Allen Neighbor: Jan. 19, 2025
Black Walnut Café Allen Location Closes Unexpectedly | Candidate Filings Begin for May Election | Eagle Robotics Team Wins State Title | Neighborly Notes & Calendar
Jan. 18 was National Use Your Gift Card Day, according to the National Day Calendar. Use Your Gift Card Day is the third Saturday in January. You’ll find this tidbit relevant if one of the gift cards weighing down your wallet was for the restaurant mentioned in my first story.
Black Walnut Café Allen Location Closes Unexpectedly
Black Walnut Café closed its two remaining Dallas area locations suddenly on Monday. The closure of the Allen and Coppell all-day dining spot was announced on Black Walnut’s social media pages where the company also disclosed patron could be reimbursed for unused gift cards.
To our valued guests:
It is with a heavy heart that we announce the closure of Black Walnut in Dallas after eleven incredible years of serving the community. This decision was not made lightly, but after much reflection, we believe it is the right time to close this chapter on January 13, 2025.
We want to express our deepest gratitude to each and every one of you. Your unwavering support, whether through a kind word, a regular visit, or simply sharing a meal with us, has been the cornerstone of our success. You embraced us from the very beginning, and for that, we will forever be thankful.
Black Walnut’s Allen location was the company’s first foray into the Dallas-Fort Worth area, opening in May 2014. The company added locations in Coppell, Flower Mound, Frisco and Colleyville. The final two locations – in Allen and Coppell – marked the concept’s exodus from the Dallas market. Patrons surprised by the closure expressed dismay in social media comments this week.
I filled out an online contact form on the Woodlands Hospitality Group’s website to ask about the reasons for the closure and to ask what will happen to the building at 955 W. Stacy Road which Woodlands Hospitality Group owns. Woodlands president Eric Lysaker cited pandemic-related business challenges and said the company would seek a new restaurant concept to occupy the space.
“Like many in the restaurant industry, we have faced challenges in the wake of the pandemic,” Woodlands Hospitality president Eric Lysaker said in an emailed response. “As a result, we made the difficult decision to downsize our presence in the Dallas area.
“We plan to market the Allen location to attract a new restaurant establishment and hope to find a concept that will be a great fit for the community—continuing the legacy of exceptional service and quality that our loyal guests have come to appreciate.”
Patrons who have unused gift cards can request a refund by filling out a form on the company’s website. There’s also a QR code posted on the door of the Allen location directing patrons to the refund site.
WFAA reported the company closed its Frisco location in March 2023 and its Colleyville location in August. Black Walnut has six remaining locations in the Houston area.
Candidate Filings Begin for May Elections
Allen voters will elect two city council members and two Allen ISD trustees in the May 2 general election. Candidates for any of those spots have until Feb. 14 to file for a place on the ballot.
A handful of candidates already have signaled their intent to run in May.
City Council Member Ben Trahan, Mayor Pro Tem and Councilmember Place 6, posted a photo of himself filing his paperwork with the City Secretary’s office on his Facebook page. Trahan will seek a second term on the Allen City Council.
Councilmember Chris Schulmeister is term-limited as of 2025, having served two consecutive three-year terms on the council. That means his Council seat will be open for this election. According to the city’s charter, Schulmeister can sit out for one election cycle and then pursue an open place or run for Mayor.
Allen ISD Place 4 Trustee Amy Gnadt resigned her school board position in April, prompting speculation she intended to run for Allen City Council. Gnadt announced on her campaign website that she filed to seek Allen City Council Place 4.
AISD Place 4 has remained open since Gnadt’s resignation. Allen ISD Chief Communications Officer David Hicks confirmed the position will remain open until May’s election.
Rebecca Kinnear and Rosalind Lewis have each filed for the AISD Place 4 seat. Kinnear lists her occupation as a homemaker. Lewis is a human resources director.
Kenneth McKee, who lists his occupation as an IT services executive, has filed to run for Place 5 seat, currently occupied by Elle Holland.
Holland was elected in 2022 and last week announced her retirement from service to the Allen ISD Board of Trustees, effective at the end of her current term in May 2025.
“There are so many ways in which our community members can volunteer within Allen ISD, and I feel fortunate that I have been able to give back to this district,” Holland said in an emailed statement from Allen ISD. “I’ve known for a long time that Allen ISD is filled with dedicated teachers and staff, supportive families and inquisitive students. Serving as a Trustee on the School Board for the past three years has only strengthened my belief that Allen ISD is a premier school district in not only the state of Texas, but across our wonderful country.”
Interested candidates may file to run for Allen ISD Board of Trustees or Allen City Council and must file between January 15 and February 14, with election day scheduled for May 3.
Eagle Robotics Wins State Title
In a scene from the movie Apollo 13, a team of engineers in Houston create a way to figuratively fit a square peg in a round hole using the limited materials available to the three astronauts hurtling through outer space on a failed mission to the moon.
