Water Damage Restoration in Grand Prairie, TX

A municipal water tank in Grand Prairie, Texas, is this year’s winner of the Tank of the Year competition presented by Tnemec Company, Inc. A panel of water tank enthusiasts selected the water tank based on criteria such as artistic value, the significance of the tank to the community, and challenges encountered during the project.

As the 2024 contest winner, the tank will appear in the most prominent position in Tnemec's annual Tank of the Year calendar alongside the other top finalists.

The winning tank was painted with Tnemec’s UV-resistant, long-lasting fluoropolymer finish, Series 700 HydroFlon, which will provide long-term color and gloss protection to the tank's intricate design for years to come.

"Once again, we here at Tnemec were overwhelmed by the number of entries in this year's Tank of the Year contest,” said Brian Cheshire, director of sales for the water tank market. “As has been the case in recent years, the entrants in the 2024 campaign highlighted the creativity and ingenuity of our customers. Towns and cities all over the United States and Canada were able to utilize these structures not only for their functionality within their water infrastructure but also as a showcase for their local communities."

This year’s winning tank stands tall in Grand Prairie, Texas. This newly built water tank features a stunning three-part mural by renowned artist Eric Henn. The images depict local attractions in the Dallas-Fort Worth area: horse racing at Lone Star Park, Joe Pool Lake, and amusement center Epic Central. Located prominently right off Highway 161, this water tank serves as both a functional and artistic centerpiece in the city.

More than 320 water tanks were nominated, and over 17,000 online “People’s Choice” votes were cast this year from across the U.S. and Canada. College Station, Texas, was the winner of the People’s Choice competition, with a design that pays homage to the university and surrounding community.

“Since 2006, Tnemec has been recognizing municipalities for their aesthetic, creative, and innovative uses of our high-performance coatings on water storage tank projects,” Cheshire added. “This year’s finalists represent several different types of water tanks in various shapes and sizes, all of them impressive for one reason or another.”

The Tank of the Year will be featured as the month of January in Tnemec’s 2025 water tank calendar. All finalists and nominees will be included in the following calendar months. For more information on Tank of the Year and to request a 2025 Tank of the Year calendar, visit tankoftheyear.com.

Grand Prairie ISD Superintendent Jorge Arredondo still has his job after a Dallas County judge ruled Tuesday the district cannot fire him, at least for now.

The ruling came after Arredondo's attorney said they filed a lawsuit against the district, claiming the board broke his contract by not giving him any advance notice or explanation for putting him on leave in September.

Before the judge issued a temporary restraining order on Tuesday that blocked his firing, the board had an item on the agenda of its Thursday meeting to discuss terminating Arredondo's employment.

Last month, the school board voted to put Arredondo on paid leave pending an investigation, saying he violated the district's policy around discrimination, harassment, and retaliation against district employees. The district has not provided any specifics about the allegations. Arredondo had only been in his new job for three months.

"That's the whole point of the lawsuit, is to enforce those rights so that he has fairness in the process, transparency in the process," said Mary Nix, Arrendondo's attorney. "That's why we filed it, that's why we feel good about the restraining order being issued and we're hopeful this will give him the opportunity to defend himself, but for the district and the board to hit pause and really think about what is going on."

Arredondo is also claiming the board violated his constitutional rights by discriminatory and defamatory statements against him, implying that he was favoring Hispanic students and staff, which he says is not true.

In a statement to CBS News Texas, Grand Prairie ISD said, "The district is aware of reports regarding a lawsuit that may have been filed. At this time, the district has not been served any legal documents related to the matter. As a public entity, we respect the legal process and will review any formal filings once they are received. As always, the district is committed to acting in the best interests of our students, staff, and community, and we will respond to any legal matters appropriately through the court system. Given that this involves potential litigation, we are unable to comment further at this time."

A hearing for Arredondo's lawsuit against the school district is scheduled for Oct. 28 at 10:30 a.m.

Another North Texan has won $5 million in a Texas Lottery scratch-off game.

