Scope and Content

Collection consists of a report commissioned by the City of Dallas from the firm of Arter and Hadden.

To paraphrase from the study itself, this analysis focuses on the City of Dallas proper, documenting the growing disparities between the City of Dallas and its suburbs in terms of population, employment, services, income, and tax base and making specific recommendations to enhance the competitive posture of the City.

This report melds an objective assessment of Dallas' economic situation with the subjective evaluations of civic and business leaders.  During the fall of 1989, Sissy Day & Associates conducted forty-two, in-depth, open-ended interviews with a cross-section of Dallas' recognized business and political leaders.  The purpose of the interviews was twofold:  first, to ascertain the degree to which the City leadership's perceptions of Dallas' economic situation meshes with current economic realities and second, to explore with these individuals creative and innovative responses that can be implemented quickly to help reverse Dallas' economic decline relative to its suburbs.

Dallas First is organized into four chapters.  Chapter 1 introduces the study.   Chapter 2 presents an economic overview of the Dallas area, compares Dallas to other Sunbelt metropolitan areas, and documents the growing economic and fiscal disparities between the City of Dallas and its suburbs.  Chapter 3 summarizes and highlights the interviews conducted with Dallas' business and political leaders on the City's economic future.  Finally, chapter 4 identifies specific actions and policy initiatives that should be taken quickly to prevent further erosion of Dallas' economic base and to ensure the City's long-term competitive posture.

Organization

NA

Access​

Permission to publish, reproduce, distribute, or use by any and all other current or future developed methods or procedures must be obtained in writing from the Dallas Municipal Archives.  All rights are reserved and retained regardless of current or future development or laws that may apply to fair use standards.

Citation

Dallas First:  A Comprehensive Economic Study on the City of Dallas & Its Suburbs, 1990 (Box <x>, Folder <y>), Dallas Municipal Archives

Related Material

Collection 1994-029—Strategic Business Plan for Southern Dallas and Enterprise Zones, 1994-1999
Collection 1994-052—Dallas Business Development, 1990