JULY 2004 - PFCONA "PFLUGERVILLE TIDBITS" E-NEWSLETTER

Pflugerville Council of Neighborhood Associations Pfolks and Pfriends,
This E-mail initially goes out to PfCONA neighborhood reps, associates, honorary, and pending members*...those interested in neighborhood / community issues...open dialogue...problem-solving...and solutions. Share "Tidbits" with your homeowners / block contacts / captains and affiliated organizations, to give residents something to TALK about (constructive gossip). If you like what you read or what PfCONA is up to, click here for a PfCONA 2004 Membership Application online ($10 by check or PayPal).

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JULY 12TH PfCONA "TOWN MEETING"

The Monday, July 12th, 7:00 p.m.-8:30 p.m. agenda will include:
1) Neighborhood Watch Coordinator Orientation/National Night Out Preparation*

2) Discussion: What is a traditional type neighborhood (70' vs 75' lot size)?;
naming of city reservoir; architectural review board vs. city staff architect

3) Development of PfCONA Community Calendar and Tidbits Blog

4) Mayor/Councilman/Chief Comments & Questions
5) Neighborhood Community Announcements

Councilman Kurt Reece, Mayor Cat Callen, and City Manager David Buesing are scheduled to be present at PfCONA Town meeting to share information and take questions/comments from those attending. PfCONA Town Meetings are intended for city/ETJ neighborhood leaders and residents. Bring a neighbor, family member, or friend.

*Neighborhoods should plan to send representatives to July 12th town meeting if they are attempting to start a Neighborhood Watch program or expand it.

Click here for agendas/minutes of meetings and Tidbits archive. Town Meetings are always held on second Monday of the month at Justice Center. September 13th meeting will be at a different location TBA and will be on the subject of Downtown Master Plan - Gin Tract/Pfluger Tract/Main St. projects. Resident, neighborhood leaders, business owners, and city leaders will be invited to this town meeting as project stakeholders.

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WHAT'S GOING ON IN PFLUGERVILLE AREA, NEIGHBORHOODS, & PFCONA?

In relation to the Pflugerville area...

At 6/22 City Council Mtg, David Buesing was appointed as City Manager and Chuck Hooker to Chief of Police, both unanimously. At the same meeting the naming of reservoir was discussed. Council decided to seek further input from residents and city departments. It was stated that more info on this would be put in the Pflugerville Pflag. At meeting the openings on the Planning & Zoning Commission were filled. David Garlik and Karen Duncan were appointed out of at least six who submitted a resume. One question posed to former Mayor Scott Winton, one of the candidates, by the mayor Cat Callen was whether the proposed 75' traditional neighborhood lot width would be supported (as opposed to current 70'). He responded that he supported mixed lot sizes in neighborhoods such as 45'., due to varying homeowner needs. Also discussed at the council meeting was the issue of a City Staff Architect instead of an Architectural Review Board, which has already been created for downtown with members already appointed. Nothing was decided, but Councilman Pat McCord indicated that he favored a staff architect, although another council member wondered if there would be enough work for such an architect on staff.

By now you have noticed the red banners hanging from telephone poles along Pecan St. and Main St. that say "Shop...Dine...Enjoy". They were put up in preparation for the June 24-30 U.S. Soccer Regional Tournament. By now, you may have noticed that the Scott B. Mentzer Pool is open. The grand opening was on July 3rd. Pool hours for the play pool are Monday from 10:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Pool will be closed on Tuesdays for pool maintenance. Call 251-5082 for fees or pickup a flyer at pool.

Know that the city's Keep Pflugerville Beautiful Committee may develop what is called a Pink Slip Program in the near future, wherein residents can fill out a slip in relation to code enforcement-related violations. Also, in relation to KPB, PfCONA has inquired with the city and has been referred to KPB about possibly posting a PfCONA sign underneath the Future Farmers of America sign that went up at at about the 100 block of Dessau Rd on east side. Speaking of signs, you may be noticing that whenever a street sign is being replaced that a slightly larger one with larger lettering and block numbering is taking its place, so it is easier for emergency responders to read. If the street sign does not include block numbering, or if your neighborhood has a damaged/faded street sign of any type, let the city know by calling 251-3076.

