Pavan Acharya

I am a journalist interested in telling the stories that impact my readers the most.

My Recent Work

Dallas News •

Car theft victims look to social media to help find their stolen vehicles

Johncarlos Moreno was running late for a showing of Twisters with his girlfriend. Though the new film was set for wide release in mid-July, they got to see it just under a month before its release.

He normally parks his blue 2023 Chevrolet Camaro at the front of AMC NorthPark 15, but it was packed. So, Moreno parked further away than he normally would that June night.

After the movie ended around 9:40 p.m., all the vehicles were gone from the lot — including his own. One of his first instincts...
Dallas News •

What is ForwardDallas? Key takeaways from the city’s proposed land-use plan

As defined in its most recent more than 160-page draft, ForwardDallas is a “long-range future land use vision that guides how and where the city grows over the coming decades and describes how to achieve that vision.”

But what is ForwardDallas exactly? What can it do? And more importantly, what can it not do?

The first draft was released in late 2023 following two years of work from city staff and outside consultants. But some Dallas residents are still uncertain about what the powers and limi...
Dallas News •

Why doesn’t Dallas want a strong-mayor system? City’s charter review rekindles debate

Dallas has never voted for a strong mayor.

It didn’t want one nearly 20 years ago when Black voters shot down a ballot measure fearing a consolidation in mayoral power. It doesn’t seem to want one now after council member Cara Mendelsohn shelved a proposal to increase the power of the mayor that got no support during the city’s charter review process.

Unlike most other major U.S. cities, Dallas has a strong-city manager form of government. The city manager is the top administrative official in...
Dallas News •

President Joe Biden announces he’s dropping from 2024 race: A timeline of his career

President Joe Biden on Sunday announced his withdrawal from the 2024 presidential election.

His decision comes more than three weeks after his disastrous debate performance against former President Donald Trump. It makes Biden the first sitting U.S. president since Lyndon B. Johnson to not seek reelection.

Biden has been a figure in national politics for more than half a century. He served as a U.S. senator from Delaware from 1973 to 2009, vice president from 2009-17 and president since 2021....
Dallas News •

What to know: Vice President Kamala Harris is the instant front-runner for Democrats

Shortly after announcing on social media he would not seek reelection, President Joe Biden threw his support behind Vice President Kamala Harris, 59, to be the Democratic nominee.

The stunning political turnaround makes Harris the favorite to be nominated at the party’s national convention this August.

Harris, who previously served as a U.S. Senator from California before becoming vice president in 2021, would be the first woman of color to lead the presidential ticket for a major political pa...
Dallas News •

What we know: Fire breaks out at First Baptist Church of Dallas

A fire broke out early Friday evening at the historic First Baptist Dallas church downtown.

Initially, 40 Dallas Fire and Rescue units responded. More than an hour later, a third alarm was called in, and flames could be seen breaking through the roof of part of the church. And around 8 p.m., nearly 60 units were responding to the fire.

A Dallas Fire-Rescue spokesperson said there had been a partial collapse of the structure after 7:30 p.m.

As of 8:50 p.m., smoke in the surrounding area had de...
Dallas News •

Tiny homes, cottage courts take a hit in ForwardDallas plans after residents protest

Tiny homes and cottage courts are no longer included in a list of example land uses in the city’s ForwardDallas proposal. The change Thursday was a win for critics of the land-use plan who say it could “destroy” single-family neighborhoods.

But supporters of ForwardDallas and the City Plan Commission members continue to say the plan, which cannot enforce zoning decisions by itself, would not do so.

The list of defined land uses in ForwardDallas includes categories such as single-family attache...
Dallas News •

Vice President Kamala Harris announces initiative targeting maternal mortality

Vice President Kamala Harris announced a new White House proposal targeting the U.S.’s high maternal mortality rate during a speech to her sorority sisters in Dallas on Wednesday.

