Can Deep Ellum be saved?

[Markedallas]

Thoughts? What should be done?

Can it be saved?

[X Factor]

:coolcigar I believe it can be saved with more security and alot of subsidys. There needs to be a downtown connection service from Deep Ellum to Convention Center to West end to Victory and Uptown. It should be free to ride and only be weekend service. Give incentives to stay in Deep Ellum and help business in everyway.

[tamtagon]

Zone out dance club, zone in live music venues.

[oak cliff p-wood]

whats the deal...why does deep ellum need to be "saved"?...i know trees has closed, but is the whole place in danger of being closed down or somethin happinin to it....its been years since i went down there..... if yall just mean saved in the since of more clubs and businesses....maybe a strip club would be good

[vman]

A few years ago, I remember a jounalist writing something like...if dallas' name was removed from everyplace in the city and a stranger was just plopped down here, it would take him weeks to figure out where he was. Dallas is just that generic, nothing unique or that you can't find better elsewhere. I've always felt the same about this city. That being said, that was what I loved about Deep Ellum. It was the only place where I felt I was in a cool, diverse, happening city. It pains me to watch it die. I guess I can always pay more than I can afford for my car, apartment, and clothes and hang out at all of the new diverse neighborhoods in town...like Uptown, West Village, Knox-Henderson and Victory. Who says Dallas is generic!!!!!!

[Dallasite]

Why is it that the under 21 crowd is blamed for the demise? I haven't been to those type places in forever, so what is it that they do?

[RuggerAl]

Hmmm, but what are we trying to save, businesses who are not profitable or make poor decisions? When i have gone down there it has seemed to be as crowded as ever. Of course that is me passing through during party hours, don't hit it during the day really don' t know what is there for the daylight time
also D-Ellum needs to learn how to compete with other areas like Uptown, the west village, Knx-hndrsn, Galleria, legacy towncenter, sundance sqr, victory, Mbirg Sta.
I mean as victory becomes filled out and hip/trendy what will happen to DE?
The people there now need to start taking a look at the area and decide what they want it to be. Artistic, free musician, grungy, edgy appeal... Maybe think about how parking is a hassel, finding the place unless you know where youre going isn't easy- and advertising the area. Gonna take people that want to invest in the area and lead to keep this place thriving. Just my opinion.

[aceplace]

A few years ago, I remember a jounalist writing something like...if dallas' name was removed from everyplace in the city and a stranger was just plopped down here, it would take him weeks to figure out where he was. If you removed all references to the name of Atlanta or Los Angeles, a stranger would have the same problem in those cities. Sure, you'd know you were somewhere in Calfornia, or somewhere in the Southeast, but not specifically where. The LA suburbs look like Sacramento suburbs or Bay Area suburbs.

No American city is that distinctive... most of New York City is indistinguishable from most of Philadelphia. Wall Street in New York doesn't look all that different from corresponding neighborhoods in Chicago or San Francisco.

Not just American cities... I think German cities look pretty much alike, as do Dutch or Belgian cities.

I think the journalist should have said that he didn't know any recognizable local landmarks. The St Louis arch is recognizable, as is the Golden Gate bridge in San Francisco... but he didn't see anything in Dallas that registered on his memory.

[HarryMoto]

Take heart. If Hollywood Blvd. can come back, so can Deep Ellum:


Doing the Hollywood Shuttle
Celebrities and other clubgoers are coming back as the area is reborn. To handle the heavier traffic, Holly Trolleys are introduced.

By David Pierson, Times Staff Writer


It was nearly 1 a.m. Saturday, but Jong Won Kim and his three buddies were far from done partying when they jumped aboard the Holly Trolley, Hollywood's improbable mass transit system for club hoppers that debuted this weekend.

Hearing the saxophone solo of Mel Waiters' "Hole in the Wall" blast over the trolley's speakers, the 24-year-old Portland, Ore., native clenched his fists and said: "This rocks!"

