Pflugerville Tidbits: June 2004

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). See books, links, and calendar at bottom (upcoming meetings/events). 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 by PayPal online). Also, click here for archive of Tidbits, agendas, and minutes, etc.

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JUNE 14TH PfCONA MEETING

The Monday, June 14th, 7pm-8:30pm agenda will include:
1) What's going well in my neighborhood?

2) PfCONA Committee Updates/Work: Safety, Special Events, Exec Committee
-including, city election voting analysis by neighborhood, info collected up to this point on
60+ organizations in Pflugerville and next steps

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

Councilman Duane Blakeslee, Mayor Cat Callen, and Chief David Buesing (also interim City Manager) should be present at meeting to share information and take questions/comments from those attending. PfCONA meetings are intended for city/ETJ neighborhood residents and leaders. Bring a neighbor, family member, or friend.

Click here for past minutes of meetings. Meetings are always held on second Monday of the month at Justice Center. July 12 meeting will include a segment on Neighborhood Watch Coordinator Orientation in preparation for National Night Out. Neighborhoods should plan to send representatives to that meeting. 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 meeting as project stakeholders.

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

In relation to the Pflugerville area...City Elections were recently held and the results are further below. Pflugerville citizens have chosen Cat Callen as their new Mayor (Pflugerville's youngest mayor (29) and first woman) and reelected Kurt Reece to Place 1 (2nd term) on City Council. Duane Blakeslee, who ran unopposed in special election, and who was previously appointed to fill an unexpired term, is again on Place 5. [Click here for recent speech by our new mayor at recent PfCONA meeting, before being elected.] Pflugerville citizens came out to vote in almost triple the numbers than the year before. Citizens should be congratulated for becoming involved in the voting effort and will hopefully continue to have their neighbors join in on the voting process. The Mayoral swearing in ceremony took place on Thursday, May 27th at the Justice Center with Municipal Court Judge JB Marshall administering the oath. Council member swearing took place at June 8th Council Meeting with Mayor Cat Callen administering the oath.

The Police Department Community Services division, in cooperation with Pflugerville Fire Department, is in full swing of its Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) training being offered from June through August. 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.

In relation to Pflugerville neighborhoods...Saxony HOA is recruiting members to its private neighborhood pool and it also had officer elections in May and a pool member meeting in June. In May, Mountain Creek HOA had its Spring Fling at Wuthrich Park. Old Town residents have been meeting since May to organize a neighborhood association. Arbor Creek has recently been involved in changing its deed restrictions, which has meant proposals presented by both the developer and Arbor Creek residents. The Ridge at Steeds Crossing has been having monthly meetings including its June Annual Meeting. Springbrook Owners Associaiton had its annual meeting in March. Springbrook Meadows HOA is having a board meeting in June and an Ice Cream Party, plus another Ice Cream Social in July, followed by Social Committee and Safety Committee meetings. Windermere HOA had a garage sale in April and Creekside NA recently had 30 household hold a garage sale on the same day. If nothing else, neighborhoods are preparing for National Night Out on the horizon on August 3rd.

Summertime also has residents going on vacation, visiting relatives, swimming, shopping, and attending summer camps, and some other neighborhoods holding neighborhood meetings/activities or beginning their pool seasons. It also has more people reading, biking, walking trails and sidewalks, biking, doing yard work, trimming trees, and eating out. What is nice is that Pflugerville has many places to shop and dine at, although we could certainly use more. Our new mayor has promised to work on this.

In relation to PfCONA happenings...The Pflugerville VOTES! effort developed by PfCONA was a success. Click here for related press release on new PfCONA website blog, including city election results by neighborhood, which are also noted further below. PfCONA volunteered to do the voting tabulation by neighborhood instead of the city spending the time doing this. More than 500 pages of results and 12,000+ registered voters were gleaned for the information. Each voter's address was matched to a neighborhood subdivision. Three neighborhoods had more than 100 votes, 8 had 50-99 votes cast , 7 had 25-49 cast, 6 had 10-24 votes cast, 10 had 1-9 votes cast, and 9 had 0 votes cast. Believe it or not, this is an improvement from last year whose results are in the August 2003 Tidbits E-Newsletter on PfCONA website.

On a related note, if you have a Pflugerville VOTES! yard sign, save it for future State/Federal elections in November, since you can write early voting and election dates on sign with dry-erase marker. Plus, save it for the May 7, 2005 City/School Board elections. Thanks to those who gave a $2 donation for each sign. We collected $92 in donations. In relation to the May Council/School Board Candidate Forums, the city secretary and others told PfCONA that voters appreciated being able to get a sense of the candidates ahead of time on TV.