The policy would create baseline standards for maternal health services at hospitals. Some of these standards include mandating annual staff training on maternal health practices, according to a news release from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

“Nearly every hospital in our country will soon be requir...
Dallas News •

How a rat rescue helps thousands of pets find new homes in North Texas

Standing on a tiny blanket in her blue-and-white crate, Charlotte peered up at her owner Chloe Hedrick as she was fed bits of matcha with a spoon.

“Rats can eat almost anything people can eat,” Hedrick said, explaining how the metabolism is similar to humans. They should not take in too much caffeine, but a little bit each month isn’t so bad, she added.

Charlotte, an albino Rex rat, has pink eyes and smooth, white fur. Like many domesticated rats adopted in North Texas, she’s spent some time l...
Dallas News •

Better streets, policing, housing top concerns for Dallas residents, survey finds

Dallasites are satisfied with a majority of city services but want officials to focus more on better streets and policing, according to survey results released last week.

Each year, officials ask residents how they feel about the largest services the city provides and areas of improvement. The community survey found that residents were satisfied with 15 out of 21 major categories of city services, one more from last year.

Neighborhood code enforcement and social services received higher marks...
Dallas News •

Parking unregistered cars on Dallas streets could lead to fines under proposal

Owners of vehicles with expired registration soon may need to be more wary of parking on Dallas streets.

Those who do so without proper registration or valid license plates would risk fines up to $500 under a recent proposal by Dallas’ transportation officials.

Such an ordinance is not uncommon and would make Dallas’ policy more consistent with those of other large U.S. cities, including Los Angeles, Phoenix and Chicago.

“Texas tends to have extremely permissive parking policies and laws,” sa...
Dallas News •

‘We give them a voice’: Victims of racial violence in Dallas memorialized at Martyrs Park

Two black sheets hung in the hot sun at Martyrs Park in downtown Dallas. City leaders, volunteers and other attendees sat for the reveal of two long-awaited markers memorializing victims of racial violence.

The two shiny gray and black Texas Historical Commission Markers, each towering over the heads of attendees on Saturday who wanted to take a closer look at them, tell the stories of four Black people who were lynched in the mid-1800s. The park serves as a “memorial to the men and to the inhu...
Dallas News •

Council sends proposed ban on horse-drawn carriage rides in Dallas back to committee

The Dallas City Council on Wednesday voted 10-5 to send a proposal to ban horse-drawn carriage rides back to committee.

The measure will go back to the Quality of Life, Arts and Culture Committee that first sent it to Council. The move gives the committee time to hear from residents who could be impacted by the ban.

“We could actually hear from the stakeholders,” said council member Adam Bazaldua, who heads the committee that introduced the ban. “We can hear from those who are in opposition. W...
Dallas News •

City Plan Commission rules out primary use for multiplexes in single-family neighborhoods

As the City Plan Commission continues its work amending the proposed land-use plan ForwardDallas ahead of an expected City Council vote sometime this year, commissioners addressed on Monday what some residents viewed as a significant concern with the plan.

The commission decided ForwardDallas will not consider multiplex use as “primary use” in single-family neighborhoods. The City Plan Commission voted unanimously Monday to amend the plan to characterize multiplex use as secondary use in two pl...
Dallas News •

As DART looks to extend Joppa Rides program, usage remains low among residents

Two years after it ended bus service to the Joppa neighborhood, Dallas Area Rapid Transit is considering the expansion of an alternative program put in place until construction is complete on a pedestrian bridge that will offer a safe way to walk out of the neighborhood.

Ridership for the Joppa Rides program declined by half in its second year. And residents still often walk over the blocked off Union Pacific Railroad tracks beneath Linfield Road — also called the Freedman’s Town Memorial Bridg...
Dallas News •

Fort Worth artist paints mural to celebrate Latino ballplayers ahead of All-Star Game

Like many people raised in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, Juan Velázquez is a lifelong Texas Rangers fan. And now, as an artist in Fort Worth, he has the chance to fulfill a dream by working for his favorite ballclub.

