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HomeMy WebLinkAboutE-Communicator-City Publications-5/30/2012CITIZEN SURVEY REFLECTS HIGH IN THIS ISSUE SATISFACTION Citizen survey reflects high satisfaction Construction ahead: John McCain Road/ Pleasant Run Road roundabout Summer rehabilitation The city of Colleyville conducts a citizen survey on a biennial basis, and the results of the 2012 Citizen Survey are in. Input and feedback gleaned from our citizens is Summer Activities : critical in assessing the city's projects, plans, and activities. It is a key element in gauging the overall Reading Program performance of the city, in addition to identifying citizen priorities and preferences. The Colleyville City Council was Recreation Programs briefed on the preliminary results at the April 17 council RED, WHITE & SOUSA meeting. Of those responding to the survey, 97% were satisfied City Apps: with the quality of life in the city; 50% were very satisfied. The value of city services, as it relates to the Call on Colleyville amount of tax dollars paid to the city, rated an 84% satisfaction level. And once again, while overall LS2 Mobile satisfaction with economic development activities LS2 PAC increased from the previous survey in 2010, attracting and keeping quality businesses ranked as the most critical issue facing the city. Teen Curfew Respondents ranked having a safe community as the top priority in the city, followed by keeping citizens informed about city activities. Having the city provide an adequate City Notes : forum for public input was the third most important Police Memorial activity citizens wanted from the city, while retaining existing businesses ranked 4th. Business Appreciation Reception Other highlights of the 2012 Citizen Survey include: Colleyville history : - Ratings for the city's police and fire services continued Underhill Acres to garner a high satisfaction rate, especially among those who had required those services during the past year. Police and fire services both received satisfaction ratings well above 90%. Within the public safety sector (police and fire), traffic enforcement received the lowest QUICK LINKS satisfaction level. - Respondents continued to be interested in attracting CITY OF COLLEYVILLE more sit-down restaurants, mid-sized retail outlets, and a supermarket, with percentages similar to the 2010 CITY NEWS survey. PUBLIC MEETINGS - Leisure services, including the public library, Colleyville Center, and parks and recreation services, continued to rate well with citizens with satisfaction levels above 90%. The new 65-gallon cart recycling service received a 92% JUNE satisfaction score. EVENTS & ACTIVITIES - Primary areas of future focus according to respondents should be: keeping taxes reasonable, planning for future Summer Reading Program & Summer Story Time needs, and encouraging economic growth. Complete Registration Opens survey results are available on the front page of Public Library Colleyville.com,along with the survey presentation,in Mon., June 4, 10:00 a.m. the NEWSsection. 817.503.1150 Beginners Ballroom Dance CONSTRUCTION AHEAD Senior Center Wed., June 6-July 11, John McCain Road/Pleasant Run Road Roundabout 7:30 p.m. 817.503.1180 Construction on the roundabout at John McCain and Summer Reading Program Pleasant Run roads is scheduled to begin in June. The Kick-Off Party project is anticipated to take nine months to complete, Reading Is Delicious pending weather conditions. The intersection will remain Public Library Sat., June 9, 10:00 a.m. open during construction. 817.503.1150 Summer Rehabilitation Cooking Class Every year, the city allocates significant funding to Easy Lite Summer Dishes Senior Center neighborhood street repairs and maintenance through the Tue., June 12 street rehabilitation program. Construction on the selected 11:00 a.m. streets is planned to begin in June and will continue into 817.283.7648 late summer. Reclamation provides a rebuilt road by, in part, "recycling" the existing pavement and adding six Popsicles in the Park Kidsville at City Park inches of new asphalt. In microsurfacing, all cracks are Thu., June 14, 1:00 p.m. sealed and repairs conducted before the street issealed. 817.503.1180 Streets slated for construction include: Critterman Public Library Reclamation & Water Line Replacement Thu., June 14, 2:00 p.m. Pembrooke Parkway West 817.503.1150 West Cottage Oak Lane Maplewood Trail Parents Night Out Advanced Martial Arts Center Reclamation Fri., June 15, 6:30 p.m. Chapelwood Drive 817.503.1180 Chapelwood Court Cliffwood Drive Races & Relays Sparger Park Brookridge Drive Tue., June 19, 11:00 a.m. Shadowood Road 817.503.1180 Shadowood Trail View a complete listing of activities and events Microsurfacing Scarborough Lane Woodbine Drive City of Colleyville Woodcrest Lane 817.503.1000 Woodcrest Court Colleyville E-Communicator Indian Trail Court Suggestionsor Comments? The schedule for the summer street rehabilitation project is still pending. Residents on the affected streets will be notified prior to construction. For details,visit Colleyville.com or call 817.503.1090. SUMMER ACTIVITIES Summer Reading Program The 2012 Summer Reading Program is set to kick off on Saturday, June 9, at 10 a.m. at the Colleyville Public Library. It is open to children, teens, and adults. This year's theme is "Reading is so Delicious." One of the most popular programs offered by the city, this year's Summer Reading line-up includes Mad Science, Critterman, the Bubble Chef, Snake Encounters, and more. Registration for the free program is required and begins Monday, June 4. The Summer Reading Program concludes Friday, Aug. 3, with an Ice Cream Social Finale. View program details Summer Recreation Programs The city also offers a full slate of camps, classes, and activities through the Parks and Recreation Department. Camps include: Animal Fun, Under the Sea, Bug Camp, Rocket Ride to Space, Mad Science ALL STARS, and various sports camps, including the Fort Worth Cats All- Skills Camp. For information on all the summer library and recreation activities, call 817.503.1150 (library) or 