The Texas Lottery said Monday that a Grand Prairie resident was the first to claim one of the four top-prize winning tickets in the $400 Million Mega Bucks scratch-off game.

The $100 scratch-off ticket was purchased at Chilly Mart on South Carrier Parkway in Grand Prairie.

Three North Texans have won $5 million each in lottery scratch-off games this year.

In July, someone won $5 million playing the $5,000,000 Ultimate game after buying a winning ticket in Freestone County. In May, someone in Tarrant County became the first to win the big prize in that game after buying a winning ticket in Fort Worth. In March, a Dallas resident became the first winner of the Texas Lottery game Luxe and took home a $5 million grand prize.

Assuming each winner now falls into the highest federal tax bracket of 37%, each will take home roughly $3.15 million after federal taxes. Texas does not have a state tax on lottery winnings.

All of the winners have asked to remain anonymous.

While the $400 Million Mega Bucks game offers a substantial grand prize, it's not the largest scratch-off prize offered by the Texas Lottery.

Loteria Supreme has four grand prize tickets worth $7.5 million each. Two winning tickets were claimed in La Vernia and Nederland, and two grand prize-winning tickets have yet to be claimed.

The biggest scratch-off game offered by the Texas Lottery is the $20 Million Supreme, with four grand prizes of $20 million each. Three of those tickets have been claimed, including one in February 2023 in Fort Worth. The other two winners are from Boerne and La Feria. One grand prize ticket remains unclaimed.

The Filipino community in North Texas is getting ready to celebrate something historic this weekend – the largest Filipino festival in the state.

The Lone Star Palengke – which means ‘market’ in the Tagalog language of the Philippines – is expected to draw in more than 10,000 people this Saturday at Asia Times Square in Grand Prairie. The free event runs from 12 p.m. to 6 p.m.

The festival aims to share the food, music, art, dances, and experiences of the Filipino culture with the DFW community. The event takes place in October in honor of Filipino American History Month.

Click here for more details.

"Lone Star Palengke is just our ability just to showcase who we are here as a people. We are deserving of a space,” said Mark Sampelo, co-founder of Pilipino American Community Endeavor (PACE), the nonprofit behind the event.

Organizers say the festival has grown tremendously since it started three years ago. However, it’s just one piece of an even bigger mission in mind – to open a new Filipino community center in North Texas.

For Sampelo, that mission is a long time coming as a first-generation Filipino American.

"I've actually been in DFW for over 20 years. And DFW has always been my home. I grew up watching the Mavs, the Cowboys," he shared with NBC 5. "But growing up, I knew there was something missing. My family, my family friends, they had a unique culture that was a little different than American society."

A PLACE FOR ‘KAPWA’

According to PACE, North Texas is home to an estimated 100,000 Filipinos but lacks a dedicated center for the Filipino culture like other AAPI groups.

“There's a lot more Filipinos coming into the DFW Metroplex from California and Washington state. So as they're coming here, it's normal for them to have community,” said Conrad Alagaban, Jr., finance chair for PACE.

As Alagaban, Jr. and Sampelo grew into adults in the metroplex, they each dug deeper into their own histories and a growing pride in their culture. One that is uniquely Filipino Texan.

"For me, it's been a search and a journey as I grew up. In my adult years, it's been looking for my history, understanding where our culture is and what it's about, and being able to find people that can share that knowledge. So that's what we're doing together here for our Lone Star Palengke,” said Alagaban, Jr.

After years of creating connections with other Filipino groups in the nation, as well as Filipino-owned businesses and new transplants to DFW, Sampelo co-founded the first Lone Star Palengke event in 2021.

The overwhelming response to the festival that year helped turn the movement into their nonprofit, with the continued mission of creating an official cultural center.

"It's not just to empower, inspire and uplift our community but bringing everyone together through 'kapwa' which is our interconnectedness with one another. And that transcends our Filipino identity," said Sampelo. "While we don't have a physical building yet, we want to imagine what it would feel like."

Sampelo said the cultural center can be a permanent place for many of the things PACE tries to bring year-round in separate events across DFW -- such as Tagalog classes for children, cooking classes, health resources, voter registration, immigration paperwork assistance, and much more.

