On Park Row Avenue in South Dallas, neighbors said the quality of life is challenging day and night.

In August, WFAA visited and spoke with the residents who live along Park Row Ave. and uncovered all kinds of issues, including prostitution, homelessness, code violations, and open-air drug deals. 

Residents of South Dallas and community advocates are demanding more city resources, increased police presence, as the drug and survival sex trade plagues their neighborhood. 

Dallas’ Park Row Avenue faces rampant drug activity and survival sex work.

“During the day, you see it, but at night it’s a whole different world where it’s Gotham City,” said Ms. Ruggs, a community advocate.

The 1800 block is less than a mile from the historic South Boulevard Park row. The street stretches 800 feet, where vacant lots and makeshift shelters outnumber homes. Residents and advocates said it is plagued by visible drug activity and individuals selling sex to survive. It happens at night and in broad daylight.

“It’s like fight or flight,” Ruggs said.

Louis Harrell, founder of the Men of Nehemiah, a Christian addiction treatment program for men, called the area “where warfare happens.” His group uses military-style discipline to address addiction and provide a positive presence in the neighborhood.

“The difference that 60 men make, the presence of men,” Harrell said. “We march throughout the city. We cut the grass. We start here at ground zero.”

“It’s that fear of having to come home and walk into that circumstance or situation due to the fact of someone else’s state,” said David Woods, Men of Nehemiah.

WFAA spent time on the block to observe what residents experienced. Condoms and empty alcohol bottles were scattered throughout the neighborhood’s beautification area. Individuals engaged in survival sex were seen throughout the block.

“I wouldn’t want for anybody to have to go through that or see that,” said Patricia Mora, DPD Deputy Chief of the Southeast Division.

Through a public records request, WFAA obtained the Dallas Police Department’s 911 call logs from January 2024 through April 23, 2025. At least 45 calls were made from the area. More than 20 showed “No Police Action.” Records also showed police responded to only two calls.

Mora said prostitution and open-air drug sales are categorized as “quality of life” issues, which are considered lower priority than violent crimes.

“You’re looking at a lower priority call, which is going to take again, on average, a little bit over four hours,” said Mora.

The majority of the calls made on this stretch of Park Row were listed as Priority 2, which DPD defines as “urgent.” The others were Priorities 3 and 4. Only one was a Priority 1 call, which involved a shooting.

“Police officers are getting pulled in all different directions,” Mora said. “I know a lot of people have heard, you know, that we are lacking the manpower.”

Dallas City Councilman Adam Bazaldua, who represents the area, said that is not acceptable. “My residents don’t want to hear excuses,” Bazaldua said. “Especially when I have seen the difference in response times in other parts of the city. Our city has done a really good job of neglecting South Dallas.”

Bazaldua said there is a lack of equity with South Dallas being made up of majority Black and brown communities and high concentrations of poverty.

“What we see on a regular basis with some of the most important policy decisions for our city is the loudest voices being North Dallas affluent, and white,” said Bazaldua. “I need our city manager to understand the importance of truly addressing things through equity. That means that some who we have focused on and prioritized for many years need to take a seat…I also have seen the difference in resources devoted to areas of the city where council members kiss the police’s ass. And that’s the reality.”

Those working on the street also said they feel invisible.

“No one else looks out for us but us,” said one woman, who described herself as a survival sex worker. She wanted to remain anonymous. She said she began working along Park Row to support her children after leaving her husband.

“I do what I do because I have to right now, but that doesn’t make me who I am,” she said. She cited a lack of resources, such as affordable housing, as a major barrier.

“By the time I get my check, I have to save this check and this check just to make rent,” she said, crying. “Then once I save these two checks to make rent, what the f*** are we going to eat?”

Community advocates said solutions are possible with more police presence, city resources, and community partnerships.

“It’s heartbreaking because you absolutely want to meet people where they’re at,” said Geoff Aguilera, a community advocate.

Dallas Police said they will increase patrols in the neighborhood. The department said an ongoing investigation has already led to several arrests. Bazaldua said the city is upgrading street lighting, with more than 5,800 lights replaced in his district so far.

On July 31, Dallas Police posted to their Facebook page the following statement:

In July 2025, the Dallas Police Department’s Special Investigations Division, along with the Northwest Division Prostitution Taskforce, launched a multi-day, targeted operations in the Northwest and Southeast Patrol Divisions to combat prostitution-related crimes. 

The operations resulted in 22 people arrested, including 19 women for Prostitution (Seller), a Class B misdemeanor, two human traffickers (one with gang affiliation) for outstanding warrants, and the third, for Evading Arrest, a Class A misdemeanor.

