Quarter 3 Key Policy IssuesMayor, Members of the Council,
The purpose of this presentation is to familiarize you with the key policy issues
currently underway for Quarter 3 of the FY 2009 Fiscal Year. Key policy issues
can be defined as projects of significant interest to the community and City
Council, projects which have complex political aspects to them, or projects that
involve cross-departmental coordination requiring involvement of the City
Manager’s Office.
Key policy issues are defined each quarter in the CMO, as a way to focus time
and resources to ensure that the projects are completed timely.
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For Q3, the issues shown on your screen have been identified as priorities.
These include the development of multi-purpose fields at the north DPS
property, the design of the TW King water line and the development of the
needed interlocal agreement, and exploring options for expanding the senior
center. We are also working on the budget, and are actively recruiting
applicants for the Southlake Business Council.
In addition, we are planning a dedication ceremony for Safety Town Park, and
are working with Carroll ISD to address the development of their bond projects
and to determine what, if any, opportunities exist for joint use at the new site.
As you all know, we have prepared and presented “State of the City” reports to
City Councilmembers as a means for orienting new members to current issues
and getting everyone on the same page.
We are working with SPIN and SPARK to develop an old-fashioned Town Hall
meeting to talk about the issue of teens in Town Square, and we are actively
developing options for a Community Center. Sidewalks are of paramount
importance to this community and we continue to work to deliver on this needed
facility. Finally, staff has kicked off the 2030 planning process.
I’ll briefly address each of these with the slides that follow.
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I think you are all well-aware of the efforts to date to get the design process
started for the multi-purpose athletic complex on the northern portion of what is
now DPS property. The contract with Schrickel Rollins has been approved and
signed, and design is officially underway. We will now begin the process of
involving all of the stakeholders in the discussion of the look, feel and
functionality of the site. Let Chris Tribble know if you have any questions on this
item
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We recently discussed this project with Council, so I know you are all up-to-
speed on the details. The project is under design and we continue to work with
TxDOT to nail down the matter of the ROW/easement. As we discussed, we are
also working with the City Attorney’s Office to finalize a proposed interlocal
agreement with the Town of Westlake. Bob Price can assist you with any
questions you may have on this item.
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If you have had lunch at the Sr. Center lately, you know that it is bursting at the
seams! Best case scenario it will be a few years before we can offer a different
facility, so we are exploring the option of expanding the facility. The project
would be as minimal as possible, recognizing our desire to build the ultimate
facility in the near future, but we feel we must bridge the gap between the
inadequate existing facility and the ultimate Sr. Center.
Note that we are working to secure private in-kind services as a way to make
this project happen.
We are currently surveying the site and developing a proposed scope and
budget. Once we get to the point where we have some details to offer, we will
visit with the Council about the plans and begin the process of obtaining the
necessary development entitlements. Contact Ben Thatcher with questions.
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Budget…this is always the big summer project for staff. At the Retreat we will
be providing you with several presentations to officially begin our budget
preparation. The items shown on the screen are the items that are being
handled this Quarter. The intense effort will begin in Quarter 4, or next month.
Let Shana Yelverton or Sharen Jackson know if you have questions on this item.
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An initial group of business leaders came together early this year in a roundtable
format to discuss the ideas for a program to strengthen the relationship between
the City of Southlake and the business community and to provide feedback on
the ideas staff had generated. The City Council then approved a resolution in
March to create the Southlake Business Council, a program which will
eventually evolve into a “business SPIN program.” Through the SBC, the city
will be able to build upon our good working relationship with the business
community by formally involving them in our work.
We are currently in the process of advertising for applicants who would wish to
serve on the Council and hope to bring the list of names to you for your
appointment in the near future. In the meantime, we are also working on the
guiding principles for the group to ensure its success.
Call Greg Last if you have questions about this program.
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Planning and fundraising efforts continue, but it is time to dedicate the site at
West DPS for this park and to place a sign letting everyone know that it is
coming.
The ceremony will be simple and is intended to generate ongoing awareness of
the project.
Let Pilar Schank know if you have questions about this item.
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With the passage of the CISD bond program, a number of school projects will be
coming forward in the next few months. As was mentioned at the joint meeting,
we are doing what we can to keep the projects on track and moving forward
through the process so that the CISD can meet their timelines for the
construction and rennovation of these building.
In addition to working through the entitlement process, we are also in
discussions about the possible joint use opportunities that these new facilities
might create. We are planning a joint staff meeting to brainstorm ideas and are
bringing the Joint Utilization Committee into the discussion. Call Ben Thatcher
with questions you have on this item.
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First of all, we want to thank Councilmembers for the time you have taken to sit
with us for these reports. With new members on the Council, we thought it
would be a good idea to take a little time to familiarize everyone with the city’s
structure, basic budget information, accomplishments and ideas for FY 2010.
These reports were formatted after our department strategic plans and we hope
that they provide you with some valuable insight into the workings of the city as
we head into budget season. Let Shana Yelverton know if you have any
questions or comments.
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The issue of teens in Town Square was a topic of great interest during the recent
City Council election season and has been a point of discussion for some time
as we have added a movie theatre, barns and nobles and “cheap eats” to the
town square. In conjunction with SPIN and SPARK, it is our intention to host a
Town Hall meeting to facilitate community dialogue on this subject. Tentatively
scheduled for late July, this will be a good opportunity for us to talk about the
efforts we have made to date and ideas we have for the future, as well as to
hear what people in the community have on their minds on this topic. Contact
Jim Blagg with questions on this item.
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Finding a home for a recreation center, performing arts programs, seniors and
possibly even the library has been discussed since we developed our Facility
Master Plan a few years ago. The current question on the table is “Do we
acquire an existing facility and retrofit it to meet our needs or do we build –to-
suit?
Council will be briefed on our efforts to date in the Executive Session planned
for the Retreat. Let Shana Yelverton know if you have questions on this item.
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The number one question we get is about when we will be building more
sidewalks. Of course, we have made significant efforts to extend sidewalks
throughout the community over the past three years, so our first order of
business is to make sure that the community knows what has been
accomplished and what our plans are to continue to expand our inventory
through implementation of the sidewalk plan.
But we also want to find a way to involve our residents in the process so that
they can help promote the dedication of easements and other cooperation out in
the neighborhoods. Watch for more information on this coming soon. Call
Shana if you have questions.
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Finally, there is a great deal of work that has occurred in Quarter 3 to develop
the Southlake 2030 plan. A full presentation on this topic will be made at the
Retreat. Ken Baker can answer your questions on this topic.
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As you can see, Quarter 3 is very active! We hope this briefing brings you up-
to-speed, but we recognize that you may have additional comments or
questions. Don’t hesitate to call us and we will be happy to discuss any of these
items with you. We will keep you posted of our progress on these topics.
Thanks for taking the time to watch this presentation.
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