The Flower Mound Town Council took care of its business in what might be record time on Monday.
Council members agreed on rules for the new Hound Mound Dog Park located in Heritage Park. During the Nov. 2 council meeting, six of the restrictions were questioned and the item was tabled to allow them to be re-written.
Community Services Executive Director Gary Sims presented the amended rules, three of which set age limitations. Unaccompanied park users must be at least 14-years-old; children 13-years-old or younger must be with an adult; and, children under 9-years-old are discouraged.
The three additional amended rules were: the only dog toys allowed are plastic discs and balls; dogs must be on a leash outside the designated un-leashed area; and, no commercial use—dog training—is permitted.
Although the dog park was expected to be open by December, Sims that deadline has been pushed back because of recent weather setbacks.
Also given the go-ahead with unanimous approval was the construction agreement with Northstar Construction, LLC, for the 6.2 acre Heritage Park Phase II project, in the amount of $1,345,745.00.
“We’ve been waiting for a long time for this and [we] separated it out from the dog park,” said Sims.
The Phase II section of Heritage Park will include 88 lighted parking spaces and a one-half-mile trail surrounding 11 picnic stations and a one-half-acre fishable pond with a waterfall and aerator.
Mayor Tom Hayden pointed out that the project is funded by the town’s sales tax revenue for parks.
The Phase II project is tentatively set to be completed in seven months.
The council also unanimously approved a request for a site plan to construct a temporary fire station and future operations and maintenance facility. It will be located in western Flower Mound—south of Sunrise Circle and west of the railroad tracks along Hwy 377.
The temporary fire station will be known as Station No. 6 and is needed to serve the growth in the western part of the town said Fire Chief Eric Greaser. A new Argyle ISD middle school is set to open in 2016, as well as the progress with the Canyon Falls residential development.
In addition, having a fire station on the outer-side of the railroad tracks will have a positive impact on the town’s Insurance Service Office (ISO) rating.
“They [ISO] want us to have service on both sides of the barrier,” said Greaser. “Not having that [coverage] would leave us at risk of response times. Right now, the nearest station is Station No. 2 at Shiloh and if they’re on a call in toward town, our response time will be down.”
The temporary fire station will have nine firefighters scheduled to start in July 2016. It will be able to provide services to include grass/undeveloped land and structure protection, as well as EMS response.
“This has been on our radar for years,” said councilman Bryan Webb. “Now is the time that it’s needed.”
After a permanent fire station site for Station No. 6 is selected and built, the building will be used as the Public Works Department’s western maintenance and operations facility.
“It’s a ‘win-win’ for us,” said Greaser.
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