FY 2024 Community Project Funding Requests
Rep. Colin Allred has submitted funding requests for important community projects in Texas' 32 Congressional District to the House Appropriations Committee.
To evaluate Community Project Funding requests, Congressman Allred convenes a nonpartisan advisory committee of North Texans to help inform the selection process and evaluate the degree to which the requests have strong community support and oversight, capture the geographic and demographic makeup of the district, fosters economic development, and supports job creation.
Under guidelines issued by the Appropriations Committee, each Representative may request funding for up to 15 projects in their community for fiscal year 2024 – although only a handful may actually be funded. Projects are restricted to a limited number of federal funding streams, and only state, local and tribal governments and eligible non-profit entities are permitted to receive funding. Additional information on the reforms governing Community Project Funding is available here.
Projects listed in alphabetical order:
Energy & Water Development
Army Corps of Engineers for the City of Dallas – White Rock Lake Environmental Infrastructure
Amount Requested: $2,000,000
Recipient and Address: U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Fort Worth District, Fort Worth, TX
Funding would be used to enter into a Project Partnership Agreement between the Army Corps and the City of Dallas, and to begin pre construction activities. Owned and operated by the City of Dallas, White Rock Lake has experienced a severe accumulation of sediment since it was last dredged in 1998, impacting aquatic habitat, water quality, the capacity of the Lake, and its recreational use.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development
City of Dallas – Garland Road Next Generation Planning
Recipient and Address: City of Dallas, 1500 Marilla, Dallas, TX 75201
Amount Requested: $1,000,000
The Garland Road Next Generation Planning project builds on work already underway by TxDOT to transform the Garland Road corridor in East Dallas for the next generation of Dallas residents. The proposed planning study builds on TxDOT’s work south of the “3G” intersection to allow for better multi-modal use. This would be the companion planning from 3G north to I-635, to ensure better transit connections, including a possible streetcar, and allowing for improved non-car movement from residential neighborhoods to job centers at either end of the Garland/Grand corridor.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development
City of Richardson – UT-Dallas Area Mobility Improvements
Amount Requested: $6,2000,000
Recipient and Address: City of Richardson, 104 N Greenville Ave. Richardson, TX 75081
The project includes design and construction of three traffic signals and multi-use trail around the University of Texas at Dallas (UT-Dallas) campus and Dallas Area Rapid Transit (DART) Silver Line Rail station at UT-Dallas. It improves multimodal transportation infrastructure to increase access to a $1.9 billion regional rail corridor, 26-mile planned trail facility, and UT-Dallas as a Tier 1 public research university.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
Dallas Police Department – Investigation Software
Amount Requested: $500,000
Recipient and Address: City of Dallas, 1500 Marilla St, Dallas, TX 75201
This project would fund software to allow DPD officers and detectives to analyze gaming site chat boards, forums and other platforms related to violence, hate, and other crimes. Many of these crimes target the most vulnerable members of the community and the volume of incidents and changing technology create significant challenges and a need for resources. The start of violent actions begins online in most cases. Law enforcement can take steps to mitigate violent actions, and the volume of incidents and changing technology create significant challenges and a need for resources.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development
Dallas Area Rapid Transit – Cityplace/Uptown Station Tunnel Fire Standpipes Replacement
Amount Requested: $2,500,000
Recipient and Address: DART, 1401 Pacific Avenue, Dallas, TX 75266
A recent inspection revealed that the fire standpipes in the Cityplace/Uptown Station tunnel have deteriorated over the last 30 years and are in need of upgrading and replacement. Reaching depths of 120 feet below the surface, DART’s Cityplace/Uptown Station remains the only underground station on the agency’s light rail system and is a vital conduit for thousands of daily riders on the Orange, Red, and Blue Lines. An upgraded fire suppression system is a critical element that will help firefighters deploy connected pressurized hose lines and with adequate water pressure and volume to quickly respond to any fire-related emergencies.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
DFW International Airport – Mobile Command Post
Amount Requested: $2,000,000
Recipient and Address: Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, 2400 Aviation Drive, DFW Airport TX 75261
This request is for a Mobile Command Post vital for incident management necessitating mobility, time-sensitive operations, inter-connectivity, and communications. DFW Airport lies within two counties (Dallas and Tarrant) and four cities (Grapevine, Euless, Irving, and Coppell) and DFW Department of Public Safety is one of the largest departments within the metroplex; consisting of a population of 7.6 million people. DFW Airport is a valuable resource for mutual aid deployment to assist in quickly reestablishing communications and providing a hub for a coordination of resources. Communications, security, and flexibility are all vital parts of public safety work.
