6 March 13-19, 2025 dallasobserver.com DALLAS OBSERVER Classified | MusiC | dish | Culture | unfair Park | Contents reversal in these positive trends that we’ve created.” Adelman also warned the dip in funding would likely result in the agency’s credit rat- ing taking a hit from agencies like S&P and Moody’s. Silver Line Affected Before it Begins The funding woes could also impact the DART Silver Line, a commuter rail line that has been in the works since 2019. The rail is planned to connect North Texas cities from Plano to the Dallas-Fort Worth Interna- tional Airport. While DART had planned to launch the Silver Line later this year, DART board Chairman Gary Slagel said last week the agency may only be able to operate the Sil- ver Line for “a month and a half” if the fund- ing reduction is approved by the Legislature. In Friday’s update, Adelman confirmed planned service for the highly anticipated line would be hurt. “We haven’t even started service yet, but it would be a reduction for what was planned originally for that service line,” Adelman said. Emma Breuster, a 25-year-old resident of downtown Plano, told the Observer she was “really disappointed” to learn the rail line could be reduced from what was promised. Watching the Silver Line construction prog- ress, she has looked forward to walking to the station near her apartment and riding the line into downtown Carrollton, where a group of friends meet weekly at a brewery for trivia games. “We’ve all been super excited about this for years,” Breuster said. “This would just really suck.” Slashed Services Ahead World Cup The filed bills propose the 25% funding re- duction be redirected towards a general mobility program for cities whose financial contributions to DART are not equivalent to services offered. Under the general mo- bility program, Adelman said the Trinity Railway Express (TRE), which runs be- tween Dallas and Fort Worth and is owned and operated by DART, would be fully eliminated. “The TRE is one of the primary modes that was advertised to get the FIFA World Cup here in Dallas,” Adelman said. “That would be a significant impact to the region’s plan to support such a large event.” AT&T Stadium in Arlington is scheduled to host nine World Cup matches in 2026, the most of any host city. Around $40 million in costs are associ- ated with the TRE each year, and while offi- cials discussed keeping the rail line open through the World Cup, Adelman pointed to additional bus and rail reductions that would be required to “make up that difference.” “The World Cup service is not limited only to the service to Arlington. There is a lot of activity that will be happening at Fair Park, which we would also not be able to meet with the reduction in service,” DART CEO Nadine Lee said. “I want to make sure people understand that this is a tremendous impact.” ▼ DRUGS BEHIND THE CURVE DALLAS COUNTY OPIOID OVERDOSE DEATHS STILL HIGH DESPITE STATE PROGRESS. BY EMMA RUBY A report released this month by the Centers for Disease Control found that 2023 marked progress in the United States’ fight against opioid addiction and overdoses. Drug overdoses — a major contributor to unintentional injuries, the third leading cause of death in the U.S. — de- clined by 4% in 2023 from the year prior for a 31.3 overdoses per 100,000 people rate. In Texas, that number reached 18 over- dose deaths per 100,000 people. More re- cent data, though incomplete, suggests Texas’ positive trendline may have contin- ued well into 2024. The CDC’s predicted data spanning a 12-month period from Sep- tember 2023 to September 2024 anticipates an 11.45% drop in all drug overdose deaths across the state. Texas was one of only nine states to sit at the CDC report’s lowest measure, between nine and 21.9 overdose deaths per capita. Eight states and Washington D.C. were la- beled the most at-risk, reporting between 43 and 89.9 deaths per capita. The report found an overall decrease in overdose deaths related to any opioid and synthetic opioids — excluding fentanyl-re- lated deaths, that is. In Dallas County, fen- tanyl has now become a leader in drug overdoses, accounting for 79.8% of all opioid overdoses in 2023. “We are increasing at a faster rate than Texas at this point,” Cindy Ledat of the Re- covery Resource Council told the Observer last year. “In the past couple of years, we’ve been behind Texas, but [in 2023] we actually surpassed Texas in terms of our rate of fen- tanyl-related deaths. And for our region, it’s really difficult to attribute that to one spe- cific cause.” Along with the Recover Resource Coun- cil, Dallas County Health and Human Ser- vices released a report last year that found Dallas County’s drug overdose data is not as promising as that recorded statewide by the CDC. A lack of accessibility to healthcare and addiction care, economic pressures and lingering mental health effects of the CO- VID-19 pandemic could be contributing to the regional crisis, investigators said. The CDC report did track a worrying rise in overdose deaths in cases where cocaine was found to be the culprit. In Texas, co- caine-related overdose deaths were the only substance to see a significant increase in 2023 when compared to the year prior. Cocaine can easily be mixed with fen- tanyl, and although the dangerous drug is easy to identify through proper testing methods, Texas is one of only five states to outlaw fentanyl testing strips. Lawmakers have pushed to legalize the strips, and several state legislators have filed bills that could cross the Governor’s desk this legislative session. To his own credit, Texas Governor Greg Abbott has voiced support for the testing strips despite past opposition, stating he now has a “better un- derstanding” of the measures that need to be implemented to continue Texas’ fight against the opioid epidemic. “There’s going to be a movement across the state to make sure we do everything that we can to protect people from dying from fentanyl, and I think test strips will be one of those ways,” Abbott said. ▼ POLITICS FOR SALE BY FEDS TRUMP COULD BE SELLING 3 DOWNTOWN DALLAS BUILDINGS. BY EMMA RUBY I f you’re looking to buy up some Down- town Dallas real estate, three buildings may be about to hit the market. As part of President Donald Trump’s on- going attempts to ax what he deems govern- ment bloat and waste, hundreds of federal buildings across the country are being put up for sale. Two dozen properties happen to be in Texas, and three are centrally located in Downtown Dallas. A list posted to the General Services Ad- ministration’s website last week reported nearly 450 buildings were identified as un- derutilized and “not core to government operations.” That list has since been re- moved and cut back to around 320 build- ings, The New York Times reports. Most of the properties removed from the list over the last 24 hours are high-profile buildings in Washington, D.C. The original list included properties that serve as the headquarters for the Health and Human Services Department, F.B.I, Federal Aviation Administration and the Labor De- partment. The Department of Justice build- ing was also included in the property audit; each of those buildings have been removed from the updated list, the Times reports. The “for sale” list seems to be spear- headed by Elon Musk’s Department of Gov- ernment Efficiency, and also included properties in Fort Worth and Farmers Branch among those deemed unsuitable. The three downtown Dallas buildings that could soon be for sale are the A. Unfair Park from p4 Adobe Stock The 25% funding reduction proposed by state lawmakers would be redistributed to member cities for a general mobility fund. >> p8 Johnrob/Getty Images Texas’ statewide data for 2023 showed significant progress in countering drug overdose deaths.
