Thursday, September 14, 2006

"Show me the money!"

Texas gold

Woman to get $2.75 million for Cowboys stadium land

September 14, 2006

The Associated Press
Copyright 2006

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) -- In the largest payout for residential property acquired for the new Dallas Cowboys stadium, the Arlington City Council has agreed to give a 72-year-old woman $2.75 million for her house and 4 acres.

"I can buy something and stop living in my car," Evelyn Wray said with a chuckle. "I've been basically living out of suitcases from here to there."

Since moving out of her home in March, Wray said she's been staying with family and friends because she didn't want to make a decision on a new house until she knew how much the city would pay.

Jay Doegey, Arlington's city attorney, said he was glad to get that and two other properties settled at Tuesday's meeting. The other properties, commercial tracts, were settled for sale prices of $1.15 million and $1.2 million.

Wray's fight to get what she thought was a fair price from the city generated considerable attention, with a talk radio station in attendance when she held a garage sale.

Wray's attorney, Glenn Sodd, argued that the land -- on a major thoroughfare and across the street from a new Wal-Mart Supercenter -- should be valued at commercial prices.

The original offer was $351,000, but a court-appointed panel set the value at $1.2 million. She continued her fight in the county courts, and the city finally settled for more than twice that amount.

Although most of the land has been acquired for the $650 million stadium and excavation work is nearly completed, dozens of lawsuits are still pending, Doegey said.

The stadium is scheduled to open in time for the 2009 season.

Copyright 2006 Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

© 2006 The Associated Press: www.ap.org

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