East versus west – xenophobia in Plano, Texas

Certain politicians mistakenly believe that ignoring certain subjects will make those difficult topics disappear. It never happens and the reluctance to address problems only makes them more difficult to resolve in the future.
To offhandedly dismiss the chasm that truly DOES exist between Planoties living east and west of U.S. Highway 75 is to wear rose-colored glasses and still be blind. Such xenophobic attitudes do not serve the community well as a whole.
Please allow me to illuminate the problem for you on just a few fronts.
The retail inequity is undeniable and cannot be excused. There are NO major commercial entertainment complexes east of Central, no major shopping centers east of Central and an absence of major retail names east of Central. The biggest name – Home Depot – has seen its business diluted when the chain opened another store at Custer and Parker – four miles away.
There is a Sam’s Club, but no Wal-Marts east of Central. There are as many major chain grocery stores within a two-mile radius of my house as exist in all of East Plano. I count EIGHT Starbucks within that same radius and just one (inside a Kroger store) east of Central. And I doubt there are people wishing to buy that brand of coffee on the east side.
In terms of retail underdevelopment, the numerous strip malls surrounding my central Plano home see far too many empty spaces – often more than 50 percent of occupancy while the “new” businesses seem to be just more of the same (cleaners, nail salons, donut-pastry shops – the Holy Trinity of strip malls).
If you have doubts about such oversaturation, drive around and take a good look; you’ll be stunned at what you find. When is enough enough? And when those spaces are finally filled, why are there an increasing number of stores in Plano that utilize the word “dollar” or the number “99 cents” in the name? Is THAT the face of retail commerce that a city with a median income of more than $88,000 wishes to express? Really cheap stuff?
I, for one, do not count the “revamping” of downtown Plano as being highly successful because it is NOT a destination center, as McKinney has developed its downtown region. In the evenings, downtown Plano is deader than a doornail.
And all those higher priced townhomes, apartments and condominiums? I cannot imagine how well they are served without support businesses (groceries, drug stores, etc.) within immediate walking distances – which don’t exist downtown.
How many major office buildings exist east of Central? East Plano is loaded with warehouses and warehouse-related businesses, as well as the only rail line slicing through Plano. During the day, traffic is brought to a complete standstill for long periods of time as slow moving locomotives weave through the community – a curse not seen in the western half.
Yet the euphoria expressed by the council and city officials over high-dollar “mixed use urban” developments is nauseating. I’m happy for what the Shops of Legacy has done for Plano, although I think much of it is just a shift in business address location rather than any tangible additions to the landscape. Anything that duplicates that might well result in more of the same – a shift of the same businesses from one spot to the latest hot locale. – sadly, closer to Frisco.
And a majority of Planoites live closer to those empty shells than will ever venture to Highway 121-Dallas Tollway area.
I can point to the lack of spectacular success of the Shops at Willow Bend. Was such an expensive enterprise really necessary (notably with the help of taxpayer dollars going toward a parking facility for a private enterprise) in light of a larger shopping magnet being built FIRST just a couple of miles up the road in Frisco?
Apparently, the verdict from shoppers was FAR less than enthusiastic. Most of the original tenants have fled, leaving behind litigation about “broken promises” concerning patron traffic. There are days when you can roll a bowling ball through the complex and hit no one.
Could no one see what was happening at Stonebriar and estimate how it would adversely impact the Willow Bend site? If the average Joe or Jane can figure it out, you’d think some hot shot in an expensive suit would have that light bulb illuminate.
Our local government (meaning the council AND planning and zoning commission) should concentrate more on filling those empty spaces.
But, alas, the local government … how unrepresentative of the actual population can one group be? Most of the people on the city council live west of Central; in fact, live west of Coit in the comfy nest that is clearly WEST Plano. They might talk a good game about making decisions for the entire community but the proof is in the pudding and the pudding leans westward.