The Mobile Command Post would serve as a coordination, communication and command center during emergencies handling fire and rescue management, security, evacuation, medical support, ambulance management among other responsibilities. Protecting critical infrastructure and key resources that are subject to terrorism threats and creating a critical need for DFW Airport to have advanced equipment with capability to command and control any threat within the DFW metro area.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
DFW International Airport – Mobile Bomb Squad Response Vehicles
Amount Requested: $2,000,000
Recipient and Address: Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, 2400 Aviation Drive, DFW Airport TX 75261
The purchase of two Mobile Bomb Squad Response Vehicles would mitigate capability gaps both for DFW Airport, as well as the surrounding region. Improve command and control abilities at the first responder level through use of command-and-control vehicles and increase the Bomb Squads ability to respond to large scale events including secondary incidents. DFW is also home to numerous cargo warehouses, merchants, and other businesses, all of whom would benefit from a mobile bomb squad vehicle, in order to increase the safety, security and efficiency of first responder dispatch during an emergency. In addition, ensuring first responder safety through establishing a secure incident scene and safeguarding operational coordination between DFW Airport responders and mutual aid partners.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Commerce, Justice, Science, and Related Agencies
Southern Methodist University – Improving Communities Through Smart, and Resilient Infrastructure Investments
Amount Requested: $2,250,000
Recipient and Address: Southern Methodist University, 6425 Boaz Lane, Dallas, TX 75205
Southern Methodist University and Dallas College will establish a smart data and machine learning research, education, and workforce development program that informs critical investments in next-generation, resilient infrastructure. This will address every day threats and stressors to the nation’s infrastructure and resulting devastation to communities, with disproportionate impacts for historically underserved populations. Researchers will work closely with local policymakers, developers, and nonprofits to collaborate and design decision support tools that upgrade infrastructure conditions, improve safety, and promote healthy lives.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration and Related Agencies
Texas A&M University-Commerce at Dallas - Integrated Research and Extension Program for a Sustainable and Profitable Urban Agriculture
Amount Requested: $1,480,000
Recipient and Address: 8750 N. Central Expy Suite 1900 Box 30; Dallas, TX 75231
This project seeks funding for an integrated research and extension program for a sustainable and profitable urban agriculture in Dallas and surrounding counties. This project follows priorities set forth in the city of Dallas’ Comprehensive Urban Agriculture Plan which highlights “a variety of production systems to mitigate issues related to soil contamination and compaction, such as implementing generous compost amendments for permanent in-ground beds, using raised beds filled with imported potting mix, and using methods such as soilless cultivation, hydroponics or controlled environments, like greenhouses. All these methods provide greater control over the plant growing environment, with Controlled Environment Agriculture systems offering the most control, and the greatest price tag.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development
Trinity Park Conversancy- Ron Kirk Bridge & Felix Lozada Gateway Infrastructure Improvements
Amount Requested: $5,000,000
Recipient and Address: Ronald Kirk Pedestrian Bridge, Dallas, TX 75212
Harold Simmons Park is a transformational infrastructure re-use initiative in Dallas, Texas which will transform the Trinity River from a line of division into the natural gathering place for Dallas. On the heels of a catastrophic flood in 1908, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers shifted the Trinity River nearly one mile to the West and channeled it between 40-foot levees– this protected Dallasites from floods but cut the city in two. Today, one side of the river holds the City’s central business district, medical district, arts district, design district, and convention center; the other side is home to multi-generational households with higher rates of poverty and chronic disease with lower rates of high school graduation and shorter lifespans than their counterparts just a mile away over the river.
