City council approved the fiscal year 2012-2013 budget Wednesday with no change to the property tax rate. This marks the 12th year that property taxes have held steady, according to city officials.
Initiatives for the new year include the FM 2499 Landscaping Project which is totally funded by Denton County and a grant from TxDOT and will improve the median landscaping along FM 2499 from FM 407 to the northern city limit; upgrades to Unity and Pilot Knoll Parks, street improvements to Briarhill Boulevard and Sellmeyer Lane are funded through the 2011 certificates of obligation; Inland Trail construction continues with the opening of the pedestrian tunnel under FM 2499 connecting City Trail to Castlewood Trail, Highland Village Road trail connecting Lions Club Park to Doubletree and the development of Lakeside Community Park with a section of trail adjacent to Lake Lewisville. Inland Trail construction is funded through the 4B sales tax.
One new position, a parks technician, is included in this budget, however the cost is offset by a larger reduction in contract labor.
In other action, council presented Fire Chief John Glover with the 2011 Life Safety Achievement Award. The award recognizes fire departments around the country for having outstanding fire safety statistics and prevention programs, including no fire deaths and an active and effective fire prevention program. In 2010, only one city in the state of Texas received this award.
“Our Highland Village Fire Department conducts annual fire prevention inspections of homes and businesses and has an aggressive public education program including community CPR for the health and welfare of our community. I applaud the work of our fire department; they are certainly deserving of this recognition,” said Mayor Pat Davis.
Also at the meeting, council appointed members to the city’s boards and commissions. Council appointed the following:
Board of Ethics – Stephanie Askew; Allison Lassahn
Parks and Recreation Advisory Board – Place 1 Kim McKibben; Place 2 Ross Pittman; Place 3 Michael Honeycutt; Alternate 2 Mark Maksimowicz; Alternate 1 Rachel Swan
Planning & Zoning Commission – Place 2 Bill Lee; Place 3 Austin Adams; Alternate 2 Gene Cherrnay
Zoning Board of Adjustment – Place 4 Richard Metivier; Place 5 Richard Turner; Alternate 3 James Archibald; Alternate 2 Kenneth Green
Highland Village Community Development Corporation – Citizen Members Pat Falcon and Kenneth Koonsman; and City Representative Louis Robichaux
During the City Manager Report, the HVTV Update informed residents of the upcoming Community Picnic and Concert in the Park to commemorate the city’s 50th Anniversary on the shores of Lake Lewisville at Copperas Branch Park. The free event will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, September 28, and will feature music by Eleven Hundred Springs and the Highland Villages School’s We’ve Got Talent karaoke challenge. The community is invited to bring their blankets, chairs, picnic baskets and gather to celebrate Highland Village.
The update also informed residents of the Highland Village Police Department’s Bike Race benefiting the Fallen Officer Fund. The event will take place this Saturday, September 29, at 5 p.m. at The Shops at Highland Village.
Source: City of Highland Village
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