Here’s an interesting question: How many Hispanics have been elected to the city council? Zero. Where do MOST of the Hispanics live in Plano? East of Central. Of course, no Asian representative has been anointed to serve on the council and they live all over the place.
I note the ethnic makeup of the council because minorities (African-American, Hispanic, Asian, etc.) account for a far, FAR greater percentage of the population than they have ever been given in city hall. For the record, the school district, a full one-third populated by minorities has NEVER had someone that looks like them on its board of directors … for the same political reason (at-large voting discourages and nullifies most minority representation).
But when you have NO voice in the decision making, you lose interest in your community’s betterment. At present, all political faces look the same – from the same party, same political thinking and requiring the same political financing and backing from the same old power brokers. It matters not the candidate’s background or heritage, they require the same old guard personnel to stamp their candidacy in order to get elected. The current method only reinforces that outdated system.
There have been opportunities to help bridge the east-west chasm in Plano but few “leaders” have the gonads to step up to the plate and be what they claim to be – leaders! The most obvious case, and sorriest example of expediency as a substitute for leadership, is the proposed arts hall – to be built in Allen and NOT in Plano as was the original choice (and impression) by Plano voters.
In 1999, when the concept of a performing arts center was first floated, and actually approved by local voters, it was to have been located on the city’s east side – as the cornerstone for new economic growth in a section of town in dire need of such an enhancement. But in truth, it was just another empty promise made for political purposes (and votes) in a close municipal election; those words were quickly abandoned. The original concept was totally flawed and woefully (some might say criminally) under-funded from the get-go. Yet the money sat there, like a bad meal in the pit of someone’s stomach.
Two years later, the voters nixed additional funding and the proposed move to west Plano (at Spring Creek and Ohio) as part of a massive residential-commercial venture. Now we see it farmed completely out-of-town to a possible Allen location – as far, far away from any east side dream that might have been.
And now, some foolish pipedream has been put forth to “lend” ACCC the money required to do the job on some whim that in this staggering economy the taxpayers’ money will be returned to the city coffers in a timely manner. This concept borders on true stupidity for a number of reasons – the least of which is that the ACCC hierarchy has not shown its ability to manage this project whatsoever.
The price of erecting the arts hall increases daily and when the construction project actually is initiated, the price tag will be higher than any figure presented today. Yet who will cover THAT shortfall?
I go back to this indisputable fact – the people of Plano voted for its $19 million to go to a PLANO facility (it was going to be built for the sole benefit of the Plano Symphony and anyone claiming otherwise is Pinocchio). Allen, Frisco and McKinney had NOTHING to do with it and each community had its own plans for a performing arts facility. McKinney has one up and running and Allen has one in its new library complex. Of course, Frisco has Pizza Pie Park for major concerts and a hockey arena that can hold indoor events (Allen-Fairview will soon join them in housing a large indoor entertainment arena).
Meanwhile, Alma Drive, next to my street, floods uncontrollably when it rains anything harder than a gentle sprinkle. Many, many streets experience the same thing and no one red cent should be spent on any project until every street functions as it should and it’s not as a temporary lake during storms. Any officeholder who neglects streets for pipedreams should be recalled instantly.
Sadly, many of our past and current council have paid little attention to neighborhoods, sniffing out the large developers and their “contributions” to the city (and certain campaigns). And when the citizens spoke up about potential million dollar expenditures for silliness like musical fountains, those developers took their ball, whined publicly and went home with their Christmas lighting displays (also improperly paid for by taxpayers for use on private, commercial property).
Oh yeah, that fountain? It was earmarked for west Plano.
In Texas, it is said that if something looks like a duck, walks like a duck and squawks like a duck, it is logical to assume you have a duck. The east versus west divide that exists in Plano is unquestionably a “duck.” The measure of real leadership is to convert that duck into a peacock, which will ONLY happen when real leaders emerge, not ones chosen by, propped up and controlled by a small faction within the city.
And if the current leadership find this analysis to be out of bounds, or too harsh, or whatever, then … DUCK!