Recap of City Issues 7-23-10

Scott Kriston reports that the TXDOT FM 2499 section 4 project contractor is mowing the r.o.w. as weather permits.  The contractor is preparing to redefine the offsite drainage areas where easements were obtained during the design process.  The contractor is constructing the Northwood / FM2499 intersection, weather permitting.  The proposed traffic signal for the FM2499 / Highland Shores / Castlewood intersection is ordered, there is a 2 month lead time for delivery & installation.

          COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT

Sue Thompson reports the 4th annual Unity in Communities luncheon was held on Tuesday, July 20th at  Celebrations.  The two area Chambers of Commerce, Lewisville Area and Flower Mound, and the Highland Village Business Association partner to recognize the non-profit organizations which provide services to this area of Denton County and name the non-profit of the the year for 2009.  A selection committee chose three finalists:  CASA of Denton County, Meals on Wheels/SPAN, and Youth and Family Counseling.  Mayor Scott McDearmont provided the information for CASA of Denton County, Mayor Dean Ueckert of Lewisville spoke about Youth and Family Counseling, and Mayor Pro-Tem Al Filidoro furnished information about Meals on Wheels/SPAN.  CASA of Denton County was named Non-Profit for 2009.  Approximately 250+ attended the luncheon with 25+ non-profits represented.  Thanks to everyone who participated and helped make this community event successful.

PUBLIC SAFETY (POLICE AND FIRE)

Fire:

• Calls for Service the Week of July 16-22:
• Medical Emergencies - 2
• Commercial Fire Alarm - 2
• Residential Fire Alarm - 2

Other Activities

• Commercial Plan Reviews  - 2
• Commercial Inspections - 3
• Car Seat Installations - 2

Highland Village Firefighters Amber Ramirez, Travis Nokes, and Tony Sorsby participated in the Texas Firefighters Olympics hosted by and held in Lewisville this week.  Firefighter Ramirez participated on The Colony Soccer Team and came home with the silver medal.

The Fire Chief and the Administrative Staff from Farmers Branch Fire Department toured our fire station on Wednesday for some design ideas and suggestions as they are in the process of building a new fire station.

American Disability Act (ADA) compliance Inspection was performed for the new storage building at the Fire Department.  The storage building passed with no further inspections required.

Police:

This week, the police department responded to 127 calls for service, made 101 traffic contacts, made 13 arrests, responded to 3 traffic accidents and performed 556 community policing activities.

Our local TMPA grant writing specialist came up this week and met with the Police Department Command Staff to introduce himself. He donated several special DWI detection pens and clipboards to the Field Operations Unit.

Chief O'Bara attended the monthly meeting for the Lake Cities Chiefs of Police held in Lake Dallas.

Support Services donated ten bicycles to the CCA in Lewisville. These bikes originally came in as found property and had remained unclaimed for over three months.

STREET / UTILITY DIVISIONS PROJECTS

Utilities:

Scott Kriston reports that the MSC project mason is working on the stone work for the PWB & REC buildings, wall & fence. The contractor is installing the ceiling tiles in both the PWB & REC buildings.  The millwork contractor is installing the cabinets & millwork tables in the REC & PWB buildings.  The roofing contractor completed the REC & MP roof.  The sports flooring & carpet is installed inside the REC building & started installation in the PWB this week.  Dallas Security is installing the access security on the site.  

The Oak St. GSR site improvements project painting contractor completed the painting of the tank this week.  The GC is preparing to mobilize and start demolition and rebuilding the rest of the lot. 

Scott Kriston met with BW2 Engineering , Inc. & discussed the status of all open Public Works projects.

The Highland Village Road water line replacement project sections 1 & 2.  The City's new message board sign was deployed to warn traffic.  RKM Utility Services, Inc. has installed approximately 1,050 feet of new water line and made one tie-in.  This project consists of replacing approximately 5000 feet of water line along Highland Village Rd. from Brazos Blvd. to Lake Vista.  The contractor will be onsite for 4 months.  You should expect minor traffic delays in the area for the duration of the project.

Chinn Chapel Rd phase 1 reconstruction contractor set up signage and erosion control & is installing the water line.  This project is a Town of Copper Canyon project funded through Denton County bonds.  It consists of drainage improvements and road reconstruction on Chinn Chapel from approx. 100 feet north of Fm407 to Orchid Hill Lane.  The contract has 500 calendar days to final completion.  There will be traffic detours throughout the duration of the project; you should expect traffic delays in the area.

Matthew Kite, P.E. & Scott Kriston met with ITS, the ACOE & 4 engineering firms that are proposed to submit proposals for the Denton County RFP of the Highland Village Rd. bridge project.  This was a Q&A for the proposing firms to ask about the project.  ITS has moved the RFP opening back to July 29th.

Oncor Electric is mobilizing on the western side of the City to upgrade the existing electric transmission towers located in the TP&L easement to be able to install new wires this fall.  They will be in the City for approximately 4 weeks performing the tower upgrades.

