July is a busy month in Flower Mound and I hope you’ll join us for the Town’s biggest celebration of the year: the 2014 Independence Fest. This year’s activities kick off with the Children’s Parade along Timber Creek Road and ending with a performance by legendary classic rock band KANSAS and a fireworks finale at Bakersfield Park.
Did you know Flower Mound has been holding the Children’s Parade and a fireworks show for over 25 years? Independence Fest, as it is today, started in 2011 when the Town combined the Wild About Flower Mound Festival with the annual Independence Day Celebration in honor of the Town’s 50th Anniversary. One of the great things about Independence Fest is that all the activities and entertainment are free (even parking!) thanks to our generous sponsors such as title sponsor Market Street. Aside from unforgettable performances by KANSAS, Back in Black, and Breaking Southwest, there are many more things to see and do including a vintage car show, KID’s Zone, and vendor fair. The Town created an entire Independence Fest webpage that has all the information you need, including parking locations, at www.flower-mound.com/festival.
In June, Flower Mound was recognized as a “StormReady” community by the National Weather Service (NWS). The StormReady program ensures communities like ours are equipped with the necessary communication and safety skills to be better prepared before natural disaster strikes. Texas has led the nation in major disaster declarations for more than 60 years and Flower Mound continues to enhance its emergency management services. In fact, the Town will install another outdoor/severe weather warning siren this month at the Glen Chester Lift Station, located at 1000 Glen Chester Dr. Even though a community can never be 100 percent ready for every weather event that occurs in North Texas, there is plenty we can do in our homes to better ensure our safety in an emergency. The Flower Mound Emergency Management division has some great information about “Being Prepared” at www.flower-mound.com/index.aspx?NID=399.
As many of you saw on our social media pages, the Town welcomed CustomInk to Flower Mound in June. In case you haven’t heard of this great company, they are a leader in customized apparel with roughly $200 million in revenues and more than 50 million T-shirts sold nationwide. CustomInk opened a new facility that will service the Central U.S. in our Lakeside Business District, which is expected to add $240,000 to the Town’s annual sales tax revenue, the equivalent of six restaurants. CustomInk is a great fit for our community and we look forward to welcoming additional high-quality economic development projects in the coming months.
July also brings a great opportunity to our residents who’d like to be more involved in their community. The Flower Mound Town Council is currently accepting applications for seats on various boards and commissions. Most term appointments are two-year terms and begin October 1. If you’d like to be a part of one of our several boards or commissions, please visit www.flower-mound.com/index.aspx?nid=85. For additional information, please call 972.874.6070 or e-mail our Town Secretary Theresa Scott at theresa.scott@flower-mound.com.
I hope everyone continues to have a safe and happy summer break! Be sure to take advantage of the many activities our Parks and Recreation Department is hosting (www.flower-mound.com/specialevents) and I hope to see you all at Independence Fest.
Mark Wise serves on the Flower Mound Town Council in Place 3
