Morning y’all,

The Oak Cliff community is still reeling after Thursday’s apartment gas explosion, which left three dead and others injured. An investigation is underway around the details surrounding the blast, but it’s be confirmed that the apartment building was under escrow, and the buyer had hired an engineer to test the soil. That contractor hit the gas line while drilling. 

It was confirmed Friday that activist and Dallas Democratic Precinct Chair, the Hon. Sylvia Collins, was one of the apartment residents lost in the fire. Dallas Democrats held a candlelit vigil for her on Friday night. See clips from it here.

Community members, elected officials, and area clergy remember Collins as one of Dallas’ most devoted figures for more than 20 years. Collins leaves behind a daughter.

The other two victims were identified as Marisol Pérez, and her 18-month-old son Erick. Pérez’ daughter survived the blast and was pulled from the rubble. The family has set up a GoFundMe, taking donations to cover funeral costs. 

Mission Oak Cliff, the organization leading the charge for donations for those displaced in the 23-unit fire, said that they were overwhelmed with donations as of Friday night. Over the weekend, it issued an update that specifically requested donations of new underwear, socks, & bras of all sizes, as well as new/unopened full-size toiletry items.

There’s also a fund for victims. You can donate money here, and sign up to volunteer, as we’ll. To stay up-to-date on the needs of relief organizers, check Mission Oak Cliff Instagram or Facebook page for the latest. I’ll keep you updated on the incident investigation as more information unfolds. 

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Here’s an aerial view of the construction of a massive AI data center campus with 400 million square feet of hosting and 600MW of capacity in Hutto, Texas. (Steve Heap/Shutterstock)

The number of data centers is rapidly growing nationwide, and Texas is leading the boom. 

The state is already home to more than 400 centers, second only to Virginia, which has well over 600. But as Republican Gov. Greg Abbott cheers on massive investments from tech companies like Meta and Google, Texas could soon blow Virginia out of the water—if there’s any water left, that is. 

This rapid growth is raising alarms in communities across the state. Data centers require enormous amounts of water and electricity, putting added strain on local resources that everyday Texans rely on. That’s why we’ve built this explainer to help you better understand how data centers work and what’s at stake if Texas continues to invest in them without more thorough oversight and community input.

There’s no gatekeeping around here; I invited our DFW political reporter to come along on my latest trip. (Joi Louviere/Courier Texas)

There’s always a line at Pan Pan Bakery & Cafe. I’ve been on a Saturday and on a Thursday, and the vibes were the same—people come from all over the metroplex for creative lattes and buttery soft baked goods in Dalworthington Gardens. 

A North Texas woman launched the business in 2024 at just 20 years old. The theme is Mexican-Japanese fusion, a marriage of the owner’s Mexican heritage and her teenage love of Japanese culture. So here you’ll find not only conchas, but milk bread, shio pan, banana nut bread, and cookies the size of your face. 

The standouts would have to be the mango sticky rice latte and the Nutella concha. I wondered how the latte would capture the rice flavor of the Thai dessert, and I found that in the salted coconut foam and toasted sesame seeds, which balanced out the sweetness of the mango puree. I ordered a large and still had trouble accepting the drink was gone when it was. I screeched the straw around the plastic cup to revive pockets of foam hidden behind ice cubes.

DFW has no shortage of Mexican bakeries with amazing conchas, but I found Pan Pan’s to be particularly fluffy.

I was delighted to learn that Nutella drizzle wasn’t the only way they used the hazelnut cream; I found it again in the center of the treat, mixed with another fudgey filling.

Although I wasn’t in a kolache mood, that seemed to be a popular choice for patrons. I was momentarily tempted by a shio pan pastry with cream cheese inside and everything bagel seasoning on top.

When I got to the front of the line this last time, I said to the cashier, “It’s a busy day in here.” “It’s always a busy day in here,” he replied. With a few small tables and a growing line out the door at about 1 o’clock on a weekday, I thought about how cool it was that a little bakery could be inciting cravings that have customers like me going to a two-square-mile town for a moment of bliss.

And yeah, it’s worth it.

Don’t Sleep On is a weekly series where I shout out DFW events and businesses I think you should try. Have a suggestion? Reply to this email.

Thanks for reading. This newsletter was written by Joi Louviere. It was edited by Paula Solis.

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