DART urges local solution to proposed sales-tax cut, offers development incentives and station-safety updates for Farmers Branch

DART Board Chair Gary and DART CEO Nadine Lee briefed the Farmers Branch City Council on March 18 about proposed state legislation that would remove a quarter-cent of the transit agency’s sales tax and on local options the agency is proposing to support development and safety around the Farmers Branch station.

The briefing matters because council members said the proposed change could reduce local transit funding and alter DART service levels, and because DART offered specific tools — including participation in tax-increment reinvestment zones and shared parking agreements — that could affect future station-area development.

Gary told the council that DART has taken a formal position opposing the bill and is trying to negotiate solutions with city leaders rather than have the measure go to the state. “We do have a bill … to remove a quarter of a cent from our sales tax collection,” he said, adding that the board voted to oppose the legislation and that a small group of mayors and DART representatives are meeting through the Regional Transportation Council to seek local solutions.

Nadine Lee described several local proposals and existing programs. Lee said DART is exploring automatic participation in tax-increment reinvestment zones so the agency can commit a predictable portion of sales-tax increment to encourage development around stations, giving an example of an automatic participation threshold and board review for contributions above that level. She also confirmed Farmers Branch’s allocation from DART’s public transportation improvement funds: “Farmers Branch received $5,900,000. About 50% of that has been expended to date or at least allocated to date.” Lee said DART is open to perpetual shared-parking license agreements to allow surplus station parking to serve nearby development.

Council members pressed DART on safety, cleanliness and ridership. Councilman Jackson said, “My primary concern is crime, trash, and vagrancy.” In response, Lee described service changes DART has made systemwide: the agency is in its second year of a contract adding 100 transit security officers, it has budgeted continuing clean teams that keep trains in service, and it uses ambassadors and elevator attendants at stations where appropriate.

Kevin McCoy, chief of police for Farmers Branch, told the council that call-handling differences make incident counts look different between the city and DART: “Most of the calls that we get related to the Dart station are not coming through Dart. They're coming through our 911 system.” McCoy said Farmers Branch officers frequently respond to incidents near the station because 911 callers reach the city’s dispatch center first; he also said DART has increased its officer presence at the station and that the city continues to see recurring weekly issues such as trespassing and theft.

DART officials and council members agreed on follow-up items. DART committed to provide station-level and city-level ridership data and the agency’s incident statistics for Farmers Branch. The council was told negotiations among city representatives, DART and the Regional Transportation Council will continue in the coming week, with a DART board meeting scheduled the following Tuesday.

The council did not take any formal action on the issues during the study session; DART said it will continue the local negotiation process and present additional details to member cities as talks progress.