Ninety-nine years is a long time. Too long, in fact, for a nightclub to operate on a special-use permit on the outskirts of a neighborhood, according to representatives of four neighborhood associations surrounding the Far West club.

Neighborhood associations serving Lakewood, Gastonwood-Coronado Hills, Hollywood Heights-Santa Monica, and Forest Hills gained two hearings with the city of Dallas — one with the City Planning Commission and one with City Council — in regard to reviewing a 99-year special-use permit that allows Far West owners to operate a dance hall. The permit, issued in 1995 when the space housed Cowboys, is one of two 99-year permits in the city — the other granted in the 1960s to a club located in an industrial area near Mockingbird Lane and Harry Hines Boulevard.

The Lakewood Neighborhood Association devoted nearly all of its general meeting last night to the topic of the upcoming hearing, Oct. 16, with the City Plan Commission. Bob Weiss, the appointed commissioner representing District 9, and Richard Brown, senior planner with the city's Development Services department, addressed the audience on the process of hearings, what representatives might expect, details of a special-use permit, and potential outcomes of the hearing.