A vacant Dallas Hotel on Mockingbird Lane Near I-35E Stemmons Freeway was the scene of two fires late Monday and early Tuesday. Dallas firefighters had been there several times before.
Unpaid guests seeking shelter in the old building are blamed for the problems.
The City of Dallas has efforts underway to address issues with homeless people and the decline in the neighborhood.
In the most recent fires, Dallas Fire Rescue responded to what used to be called the Love Field Hotel and Suites at 1241 West Mockingbird Lane before 10 p.m. Monday and around 1:30 a.m. Tuesday.
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A fire spokesman said no one was injured but several homeless people were escorted from the building.
Dallas Resident Tellie Daniels said she and her husband saw the fire.
“We seen the fire like going home. We didn't know where it started. But, I feel bad for all the homeless people,” she said.
Homeless people are all around that neighborhood. Some who declined to talk on camera with NBC5 said they do not go into that hotel but do need a decent place to stay.
Driver Greg Coy said he understands why the vacant hotel would be appealing to homeless people.
“They need to open up the rooms, let them stay. That's what I think they should do,” he said.
The district represented by Dallas City Councilman Omar Narvaez begins a block from the hotel on the other side of the Stemmons Freeway.
He said the vacant building could be used to provide housing for homeless people or affordable rental housing space.
“It definitely could be. The city, we've already purchased three different hotels that are abandoned across the city,” Narvaez said.
However, in this neighborhood, the Salvation Army already has plans approved three years ago to build a large shelter facility on vacant land just up the Stemmons Freeway from the hotel site.
“And they are still working on a capital campaign to get a building there, which is one thing that will help. Number two, we put a neighborhood empowerment zone for that same area,” Narvaez said.
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The empowerment zone which begins very close to the hotel property would provide tax incentives to boost existing buildings and businesses, to help reverse the decline that the hotel suffered.
A hotel information website indicates the building was renovated in 2008. Some hotel booking sites still incorrectly list it as available for paying guests. Yelp still shows bad reviews for the hotel from when it was open in 2016.
A statement from Dallas Fire Rescue Spokesman Jason Evans said that after an August 2022 fire at the property, the city put the owner on notice to secure the building and provide security people onsite. But Evans statement said homeless people continued to get inside.
“I think they need a place to stay, definitely. I drive by here all the time and they're always under these bridges, so it's pretty unsafe you know,” Coy said.
Tellie Daniels who witnessed the fire also said the homeless people have very few choices.
“Some of the people that are really homeless don't have nowhere to go,” she said.
Councilman Narvaez said the city is working hard on a Rapid Rehousing program that does put a roof over the head of people found living under bridges.
Dallas City Council budget discussions Wednesday will include some additional money to help make those arrangements.
The owner of record for the hotel property did not reply to an email from NBC5 Tuesday.
A security guard working on ‘fire watch’ duty at the same property in June 2022 was charged with murder after trying to hide the killing of a person there following an argument.