In relation to Pflugerville neighborhoods...

National Night Out is just around the corner on August 3rd. Fight Crime on Your Block!!! See brief further below. Bohls NA is holding a quarterly meeting on July 27th. It's new year began June 1st with $30/yr non-mandatory dues. Saxony HOA is still recruiting members to its private neighborhood pool ($230/yr-open 7 days/wk--prorated to $180 in July). It's new year began June 1st with $30/yr non-mandatory dues. It has a yard of the month program that began two years ago. Cambridge Estates HOA already held a meeting on July 13th. Club at Wells Point Owners Association began its yard of the month program this spring. Springbrook Meadows HOA have a Social Committee Meeting and Safety Committeee Meeting scheduled for 7/13, an Ice Cream Social on 7/17, and a Board Mtg. on 7/20. Last, an Old Town NA has been formed and Parkview Estates subdivision has joined in with them.

In relation to PfCONA happenings...

PfCONA monthly Meetings will now be named PfCONA "Town Meetings". Since they are meant for and involve neighborhood leaders, community organization leaders, and residents, along with city council and staff, they are being renamed due to the forums they have become. They are a monthly chance to gather and dialogue on neighborhood and community issues and concerns; especially, things that citizens want city council/staff to be aware of and vice versa. As a result, people get to network, offer input, problem solve, and come up with solutions together. The meetings alternate between community issues and neighborhood issues focus.

On a different matter, PfCONA submitted dates for the Heritage House Museum 2005 Calendar in June. Also provided to them were the regularly scheduled meetings of neighborhood and community organizations so that they might put this in their calendar as well. The calendar should come out by or before December.

In relation to the Library Strategic Planning Meetings to be held in the fall, PfCONA was asked by Bob Spoonemore, library board chair, to provide a representative to these meetings. C. Reyna of Saxony, a new PfCONA member, will be representing PfCONA at the four meetings to be held.

New PfCONA members this month are: F. Stiba off Pfennig Ln, D. Allen of Saxony, and A. Kubacak of Picadilly Ridge, all recruited by Government Employees Federal Credit Union as Associate Members; C. Reyna of Saxony, Associate Member, recruited by PfCONA Chair; and, D. Corcoran, President of Fairways of Blackhawk, Official Neighborhood Representative. Please pass on this Tidbits newsletter to people who may wish to become aware of PfCONA efforts and possibly join. Or, pass on contact information to: info@pfcona.org regarding a potential PfCONA member.

Note: Send correspondence to PfCONA via: info@pfcona.org. Also, visit our www.pfcona.org/ website. PfCONA has had almost 19,000 visitors to its website since it was started.

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DID YOU KNOW...

...U.S. population is more than 293 million. The global population is more than 6 billion...

...In 1992, 72.6 million adults in the United States did not read a book. By 2002, that figure had increased to 89.9 million [Source: National Endowment for the Arts]

...The distance from Pflugerville to Washington DC is 1,336 miles. The distance to the Texas state capital is about 17 miles...

...Pflugerville is positioned 30.44 degrees north of the equator and 97.62 degrees west of the prime meridian...

...63 percent of adults think the Nov. 2 presidential election matters -- up from 45 percent in 2000... [Source: Pew Research Center for the People & the Press]

...Pflugerville city payroll was 231 in 2003. It is 294 as of May 2004...
[Source: City Council 6/22/04 Meeting Minutes]

...Combined Police Unit mileage during May 2004 was 34,227 miles...
[Source: City Council 6/22/04 Meeting Minutes]

...Specific nuisance or code violation site visits during May 2004 by City Code Enforcement = 160...Nuisance violation notices mailed by registered letter = 53...Bandit, political, and garage sale signs picked up = 325...Mileage recorded patrolling the city for violations = 1,483 miles...

[Source: City Council 6/22/04 Meeting Minutes]

...in May 2004, a total of 4,716 books, magazines, tapes, CDs, videos, DVDs were checked out via the Pflugerville Library. In May 2003, the total was 3,654.

