North Texas Dallas leaders are renewing their focus on nightlife, aiming to help businesses and neighbors coexist in the city’s most popular entertainment districts. The effort comes as Dallas prepares to host international visitors during FIFA events between June and July 2026. Venue operat ors in Deep Ellum and other entertainment districts said they could soon see new ordinances and permits as part of that push. Some business owners argue the city’s current code compliance operations are not working in their favor. Jeff Biehler, owner of Dusty’s in Deep Ellum, attended a Hospitality and Nightlife Task Force meeting on Wednesday to hear potential solutions. “The city is coming down a little bit hard on some of the people down there. Some of the restaurants, some of the music venues, some of the clubs,” Biehler said. Biehler said he has owned a business in Deep Ellum for about five years and has visited the area since he was a child. He said business owners want clarity. “I think there’s some gray area in Deep Ellum, you know? Restaurant, music venue, are you a club?” he said. “Obviously, there’s a lot of questions of what we can and can’t do in Deep Ellum, right?” The Hospitality and Nightlife Task Force was created in October 2025 to recommend city code updates to better support Dallas’ entertainment districts while balancing neighborhood concerns. Council member Chad West said the goal is to address barriers affecting hospitality and nightlife and consider nearby residents. In a memo sent to Dallas City Manager Kim Tolbert late last year, West said the task force would help address unintended consequences from increased enforcement by the city’s Code Compliance Nighttime Entertainment Team. During a recent budget cycle, the city funded that team to curb problems in entertainment districts. Some operators now question whether enforcement has gone too far. “It worked. It worked quite well, actually. It supplemented police presence, it helped bring some of the bad operators under control,” West said. “But it also uncovered some old codes that had never been considered before.” West said one issue involved restrictions that prevented some restaurants from charging cover fees to pay musicians. “So, you basically had to provide free music or no music at all. And it just doesn’t make any sense,” he said. “Why would you prevent that, when you want to bring in the best talent for your diners and pay your musicians and help them earn a living?” The task force’s recommendations will move next to the Quality-of-Life Committee, then to city attorneys before going to the full council. The group was directed to meet twice a month from November through February. “The goal is at the latest, get this ordinance fixed before FIFA gets here,” West said. “Dallas is inviting in hundreds of thousands, maybe even millions of tourists that are going to come through our city between June and July. And of all of these Europeans, they don’t even go to dinner until 10 or 11 at night, much less go listen to music and things like that.” Terry Lowery, chair of the task force, said members are suggesting a permit to address what some have described as overreach. “We ended up with restrictions on music cover charges that impact the ability of small businesses to pay for live music,” Lowery said. Task force members said collaboration is key. They emphasized that enforcement remains important to correct behavior and ensure safety while avoiding unnecessary harm to businesses when possible. ...read more read less