As stated before, PfCONA is requesting a supply of brochures from all city community organizations, including contact information, in order to make this information part of its Community Kiosk Project. Brochures would be displayed in kiosks around town and at booths at community events. As a result of the process of collecting contacts and brochures, PfCONA has already compiled a draft list of all the Pflugerville organizations and when and where they meet. The next step is to collect contact information for each organization.

PfCONA is still interested in calling a meeting (roundtable) of all community organization leaders or their designates during the Fall, if at all possible. This type of meeting could take place at least once a year or on an emergency basis. A timely topic is the revitalization of downtown pflugerville and Pflugerville's rapid growth, not to mention educating community leaders as to what is in the downtown master plan.

Note: Send correspondence to PfCONA via: info@pfcona.org. Also, visit our http://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...

...the Austin metropolitan area should have more than 1 million people in 10-20 years. Our Pflugerville school district alone has at least 100,000 population and our city has recently broken 25,000...

...Baseball fields should be put in at the Northeast Metropolitan County Park by July 1st...

...SH 45 should be done by 2006...

...TxDot is said to be planning to put Wireless Internet at rest stops in the future...

...Travis County Commissioners Court Meetings are now airing on Cox Cable Ch. 10. See channel for broadcast schedule...

...Conrad and Anna Elizabeth Wuthrich Pfluger bought a farm in 1870 which is currently Gatlinburg, Pflugerville Elementary School, and Little League Fields [Source; 2004 Heritage House Museum Calendar]...

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CNN MONEY HAS PFLUGERVILLE AS ONE OF BEST PLACES TO LIVE

Click here to go to statistical snapshot. Austin, Cedar Park, Round Rock, Georgetown are also listed. It has the following categories: weather, financial, housing, leisure, culture, travel, health environment, crime, and education. It also asks you how you would rate Pflugerville, with five stars (high) or as low as one star. Also, go to: http://money.cnn.com/best/bplive/.

Another website titled http://www.bestplaces.net/ has statistics on Pflugerville and Pflugerville schools.

Click here for Pflugerville stats. Click here for Pflugerville school stats.

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CITY ELECTION VOTING RESULTS BY NEIGHBORHOOD

The Pflugerville Council of Neighborhood Associations (PfCONA) volunteered to compile results of city election instead of city staff spending the time to do so. The following tabulations by neighborhood subdivision were made:

157 - Old Town
112 - Saxony
108 - Creekside
91 - Katymead
83 - Settlers Ridge
79- Gatlinburg
73 - Willow Creek
72 - Blackhawk
58 - Bohls Place
57 - Mountain Creek
50 - Brookhollow
40 - Meadow Park South
35 - Cambridge Estates
29 - Springbrook
27 - Parkcrest
26 - Club at Wells Point
25 - Bohls Crossing
25 - Meadows of Blackhawk
24 - Park View Estates
23 - Wells Point Pass
19 - Springbrook Glen
16 - Heatherwilde
16 - Park Place at Heatherwilde
13 - Windermere
8 - Mountain Creek Estates
3 - 1825 Place Apts
3 - Arbor Creek
3 - Chisholm Point
3 - Falcon Pointe Brookwood Trail
2 - Meadow Park West
2 - Heatherwilde Park Retirement Apts
1 - Enclave At Springbrook
1 - Falcon Pointe The Vistas
1 - Highland Park North
0 - Colored Addition, The
0 - Falcon Pointe
0 - Falcon Pointe Arbor Landing
0 - Lakes of Blackhawk
0 - Meadow Ridge
0 - Rosemont @ Heather Bend Apts
0 - Settlers Meadow
0 - Skyview Village Apts
0 - Swenson Farms
11 - Not in a subdivision

1296 - TOTAL

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US YOUTH SOCCER SOUTHERN REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS (AKA SNICKERS CUP)

Click here for US Youth Soccer Southern Regional Championships website. Event to take place at Travis County Northeast Metro County Park from June 24-30. Click here for Old Pfashion Street Dance the city is hosting on Main St. for youth on June 26, 7p-10p. The City and Pflugerville Downtown Association wants visitors to Shop, Dine, and Enjoy. Click here for list of downtown merchants and map and click here for Chamber business directory. The event is expected to bring more traffic through Pflugerville than normal.

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NEW PFCONA BLOG AND ONLINE GUESTBOOK

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: http://www.pfcona.blogspot.com/ or see link on http://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. Go to: http://www.pfcona.org/guestbook/ or see link on http://www.pfcona.org/ on left column of main page.

