In my August D Magazine column (on newsstands now), I wonder aloud what is driving Irving Mayor Beth Van Duyne’s attempts to scuttle a deal that could get the city’s entertainment complex back on track. I ask, as others do, whether it’s just a personal vendetta against the former mayor’s biggest backer, Billy Bob Barnett.
In today’s Dallas Morning News, Van Duyne all but confirms this theory. She says that she’s still against the new deal I wrote about, even though it will get the city out of a costly lawsuit and get development dirt flying, because she doesn’t want to see Barnett profit in any way down the line from the deal. In other words: If she can’t ensure that Billy Bob gets screwed, she doesn’t mind screwing the city.
In what I’m sure is unrelated news, look for the Dallas Cowboys, formerly of Irving, Texas, to soon announce their move to Frisco. (As I mentioned more than a month ago, FWIW.)
