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  1. #1
    stealthwii's Avatar
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    Front page CNN - Dallas suburb bans rentals from illegal...

    http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/01/23/texas.law/index.html

    I visited that area just this past summer. Anyone who is against this law needs to go visit that area. Its almost a 3rd world country in some places. I honestly was afraid for my life at some times, because there were 200-300 illegal immigrants standing around in just a 3 block area.

    Its not racism - its doing the job the Federal Government is required to do, but isnt.

  2. #2

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    I went ahead and posted the article. Just in case there is someone out there like myself. Unstable internet connection. It took a long time for my computer to load the page once I clicked on the link..

    http://www.cnn.com/2008/US/01/23/texas.law/index.html


    FARMERS BRANCH, Texas (CNN) -- Illegal immigrants cannot rent or own homes in Farmers Branch, Texas, under an ordinance the city's council passed Tuesday night.


    Immigration policy sparks a debate outside a 2006 Farmers Branch, Texas, City Council meeting.

    The measure requires the Dallas suburb to check a renter's legal status with the federal government.

    "The federal government will verify if the person is in the country legally," Mayor Pro Tem Tim O'Hare said. "If not, we will notify that person as well as the landlord in writing that they do not have the right to be in the country."

    The City Council tried to crackdown on landlords who rent to illegal immigrants last year -- the latest among local and state governments to focus on illegal immigration. Yet immigrant advocates sued to block that law, and the city said it has spent $770,000 in attorneys' fees to defend it.

    The case is still in court after a federal judge blocked that law, finding that city officials were trying to control immigration differently from the U.S. government, according to The Associated Press.

    Attorneys for Farmers Branch have said they believe the new ordinance clears up any constitutional questions.

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    "If we were sued for this ordinance and had to defend this ordinance as well, it wouldn't surprise me," O'Hare said. "We're not in this for the short term. We're in this for the long haul -- for the upcoming years and decades."

    If landlords continue to rent to illegal immigrants, the new ordinance would let the city fine tenants and landlords $500 a day.

    Jose Galvez, a contractor and 16-year resident of Farmers Branch, criticized the decision.

    "Basically you have to apply for a visa before you can become a resident of this city," Galvez said. "If there's a glitch where the federal government made a mistake or they don't have your proper information, you're the one who now has to prove once again you're here legally.

    "There are other apartment complex owners who believe they've invested in this community before all of this and the way they're going on about this is not healthy."

    In a referendum last year, residents in Farmers Branch approved the City Council's stance by a 2-to-1 margin.

    Escondido, California; Hazleton, Pennsylvania; Riverside, New Jersey; and Pahrump, Nevada. have passed similar laws. Most cities said they acted out of frustration with the federal government for not enforcing immigration laws more vigorously.

    "The effects of the government -- the feds -- not enforcing the law is 100 percent local," Escondido City Council member Marie Waldron said in November. "We have to deal with the overcrowding in our neighborhoods. We have to deal with the overcrowding of our schools and the diseases that our children are exposed to. Our police department has to fight the gangs."

    In addition, the nation's governors are looking for compensation from the federal government for the cost of housing illegal immigrants in local jails.

    Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger of California is one of a nearly dozen governors demanding that Washington pay the costs that states incur for jailing criminal illegal immigrants.

  3. #3

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    You know, I have to comment on this, as I actually live in Farmers Branch, and have for the past 4 years.

    Farmers Branch has many beautiful, well-kept areas, but on the other side of one of the main roads, between that road and a main freeway, it is rather junky and 3rd world-ish. But this is only about 1/3 of Farmers Branch.

    For the most part, Farmers Branch is a beautiful, safe little city in the middle of Dallas. I have NEVER feared for my safety here. This is why I moved here. There is a great community college right in the middle of FB, and the students feel safe there, too.

    Yes, there is a huge illegal population problem in the area (due to lots of opportunities to rent or buy inexpensive, older homes built in the 1950's and 1960's). However, FB does have very strict rules about how your home looks, and has at least 2 to 3 FULL TIME employees who drive around looking for problems with your yard (i.e. grass too high, weeds, cars parked on the grass, etc). I've certainly been warned if a friend comes over and even partly accidentally parks on the grass by my driveway for even a couple of hours!

    I've called FB employees when I've seen illegal houses that are trashed, and it is taken care of. I've called FB police in the middle of the night on COUNTLESS occasions for dogs barking constantly in 3 or 4 houses in a row behind me (pretty sure all of them are illegals). I've called FB for loud parties. The Farmers Branch police department is one of the best I've seen!! They respond in 1 or 2 minutes flat, every time! So will the fire department!

    Unless you live there, you don't know!

    The main problems in Farmers Branch with the illegals is Spanish spoken all over the place, loud parties, too many people living in one home, illegals buying homes and renting apartments with too many people, and all the anchor babies who can't speak English changing the FB school district into one of the worst in the city.

    I plan on moving to Plano (a more alfluent suburb) in a couple of years, but not because I don't like Farmers Branch. FB is a very nice place to live with lots of parks, etc. HOWEVER, I could never let my kids go to school in a district that's so badly rated. PLUS, both my future hubby and I's jobs are moving to Plano this year, so the commute is going to be bad for both of us.

    If not for these two factors, we would buy a bigger home and STAY in Farmers Branch! It is a safe, pretty place to raise kids! It has the nicest city employees I've ever seen, has a fantastic fire and police department, is centrally located in Dallas with many affordable homes, and is small.

    The city council of Farmers Branch sees the city going downhill to the illegals, and wants to nip it in the bud before it gets any worse. They want to drive out the illegals, and get the FB school district back on track. They also are preparing for the Farmers Branch Dart Rail system to be opened in 2010, which will signal new opportunities for all the aging 1950's & 1960's neighborhoods to be revitalized (and for all the old shopping centers to be torn down and re-built). It can't happen if the city falls to the illegals by 2010.

    Farmers Branch wants to become the next Park Cities (the most affluent small cities in Dallas). Or at least on par with Plano.

    TexasGal

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