[Source: City Council 6/22/04 Meeting Minutes]

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DOWNTOWN MASTER PLAN NOW ONLINE ON CITY WEBSITE

Click here for master plan broken into six parts. Since the September 13th PfCONA Town Meeting will be a forum on the Downtown Master Plan, with stakeholders invited from the Gin Tract, Pfluger Tract, Downtown Area, and surrounding neighborhoods and schools, now that document is online it is a chance for residents/landowners to study the plan in preparation for the 9/13 meeting. The location of the meeting may be Brookhollow Elementary from 7p-9p. Excerpt: This master plan will focus on specific actions that we believe are now critical for the positive development of Pflugerville's downtown. The implementation of the plan will produce a new City Hall complex, Gin Site Complex and redevelopment, former MoKan railroad site use, Pfluger tract development, as well as interest in various private sector retail and office projects, which combine to create a powerful financial and physical development engine. Lesser components could spin-off from these larger projects to complete a dramatic initial phase of public and private sector impact.

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COMMUNITY EMERGENCY RESPONSE TEAM (CERT) TRAINING

- ONE WEEK SESSIONS REPEATED

The Police Department Community Services division, in cooperation with Pflugerville Fire Department, is still taking registrations for its Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training being offered from June through August. Neighborhood and community organization leaders and residents are invited to sign-up.

Click here for PPD website CERT description of workshops and an application for one of eight sessions over 5-days (three hours each class, with 30 people per session) being offered to train citizens on disaster preparedness, fire suppression, disaster medical operations, llight search and rescue, disaster psychology and team organization, and disaster simulation. The first 175 Citizens enrolled will receive a first aid kit and a emergency rescuer kit. There is no fee for the course.

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NATIONAL NIGHT OUT ON TUESDAY, AUGUST 3RD

National Night Out is just around the corner on August 3rd. PfCONA is one of the sponsors. Click here for police department flyer. Block Party packet stuffing for neighborhoods is scheduled for July 29th at PPD. Citizens on Patrol, Victims Services, neighborhood residents, and more help out. Call Cpl. Mike Clowdus at 670-5512 or E-mail at mclowdus@cityofpflugerville.com to register your block party. There may be 60 or more parties like last year. And remember that July 12th PfCONA Town meeting will feature how to get Neighborhood Watch started in your neighborhood. Send a representative from your neighborhood to this town meeting.

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COMMUNITY CALENDAR VIA PFCONA WEBSITE LINK

Click here for Community Calendar created. It was created for listing of neighborhood and community organization events and meetings, since PfCONA's mission is to be a clearinghouse of information. Organizations without online calendars or who want to double their efforts can learn how easy it is to post an event on this calendar. They can E-mail: info@pfcona.org.

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NEW PFCONA BLOG*, ONLINE GUESTBOOK,
AND PFCONA NEW MEMBER HANDBOOK

As mentioned in last newsletter, PfCONA has made efforts to keep area citizens informed and involved in their neighborhoods and the broader community via its website, E-Newsletter, E-mails, forums, meetings, committees, partnerships, and activities. The new Blog will be the new archive for the "Tidbits" E-Newsletter -- information shared to help keep citizens in the loop--make them aware of current events and issues that impact them--plus the blog gives citizens a chance to give feedback. Go to: www.pfcona.blogspot.com/ or see link on www.pfcona.org/ on left column of main page.

The online guestbook allows people who visit the PfCONA website to leave a comment about the PfCONA website or anything else for that matter. There are a couple of enetries already. Go to: http://www.pfcona.org/guestbook/ or see link on http://www.pfcona.org/ on left column of main page.

PfCONA New Member Handbook will be posted online. It describes PfCONA's working committees and active projects. An application is included to volunteer for a particular committee and/or project.

*AudioBlog is in the works. That would mean that audio files (MP3 files) could be posted on Blog. Test are being conducted to include possible interviews, comments, etc. from neighborhood/community leaders and citizens. Stay tuned!

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CITY ELECTION VOTING RESULTS BY CANDIDATE

The results have been posted on the PfCONA website since the election and neighborhood tallies were sent out in the last newsletter and were published in the Pflugerville Plag. However, candidate results had not been inserted in Tidbits newsletter until now.

