Dean Ouster: The Power Politics of Patronage

The August ouster of Dr. William B. Dean as Dallas park board president is just another sign of changing times and the diminishing power of the Citizens Charter Association. Dean s nomination was killed in a 6-5 secret ballot vote during a closed City Council meeting. Little discusson preceded the vote, which left several council members surprised and embittered.

Oddly enough, opposition to Dean, a long time Oak Cliff CCA leader, was led by Oak Cliff Councilwoman Lucy Patterson. She maintained the park department had neglected development of neighborhood parks, particularly in the poorer parts of town, while concentrating on the fine arts. But what really sunk Dean was his finest asset, his 13-year park board tenure.

Dean’s CCA background and long service on the board gave him the connections to wrangle a remarkable amount of gifts from the Old Guard. As Mayor Pro Tern George Allen put it: “Bill Dean just had a knack for wresting things away from people, and he had the right connections.” Dean is a former vice president of the Citizens Charter Association and had touched the right Old Guard bases in Oak Cliff. He had been president of the Oak Cliff Chamber of Commerce and president of the Oak Cliff Country Club.

During Dean’s tenure as a board member park acreage increased from 13,700 acres to 20,500. Perhaps his single greatest acquisition came the day when CCA stalwart John Stemmons donated 930 acres of Trinity River greenbelt to the city, saving taxpayers a tremendous amount of money. The Stemmons gift triggered a series of other greenbelt donations.

The fine arts community found no better friend than Dean, and very much regrets his ouster. Dean guided the controversial $5.5 million State Fair Music Hall renovation, which gave a modern home to the symphony, opera, ballet and summer musicals. He also negotiated the gift of the Dallas Theater Center to the city, and the purchase of eight acres surrounding the center, which one day will include a children’s theater, built by private funds secured by Dean.

Patterson’s tactic for torpedoing Dean rested on a resolution adopted by last year’s council, stating that no city board member could serve more than two terms, except as chairman. The City Council usually appoints board chairmen, but the semi-autonomous park board selects its own. Because the council couldn’tappoint Dean chairman,Patterson contended, itcouldn’t appoint him at all.Patterson won the point,but later conversations withcouncil members reveal thatthe vote really reflects theattitude of new, independent council members. Themajority felt that personsoccupying board positionstoo long become too strongpolitically, which was a keyto Dean’s remarkable record.