Residents and businesses in a West Oak Cliff neighborhood are split over a plan to rezone their neighborhood. Opponents fear displacement and gentrification, while supporters see an opportunity to improve walkability and reduce traffic accidents.
The West Oak Cliff Area Plan was introduced in 2020 to provide a long-term vision for urban design, mobility, infrastructure and open space, and to address community concerns about gentrification, displacement and revitalization. It was unanimously approved by the Dallas City Council in 2022.
Now, the City Council is expected to vote on a plan to rezone approximately 35 acres in the Hampton-Clarendon corridor that is included in the area plan.
In recent months, Latino residents and small business owners throughout West Oak Cliff, especially in the Hampton-Clarendon corridor, have organized meetings to invite their neighbors to share their concerns about the plan. They plan to pack City Hall at a hearing on June 25 and make their voices heard.
The rezoning plan has sparked a mix of opinions over the proposed changes across neighborhoods of primarily Spanish-speaking residents who fear being displaced, as gentrification draws in newcomers and drives up property taxes so that homes are too expensive for current residents to afford.
Council member Chad West and planning department staff have said in previous meetings that the proposed land use would balance preservation and development to improve the neighborhood.
“The West Oak Cliff Area Plan, which passed unanimously and without opposition at City Council, evolved from surveys and comments from thousands of West Oak Cliff neighbors,” West said. “WOCAP served as the guidance for the Hampton-Clarendon zoning recommendations.”
The proposed plan seeks to rezone portions of the corridors to allow, as future redevelopment occurs, neighborhood-scale mixed-use development along Hampton Road and Clarendon. The plan aims to promote pedestrian-oriented designs, minimize vehicular-pedestrian conflict points, prohibit new drive-through establishments, limit building heights to three stories and allow small multifamily and townhouse developments, along with commercial and office, in the area.
After the City Plan Commission approved the plan in April, Latino residents and small business owners in Oak Cliff formed “La Alianza” coalition to oppose rezoning.
Community organizers hosted “Oak Cliff No Se Vende, Se Defiende,” “Oak Cliff is not for sale, we defend it,” a fundraising event on June 12 at Four Corners Brewing to raise money and awareness for the upcoming vote.
As music and chatter filled the room, the more than 100 attendees were greeted and checked in. Vendors lined the ends of the room. Some painted custom nail sets, while others spray-painted names on small poster boards in graffiti-like styles. Some passed out aguas frescas, while others sold shirts and handed out free keychains with custom La Alianza designs.
Some Latino businesses that joined La Alianza include Olmo Market, Cinphotos, Yoali Studio, J&E Express, Whose Books, CocoAndré Chocolatier and others.
Jennifer Rangel, the executive director of Rayo Planning, a nonprofit organization focused on urban planning and environmental justice, has been one of the residents at the front line of campaigning against the rezoning plan.
Rangel said community members had tried to push for improvements in the past, only to be ignored by government officials.
“This is not an issue of residential, we’re not saying that we don’t need any more housing,” Rangel said. “But the thing is, we’ve seen in Dallas that if we don’t take the steps to put protections, put programs and policies, or even assume the market is going to take care of us, you’ve seen what the market has done. Bishop Arts is right there.”
Last year, the city hosted several bilingual in-person and online meetings to hear residents’ opinions about the proposed zoning. Despite the meetings, Rangel and others said residents didn’t feel heard and their questions about displacement went unanswered.
Rayo Planning and community members also hosted multiple meetings to inform residents about what was happening in their neighborhood.
The North Cliff neighborhood, the East Hampton Hill Neighborhood Association and Hampton Hills wrote letters supporting the rezoning plan, citing the need for a more pedestrian-friendly neighborhood.
West said he asked Rayo Planning if they had specific recommendations for changes to the plan. He hasn’t heard anything other than that they oppose the entire plan.
“Three neighborhood associations bordering Hampton-Clarendon have submitted letters of support for the zoning matter,” West said. “My job as council member is to listen to the neighbors who actually live by Hampton-Clarendon, and they have told me through WOCAP and neighborhood association letters that something needs to be done in this corridor.”
Gerardo Figueroa, an auto repair shop owner in the Hampton-Clarendon corridor, was the guest speaker during the event. Figueroa became involved when he learned his two-decade-old business would be at risk if the original zoning plan is approved.
After residents pushed back, protections were added to the plan so the automotive business could continue to operate in the Hampton-Clarendon corridor as long as they remained in the same line of business and didn’t renovate more than 35% of the property.
Figueroa said it was time for the community to stand up for their people and not allow their history and heritage to be erased, as in other neighborhoods in Dallas, such as Little Mexico or West Dallas.
During the event, volunteers handed out small papers shaped like keychains so attendees could write their hopes for the Hampton and Clarendon community. Many wrote about the need for their voices to be heard and hoped that future generations would be able to stay in the community.
“I need all of you to join us on June 25 as we pack City Hall and make our voices impossible to ignore,” Figueroa said.