City Election Results:
Callen Elected Mayor:
Cat Callen - 663 (51%)
Ron Beyer - 635 (49%)

Reece is reelected to Place 1:
Kurt Reece - 837 (69%)
Dick Batten 376 (31%)

Duane Blakeslee in Place 5 unopposed

PISD School Board Election results:
King reelected to place 3:
Paul King - 1104 (65%)
Bob Seitsinger - 593 (35%)

Mott elected to Place 4:
Vernagene Mott - 1322 (73%)
Sidney Parker - 477 (27%)

Fletcher reelected to Place 5:
Carol Fletcher - 1227 (66%)
Perrin Butler, Jr. - 621 (34%)

Travis County Health District Creation Results:
Approved - 31,907 (54.7%) in favor
26,401 (45.3%) not in favor

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WHAT IS ALL SYSTEMS GO!?

For Pflugerville residents to begin forming an opinion and letting their community leaders know that opinion, the following development may wish to be discussed in your neighborhood/community organization/household:

Capital Metro announced All Systems Go! on May 11th and has since held Open Houses and Workshops to begin shaping a new transit system vision and a final transit plan (referendum). Click here for related info introducing the All Systems Go! effort. Cap Metro wishes to include rail and bus solutions in the transit plan. Cap Metro says that the effort would use existing rail tracks and corridors and would require no new taxes or major street construction.

Click here for proposed long-range transit system vision map, which includes Pflugerville's MoKan corridor as commuter rail regional service. Various Pflugerville neighborhoods and businesses are along this route. Click here for links to online presentation, news, and education materials.

Cap Metro wants feedback to help determine:

• Priorities for investment
• New technology choices
• Frequency of service
• Locations for station stops and transfers

Click here for an online comment card or click here to give more feedback via an online survey available. Also, call 474-1200 to request a presentation from its Speakers Bureau, which PfCONA is attempting to setup for its August 9th Town Meeting. Also, see www.capmetro.org.

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QUOTE(S)

"Democracy is a conversation." - Theme from citizen-driven town hall e-forum
[Source: www.e-thepeople.org/]

"Individual commitment to a group effort -- that is what makes a team work, a company work, a society work, a civilization work." - Vince Lombardi
[Source: www.wisdomquotes.com]

"When groups consider many alternatives, they engage in more thoughtful analysis and usually avoid settling too quickly on the easy, obvious answer."
- David A. Garvin and Michael A. Roberto
[Source: Excerpt from a September 2001 Harvard Business Review article called, "What You Don't Know About Making Decisions". Click here for article summary.]

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NEW LINK(S) GOING ON PFCONA WEBSITE, ETC...

E The People: www.e-thepeople.org. Site is a public forum for democratic and deliberative discussion--an attempt at a citizen-driven town hall with a goal of improving civic participation.

E-Democracy.org: www.e-democracy.org. Minnesota E-Democracy is a non-partisan citizen-based organization whose mission is to improve citizen participation in democracy in and outside of Minnesota. It includes: effective and meaningful online discussions and two-way information exchange on public issues; increasing the use and relevancy of democratic information resources that inform citizens about elections, governance, the media and public affairs; building on and sustaining the unique citizen-based "E-Democracy" model, so active citizens anywhere can join in and work to improve the outcomes of citizen participation in governance and public life in their communities and nations.

Youth Vote Coalition: www.youthvote.org. National non-partisan coalition dedicated to: increasing political and civic participation among young people; building an inclusive, accountable, and responsive government; and, increasing public awareness about the value of participation in democracy through the electoral process.

Austin Wireless City Hot Spot List: http://austinwirelesscity.org/hotspot-list.php. The Austin Wireless City Project is an initiative to improve the availability and quality of public free WiFi in Austin.

See http://www.pfcona.org/ for other links available. Also, click here for "Tidbits" e-newsletter archive. Since the website is developing many helpful links, they will be split into categories in the near future.

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BOOK(S) YOU MAY WANT TO REVIEW...

Bowling Together: Online Public Engagement in Policy Deliberation by Stephen Coleman & John Gøtze.