Drainage Crews:

• Completed the installation of the storm sewer system on the Spring Oaks Turnaround Project.
• Worked on the drainage conversion project in the 400 block of Moran.
• Met with a resident in the 100 block of Lakeland Dr. regarding a flooding issue.
• Met with a resident in the 300 block of Lakeland regarding a flooding issue.
• Deployed Mosquito larva treatment in the 3200 block of Northwood Dr.

Utility Crews:

• Responded to three after hour call outs and eleven resident concerns.
• Performed five line locates of utility infrastructure.
• Unstopped three sewer line blockages.
• Repaired a fire hydrant on Patricia Ln. that was involved in a traffic accident.
• Isolated the water line at HV Rd and Brazos for the HV Rd water line replacement project.
• Responded to an emergency water shut of on Highland Village Rd as the water line contractor pulled out an unknown ¾-inch water service line.
• Excavated and repaired a service leak on Winding Creek.
• Issued residents throughout the City the three year lead and copper sampling kits per TCEQ mandate.
• Cleaned, painted & labeled 62 fire hydrants.
• Performed meter rereads, water turn on/turn offs, and leak checks.
• Performed maintenance on well lots, lift stations, fire hydrants. and the water distribution and wastewater collection system.

Streets:

The Street Division made some concrete street repairs on Tartan Trail at Silverthorne Trail due to utility relay water line failure.

The Street crew is in the process of painting all school zones with the new paint machine.

The Street Division is working on a street turn around project at end of Spring Oaks Drive.

PARKS DEPARTMENT

On Monday, city staff met with the Parks Board at their scheduled monthly meeting.  Sue Thompson discussed the plats for Chinn Chapel Church Addition and the Doubletree Ranch.  Ken Heerman discussed the 4B budget and the HVCDC's plans for future improvements and construction timeline.  Linda Cornelius discussed the immediate future uses of the Doubletree Ranch and future uses for the Robert and Lee DuVall Center.

On Thursday, Ken Heerman, Tommy White, Scott Kriston, Laurie Mullens and Fince Espinoza met with representatives from Oncor to discuss their construction timeline and safety procedures in regards to the Inland Trail users.  Oncor will be constructing five (5) towers throughout Highland Village within the next four (4) weeks.  They will have completed the tower construction by the time school begins on August 23rd.  Oncor plans to begin installing the conductor sometime in late Fall.  During this process, city staff will coordinate with Oncor to ensure there is an adequate safe zone.

On Thursday, Andra Boxberger and Fince Espinoza met with the new marketing representative from The Shops of Highland Village to discuss this year's Our Village Glows.  This community event will, for the third year, be located at The Shops.

Staff at Unity Park prepared the baseball fields daily for the week-long tournament being held at that location. 

Wes Nienhuser made applications to help control weeds and vegetation at the Unity Park pond.  

Copperas Branch Park and Pilot Knoll Park have seen a high volume of visitors over the weekends and the overnight camping area at Pilot Knoll Park has been full most days this summer. 

This is the sixth week of Kids Kamp at Briarhill Middle School. The field trips this week included the Log Cabin Village, Movie, Water Park, and Old Town Swimming Pool.

Senior All Stars

The Highland Village Senior All Stars met on Monday (17 attendees) and Thursday (27 attendees) for game day. 

Seven Senior All Stars met on Tuesday for open game time.

On Wednesday, 33 Highland Village Senior All - Stars went on the Choctaw Casino trip.

HUMAN RESOURCES / STAFF TRAINING

Human Resources:

• Jana Onstead and Martha Butz met with the Employee Benefit Committee on Tuesday to discuss upcoming proposed wellness programming and benefits.
• The Lead Worker Series training was held on Thursday in Colleyville.  This training is designed for crew leaders and comparable positions who are likely candidates for future promotion to supervisor.  The courses were "Transitioning from Peer to Team Leader" and "Leading by Example."  Employees that attended were Larry Jeurink from the Utilities Department and Wes Nienhuser,  Joey Hardin and Jon Richardson from the Parks Department.
• Martha Butz, Jana Onstead and Vanesa Childers attended a United Healthcare Expo Event in Dallas on Thursday.  A variety of exhibitors were on hand with educational materials and product focusing on the importance of fitness, nutrition, and healthy lifestyles.
• A reception to honor Bill Parsons' 25 years of service for the City of Highland Village was held on Thursday.  Mayor Scott McDearmont proclaimed Thursday, July 22, 2010, "Bill Parsons Day" in his honor.  We will all miss Bill and wish him the very best in his future endeavors.

Fire:

Fire Department Captains and Fire Personnel attended Emergency Medical Service Skills Review continuing education training this past week.

Parks:

Tony Palesano, Wes Nienhuser, Joey Harden and Jon Richardson attended the Lead Worker series class in Colleyville on Thursday.