Over the next few weeks, Velázquez will continue work on a mural in Fort Worth on behalf of the MLB and the Rangers. The mural will commemorate the contributions of Latino and Latina ballplayers ahead of this year’s All-Star Game on Tuesday, July 16, at Globe Life Field.

“I always...
The Daily Northwestern •

‘It fosters a community effort’: Evanston, Skokie rev up for 25th Annual Race Against Hate

Content Warning: This article contains discussions of violence and hate crimes.
This Father’s Day, residents from the greater Chicago area will gather at Northwestern’s Long Field for a morning of running and community unity during the 25th Annual Ricky Byrdsong Memorial Race Against Hate.
Event organizers said they expect about 4,500 people to participate in this year’s race, continuing a community staple that began in 2000.
The race — organized by the YWCA Evanston/North Shore — commemorates t...
The Daily Northwestern •

City Council supports Noyes Center renovations, yet timeline remains uncertain

After hearing from impassioned arts advocates Monday, City Council signaled its support for extensive renovations at the Noyes Cultural Arts Center’s 19th-century building.
Originally built in 1892 as a school, the Noyes Center now faces a litany of maintenance issues, according to city officials. For the art groups that use the space for everything from gallery to theater, the updates couldn’t come sooner.
“It is a gem, and we must protect it,” Murphy Monroe, executive director of The Actors Gy...
The Daily Northwestern •

While some Jewish students support pro-Palestine encampment, others express discomfort and safety concerns with ongoing demonstration

As the pro-Palestine encampment on Deering Meadow enters its fifth day, the protest has spurred mixed responses from Northwestern’s more than 2,000 Jewish undergraduate and graduate students.
Some students have critiqued the demonstration and called certain conduct taking place within it antisemitic and anti-Israel. But other Jewish community members have expressed support for the protest.
NU’s chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace has co-led the encampment with NU Students for Justice in Palestine...
The Daily Northwestern •

Medill Prof. Steven Thrasher speaks at ‘Northwestern Liberation Zone’ on Deering Meadow

Medill Prof. Steven Thrasher addressed a crowd of around 100 at the Deering Meadow encampment Saturday afternoon, calling on University administration and the free press to better understand the plight of Pro-Palestinian demonstrators.
Thrasher has been at the encampment at several different points since it began Thursday. In the early hours, he participated in a front line barrier to block Northwestern Police from entering. 
A central focus of Thrasher’s remarks were regarding the state of the...
The Daily Northwestern •

BridgeUSA at NU hosts debate between College Democrats and Republicans

This fall, President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump will likely square off in a series of debates ahead of the 2024 general election. 
But on Tuesday night, Northwestern Democrats and Republicans had the chance to discuss some of the top issues this election cycle in their own debate.
NU College Democrats, NU College Republicans and the University’s chapter of Young Americans for Freedom all participated in Tuesday’s event, which was hosted by NU’s chapter — founded last academic ye...
The Daily Northwestern •

In Memoriam: Farmhouse Evanston

Back in high school, I spent many summers playing travel baseball tournaments across the dewy plains of the Chicago land area.

After boiling on turf for multiple hours in the 90-plus-degree heat during each game, I was reasonably famished. My parents and I often needed something to eat, and Farmhouse Evanston — attached to the Hilton Orrington/Evanston — fit the bill one time.

I was dehydrated and low on electrolytes, and Farmhouse Evanston’s salty and light Wisconsin Cheese Curds became my ow
The Daily Northwestern •

The Daily Explains: What is a Payment in Lieu of Tax program?

At its next meeting Monday, City Council will decide whether to create a committee to explore the potential implementation of Payment in Lieu of Tax — or PILOT — programs in Evanston.

PILOT programs allow nonprofit institutions that are exempt from property taxes to pay agreed-upon sums to the municipalities they operate in. Contributed funds are often meant to offset revenue the municipality loses due to institutions’ tax-exempt status. Programs intend to ease the tax burdens on residents.

Th
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