Did everyone have a nice summer? Well it’s time to drink from the fire-hose once more because we are headed full throttle into fall, y'all. There are several things coming down the pipeline that will change the future of our city, so get ready to get informed and get engaged.
There’s an election in November and we’re going to see a lot of turnout for it because the governor’s seat is open. Traditionally, we’ll see a record turnout of voters for things that are very predictable for Denton County such as presidents and governors. The irony is that the local initiatives -- the initiatives that will actually effect you the moment you step out your front door and onto your sidewalk -- tend to draw very low voter turnout. Why is that? Perhaps with this election, with so many incredibly important initiatives, we will see new voters head out to the polls and make democracy count. If you aren’t registered, go here and do it now.
We’ll talk more about the major initiatives on the ballot as that day gets closer. We want to hear what you think about them, so let us know! We’ve got the Frack Free Denton petition to ban hydraulic fracturing within city limits, the Denton First initiative to allow liquor sales outside of private clubs in the city, and the Bond Election which will fund parks and roads. All these are very important in shaping the future of our city so we will be covering each one in our Election Week coverage in the future. For now, get educated, get involved, and get registered/register your friends.
We’ve had several closing here at the end of the Summer. We covered a few of them in a post a few weeks ago. Notably, Last Drop Tavern, Elm Street Restaurant and Bar, Gold Mine BBQ have all closed their doors. Saturday, we awoke to a bustling square full of Arts, Antiques and Autos attendees to find the doors to Herrera’s locked and a note indicating the demise of another downtown business. Greg Johnson of Verus Real Estate told us Saturday that after a few months of rent not being paid that he unfortunately had to make the call to have the locks changed.
"The locks were changed Friday night because the owners were behind on their rent," Johnson said.
That being said, is this a sign of an economic downturn for downtown Denton? We don't think so. We've seen lots of new businesses see success on the square and in the general downtown area. We Dentonites are just pretty danged picky about what restaurants we will and will not patronize apparently.
At any rate, we encourage you to get involved with your neighborhood association, live life to the fullest, and go spend some cold hard cash at businesses/restaurants that you do like! Tell us your favorite Denton Tex-Mex spot in the comments below.