I wouldn't be a shut-in, I'd be a crime blog item"

fixed it for you..

Travis Bush Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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Why does Pavel have color? I want some color.

Jesus Valadez Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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Weird, it went away...

Jesus Valadez Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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Greenville Ave and the Parades, Parties and events, somthing that has been going on since the 1970s, while in the late 1960s and early 70s Greenville was half dead and a few Head Shops existed along the old road with some strip joints,how things have changed, when are people going to walk and ride their bikes to the area....A/T, An old Greenville concept.. hike..

alexander troup Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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You're just seeing things, Jesus.

jtmbls Anonymous

9 months, 1 week ago
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SteveM, im in agreement with you. He's a bitter old guy with a house that falling apart and a yard that needs to be taken care of. yet, he finds the time to harass business owners because he clings onto some odd notion that his area is a commerical district only.

Chris Kidd Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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jtmbls Anonymous

"You're just seeing things, Jesus."

Isn't it usually the other way around?

Michael Anderson Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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Reading Avi's articles always makes me want him to move to Garland.

Robert Kelly Verified

9 months, 1 week ago
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The Dallas Police Department has released the list of streets that will have NO PARKING or RESIDENT PARKING ONLY restrictions during St. Patrick's Day events on and around Lower Greenville.

Areas already marked by existing No Parking signs are not included on this list (eg 5700 Belmont Avenue, south side of the street has existing NO PARKING signs, but the north side is an RPO Zone and will have RPO PARKING ONLY signs).

Final maps will be distributed to neighborhood associations next week, and included with Council Member Angela Hunt's Neighborhood Notification flyer a few days before the event takes place.

The text of the NO PARKING signs have been revised to include the phrase 'this side of street' in order to clarify coverage of enforcement. These signs will be white with red letters.

The RPO signs will be posted on RPO Zoned Streets. These signs will be yellow with black letters.

North and South curb lanes of McCommas between Central and Skillman
North curb lanes of all streets between McCommas and Ross
All RPO streets will be available for approved RPO placards (For locations, please refer to http://belmontna.org/html/rpomaplarge...)
West curb lanes of all streets between Central and Skillman except for Matilda
East and West curb lanes of McMillan, Worcola, Euclid, Hope, Summit, Concho and Delmar (between Belmont and Prospect)
East curb lane of Mecca

Avi Adelman Verified

9 months ago
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If you are going to St Patty's day on Lower Greenville - take the DART. There are special buses to/from lower greenville all day long that leave from Mockingbird station. It is much more convenient and you don't have to worry about parking at all.