<\/p>\n
City Council members Chad West, left, and Jaime Resendez.<\/p>\n
Steve Nurenberg\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n
Dallas typically asks major-event organizers to put money down to help cover city services<\/a>. But with about two weeks before President Donald Trump\u2019s Republican convention, officials could not tell City Council members on Monday whether organizers had been asked for a deposit.<\/p>\n The uncertainty deepened concerns among some council members that Dallas could be left with part of the bill for security and other city services, even as officials presented their first cost estimates for the Sept. 9\u201310 event.<\/p>\n The arrival of a president, senior administration officials, dignitaries and more than 20,000 attendees will require an extensive security operation for the convention at the American Airlines Center and elsewhere in Dallas.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Police spending alone could reach $1.8 million. Cleanup and barriers could add $14,000, and the fire department\u2019s estimate is still pending, said Kevin Oden, the city\u2019s director of emergency management and crisis response, in a briefing for the council’s finance committee.<\/p>\n Committee members did not question whether Dallas should protect or welcome the event. But they repeatedly asked how the city reached this point without confirmation that a payment had been secured upfront.<\/p>\n They also pressed for a clearer accounting of any convention expenses taxpayers might have to cover.<\/p>\n \u201cI do have real concerns\u201d about nonpayment, said Chad West, the committee chair, citing payment disputes after smaller Trump events in other cities. He said organizers of major events such as the Dallas Marathon typically agree to pay security expenses upfront.<\/p>\n Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Maxie Johnson focused on the city\u2019s already strained finances.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t care if it costs $10,\u201d Johnson said. Dallas was already facing a budget shortfall, he said, and should not assume another financial obligation it lacked the capacity to cover.<\/p>\n City Council member Maxie Johnson.<\/p>\n Steve Nurenberg\/The Dallas Morning News<\/p>\n Oden said he did not know whether organizers had been approached about a deposit. Chief Financial Officer Jack Ireland said he didn’t know, either. They said that information would need to come from the convention organizers and the city\u2019s event services department. Neither attended the briefing.<\/p>\n Costs in flux<\/p>\n Oden cautioned that the estimates were changing daily and that some expenses might already be included in department budgets. Officials also have not determined whether revenue from smaller convention-related events might offset city costs, he said.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n Oden said Dallas has a system for seeking federal reimbursement for major events. The city used it during the FIFA World Cup and has used similar procedures after disasters, he said. But he did not say how much of the convention bill the federal government might repay.<\/p>\n Other agencies will share responsibility for security. Oden said Dallas has agreements with the U.S. Capitol Police and that the Secret Service and FBI are involved in preparations. Even so, he said, there were \u201cstill a lot of unknowns.\u201d<\/p>\n As Oden faced a series of questions, Mayor Pro Tem Jaime Resendez said Dallas would inevitably bear some expense.<\/p>\n \u201cThere\u2019s just no way for the city to get out of spending some sort of resources or funding,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n Financial unknowns<\/p>\n City Manager Kimberly Bizor Tolbert previously said Dallas expected to seek reimbursement for convention-related costs. But she has not identified who would provide it, how much Dallas could recover or whether the city would bear some of the costs.<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n American Airlines Center General Manager Dave Brown, in response to questions from The Dallas Morning News, has declined to comment on any financial agreements with the GOP convention organizers.<\/p>\n The two-day event is the Republican Party\u2019s first national convention held between presidential elections. No official party business will be conducted. It is being planned as a mix of speeches, entertainment and a rally centered on Trump and the party\u2019s campaign message before the November elections.<\/p>\n The nonprofit Dallas Host Committee announced this month<\/a> that it had raised $45 million in private contributions. The committee says its mission includes promoting Dallas, supporting local businesses, defraying local government costs and helping put on a safe event.<\/p>\n Committee co-chair Ray Washburne, a Dallas developer, has not released a budget showing how the money will be divided among those purposes or how much might be available for city expenses.\u00a0<\/p>\n Article continues below this ad<\/p>\n The cost questions recall the financial aftermath of the 1984 Republican National Convention in Dallas. City and civic leaders promoted it as a privately financed \u201cfree enterprise\u201d convention, but Dallas was ultimately left responsible for about $1.4 million in security, equipment and other expenses classified as indirect, according to previous news reports<\/a>.<\/p>\n When Dallas pursued the 2016 Republican National Convention in 2014, Mayor Mike Rawlings said no city tax money would be used. Mayor Eric Johnson has made no comparable pledge for this year\u2019s event.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"City Council members Chad West, left, and Jaime Resendez. 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