Inspired by an undetermined number of whiskey and cola drinks, Kim and his friends debated taking a food break or immediately hitting another nightclub as the trolley (really a bus made to look like an old street car) glided past the flashing neon and velvet rope lines of the new Hollywood Boulevard.

"Coming from Oregon, Hollywood had a reputation for being ghetto," said Kim, who moved to L.A. a year ago. "It actually has a different persona. I love it."

The Holly Trolley is just the latest sign of Hollywood Boulevard's transformation into a nightclub district that rivals — and by some measures surpasses — the famed Sunset Strip a few miles to the west.

It's been an unlikely comeback. A decade ago the once-bustling boulevard was still largely a symbol of urban blight in Los Angeles. There were jewels like the Pantages and El Capitan theaters, but subway construction had crumbled parts of the Hollywood Walk of Fame and a crime wave was keeping many away — save out-of-town tourists — especially at night.

But what started as a few small clubs luring young urban adventurers has burgeoned into a strip of about 50 nightclubs and bars stretching from Vine Street to La Brea Avenue that throb with dance music. Some are the size of warehouses and pack in hundreds at a time; others are ultra-exclusive, with customers willing to pay $1,100 for a bottle of fine vodka and a reserved booth to sit in.

Come sundown on weekends, patrons — mostly twentysomethings, some from far-flung suburbs looking for a night in the big city — converge on the strip.

Hollywood's new nightlife is also marking the return of regular celebrity sightings along the boulevard for the first time in a generation — especially young stars whose late-night travails end up on the pages of US and People magazines.

"If you said five years ago that Paris Hilton was going to get into a car accident in Hollywood, no one would have believed you, because Paris Hilton wouldn't have been in Hollywood," said City Councilman Eric Garcetti, referring to a recent incident that made tabloid headlines.

But this new popularity has caused near-gridlock across Hollywood — it can take more than half an hour to travel just a few blocks.

The Holly Trolley is designed to reduce congestion and make it easier for clubbers to get around. The trolley picks up clubgoers and barhoppers at a handful of parking structures, one being the Cinerama Dome/Arclight. A $1 token grants unlimited access between 8 p.m. and 4 a.m.

"The infrastructure has been stretched in Hollywood," Garcetti said. "People are paying $10, $20 and $50 for valet. The last thing we wanted to do was strangle success. Here, the city can step in and solve a transportation problem and protect jobs. Government doesn't have to be boring."

Indeed, the city and the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce are trying to give the trolleys a club feel. Each is manned by an "ambience director," a professional nightclub doorman dressed in a dark suit and tie and trained to keep the peace.

"Whatever they want to call me, I don't care, as long as it's not a bad name," said Sean Scott, 27, whose lazy smile lured a handful of revelers aboard.

Two of the three 55-passenger trolleys are on the road at any one time. It will cost about $600,000 a year to keep them operating. The cost will be split between the Community Redevelopment Agency and local businesses, especially nightclubs.

The trolleys' sound system on the inaugural weekend was blasting tracks from Public Enemy and the Ying Yang Twins, to name a few. But soon, dance clubs along the boulevard will provide recordings mixed by their resident DJs. Officials also plan to add breathalyzer tests to encourage people who have drunk too much to wait before getting in their cars.

While business owners and city officials have cheered the new Hollywood, some longtime residents complain about the cacophony of sirens, screaming, shouting and screeching that comes with the all-night partying. And some critics doubt the trolley system will do much to change that.

"People will drive around and around the block for 30 minutes to avoid walking five minutes," said Robert Nudelman, a director of the preservation group Hollywood Heritage.

Some of the scene's stalwarts include Avalon, Cinespace, LAX, Level 3 and Ivar, clubs with expansive dance floors, no shortage of mannequin-esque patrons and swank decors. Getting in can be as challenging as finding an empty parking space.

Three acting students from the American Academy of Dramatic Arts had no such difficulties getting past the velvet ropes Saturday morning.