"It's just preparing the foundation. Because that's what I didn't have. I didn't know about my Filipino-American identity. I struggled fitting in. And I don't want my kids to have that experience," said Sampelo. "I want our kids to be proud of who they are. I want them to know that they can grow up to be whoever they want to be."

PACE hopes to take proceeds from the festival and other endeavors and put it toward that goal of creating a DFW Filipino center in the years to come.

For a full schedule of the Lone Star Palengke Festival, click here.

GPISD superintendent's future unclear after vote

The board refused to reveal what the allegations were, frustrating community members. One trustee promised the results of an investigation into Dr. Jorge Arredondo would be made public, but it's unclear when.

The Brief

Grand Prairie ISD's superintendent is still on paid administrative leave after a mysterious vote by the school board.

The vote was taken Wednesday after hours of discussion behind closed doors.

The motion voted on Wednesday night was vague, only stating that, if approved, it would allow the school board officers to "move forward."

After returning and listening to public comment, the board voted 4-2 on a motion stating that Grand Prairie ISD Superintendent Dr. Jorge Arredondo violated the district’s discrimination, harassment, and retaliation policy.

GPISD superintendent allegedly violated policy

Grand Prairie ISD trustees say the district's recently suspended superintendent violated district policy. He's been under investigation, and questions remain about why the investigation started.

"I move to let board officers move forward as discussed in closed session due to the violations of local DIA policy," motioned GPISD Trustee Terry Brooks.

There was a brief discussion about the vote that did not shed much light on what it meant.

"We are going to continue to stand on what policy states and make decisions on what is best for kids, staff and community," said Grand Prairie ISD Board President Amber Moffitt.

Related

In a statement, the district says the decision was made "in order to protect the district and Dr. Arredondo."

Arredondo officially started with the district on July 1. Just two months and three days later, he was placed on paid administrative leave on Sept. 4 so an investigation into a policy violation could take place.

The investigation was presented to the school board behind closed doors Wednesday night.

"But when someone, as you heard, violates policy, we stand on policy," said board secretary Emily Liles.

The two trustees who voted no defended their decision.

"I stand strong by my vote tonight," said trustee Daniel Espinosa.

"I was asking that Dr. Arredondo be reinstated, that he be allowed to do the job that this board voted 7-0 for him to do," said trustee Gloria Carrillo. "Numerous false and hurtful allegations are harmful to Dr. Arredondo and our community. His professional reputation has been damaged."

Liles said the allegations circulating on social media are unfortunate.

"We did pick the best superintendent. We got out of the information that was provided to us by a search firm. I stand by that," she said. "But if someone, as you heard, violates a policy, we stand on policy. This board stands on policy."

Arredondo is continuing to receive his $317,000 salary while on leave.

Related

Concerned parents in Grand Prairie are calling for transparency after the district’s superintendent was placed on leave. He’s under investigation, but only trustees know why.

Before the vote, many in the community called for transparency.

"I would like to know what is going on," said resident Lupe Adell Castillo. "We've been waiting hours. We don't know what is going on."

"Please be transparent with the students, employees, parents and stakeholders," said resident Dorris Hill.

"Do better than a last-minute special session that goes two hours that keeps us in darkness," said parent Eric Smith.

The board again refused to reveal what the allegations were, frustrating some community members.

"If your investigation has brought forth evidence that this man needs to go, I understand that. But it's going to come out, and it had better rise to that level. Because if this is a back door to remove a superintendent that some of you didn't want, that erodes our faith in you as elected officials," a parent said during public comment.

Trustee Bryan Parra said the results of the investigation will be made public.

"There had to be a process that played out. The community will receive a report and understand the basis of the decision tonight," he said.

It’s unclear when the report will be made public.

While it’s also unclear exactly what the authorization to "move forward" means, another vote would be required by the full board if the superintendent is to be terminated or face some sort of disciplinary action.

FOX 4 submitted a Freedom of Information Act request to the district for more clarification.