For now, residents and the Men of Nehemiah continue their efforts — day and night.

“We deal with broken people,” Harrell said. “I like to say that the longer something falls, the faster it falls. Our society is just falling.”

That is why he and other advocates are choosing to build up the community themselves. They said they deserve and want better.

Images WFAA collected on the 1800 block of Park Row Avenue are disturbing. They show the South Dallas neighborhood’s struggle with drug activity and a survival sex trade.

What residents said was more unsettling was the lack of police response to their cries for help.

WFAA’s investigation revealed that from January 2024 to April 2025, police responded to two 911 calls in the area out of at least 45 calls. More than 20 showed no police action. Three weeks after the investigation, WFAA sat down with those who can and say they are trying to fix the problem.

In one room, Dallas Police, City’s Homeless Solutions, Code Compliance and Cornerstone Baptist Church, who said the problems on Park Row Avenue are familiar.

“I’ve been here 36 years,” said Chris Simmons, Cornerstone Baptist Pastor. “We are light-years better today than we were just a few years ago.”

However, that perspective is different for Michelle Lowe, Dallas Code Compliance Administrator. 

“When I grew up here, the unsheltered population was not as concentrated as it is now,” said Lowe. “There are a lot of vacant lots, and they tend to gravitate to those areas.”

Lowe said in early September, Code Compliance visited Park Row Ave, helping to clean up trash and reviewing properties. 

“We will go through our process, and we will come in and we will abate it because we understand that it’s a nuisance,” said Lowe.

Some issues lead to legal action, such as citations, but Lowe said those actions take time. Justine Yancy, Dallas Homeless Solutions Community Engagement Specialist, said it takes time for her department as well.

“It’s us coming back week after week and building that trust,” said Yancy.

She said Homeless Solutions began working in the area in late May.

“We’ve been able to engage 27 individuals with the tailored services that we have,” said Yancy.

Dallas Police said they’ve added a sky camera and made several arrests for both prostitution and drug-related crimes. “We arrested two individuals who had about 10 different types of drugs on them, which is one thing that’s hurting our community,” said Bryan Joseph, DPD Neighborhood Police Officer. He works in the South Dallas community.

Police said they’ve also increased covert units and uniformed patrols. While on Park Row earlier this month, WFAA noticed at least one patrol vehicle within a two-hour window and other patrols in neighboring streets.

“Arresting is not going to help everybody…but until they see hey, you know what, it’s time for that change for myself. You gotta start inside,” said Joseph.

It is a change that Richard Smith made years ago. 

“I’ve been locked up, you know, more times than I can count,” said Smith, Trinity Restoration Ministries Executive Director. The ministry is part of Cornerstone Baptist Church. Trinity Restoration provides resources to those in need.

“Multiple residents have expressed is some of the issues we see in South Dallas, we don’t see in North Dallas, and they talk about even the response from the city as a whole,” said Smith.

“That’s a very easy answer, concerned citizens. Concerned citizens because people in other parts of the community are not going to tolerate, and I think at some point we become comfortable with the things that we see,” said Simmons.

However, it was residents who spoke out about these issues. They called 311, 911, elected officials, and got local groups involved.

DPD Chief Daniel Comeaux visited Park Row after WFAA’s investigation. He responded with the following statement:

“Since stepping into the role of Dallas Police Chief in April, I’ve made it my mission to be an active and visible leader within our city. One of my top priorities has been engaging directly with our communities, and I’ve had the privilege of visiting the Park Row neighborhood to hear firsthand the concerns of its residents. 

The people of Park Row are doing exactly what we ask of our residents—speaking up and reporting issues that affect their safety and quality of life. In response, we’ve ramped up proactive enforcement efforts in and around the area. Our strategy includes deploying covert units to monitor suspicious activity and coordinate with uniformed patrol officers to intervene and make arrests. Just last week, this approach led to the successful apprehension of two individuals involved in drug trafficking. 

We recognize that not every concern can be resolved through policing alone. That’s why we’re working in close partnership with other City departments, including Code Compliance and Emergency Management & Crisis Response, to address broader, non-criminal challenges in a holistic and sustainable way. 

Our commitment to Park Row—and to every neighborhood in Dallas—is unwavering. Together, we’re building a safer, stronger city.”

“Are we pouring into the people as well because we all can do a better job,” said Smith.

“It takes all of us, you know, coming together, working collaboratively so that we can really get to the root of what the concern is,” said Lowe.