Museum Tower Rising Above Dallas Arts District

Museum Tower is rising fast in the Dallas Arts District.

The luxury residential skyscraper is nearing its full height.

"We're going up a floor a week, and we'll top out with the 42nd floor sometime in November or early December," said John Sughrue, one of the project's developers.

The building is designed to become Dallas' newest architectural icon.

"It's sculptural in that it moves out 4 inches a floor and tapers out for 18 floors and then tapers back in," Sughrue said.

The views from the tower include the Calatrava bridge, Reunion Tower and the Woodall Rodgers deck park.

Museum Tower will have 112 luxury condominiums. The most affordable homes start at more than $1 million. Despite the weak national economy, Sughrue said they are selling.

"We've signed contracts with buyers, and we have contracts in the works, and there's very good momentum," he said.

Museum Tower is scheduled to open at the end of 2012.

Dads Go Back to School as Role Models for All Students

For some kids, 7:30 a.m. is just too early. But a group of dads who volunteer at Sanders Corner Elementary School in Ashburn, Va., try to make those students feel like superstars.

It’s part of a new program at the school called Watch D.O.G.S., which stands for Dads of Great Students. Fathers take the day off to be a part of the learning process.

“Lots of our children don’t necessarily have a man in their life full time," Sanders Corner Principal Kathleen Hwang said. "Important to see what a professional man looks like and acts like and how they can respond to them and work with them.”

The national program started in 1998 after two middle school students went on a shooting rampage at a school in Jonesboro, Ark., killing four classmates and a teacher. It’s now grown to more than 2,000 schools participating in 40 states.

Parent Elmo Green volunteers to run the program at Sanders Corner.

“The moms volunteer all the time with the parties and the PTA and things like that, but this is a vehicle for the dads to actually take a whole day off and make the same commitment as the moms do,” he said.

“It’s really fun," fifth-grader Lucas Memier said. "I like my dad here. Usually, he doesn’tget to come here.”

In the first year of the program the goal is to have at least one father in the classroom each day of the school year. That's 180 days, and so far, about 90 fathers have signed up. The school is confident more fathers will sign up soon.

The close interaction has become an eye-opening experience for many of the fathers.

“My dad doesn’t spend that much time with me, especially on school nights, so I’m like, Wow, this is really an honor,” said Elmo Green's son, fifth-grader Myles.

“It’s kind of a check to make sure that I am going to be spending enough time with him," Green said. "I do I pick him up after school, I help him with his homework, I put him to bed, so I’m there, but then it makes me think about the quality of time I’m spending with him."

Quality time to ensure all children feel loved and safe.

Monster Bash Keeps Lake Worth Legend Alive

The Fort Worth Nature Center and Refuge is bringing the tale of the Lake Worth Monster back to the forefront.

The shores of Lake Worth are calm, quiet and picturesque, but back in July 1969, something ugly lurked along the trails and in the trees -- a monster. Sightings were so intense that the Fort Worth Police Department looked into the reports.

What did people see?

"What they saw was a hairy, goatman-like creature," said Michelle Villafranca, a natural resources specialist at the nature center. "He smelled bad, he was scary, he threw tires at [people]. And he took chicken out of people's hands."

The monster was spotted up and down the Trinity River and lake for several years, with the most notable experience happening near an old quarry site where, legend has it, he threw tires as far as 500 feet at people.

While the monster is widely known about, Villafranca said that everyone living in Lake Worth, Azle and west Fort Worth back then and since know of the legend.

The sightings have been prominently featured prominently over the years.

The monster makes the pages of the book "Weird Texas," and author Sally Ann Clarke wrote an entire book about the sightings in "The Lake Worth Monster of Greer Island, Fort Worth, Texas." The tale was even turned into a children's book by local writer Stephanie Erb.

Not all visitors are aware of the legend. But people remain skeptical whether they have or haven't heard of the monster.

"I don't know; anything could happen," Johnny Harvey said. "It could be a hoax or dark or something. But I'm not going to be out here at dark."

Whether the monster existed doesn't really matter to the nature center, which uses the folklore to attract visitors.

"Having a big festival out in October around a monster also gets people who might not have been here before," Villafranca said.

In addition to keeping the legend alive, the Lake Worth Monster Bash will discuss the ecology at the nature center and provide some educational opportunities.

The outdoor bash, which started on the 40th anniversary of the sightings, attracted 1,200 people last year.

The last time anyone reported seeing the monster was in the early 1970s, but Villafranca said she thinks the goatman could still be out there walking the trails -- although she has yet to see it with her own eyes.

"I think he could be out here," she said. "And I've found hair on one of our hiking trails that I really thought could be a monster's hair."

Admission is $5 for adults, $3 for seniors and $2 for children ages 3-12. The bash runs from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. For more information, click here.

Texas Ranks 10th in Telecom Taxes

According to a study by a leading telecom tax specialist, Texans pay some of the highest cellphone taxes in the nation.