817.503.1180 (recreation). View the recreation catalog RED, WHITE & SOUSA Colleyville's popular Red, White & Sousa, a musical celebration of America's Independence Day, will be held on Friday, June 29, in the Village at Colleyville (Main Street at Colleyville Boulevard). The event opens at 6:30 p.m. and the concert, by famed choral group The Vocal Majority, begins at 8:00 p.m. The Vocal Majority Chorus' diverse repertoire encompasses music from barbershop favorites, classics to jazz, patriotic to sacred, rounded out with standards and Broadway pops. Lawn chairs, blankets, and coolers are welcome at the family-friendly event. The event is free and open to everyone. Baylor Medical Center atGrapevine is the presenting sponsor. Colleyville E-Communicator CITY APPS The city of Colleyville now offers apps for mobile, iPhone, andsmart phone devices to allow us to better serve our citizens. Call on Colleyville Callon Colleyville is an electronic customer service program that allows citizens to communicate a request, complaint, or question on a 24-hour-a-day, seven-day-a- week basis. Residents can access the feature via the city's website, Colleyville.com. Once accessed, citizens follow the simple steps to enter a query. Issues also can be reported using a downloadable iPhone or smart phone application. All requests are automatically routed to the appropriate city staff. Citizens can follow the progress of their request online with the tracking number. Requests or comments also can be entered confidentially, if a resident prefers. The app can be downloaded by searching for GO Request in the mobile devices app search function. Note: The Go Request app functions through the GPS unit in mobile devices. Since it works through the GPS system, the app must be downloaded in Colleyville for it to connect properly to the Call on Colleyville system. LS2 Mobile The Colleyville Public Library recently added a new LS2 Mobile feature, a smart-phone interface that allows people to connect with the library from any place with mobile or Wi-Fi Internet service. Mobile users can search the library's catalog, reserve titles, or check balances. The LS2 Mobile app can be downloaded toAndroid, iPhone, or iPod Touch devices. LS2 PAC The library also upgraded its online catalog to theLS2 Pac, including the LS2 Kids catalogdesigned to attract and encourage young readers. TEEN CURFEW With summer approaching and kids out of school for summer break, the Colleyville Police Department reminds parents and guardians about Colleyville's year-round teen curfew. The curfew applies to persons under the age of 17 and is in effect Sunday-Thursday, from 11 p.m. to 6 a.m., and Friday-Saturday, from midnight to 6 a.m. A minor in a public place or establishment during these times is in violation of the curfew. Parents or guardians, as well as business operators, may also be in violation of the curfew if they knowingly permit a minor to remain on any public premises past curfew hours. For more information, call 817.503.1200. CITY NOTES Police Memorial Service - May 15 Colleyville E-Communicator "When a police officer is killed, it's not an agency that loses an officer, it's an entire nation." -Chris Cosgriff, ODMP Founder (Officer Down Memorial Page) On Tuesday, May 15, the Colleyville Police Department will conduct a brief memorial service in remembrance of fallen police officers across the nation. The ceremony will be held at the Colleyville Justice Center, 5201 Riverwalk Drive, at 7:30 a.m. Flags will be lowered to half staff and a memorial wreath will be placed. The ceremony is open to the general public. National Police Week is May 13-19. Business Appreciation Reception - May 17 The thirdannual Business Appreciation Reception will be held Thursday, May, 17, from 7:00-8:30 p.m., at Colleyville Center. Entitled "Shop Colleyville, It's Close Buy," the evening will highlight opportunities for Colleyville businesses to promote local spending. Businesses will also be introduced to the Colleyville CloseBuy program's Ccard. For additional information, contact Marketing Coordinator Heather Gaven at 817.503.1055 or by emailto hgaven@colleyville.com. Colleyville history: UNDERHILL ACRES With summer around the corner, along with the associated high cooling bills, it may beinteresting to relay the story of four Colleyvilleresidents who built some unusual homes to beat the heat. In 1977, three future Colleyville residents began researching the feasibility of building earth-sheltered or underground homes for their families.In 1978, the group purchased 13-½ acres, known as Tillman Hill, from Bill Tillman. By now the group had been joined by another family and formed the Underhill Acres Homeowners Association. Colleyville E-Communicator A special zoning permit for a planned unit development (PUD) was obtained, and a bank was convinced to finance what was considered a very risky concept. By 1979, construction began with Earth Sheltered Homes of America, a company out of Wisconsin, doing the construction. The first part of the project involved building the half-mile road to gain access to the property. The four homes ranged in size from 2,500 to 3,000 square feet. The homes were constructed of poured-in- place concrete with each home having the same outer shell or load bearing walls. The walls were designed to support approximately 500,000 pounds of earth and concrete. About 85 percent of the homes were covered by three feet of soil, but every room had windows since the homes were built into a hillside. The homes were built to be energy efficient and low maintenance, and to blend into the surrounding terrain. The families moved into the homes in the fall of 1981, much to the relief of the community, which had heard rumors that there was to be a commune with the families living in caves. The solar hot water heaters and the "basement effect" have proven to be great energy savers and the homeowners have enjoyed beautiful homes and serene privacy.As the years passed, the families moved on and new owners purchased these first earth-sheltered homes. Of the original four families, only two still reside in the homes.