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MASTER LIST BEING COMPILED BY PfCONA OF CITY GOVERNMENT/COMMUNITY ORGANIZATION MEETINGS (submitted to Heritage House Museum 2005 Calendar*)

Architectural Review Board - every 4th Monday at City Hall Ste 500, 6:30p
Board of Adjustment – every 4^th Wednesday (if necessary) at City Hall Ste 500, 7p
Bohl’s Neighborhood Association – every last Tuesday (quarterly - Oct., Jan., Apr., July)
Creekside Neighborhood Association - usually on 1st Wednesday every other month at Justice Center, 7p
Czech Heritage Society – every 3^rd Wednesday at Library, 7p-9p
City Council - every 2nd and 4th Tuesday at City Hall Ste 500, 7:30p
Friends of Pflugerville Community Library – every 3^rd Tuesday at Library, 7p
Garden Club – every 2^nd Thursday at Library, 7p
Gatlinburg Neighborhood Associaiton - usually on a Thursday every other month at Rec Center, 7p
Heatherwilde Homeowners Association – annual meeting on 1^st Monday in April at Heatherwilde Clubhouse, 8p
Heritage House Partners – every 1^st Monday at Heritage Museum, 5:30p
Keep Pflugerville Beautiful (KPB) Committee – usually every 1^st Wednesday at Library, 5:30p
Moms Club of Pflugerville – every last Friday usually at Hill Country Bible Church, 10a-11:30a
Mountain Creek Homeowners Association – annual meeting this year on 2^nd Thursday at Timmerman Elem., 7p
North Central Texas Chess Club – usually every Saturday at Library, 3p-5p
Parkcrest Neighborhood Association – annual meeting
Parks and Recreation Commission – every 3^rd Thursday at City Hall Ste 500, 7p
Pflugerville Area Youth Soccer League (PAYSL) Board – every 1^st Monday, 6:30p
Pflugerville Book Club – every last Monday at Library, 7p-9p
Pflugerville Circle of Friends – every 1st Tuesday at Rec Center, 7p
Pflugerville Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association (PCPAAA) – every 1^st Thursday at Justice Center, 7p
Pflugerville Community Development Corporation (PCDC) – every 2^nd and 4^th Thursday at City Hall Ste 500, 7p
Pflugerville Community Library Board – every 2^nd Wednesday at Library, 7p
Pflugerville Council of Neighborhood Associations (PfCONA) - every 2nd Monday at Pflugerville Justice Center, 7p-8:30p
Pflugerville Downtown Association – every 2^nd Wednesday, 6p
Pflugerville Downtown Planning Committee - every 3rd Wednesday at City Hall Ste 500, 7p
Pflugerville Genealogy Society – every 1^st Thursday, 6:30p
Pflugerville Independent School District (PISD) Board – every 3^rd Thursday at 1401 W Pecan (Admin Bldg), 7p
Pflugerville Lions Club – every 2^nd and 4^th Monday at Lions Hall, 7p
Pflugerville Little League Board – usually every 2^nd Monday at PLL Board Room, 6:30p
Pflugerville Optimist Club – every Monday, 7:30p
Pflugerville Panda Bears – no regular meetings, organize sporting/exercise activities for 35-45 year olds
Pflugerville Pastors Association – as needed
Pflugerville Police Association - every 1st Tuesday at Justice Center, 7p
Pflugerville Police Victim Services Volunteers - every 3rd Monday at Justice Center, 7p
Pflugerville Rotary Club - every Wednesday at Charlie's Steakhouse, Noon
Pflugerville Youth Football League Board – info not available
Planning & Zoning Commission - every 1st and 3rd Monday at City Hall Ste 500, 7p
Ridge at Steeds Crossing – every month or quarterly (TBA)
Saxony Homeowners Association – every 1^st Sunday (in Feb., May, Nov.) at Justice Center, 7p-8:30p
Springbrook Meadow Homeowners – annual meeting in May at Windermere Amenities Center, 7p-8:30p
Springbrook Owners Association – annual meeting in March or April at Providence Presbyterian, 7p
Storytellers Guild – every 1^st Tuesday at Library, 7p-9p
Toastmasters – every 2^nd and 4^th Saturdays at Library, 10a-11:30a
Travis County Commissioners Court – every Tuesday at 314 W. 11^th, 9a
Travis County Emergency Services District (ESD) #2 Board – every 2^nd Thursday at 203 E Pecan, 6p
Travis County North Rural Community Center Board – every 1^st Thursday at NRCC, 5:30p
Windermere Homeowners Association – annual meeting in April at Windermere Clubhouse

*City Government/Community Organization Meetings Note: The above meeting schedules compiled by PfCONA may change. Some groups have additional board/committee meetings. As more information is collected, more groups will be added (e.g., PTOs, band boosters, other HOAs/NAs, GPCC, NCC, etc.) and updates made. Go to www.pfcona.org for most recent master list (to be posted) or send information to info@pfcona.org.

