Dallas City Council confirmed appointees to City boards and commissions earlier this week, including those representing Lake Highlands’ District 10.
Dallas City Hall
Council members in the City of Dallas appoint residents to boards and commissions that advise the council on various aspects of city governance, ranging from zoning to arts and culture. Each appointee, once confirmed, serves a two-year term with term limits imposed after a fourth term.
In November, voters passed two city charter amendments concerning regulations for city boards and commissions. Proposition H removed the requirement that appointees to the City Plan Commission, Civil Service Board, Park and Recreation Board, or Redistricting Commission be a taxpaying citizen or registered voter, while Proposition I gave city council the authority to replace board members and commissioners before the end of their two-year term.
In December, a group sent a letter to all 14 council members demanding the immediate resignation of board members and commissioners who had exceeded their term limits after stricter regulations were passed by voters in November.
The Park and Recreation Board recently experienced a shake-up with the resignation of District 9 Board Member Maria Hasbany. Her very public resignation came after a dispute with council member Paula Blackmon over contracts with two of the rowing clubs at White Rock Lake.
At an Aug. 27 meeting, city council members voted to confirm a slew of first-time appointees and returning board members and commissioners. Of the four District 10 board members and commissioners confirmed on Wednesday, three have previously served in the same role.
Commissioner Tipton Housewright was reappointed to a third term on the City Plan and Zoning Commission. Housewright also serves as principal emeritus for OMNIPLAN Architects, a Dallas-based firm that has designed for NorthPark Center and UT Southwestern. District 14 resident Sarah Lamb will serve a second term in District 10’s seat on the Board of Adjustment, which advises council on Development Code variances and exemptions.
Former Dallas Morning News city hall reporter and Meetings of Interest publisher Scott Goldstein was reappointed to a second term on the Park and Recreation Board. District 10 will be represented on the Dallas Housing Finance Corporation Board by David Elllis.Â
Earlier this year, the Advocate reported on large numbers of vacancies on city boards and commissions, with three District 10 seats (Community Development Commission, Veteran Affairs Commission and Ethics Advisory Commission) empty. All three are still vacant, although representatives from District 10 council member Kathy Stewart’s office have told the Advocate she is working to fill them.
Neighbors can apply to serve on boards and commissions on the City of Dallas website.
