Here’s a complete list of the Denton City Council’s appointments to the 21-member bond advisory committee, which wasn’t available at press time yesterday. Each council member got three picks.
If you missed the story, read it here.
The committee:
Appointed by Mayor Mark Burroughs: Gus Seligmann, Marty Rivers, Roland Vela
Appointed by Mayor Pro Tem Pete Kamp: Greg Johnson, Randy Robinson, Ron Johnson
Appointed by at-large council member James King: Tim Crouch, Murray Ricks, Rhonda Love
Appointed by District 1 council member Kevin Roden: Michael Thomas, Joe Gregory, Gerard Hudspeth
Appointed by District 2 council member Dalton Gregory: Calvin Evans, Raina Joines, David Sanchez
Appointed by District 3 council member Jim Engelbrecht: Jerry Clark, Amber Briggle, Randall Boyd
Appointed by District 4 council member Chris Watts: Kurt Staller, Michael Gibson, Jo Williams
Denton’s natural gas drilling task force meets at 6 tonight at City Hall to continue discussing regulations to improve site conditions around gas wells and production facilities.
The task force may also consider regulations related to the industry’s use of city water and streets, if time allows.
Read the agenda here.
Read a list of possible action items here:
The city of Denton will hold a public meeting from 3 to 4 p.m. Tuesday at City Hall, 215 E. McKinney St., to present proposed updates to the city’s food establishment ordinance.
Topics are expected to include manager certification requirements, foodhandler card rules, and regulations governing farmers markets, outdoor bars and mobile food trucks.
For more information, call the city’s consumer health department at 940-349-8341 or 940-349-8346. A draft of the proposed ordinance is available under the consumer health page at www.cityofdenton.com.
Denton’s gas drilling task force meets at 6 tonight at City Hall to discuss the city’s public input process and bonding requirements for drilling companies.
View the agenda here.
Background reading materials for the meeting appear below:
No injuries were reported in a fire that gutted a home Thursday afternoon in the 3200 block of North Bell Avenue.
Denton firefighters said the fire may have started in the garage before spreading to the attic and destroying much of the home’s interior. The fire marshal was investigating the cause.
Witnesses reported the fire at about 2:35 p.m. after seeing smoke. One occupant escaped safely.
The home was engulfed in flames when firefighters arrived, Battalion Chief Tom Nations said.
“There was no way we could get ahead of it,” he said.
The Denton City Council voted 7-0 on Tuesday night to approve a citywide bicycle and pedestrian plan, prompting cheers from an audience filled with cycling advocates.
“It’s been a long process, but it’s been a productive process,” said Jim Coulter, a city official who oversees streets. “We think we have a good plan to work with.”
The plan identifies 35 miles of bike routes and dedicated lanes for immediate completion at an estimated cost of $600,000 to $1.2 million. Another 35 miles of routes and lanes are targeted for completion over 10 years at a cost of up to $1.4 million.
We’ll have a full story in tomorrow’s paper and at dentonrc.com.
Following up on today’s story, Denton City Council members directed staffers to move forward with the purchase of 26 acres bordering North Lakes Park so the city can preserve trees at the park while adding four new adult soccer fields.
However, council members expressed reservations about the use of tree mitigation funds to buy the additional land, since it has only two trees. They told city staffers to research ways to reimburse the fund after the purchase.
The proposal from the city parks department would tap a mix of funding, including $250,000 from fees paid by developers to cut down trees, to cover the $1 million land acquisition. The city is in talks with Rayzor Investments Ltd. about buying the land.
Council members also called on the city to fast-track the creation of a long-delayed citizen panel to help evaluate tree fund expenditures. The action came during the council’s afternoon work session.
Denton city staffers today are expected to recommend requiring apartment complexes to offer onsite recycling for their tenants.
The issue is one of several the City Council will discuss during a meeting at 4 p.m. at City Hall, 215 E. McKinney St. No votes are scheduled.
Currently, apartment managers and owners can decide whether to provide onsite recycling, and only five of the city’s 394 multifamily properties offer the service, according to information provided to the council. City staffers are considering requiring recycling at apartments to help divert more waste from the landfill.
“This plan should be developed carefully with input from stakeholders, and within a framework plan for increasing all diversion programs to reach the city of Denton’s waste diversion goals in the strategic plan and the sustainability plan,” said Vance Kemler, solid waste manager, in a written report to the council. “This plan should also reflect the city’s goals for addressing trash and recycling receptacles that are unscreened and/or in the right of way.”
Even though there’s no onsite recycling at most apartments, tenants still pay to recycle. The city charges a $2.30 monthly recycling fee to help pay for a household hazardous-waste program and other recycling efforts, including drop-off sites.
Single-family homes pay a $5.15 monthly recycling fee, which includes the cost of curbside recycling.
Austin-based bicycle advocacy group BikeTexas recently honored Denton City Council member Dalton Gregory as a champion for cyclists during a transportation conference in San Antonio.
Gregory received the BikeTexas Champion Award for outstanding elected officials as part of the Texas Trails and Active Transportation Conference.
“Denton is moving quickly to create real solutions to air quality issues, traffic congestion, the obesity epidemic and economic competitiveness by improving cycling conditions and safety, thanks to leaders like council member Dalton Gregory,” said Robin Stallings, executive director of BikeTexas, in a written statement.
Gregory attended the first Texas Trails and Active Transportation Conference in 2010 in Austin and returned to Denton with ideas for making the city more bike- and pedestrian-friendly. He was the driving force behind the city’s “safe passing” law, passed by the council in April, which requires motorists to allow a safe distance when passing cyclists, pedestrians or other vulnerable road users.
Gregory issued a statement highlighting the city’s bicycle initiatives, including the safe passing law, the nine-mile Denton Branch Rail Trail, and a proposed bicycle and pedestrian accommodation plan that faces a council vote Feb. 21.
“No policy, resolution or budget passes without at least four votes,” Gregory said. “But a number of unanimous votes by the Denton City Council demonstrates our city’s strong stand to become bike and pedestrian friendly as part of our overall effort toward sustainability.”
