Recap of City Issues - January 18, 2008

The Denton County Fallen Soldier Memorial has arrived at the Highland Village Municipal Complex. The Memorial will be on display in the Municipal Complex rotunda from January 17 until January 24. The traveling Memorial was created by Vietnam veterans to honor Denton County soldiers who have been killed in action since 2004. A tribute to Pvt. Aaron M. Hudson of Highland Village who was killed on April 16, 2005 is included on the wall. 

The 2007 Annual Report to Residents is hot off the press and will be delivered to residents next week. A copy has been placed in Council's mail this week.

A video advertising the Father & Daughter Valentine Dance is currently playing on HVTV. The video will also be available next week on the city web site via our streaming video service.  The tickets for the 8th annual dance are officially on sale for residents and they are going fast! 

On Thursday I had the honor of meeting with two representatives from the Office of the Governor Rick Perry - the Program Specialist and Development Incentives Manager in  Economic Development. The purpose of the visit was to see and understand our development process, mainly our Economic Development Policy that relates to our Chapter 380 Incentive Agreements with the OPUS and Regency Development, and how they are structured to provided benefits to the developers and to the City.  We provided them with copies of both agreements and are looking at setting up future meetings to develop a document that could be shared throughout the state.  After the meeting, Sue Thompson took them on a tour of both developments and they were very impressed with what we have accomplished.

Sue Thompson attended the monthly Lewisville Area Chamber of Commerce Governmental Affairs Committee meeting on Thursday, January 17th.  Former Mayor Bill Lawrence was the guest speaker.  He provided an overview of the Texas Judicial Misconduct Committee to which he was recently appointed. The purpose of this Committee is to basically judge the judges, both appointed and elected in the State of Texas.  Commissioner Bobbie Mitchell proudly announced that she had no opponent for her Denton Commissioner Precinct 3 seat for the future election.  Sue provided an update on "what's happening in Highland Village". 

Sue Thompson reports that Highland Village was invited by the Lewisville Area Chamber of Commerce to participate in the Economic Development Day program on Thursday. Sue presented an overview of Highland Village economic development and the Highland Village Business Association to the 2007-2008 Leadership Lewisville class. 

Rhoda Savage, Fince Espinoza and representatives from BW2 Engineers held a pre-bid conference on the Victoria Trail, Village Park Trail and Market Trail bid package.  Twelve prospective bidders attended the meeting held in the Police Training Room on Wednesday afternoon.

On Monday the Senior All-Stars met at Highland Shores Community Center for game day.  (25 Residents and 9 Non-Residents attended.)

On Thursday the Senior All-Stars met at the Highland Shores Community Center for game day and a potluck lunch.  (33 Residents and 14 Non-Residents attended.)

The Father/Daughter dance flyers were delivered to the local schools this week.

The Father/Daughter dance signs were displayed throughout the City this week.

The seniors are going to Choctaw Casino this Friday, January 18.  They’re all very excited.    

The annual gate entry passes for Copperas Branch Park and Pilot Knoll are now officially on SALE until January 31, 2008 for only $35.00.  They’re selling fast!    

Wes Neinhuser, along with the Pilot Knoll Crew, are continuing to rebuild campsites at the overnight camping area of the park.

The South Crew has been busy cutting out sod and reconditioning the infield areas of the baseball fields at Unity Park.

The North Crew has been trimming trees and shrubs at the Municipal Complex as well as putting up new signage at Copperas Park and Lions Club Park.

On Thursday, Tommy White and Jon Richardson met with representatives of HVA and Tex Sand Sports Turf at the Unity Baseball complex to discuss field improvements.

The Inland Trail Crew has been re-mulching plant beds at amenity stations on the trail.

Tony Palesano has been adjusting watering cycles throughout the City.

On Thursday, Chief Tatum and Assistant Chief Collier attended the weekly construction meeting for the fire station.

Scott Kriston submitted the City's MS4 application to the TCEQ this week.  All municipalities are mandated to submit the application to the TCEQ by Feb. 11, 2008.  The TCEQ will review, make comments and issue a permit to the City that has an annual renewal mandate along with reporting requirements.

The Highland Shores 16 inch water line replacement project is in service.  City staff is reviewing the final pay estimate.

The Unity Park Elevated Storage project is on schedule.  The contractor has completed construction on the access road, installed the bypass and altitude valve at the Idlewild EST.  The electricians are scheduled to move in next week and the tank will be disinfected to put into service within the next few weeks.

The Utility staff performed a final walk through on the Kiddin' Around utility infrastructure.  The contractor completed a small punch list.

The FM 2499 Water Line Relocation project is on schedule.  The contractor has completed the 16" WL bore at the Southwood well lot site, the 8" WL bore at Fairland Dr. and started on the water line bores at Clifton and Idlewild.  Utility Division staff is assisting the contractor on locating existing mains and any service interruptions during the connections.

Drainage staff cleaned a section of the creek out located near the block of Woodside Dr. in the TPL easement.  They removed a beaver dam, 28 loads of dirt & debris and resloped the banks to allow proper flow of stormwater through the area. 

The I&I smoke testing project is on schedule.  The contractor has completed the smoke testing and submitted a final report to the City for review.  Utility staff is determining what lines to camera for a closer inspection.  Most of the defects found were on private property.

Scott Kriston & David Clark met with BW2 Engineers this week for a project status report meeting.

The Old EST demolition project is underway.  The project is anticipated to go to bid once the Unity Park EST is online.

Utility staff repaired three water main breaks located at Forest Shores Lane, Timber Way and Highland Shores Boulevard. 

Utility staff worked with Cummins Southern Plains to conduct a load test on the lift station generator this week.

Utility staff dressed up areas of earlier excavations this week.

The Highland Village Fire Department had 21 calls for service the week of January 10th – 17th.  This included:  10 medical emergencies, 2 vehicle lock-outs, 5 residential fire alarms, 1 structure fire, 1 odor investigation and 2 public assists.

The Parks Department is excited to announce that we have a new Parks Administrative Assistant.  She has already been a big help.  Welcome Audrey Gedminas!

On Tuesday, Tommy White took Audrey Gedminas around Highland Village to see all our wonderful parks and trail.  Thanks for your help Tommy!

On Thursday, Fince Espinoza and Heather Castillo attended Leadership Lewisville. The topic for discussion was Economic Development, in which Sue Thompson was a guest speaker.

Chief Tatum attended a TCLEOS workshop on Tuesday and Wednesday that was held in Austin. 

Volunteer Tony Sorsby received his Texas Commission on Fire Protection Basic Firefighter Certification.

Volunteer Don Ross passed his State Firemen’s and Fire Marshall board exam for Basic Firefighter.

Jana Onstead, Human Resources Specialist, has received the certification Professional in Human Resources (PHR) . The PHR is awarded by the Society for Human Resources Management after an extensive examination and qualification review. Congratulations Jana!!

Martha Butz held a conference call with representatives from the City of Mesquite, City of Kileen and City of Rockwall to discuss program planning for the Mid Year TMHRA Conference.

Jana Onstead coordinated with the Medical Center of Lewisville and set up free testing for employees comprised of calculating body-mass, blood pressure, and a full Lipid profile, which provides LDL, HDL, Cholesterol and Triglyceride levels.  Thirty-three employees participated.  This is part of an effort to promote wellness.

Larry Jeurink, UT Technician, attended an electrical troubleshooting class in Dallas this week.

Council member Jon Calvin attended the Greater Dallas Chamber Annual Meeting on Friday, January 18, 2008. 

Michael Leavitt, City Manager                                                
01/18/08