Texas ranks 10th in the United States, according to the study by Scott Mackey at KSE Partners. The study shows that 17.48 percent of a Texan's average cellphone bill goes to government fees.

"I think using cellphone bills as a way to collect taxes is just an easy way for the government to collect taxes. People don't really notice it," said Bill Peacock, director of the Austin-based Texas Public Policy Foundation.

The average Texas consumer annually pays about $318 in taxes for a bundled telecom package, according to the foundation. Cellphone users pay more than $100 per year in taxes.

Peacock, who has studied Texas' telecom tax structure for years, said sales tax is partially to blame.

"We have such a high sales tax in the state, and that drives up all the other taxes that we have," he said.

But Peacock said many of the taxes are obsolete and fund programs that don't need to be around anymore.

"Cellphone users are subsidizing a lot of different people and a lot of different uses that really have nothing to do with cellphone service," he said.

The Texas Universal Fund, for example, maintains rural landlines in Texas. He said the millions going into the fund should be examined because most Texans have cellphones.

"There was a new tax passed here in Texas that impacted taxes we pay on our cellphone bills a few years ago," he said. "They actually put in the law that you couldn't list the tax a certain way so the people wouldn't think they were getting more taxes when, in fact, they were."

Peacock said the bills are confusing for customers.

"It's overwhelming," Garland resident Marcia Cox said.

She has a bundled telecom package with AT&T Co. Her bill lists a dizzying number of fees: a 911 Service Fee, a Universal Service charge, a Texas State telecom Tax, a City District telecom Tax, a City Telecom Tax, a Regulatory Cost Recovery charge, a State Recovery Fee and a Texas Universal service charge.

Her bill is $373.50 per month, $46.98 of which goes to taxes and fees.

"If you really get down to looking at it you, just go, 'What in the world is all of this?" Cox said.

Her basic cell service monthly runs $52.95. She pays a Federal Universal Service Charge of $1.70 that goes in a national fund to subsidize rural landlines, schools and libraries. She is charged 66 cents as a Regulatory Cost Recovery charge that reimburses phone companies to comply with government regulations. A State Recovery fee, also known as the State Franchise Tax, is 31 cents. The tax reimburses telecom companies for taxes they pay to operate in Texas. And a 99-cent Texas Universal service fee goes to maintain landlines in rural Texas.

In recent years, Texas legislators have eased the telecom burden by repealing one telecom tax and lowering another.

But other fees continue, such as the 50-cent wireless 911 emergency service fee Cox pays for the cell emergency network and state and local taxes on her phone.

People who want to see changes in the tax structure should call their legislators.

Lawmakers in Washington have been pushing a bill that would halt telecom taxes for five years but it has yet to pass.

"I think we're probably being overtaxed when I actually sit down and look at everything," Cox said.

According to state records, Texas' universal service fund collected more than $462 million. Most of it goes to maintain rural landlines across the state.

Fire Station to Close Because of Possible Mold

The Allentown fire chief closed one of the city’s fire stations for fear that it might be infested with mold.

Allentown’s East Side Fire Station closed 5:30 p.m. after fire officials received complaints of poor air quality in the building.

Water from a wet August, Hurricane Irene and Hurricane Lee has wreaked havoc and promoted mold growth all over the area.

Firefighters who worked at the East Side fire house are now working from Hibernia Fire Station on Ridge Avenue. The station is located 1 1/2 miles away from the Lehigh River. Some residents believe the response time of 3 to 4 minutes makes a big difference.

"If they have to respond over on this side it's going to take them a few extra minutes and that could be a big difference in damage or even life," said Ralph Bove of Allentown.

Allentown Fire Chief Bob Scheirer says that a fire truck will be posted outside the East Side Fire Station during the morning and evening rush hours to ease concern from residents.

Next week the fire department will ask city council for a funding package that includes over $1.8 million for a new fire house. The chief hopes there will be a new East Side Fire House by the end of 2012.

 

4 Hospitalized After North Philly Shooting

Four men are in the hospital after a shooting in North Philadelphia.

It happened Friday night on Dauphin and Colorado Streets.

A 21-year-old man was shot in the lower right calf, a 27-year-old man in the right thigh and a 22-year-old man in the right buttocks. All three were taken to Temple University Hospital where they are in stable condition.

The fourth victim, a 30-year-old man, was shot in the chest. He was also taken to Temple where he is currently in critical condition.

Police continue to investigate the shooting. As of now they have no suspects or motive.

Arlington Student Attacked While Walking Home From School

Police in Arlington County, Va., are looking for a man that sexually assaulted a 15-year-old girl Thursday afternoon.

The girl was walking home from Yorktown High School when she was attacked on Florida Street.  

A man ran up to the girl, touched her inappropriately and ran away, police said.

The 15-year-old was not seriously injured during the attack.

The man is described as white, in his 20s and wearing a black shirt and black shorts at the time of the incident.

A letter was sent to the parents of Yorktown students warning them of the attack.