Alicia Lagam, a native of Ireland, Tricia Hoffman from New Orleans and Andrea Bailey from Atlanta moved to L.A. a year and a half ago for their studies. The girlfriends embraced Hollywood's nightlife almost instantly.

"We just have to stand outside and look pretty" to get in, said Lagam, who, like her friends, is 21.

About 1 a.m., the women abandoned Basque at Hollywood and Vine, where they drank several rounds of cranberry and vodka cocktails donated by a bevy of young men.

Wearing denim miniskirts, cowboy boots, high heels and tank tops in the brisk evening, they got more than their share of attention. On the itinerary that night were clubs Avalon, Cabana, White Lotus and Forbidden City.

They said they were interested in trying the trolley.

"We would definitely use it," Lagam said. "We had to get into a stranger's car to get around. It's dangerous."

But doesn't Hollywood need to be a little dangerous to keep its edge? That question remained in the back of the minds of Hollywood officials as they rolled out the trolley.

Elizabeth Peterson, an urban planner and a vice president of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, said Hollywood would inevitably lose some of its rawness with its rising popularity. But for now the district's draw shows no signs of waning, with the refurbished Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel drawing the celebrity crowd and the chic W Hotel set to anchor a huge new complex at Hollywood and Vine. Hollywood Boulevard boasts more clubs than the Sunset Strip, which is home to nightspots such as the House of Blues, the Viper Room and the Key Club.

Peterson believes the boulevard can stay hip if the clubs continue to evolve.

"Clubs are going to try different things and be sophisticated," she said. "By booking the right music, they can be very cutting edge."

But some who flocked to Hollywood during the early days feel the district is played out.

Alexis Rivera, owner of the music promotion company Echo Park Records, said he's turned off by the wave of young people who drive in from the suburbs for a night of partying.

"I once saw these two kids standing in line, both holding matching pink Juicy Couture Sidekicks [cellphones] and checking their Myspace accounts," said Rivera, 27. "I feel like an old fart there."

The mood on Hollywood Boulevard was certainly youthful when the last call for drinks came Saturday morning.

The trolley carrying Kim and his friends had a beer-on-the-floor kind of musk. But it was masked by the scent of sizzling bacon-wrapped hot dogs from sidewalk vendors.

Finally, Kim stood and waited for his friend to pull the cord to sound the trolley's bell. The trolley stopped in front of Mel's Drive-In on Highland Avenue.

"Time for some breakfast," Kim said. "Perfect way to end the night."

[NThomas]

Deep Ellum needs to be advertied as one of the hot spots of Dallas to visitors and then it could get great press and then people would realize just how wow it really could be

[RobertB]

Elizabeth Peterson, an urban planner and a vice president of the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce, said Hollywood would inevitably lose some of its rawness with its rising popularity. But for now the district's draw shows no signs of waning, with the refurbished Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel drawing the celebrity crowd and the chic W Hotel set to anchor a huge new complex at Hollywood and Vine. Hollywood Boulevard boasts more clubs than the Sunset Strip, which is home to nightspots such as the House of Blues, the Viper Room and the Key Club.
Hmmm... how about someone invest in building a hotel (a nice one) convenient to the upcomding Baylor Station?

If all the whining about "Deep Ellum is just the Highland Park brats' playground" is true, then give the brats someplace to stay when they're too drunk to find North Dallas, as well as a place for convention-goers to stay without being marooned along the Stemmons Corridor with nothing but the strip clubs for entertainment.

[UrbanHope]

Police Deny Excessive Force In Bloody Arrest
Dramatic Pictures, Rumors Circulate Online

POSTED: 5:16 pm CST January 16, 2006
UPDATED: 6:11 pm CST January 16, 2006

DALLAS -- E-mails and pictures circulating the Internet tell the tale of a Dallas woman's bloody run-in with police after a roller-skating outing escalated into an arrest with excessive force, but officers and some witnesses Monday told a different story.