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ENVISION CENTRAL TEXAS UPDATE

The Envision Central Texas's (ECT) Vision document was released in May 2004. This Vision is the culmination of an unprecedented two-year public input process, the largest public conversation ever conducted in Texas, in which people from throughout the five-county region discussed future growth as a connected community.

Click here to view the Vision. Over the next few months, ECT will be hosting a series of public presentations about the the Vision. See the events page on ECT Web site for future presentation listings (http://www.envisioncentraltexas.org/). Click here for past ECT-related info on PfCONA website pertaining to site concept plan completed in Pflugerville.

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QUOTE(S)

"A community that talks together is alive!" - Author unknown.
(Study Circles participant, a program PfCONA is checking into regarding how a community talks about public problems and finds solutions)

"There is power in recommendations coming from a large cross section of community people." - Cathy Price, Harford County Schools (Study Circles participant)

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

American Profile: http://www.americanprofile.com/. American Profile is a weekly, four-color magazine that celebrates hometown American life. Click here for Central Texas section.

Texas Parks and Wildlife Magazine: http://www.tpwmagazine.com/ or www.tpwmagazine.com/archive/. Since 1942, Texas Parks & Wildlife has been a monthly guide to the Texas outdoors. Each issue is packed with photos and articles about every facet of outdoor recreation: fishing, hunting, camping, birding, boating, traveling and more. It offers information about state parks, environmental issues and events across Texas.

Texas Commission on Environmental Quality: http://www.tceq.state.tx.us/. Site includes ways to report environmental problems, violations, or emergencies.

Environmental News Network: http://www.enn.com/. Its goals are to help educate the public on major issues and to provide tools to help individuals take action in their own communities. It presents information from all sides, enabling its readers to make their own decisions.

KidsCount: www.aecf.org/kidscount/databook/ In small towns, many suburbs, and especially in large cities, millions of children remain largely untouched by the good times, with little prospect for connecting with the benefits of a soaring economy. The most recent KIDS COUNT data report a significant increase since 1990 in the number of children—5.6 million—in families of the working poor. In all, more than 14 million, or 21 percent of all kids under 18, still live in poverty-a higher proportion than in 1975. Also, click here for related books you may wish to review.

Community Justice Exchange: http://www.communityjustice.org/. Offers information and assistance to help bring together criminal justice agencies and ordinary citizens to make communities safer.

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...

50 Fabulous Places to Raise Your Family (1997) by Melissa Giovagnoli.
Book description: Austin is one of the places and since we're practically attached at the hip, that is why someone may try to review what other cities are like, as Pflugerville is growing up and determining what it wants to be or build on. This book contains useful info about 50 different cities and communities around the country that genuinely offer the good life--from family-friendly small towns to cosmopolitan suburbs to large metropolises. Each profile has facts on: job/business opportunities; school system info; family fun options; real estate info; cost of living; quality of environment and medical care; and community efforts that enhance quality of life. [Available at Pflugerville Library]

365 Outdoor Activities You Can Do With Your Child (1993) by Steve & Ruth Bennett.

Book Description: Authors of 365 TV-Free Activities also. Since it is summer, you may want to check out this mini-paperback book from the Pflugerville Library. If you can find a stack of paper cups, a broom, a cardboard box, or any of dozens of other common objects, you can open the door to a world of creative outdoor play for your child. Switch off the TV--and switch on a world of outdoor fun.

Click here for archive of past books recommended.

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MARK YOUR CALENDARS...

U.S. Soccer Southern Regionals: Thurs-Wed, June 24th-30th at Travis County Northeast Metro Park off E. Pecan. To bring many teams and visitors to Pflugerville. For more info go to: www.2004southernregionals.com.

Pflugerville Downtown Association 1st Annual Golf Tournament: Sunday, June 27th. For info E-mail: duane@io.com.

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

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

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 Michelle Pundt at PPD. Dues were initiated in January 2003 and renewals are for 2004 year.

Pflugerville Tidbits

Monday, June 21, 2004

JUNE 2004 - PFCONA "TIDBITS" E-NEWSLETTER

Friday, June 11, 2004

NEWS RELEASE: PfCONA THANKS VOTING EFFORT VOLUNTEERS!!!/ELECTION RESULTS

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