Fight at Night in GP

Grand Prairie played host to Oscar Da La Hoya's promotional " Golden Boy " productions . The fight night in Grand Prairie made history as the first organized professional fight in the city . Parking spaces were at a premium and cheers were at a maxium . I cheered the exploits of Jesse Lara from Dallas , and the 2004 Olympian Rock Allen from Philly , and many others .As a long time fight fan and student of the game , I was impressed by the fantastic crowd that cheered the warriors as they entered in the ring . This will not be the last time Oscar or anyone else will put on a fight in the metroplex . When they do the perfect venue is Grand Prairie.

My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys

My heroes have always been Cowboys. Dallas Cowboys that is . When I was a kid , one of the first Dallas Cowboys I met was Bob Hayes . It was 1967 and "Bullet" Bob Hayes was the reigning fastest man on the planet .I attended the school across the street from his house and it was routine for him to wave to us kids on our way home .
As a young man ,I idolized the original 88 , Drew Pearson , and cheered when he caught the "Hail Mary" pass from Roger Staubach. When Roger "the Dodger"retired , my devotion to the Dallas Cowboys did not. My high school year book contains a signed autographed picture of his successor Danny White .
Even in the lean years I cheered the Dallas Cowboys.I laughed during the torrid heat wave of 1980 when "Crazy Ray" Jones had an parka on as he whistled at commuters on Commerce Street while shivering during an 110 degree August day .Years later I mourned with the Jerry Jones family at the "Crazy Ray " memorial service, and shared my memories with the Jones family.I mourned in a different way the firing of Tom Landry , and welcomed Jimmy Johnson to the Dallas Cowboy family.I hoped he would return to us the glory days. I didn't have to wait long.
I had the pleasure of meeting all of the triplets on three occasions.I met Troy Aikman at a hospital ,met Emmitt Smith at a friends birthday party. Guess what ? Emmitt was a good dancer even back in the day. I talked to Michael Irvin about football and life.

I have gotten a little older , however my passion for football has not changed. I love football and Dallas Cowboy football in particular.I have done charity work with Larry Brown , discussed Machavelli with Calvin Hill.I have had the pleasure to know many of the Cowboys in other aspects of their live. A class act was Herschel Walker, who was always patient with the fans. Thank you Herschel , for allowing me time to share with your family at your book signing. There is obviously more to life than football ,but I want to thank all the Dallas Cowboys for providing joy in my life. From touring Valley Ranch with Robert Newhouse ,to talking about drug abuse with "Hollywood" Henderson, to telling Nate Newton that he had an imposter on MySpace , its a been quite a ride. It just leaves me to ask , "How about them Cowboys ? "

Ed Gray Congrats Grand Prairie Air Hogs

On behalf of all the fans I want to thank the Grand Prairie Air Hogs on a sucessful baseball season. What a great innagural season you have provided us. We all have cheered your exploits on the diamond. Inky and all the boys have done a fine job in representing Grand Prairie across the nation .Often times when you think of Grand Prairie in the news its an by thought .The Air Hogs have been our ambassadors to the nation ,continue my friends to be our ambassadors to greatness in Grand Prairie .

Ed Gray Tours the Grand Prairie Fire Department

Recently I took a tour of the Grand Prairie Fire Department .I applaud those brave men who take their lives in jeopardy to save our lives and property. One of the things that struck me as I toured the facility with Battalion Chief Rick Ledbetter , is that they give up a lot of family time to be with their extended family of firemen . Never have I seen such a dedicated band of brothers . The next time , these young men are at a street corner with a fire boot ,we must do more than the obligatory nod of appreciation . Thanks again Rick , thank you to all the fireman for all you do .

Prime Retail closes land deal for outlet shopping center in Grand Prairie

Prime Retail closes land deal for outlet shopping center in Grand Prairie

01:42 PM CDT on Wednesday, August 20, 2008
By SHERYL JEAN/ The Dallas Morning News
sjean@dallasnews.com
Developer Prime Retail said Wednesday it has closed on more than 64 acres in Grand Prairie to begin developing a 485,000-square-foot outlet shopping center.
Construction is set to begin this fall. Prime Outlets-Grand Prairie on Interstate 20 and State Highway 360 should be open in time for the 2009 holiday retail season. The shopping center will feature about 120 outlet stores, including anchors Neiman Marcus’ Last Call and Saks Fifth Avenue Off 5th, an on-site food court and restaurant sites surrounding the outlet center.

Ed Gray Comments and Travels
I drove past the location for the shopping center . I am looking forward to the shopping center breaking ground . Grand Prairians need to spend more of their dollars in our city to increase the sales tax revenue . As our commercial property square footage increases , we can all rejoice that we have a progressive city council that wants to grow buisness in Grand Prairie .

Reunion Arena Going Out of Buisness

One of the metroplex's historical venues could possibly be closing down soon.The rising economic cost of hosting concerts at the cavernous Dallas facility and American Airlines Center contributed to the success of the Nokia facility in Grand Prairie.I look back on several great moments in sports history,and those wonderful concerts. The sports events ,watching the track stars of the 80"s ,the NBA All Star Game, (I still can't get over Spud Webb dunking)and my Mavericks,Ro,Derek ,and Mark,the original triplets.Wow the concerts of the past!Prince bringing in the New Year,Rick James and his infamous concerts,and Parliament Funkadelic opening up the arena. The long ago dates I had with my friends watching Luther, the Commodores ,Whitney and many others .Dreams die hard,memories linger on. As a seventeen year old ,I looked upon with pride,the diamond that was Reunion,today as a forty seven year old I wax nostalgically for the past.


By RICHARD ABSHIRE / The Dallas Morning News
rabshire@dallasnews.com
Instead of a last hurrah, it was a last hallelujah for Reunion Arena.
Former home to the Mavericks' NBA playoff games and the Stars' Stanley Cup rally, the 28-year-old arena bowed out Saturday evening with "Noche de Sanidad y Mulagros," a Spanish-language evangelical revival hosted by California-based Una Voz Profetica a las Naciones, A Prophetic Voice for the Nations.
Prophet Adrian Amado predicted attendance at 13,000 for an evening "with the vision to help people with special needs by giving them words of hope and healing."
At 6:30 p.m. Saturday, an estimated 5,000 men, women and children were standing, clapping in rhythm . Admission was free.
Norma Smith has worked security at the arena and at other venues around town since 1993 and she doesn't like the idea of tearing the place down.
"The city should sell [Reunion] to somebody that will use it or lease it out," she said. "I'm very disenchanted."
After losing more than $6 million in the last five years hosting American Airlines Center's leftover events, Reunion's once-glamorous run may come to an end this month. The Dallas City Council is expected to vote Wednesday ,June 25 on shutting it down.

Grand Prairie TV Comes Alive

The GPTV web site has been up and running for several years now .
The city continues to search for the best qualified applicants to meet the requiremnets for our public service .
The web site gives information on the city services and is accessible for all those who have the internet . Check it out , its quite interesting . Ride the wave , and embrace technology.
http://www.gptx.org/
http://www.gptexas.com/
http://gptx.granicus.com/MediaPlayer.php?publish_id=63