Happy Easter! This article includes several reminders of important upcoming events, so some of this information will be similar to that included in my most recent articles. These are either once a year events I do not want you to miss or may inconvenience you or impact your commute as work is completed throughout our town. Please take this information in and mark your calendars.
Saturday, April 15th, 8 a.m. – 11 a.m., Bartonville Annual Spring Clean Up Event at the Lantana Fellowship Church. This event is FREE to Bartonville residents. We will have trash trucks, document shredding, computer crushers, and a donation truck for small household items. Back by popular demand, disposal of tree limbs and brush will also be available this year. No treated wood, plastic, lumber, wood with nails, etc. can be processed through the woodchipper. Information postcards have been mailed to all Bartonville residents, so if you did not receive yours, please check the Bartonville website at www.townofbartonville.com. POSTCARD UPDATE: Volunteers are not needed to unload truck and trailers due to safety concerns, so please stay in your vehicles, and follow the instructions of staff.
Have expired medication? On Saturday, April 22nd, between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. the Bartonville Police Department is partnering with the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to host a townwide “Drug Take-Back Day.” The program, which is spearheaded by the DEA, provides convenient locations across the nation for the public to drop off unneeded substances or other medications from our nation’s medicine cabinets. This is a no-questions-asked program, and drop-offs are completely anonymous. The goal is to prevent prescription pill abuse and addiction in our community by providing a safe way for citizens to dispose of excess, unused, or expired prescription drugs. For more information on the DEA’s National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day, visit takebackday.dea.gov.
The Town Council has cancelled its May 6 election since each position is running unopposed. Despite there being no town issues on the ballot, an election will still be held on May 6 for the Argyle and Denton Independent School Districts. Early Voting will be conducted at Town Hall as follows: April 24 – April 29 (Monday–Saturday), 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., April 30 (Sunday), 11 a.m. – 5 p.m., and May 1 – May 2 (Monday-Tuesday), 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. To view a sample ballot and a complete list of early voting locations visit www.votedenton.com. During early voting, voters can cast a ballot at ANY early voting location in the county. Election Day voting will be held at Harpole Middle School, 9601 Stacee Lane in Lantana.
Over the next few weeks, the changes I have been discussing will occur related to traffic safety. First, the speed on McMakin has been lowered from 40 MPH to 30 MPH by Town Ordinance and the signs will soon be placed to notify drivers. Please pay attention and watch your speed. Additionally, stop signs will be added to the intersections of Porter/Broome, Jeter/Porter, Jeter/Gibbons, and Gibbons/Dove/Frenchtown. Flags will be placed at these locations to increase visibility and awareness of these changes. Finally, the Town will be trimming trees in the road rights-of-way to clear obstructions, with dates set for April 19-20 depending on weather. If you want to take care of this adjacent to your property, you must clear the area 2 feet from the edge of the roadway and 12 feet above to keep the Town’s contractor from doing so during this process.
Town Council and I continue to work with staff and our new Town Engineer to reevaluate our road repair and reconstruction plans. Our love of trees and the country feel they create in Bartonville certainly affects our roads, as large trees close to the roadway will continue to impact the subgrade under the road and shorten to life of the surface. With this in mind, the Town Engineer will make a presentation to Town Council during the Regular Meeting on Tuesday, April 18, regarding updated recommendations.
Development activity continues in our designated commercial areas, and on March 17th I attended the grand opening of Brakes Plus. This business will increase access to automotive services close to home, and I encourage you to shop locally when possible. We have also received the Conditional Use Permit for the Education Leads to Success property on FM 407, known locally as CJ’s Legacy Ranch. This is the next step for the long-planned school to build at this location. Finally, Whataburger’s construction plans have been reviewed by Denton County Fresh Water District #6 & #7 staff, and the permit is ready to be issued.
February 14th and March 24th I participated in meetings regarding the proposed Oncor Ramhill Horn – Dunham 345kV transmission line project. Representatives from Congressman Burgess’ office and State Senator Tan Parker’s office joined the mayors from potentially impacted towns to receive an update from Oncor and USACE regarding the current feasibility process. I support the efforts of Northlake and Argyle to route the new lines away from existing neighborhoods, including the homes off of Glenview Lane in Bartonville.
The Town Council places a high priority on informing, engaging, and connecting with residents. The primary methods of keeping our residents informed are through our social media channels – Facebook, NextDoor and most importantly, the Town’s mass notification system, Notify Me. Through the Town’s website, residents are able to sign up for the Notify Me email and text messaging system which provides the opportunity to subscribe to a variety of alerts including Agendas, Calendar Updates, and important alerts.
In addition to contacting Town Hall at 817.693.5280, residents may reach me at [email protected]