It’s an example Graham Gadd cites often with his robotics students at Allen ISD’s STEAM Center. Solving a problem using limited materials is engineering, a skill his students hone in robotics class and apply on the Allen Eagle Robotics team.
The team recently collected a handful of awards and a UIL state title for its performance in robotics at the statewide BEST of Texas Robotics competition.
The team competed at the Collin County BEST (Boosting Engineering, Science, and Technology) Robotics Competition in November, earning the First Place Robot Award and First Place BEST Award. Following that win, the team advanced to the statewide competition, where they won UIL Large team Top Robot award and were named UIL State Champions.
BEST stands for Boosting Engineering Science and Technology and is an annual tournament-like competition for robotics teams. Each fall, robotics students at hubs from across the state design and build robots to accomplish a given task.
Gadd said the contest simulates a real-world business and technology environment with specifications on the machine’s weight, size and functionality. The contest runs for a few weeks during which students may use only the materials provided in their contest kits and must follow the parameters set by the competition.
“The goal is to give students hands-on experience in the field of STEM,” he said. “We’re teaching the soft skills you’re not going to get out of a book.”
The Eagle Robotics club students meet to work on their designs after school or on weekends and are supervised by Allen robotics teachers and parent volunteers. But the work belongs to the students.
“They are very self-sufficient,” Gadd said. “I just make sure nobody’s getting injured.”
Allen ISD parent Audrey Bartlett has volunteered with the robotics club for five years as her two daughters have participated.
“The students are innovative and dedicated, and it's wonderful to see them thrive in their various responsibilities,” Bartlett said. “Not only are they learning skills that will help the team with the competition; they are walking away with skills that will help them in their future higher education and employment.”
Gadd said the team provides the chance to improve skills in problem-solving, communication and teamwork which translate into adulthood even if students don’t pursue education or careers in an engineering or related field.
“Students become leaders, and they take charge,” he said. “Those who are gung-ho will stick around.”
The Allen High School Robotics team competed at the Collin County BEST (Boosting Engineering, Science, and Technology) Robotics Competition in November, earning the First Place Robot Award and First Place BEST Award. The team advanced to the BEST of Texas UIL State Competition in December and won the UIL Large team Top Robot award and were named UIL State Champions.
Additional awards received were the Texas Instruments Video Award, the Texas Instruments Engineering Drawing Award, the MathWorks Simulink Award and the UTD Exhibit Construction and Design Award.
Neighborly Notes
Neighborly Notes & Calendar
2025 Collin County Martin Luther King, Jr. Appreciation Day: The annual event runs from 12 to 1:30 p.m. on Jan. 20 at Creekwood United Methodist Church. Celebration includes keynote address by Minnie’s Food Pantry founder Dr. Cheryl Jackson, awards and scholarships, recognition of an Allen police officer, musical performance and touch-a-truck experience.
Middle School Expo Night: AISD incoming seventh-graders can participate in Middle School Expo night from 6 to 8 p.m. Jan. 21. Students will visit their future middle school campus, hear from campus principals and counselors, and explore middle school course offerings.
APD Police Boxing Gym: The Allen Police Boxing gym officially opens Feb. 3, but parents interested in having their children participate in youth boxing can come to a parents’ meeting from 6 to 7 p.m. on Jan. 23. The Allen Police Boxing Gym is located in the gymnasium on the south side of the Rountree Elementary School campus at 800 E. Main Street. Email questions to APDboxinggym@cityofallen.com.
DC vs Marvel: The Allen Philharmonic Orchestra will present DC vs Marvel, a night of music from superhero franchises, at the Allen Performing Arts Center’s Lowery Auditorium at 7 p.m. Jan. 25. Tickets are $28 and available at allenpac.org/events.
Balanced Living for Kids from Raising Eagles: Dr. Ryan Smith will present strategies on “Balanced Living for Kids” as part of Allen ISD’s parent education program via webinar on Jan. 28 at 5:30. Click here to register.
Percy Jackson Musical: The Allen High School choir production of “The Lightning Thief: A Percy Jackson Musical,” will be held Jan. 30-31 at 7 p.m. and on Feb. 1 at noon and 7 p.m. Tickets start at $11 each and are available at allenpac.org/events.
Understanding the Teen Brain from Raising Eagles: The Grant Halliburton Foundation will present on “Understanding the Teen Brain,” educating parents teen brain developmental changes and practices that support health habits. The program will be presented via Zoom on Feb. 6 at noon. Click here to register.
AISD Mother Son Dance: “You’re My Superhero” Mother-Son Dance will be held at 6 p.m. Feb. 8 at Allen High School. Pre-K through 6th grade students and mothers may attend. Tickets are $25 each. Registration closes at noon on Feb. 7. Learn more at allenisd.org/motherson.