Book Description: There is a growing recognition on the part of many within the developed democracies that new relationships between citizens and institutions of governance must emerge...There is a pervasive contemporary estrangement between representatives and those they represent, manifested in almost every western country by falling voter turnout; lower levels of public participation in civic life; public cynicism towards political institutions and parties; and a collapse in once-strong political loyalties and attachments. Click here to see book online or click here for PDF of book. At beginning of Chapter 2 there is a graph called the "Broader Model of Public Engagement" developed to show how the public can be kept informed, consulted, and actively engaged.

Note: See September 2003 Tidbits E-Newsletter at www.pfcona.org/E-Newsletter.htm or Books You May Want to Review archive at www.pfcona.org/BookReview.htm for Bowling Alone book, which Bowling Together book was based on.

Citizens as Partners: Information, Consultation, and Public Participation in Policymaking by Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Book Description: Governments increasingly realize that they will not be able to conduct and effectively implement policies, as good as they may be, if their citizens do not understand and support them. Thus, governments are looking to new or improved models and approaches for better informing and involving citizens in the policy-making process. Work focuses on information, consultation, and active participation of citizens in policy-making. Click here to see book PDF (policy brief) or click here for full PDF version.

Open Government: Fostering Dialogue with Civil Society by Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Book Description: This book examines how to build robust legal, institutional and policy frameworks for access to information, consultation and public participation in policy-making. It focuses on lessons from experience from both OECD member and non-member countries in seeking to apply the principles of good governance in practice and to build effective partnerships between government, citizens and civil society organizations. Click here to see book PDF.

Engaging Citizens Online for Better Policymaking (2003) by Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Book Description: The barriers to greater online citizen engagement in policy-making are cultural, organisational and constitutional not technological. Overcoming these challenges will require greater efforts to raise awareness and capacity both within govern-ments and among citizens. Click here to see policy brief PDF.

Click here for archive of past books recommended.

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MARK YOUR CALENDARS...

Pflugerville Professional Firefighters Association 1st Annual Golf Tournament: Saturday, July 10th. For info call 848-9983 or E-mail drodrig104@aol.com.

National Night Out Packet Stuffing: Thursday, July 29th. Time TBA. Call Cpl. Mike Clowdus at 670-5512 or just show up once you learn of time.

National Night Out 2005: Tuesday, August 3rd, 7p-10p in neighborhoods all around the city. There were at least 60 block parties in 2004.

School Starts: Tuesday, August 17th.

Cox Cable Ch. 10 Programs Scheduled:
City Council Work Sessions, 6:00 p.m. on Wed., Fri., Sun.
City Council Meetings, 7:00 p.m. on Wed., Fri., Sun.

Travis County Commissioners Court, 11:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., Tues., Sat.

Seniorcize with Ruth, 12:30 p.m.-2:30 p.m. (30 min. - repeated), Mon., Wed., Fri.

Parks and Rec Programs:

Adult Swim Lessons, Lifeguarding Courses, and Private Swim Lessons are being offered. Call 251-5082 about dates/times and fees.

Note: See Pflugerville Pflag, City Newsletter, Cox Channel 10, Pflugerville Library, or Bulletin Board outside City Hall for more Pflugerville news, event, and city council information. Also, see PfCONA website which also has current events and NewsBYTES on home page and other archived info. Or, subscribe to weekly Weekly City E-Newsletter by E-mailing city secretary at: webmaster@cityofpflugerville.com. City website is http://www.cityofpflugerville.com/. Also, go to PfCONA Member Listings on website to see what neighborhoods are up to.

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Rod Reyna, PfCONA Chair/Communications Committee
info@pfcona.org
www.pfcona.org

PFCONA Member Notes: E-mail neighborhood happenings to PfCONA for sharing with others (or share at upcoming meetings). Neighborhoods are also encouraged to send stories to the Pflag.

*For those wishing to join or with memberships pending, $10 yearly dues (from January to December) can be sent to (checks made out to PfCONA): Attn: PfCONA Chair, c/o Pflugerville Police Department, PO Box 679, Pflugerville, TX 78691. Or, drop off to M. Pundt at PPD. Dues were initiated in January 2003 and renewals are for 2004 year.