This request is for $5M in federal funding to enhance brick-and-mortar components, requested by the community, of this outdated bridge and trail amenity. The enhancements will provide for seamless connections from the residents of West Dallas to the job centers across the river in the Central Business District, Medical District, Design District, and Convention Center.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development
University of Texas at Dallas - Next-Gen Battery Manufacturing Incubator
Amount Requested: $8,500,000
Recipient and Address: University of Texas at Dallas, 800 W. Campbell Road, Richardson, TX 7508
The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) will create a Next-Gen Battery Manufacturing Incubator to meet the rapidly increasing needs for battery technology innovation and manufacturing within the United States and the corresponding needs for an increasingly large manufacturing workforce. Key components of the emerging renewable energy economy are batteries for EVs and grid energy storage for wind and solar farms.The facility will be equipped with the state-of-the-art battery synthesis and characterization tools to serve North Texas energy research and manufacturing needs. This project will provide vital infrastructure to establish the Incubator on the UTD main campus in Richardson.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development
University of Texas at Dallas - UTD Stormwater Management Center
Amount Requested: $1,900,000
Recipient and Address: University of Texas at Dallas - 800 W. Campbell Road, Richardson, TX 7508
The University of Texas at Dallas (UTD) aims to develop and implement a Stormwater Management Center. Recent storms across the Dallas Fort Worth (DFW) metroplex resulted in substantial flooding that caused significant damage. The UTD Stormwater Management Center (SMC) would use state of the art water modeling technologies that simulate the entire water cycle hourly with high spatial resolution. The key modeling tool for the center was developed by a research team headed by a faculty at UT Dallas. This model integrates four modules: (1) surface water routing, (2) canopy and root zone moisture, (3) deep unsaturated zone, and (4) saturated groundwater.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies
University of Texas at Dallas - Research and Innovation High Performance Computing Center
Amount Requested: $7,500,000
Recipient and Address: University of Texas at Dallas - 800 W. Campbell Road, Richardson, TX 75080
High Performance Computing (HPC) Center is a cluster of activities that enable the development and application of computer hardware, support software, and advanced algorithms to address highly complex, computationally challenging problems. HPC is distinguished from the general class of computing by its scale. The Center will incorporate a scalable HPC system to enable computation for a wide range of application areas for both the University community and North Texas industry partners. The Center will enable the research in problem areas including, but not limited to: wind energy modeling and simulation, advanced manufacturing, cybersecurity, virtual reality, battery/energy storage innovations, design and operation of smart cities, and solving the atomic structure of bioactive proteins to create new therapeutics. In addition to the research impact, the Center will benefit the education of students and enhance the capacity of the University for workforce development involving the training of the next generation of computer scientists and engineers with HPC knowledge, skills, and experience.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Commerce, Justice, Science and Related Agencies
University of Texas at Dallas - Center for Secure and Trustworthy Artificial Intelligence
Amount Requested: $1,500,000
Recipient and Address: University of Texas at Dallas - 800 W. Campbell Road, Richardson, TX 75080
As recent developments indicate, artificial intelligence (AI) models can easily generate realistic text and images after being trained on large amounts of data available online. The proposed center will work on rigorously testing existing and emerging AI models and develop new protective AI models that can guard against potentially malicious use. In addition, we will develop standards for ethical implementation and use for AI models in the healthcare domain to help doctors and patients while protecting the privacy of individuals. As a starting point, the center will focus on AI models for use in creating a secure and privacy-preserving chatbot that can help patients to find trustworthy information and invent counter measures to prevent potential cyberattacks that can leverage these emerging AI models.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project
Transportation, Housing and Urban Development
YMCA Metropolitan Dallas - Park South Capital Project
Amount Requested: $1,000,000
Recipient and Address: YMCA Metropolitan Dallas, 146 Town Center, Coppell, TX 75019
Annually, more than 3,000 residents who reside in one of five zip codes: 75215, 75217, 75227, 75216, and 75210 are served by the Park South Family YMCA. Built in 1970, this facility is in dire need of a complete revitalization to optimally address the population’s widening gaps among health and wellness, education, economic opportunity, safety, and quality of life in Southern Dallas. Funding would be directed towards tearing down the old YMCA and constructing a new one in South Dallas.
Certification Stating No Financial Interest in This Project