The incident happened early Saturday morning in Deep Ellum after police attempted to speak with Michelle Metzinger, 25, who, according to a police report, was intoxicated and weaving through traffic on roller skates.

The pictures that stemmed from the events that followed are dramatic. They show an officer arresting Metzinger. Her face is covered in blood and there is a puddle of blood on the sidewalk.

"Very excessive. Uncalled for, you know. We're talking about a 250-pound guy and a 100-pound girl. It was just over the top," witness "D.C." said. "All I saw were her feet in the air and disappearing behind a cop car."

However, Dallas police and other witnesses tell a totally different story.

They said Metzinger was drunk and that she not only ignored officers who asked her to stop skating in the street, but also shouted profanities.

According to reports, an officer then tried to arrest Metzinger for public intoxication.

She resisted and attacked the officer, Lt. Rick Watson said.

"The officer attempted to turn her around, at which time the suspect then reached up and grabbed the officer's -- right part of his face -- trying to gouge the officer's eye," Watson said.

Despite the interest that the story has generated online and in the media, Metzinger said she would not comment on the incident until she had consulted with a lawyer.

Metzinger also had not filed a complaint report, so Dallas police were not conducting an internal investigation.

[Markedallas]

Deep Ellum needs to be advertied as one of the hot spots of Dallas to visitors and then it could get great press and then people would realize just how wow it really could be


Would you really direct a vistor to go to Deep Ellum at night? It's crazy! It not just college kids out of control...it's little gansters from the suburbs.

[oak cliff p-wood]

deep ellum needs a breast bar......or 2...or 3...and a couple of totally nude BYOB joints

[FoUTASportscaster]

Yeah, that'll fix it.

[UrbanHope]

Derby scuffle officer has internal affairs history

02:24 AM CST on Wednesday, January 18, 2006
By REBECCA LOPEZ / WFAA-TV

The Dallas police officer accused of using excessive force while placing a female roller skating on Elm Street under arrest Saturday is not a stranger to such allegations, according to police records.

The Dallas Police Department has launched an internal affairs investigation into the scuffle that occurred between Officer Ceaphus Gordon and Michelle Metzinger, a 25-year-old roller derby skater for Assassination City.

However, it will not be the department's first look into the 15-year Dallas police veteran's actions.

Police records show since 1994 there have been at least six allegations of excessive force, physical abuse or assault.

Gordon has been disciplined twice for escalating or participating in a disturbance and once for conduct discrediting the department.


While witnesses said Officer Gordon's force was unnecessary, some who live and work in Deep Ellum said police have a tough job policing the area.

"The police here are all wired up late at night," said Barry Annino, President of Deep Ellum Improvement. "It's a very sensitive time, so I can see how things might happen if you're pressing them."

Some of the probes into allegations pointed at Officer Gordon were inconclusive, and he has received some commendations for good work.

Meanwhile, Metzinger and her attorney said they may also file a complaint against him.


E-mail rlopez@wfaa.com

[Flaming Moderate]

Rodney-King
Rodney-King
Rodney-King
Let's burn Deep Ellum.

[vman]

Yeah, that'll fix it.

Several years ago I worked briefly at a strip club as a bouncer. And as far as nightspots go, strip clubs seem to have a lot less trouble than dance clubs and pubs. The patrons are mostly well behaved.

[tamtagon]

Deep Ellum will be saved again once live music is the primary night time attraction. This next time around, the area will probably become entrenched with art galleries instead of underaged dance clubs.

I'm guessing it'll only be two or three years before garage bands from Denton (...and the rest of the Metroplex) put Deep Ellum back on track.

[carousel]

Deep Ellum needs to be advertied as one of the hot spots of Dallas to visitors and then it could get great press and then people would realize just how wow it really could be

And what happens when the visitors show up and realize that it is not one of Dallas' hotspots.

[oak cliff p-wood]

it cyclical..... as deep ellum "dies" property values will decrease and some entrepeneurs will open businesses and it will rise again