3 January 8-14, 2026 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents L ooking ahead to a new year inevi- tably requires a healthy look back on the one that has just ended. In fact, we think that Spanish philos- opher George Santayana nailed it when he wrote, “Those who cannot remem- ber the past are condemned to repeat it.” Let’s hope that Dallas city leaders and other influential sorts keep that in mind, though in many ways it could serve as Big D’s motto. It’s not just because 2026 is only a few days old that we’re still paying close at- tention to what transpired in 2025, but the biggest news storylines of the new year made a lot of noise in the old year. There will be sudden developments, breaking news and surprise announcements in 2026, to be sure. But even if we didn’t have such things to count on, we already know that 2026 will be packed with drama, intrigue and contro- versy, regardless. For every shocking headline in 2025 that we certainly didn’t see coming, such as the Luka Doncic trade or the deadly shooting at the Dallas ICE field office, there were many more big stories that filled headlines that had been a long time coming. That will cer- tainly be the case for Dallas and all of North Texas in 2026. Suggesting we have a crystal ball for how things will transpire is probably a stretch on our part, so we’ll simply say that our Big D crystal ball gives us, at the very least, a vivid picture of which stories are likely to have a significant impact on our area. We would need to sell many more ads to afford the up- graded model of the crystal ball that di- vulges everything, including surprises, and we would rather leave all that for the future, where it belongs. Take a look at what our Dallas news crys- tal ball says will be among the city’s top sto- ries in 2026. The Fate of Dallas City Hall With most issues, City Hall is a slow-moving river that winds and meanders from staff to committee to council before finding its end. But occasionally, a topic comes up that is fast-tracked over a swelling rapid, and it’s all anyone can do to hold on. The fate of the brutalist building on Marilla Street has fallen into that latter cate- gory. In August, Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson charged the council’s newly named Finance Committee with evaluating whether City Hall serves the residents and staff of Dallas well. The instruction came amid rising esti- mates of what it will cost to catch up on years of deferred maintenance to the build- ing; what started as an $80 million estimate to fix some wear here, and tear there has ballooned to $350 million. After hours of discussion during a mid- November meeting, the City Council ap- proved a directive for City Manager Kimberly Tolbert to explore alternatives to the current building and assess the economic potential of the downtown land on which the structure sits. A task force will also provide a third- party analysis of the building’s exact needs and the likely cost of that work. The results of that project are due back to the council by late February, and if things continue as they have been, the decision on whether Dallas’ City Hall stays or goes could come quickly. Heading into the New Year, the count seems to stand here: A majority of council members have hesi- tated to outright say they want to leave City Hall behind, but a majority are interested in exploring the option. The City Hall abandon- ment corner is backed by a litany of local business leaders and former Dallas mayors Tom Leppert and Ron Kirk, who wrote in a Dallas Morning News op-ed about “the harsh reality” that City Hall is no good, and it’s dragging down the rest of downtown with it. “Relocating city government isn’t just about investing taxpayer money wisely; it’s about saving downtown, the heart of our city. No city in America thrives while allow- ing its core to decline,” the mayors wrote. Three council members, Cara Men- delsohn, Paula Blackmon and Paul Ridley, voted against the February assessment. Whether it be nostalgia or suspicion that outside interests have soured the discussion on the building’s future, the trio has its own list of reasons why staying on Marilla Street is a fight worth having. That perspective is backed by many of Dallas’ leading historians and preservationists, who point to the 47-year-old building’s renowned architect, I. M. Pei, and its purported tie to President John F. Kennedy’s assassination, as justifica- tion for fixing up the structure. We hesitate to emphatically say that any- thing at City Hall will be completed at any given time, but for once, this is an issue whose decision seems like it could come quickly. At the very least, we should have a clearer idea of the building’s future by spring. Pro Sports Civil War Discussing the fate of the City Hall site isn’t complete without at least mentioning the un- precedented legal battle between the Dallas Stars of the NHL and the NBA’s Dallas Mav- ericks. A fracture in the relationship between the American Airlines Center roommates was made clear when the Mavs sued the Stars in October, accusing the hockey club of breaching its lease and preventing what the basketball club says was long-overdue main- tenance and improvements to the arena. A war of words has ensued as both teams point fingers in opposite directions, all while a range of suburbs begin to make it known that they would welcome either team. But if you look closely at any renderings of what some want to do with the land City Hall cur- rently sits on, you’ll likely see a wrecking ball with a Mavericks logo on it. Thanks to the generous size of the plaza in front of City Hall, it’s almost too perfect a spot for a downtown sports arena that might put a surge into a downtown sorely in need of new development. The Stars, on the other hand, have been the focus of a Collin County plan to build a new $1 billion hockey arena on the site of the sparsely populated Willow Bend Mall. A number of outcomes are possible, and there’s no guarantee we’ll know which way the arena wind will blow by the end of 2026, yet as of now, it certainly seems to be whooshing away from the AAC. DARTing To and From, In and Out Of the many controversial, high-profile bills debated during the 89th Texas Legislature, House Bill 3187 was one that likely slipped under the radar of many, who were more fo- cused on school vouchers or a possible THC ban. The so-called “DART killer bill” aimed to significantly reduce local funding to re- gional transportation authorities, such as DART. Although it didn’t pass, DART’s wor- ries were only beginning by the time the ses- sion ended. As the summer rolled into the fall, Addi- son, Farmers Branch, Highland Park, Irving and Plano all announced plans to allow resi- dents to vote on leaving DART or at least further discuss the possibility. In September, DART announced a slew of service cuts, fu- eling the fire of critics who say their cities aren’t getting enough bang for their DART bucks. For now, Addison is holding off on letting residents vote on the DART matter, but in May, voters in the other four cities will determine whether they will remain part of the “area” in the Dallas Area Rapid Transit. Kicking Around Town You might’ve heard about a little soccer tournament coming to North America soon. In fact, you could argue that the FIFA World Cup is coming to North Texas more than it is to any other corner of the continent. Not only will AT&T Stadium host nine matches, more than any other site, but one of the semifinal matches will be held here. The In- ternational Broadcast Center will fill the Kay Bailey Hutchison Convention Center in downtown with an estimated 2,000-5,000 journalists from all over the world sending their futbol stories back home. To make Dallas an even bigger World Cup focal point in 2026, two of the globe’s top soccer powers will be playing some of their group stage games here. Argentina, the defending champion that will likely be fea- turing Lionel Messi in his last World Cup, will play two matches in town, while peren- nial power England, led by modern | UNFAIR PARK | Photo-illustration by Sarah Schumacher; Nathan Hunsinger; Gordon Shattles; Michael Duva /Getty Images; Adobe Stock >> p4 The Big D News Crystal Ball 2026 has just begun, and Dallas news is already filled with major stories that will unfold throughout the year. BY EMMA RUBY AND KELLY DEARMORE
