January was an exciting month for our community. Highlands Plaza officials broke ground on a shopping center next to Academy that will become the home of several new Flower Mound restaurants. Modmarket, Smashburger, and the Town’s second Jersey Mike’s location are scheduled to open this year in the shopping center now under construction.
In case you haven’t heard of Modmarket, it’s a fast casual eatery that will serve simple, unprocessed foods for breakfast, lunch, and dinner with a variety of salads, pizzas, and sandwiches on the menu. Not only is this the first location in Texas, but the first Modmarket outside of Colorado for the restaurant that was named a Nation’s Restaurant News 2013 Hot Concept Award winner.
In other economic development news, the Town celebrated the grand opening of La Madeleine on January 30, a top-requested restaurant by residents on the Town’s restaurant and retail survey. Located in the River Walk Market, at the northeast corner of FM 1171 and FM 2499, La Madeleine serves a variety of French countryside dishes for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. It was very rewarding to see the Town’s recruitment efforts turn into reality for our residents and we hope La Madeleine will be a fixture in Flower Mound for many years to come.
We also celebrated another important project that was recently completed; the Kroger, located on the southwest corner of FM 1171 and FM 2499, held its grand re-opening ribbon cutting ceremony on January 29. We’re so grateful the Kroger Company invested more than $14 million in the Flower Mound store that included a 21,000 square-foot expansion and 50 new job opportunities. With many new projects in the works, I anticipate more economic development announcements very soon.
I also have some news regarding the Town’s annual July 4 Independence Fest. We are excited to announce legendary classic rock band KANSAS as the Independence Fest 2014 headliner. KANSAS, which has sold more than 15 million records worldwide, is known for huge hits from the ‘70s and ‘80s including “Carry on Wayward Son,” “Dust In the Wind,” and “Point of Know Return.” More information will be posted soon about this unforgettable event on the Town’s website.
I hope you’ve marked your calendars for February 7 from 7 to 9 a.m. for the Flower Mound Police Department’s first of many monthly “Coffee with a Cop” community meetings. The first “Coffee with a Cop” program will be held at Chick-Fil-A, 2001 Long Prairie Rd., and will provide a relaxing atmosphere for FMPD Officers and members of the community to come together and discuss community issues and build relationships. Future “Coffee with a Cop” meetings will take place on the first Friday of each month and will be held at different locations throughout the Town. Future dates and locations will be posted on the Town’s website, www.flower-mound.com, and on the Police Department’s Facebook page (www.facebook.com/FlowerMoundPoliceDepartment), its Twitter account (https://twitter.com/FlowerMoundPD), and through Chief Andy Kancel’s Twitter account (https://twitter.com/FMPDChief).
Also this month, the Town will launch its dedicated website for children, titled “Flower Mound Next Gen”. Filled with information about the Town’s history, educational games, local youth activities, volunteer opportunities, healthy living tips, and news, the website will help our young residents learn about Flower Mound and how they can become more involved in their community. It has been in the works for several months and is even Flower Mound youth-approved.
Finally, I’d like to say “thank you” to all the residents who participated in our most-recent Charter Review Commission. It is a big undertaking to review and discuss the Town Charter, the document that governs the actions of the Town Council and staff, establishes a structure and sets boundaries for our local government, and creates the basic guidelines and principles under which we operate. Over the past few months, our Commission members spent countless hours ensuring our Charter was meeting the needs of the community and I appreciate their dedication to making their community the best it can be. If you’d like to watch any of the Charter Review Commission meetings, you may do so through the Town’s website at www.flower-mound.com/fmtv and click on the “Other Meetings” tab.
Mark Wise serves on the Flower Mound Town Council in Place 3
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