Ring a Bell – Help Salvation Army!
Do you know that Denton is home to the only homeless shelter in all of Denton County? The Salvation Army shelter is located on E. McKinney Street and helps hundreds of individuals and families get back on their feet each year. Just like many other non-profit organizations that serve our most vulnerable populations, the Salvation Army has seen significant cuts as of late.
You know those bell ringers you see around Christmas time at stores around town? That provides a major source of funding for their annual budget and allows them to keep their doors open and the most needy in our community fed and off the streets. This year they are hoping to fill the bell ringer spots with volunteers. Imagine yourself, your church, your office, or even your friends joining together to adopt a day and a spot to collect money for the Salvation Army. What a great way to meet a local need and spread the holiday cheer in a meaningful way.
If this sounds like something you’d like to do, please read this info sheet from the Salvation Army and contact Amanda Ledhe at amandalehde@hotmail.com with the date(s) you are able to help.
Council Meeting Preview – November 1, 2011
You may have noticed a missed preview or postscript in the last couple of weeks. The truth is, I could not log in to my website for the past couple of weeks to update anything. But enough of this politician’s excuses… We begin with a work session today at 4:30pm, followed by our Regular Session at 6:30pm. Go here to find an agenda and download a copy of the council back-up material. What is on deck for tonight…
MULTI-FAMILY to SINGLE FAMILY RATIO
The Denton Plan, created in 1999, hoped to maintain a certain balance of single-family houses and multi-family dwellings. Here’s what the Plan states on page 39:
Accommodate 27,000 single-family homes and 18,000 multifamily units by
the year 2020 to bring the ratio of single to multifamily housing from 51:49 in 1998 to 59:41 in 2020.
Denton has moved closer to that ratio over the years. The housing crisis that began around 2008, combined with a rash of recent student apartment construction has served to make this ratio slide back a bit as of late. We will have a comprehensive discussion on this ratio to see how to best approach this issue moving forward.
RAYZOR RANCH MEDICAL BUILDINGS
If you’ve been following the course of this development, you know that it has several land-use components to it and is being approached in a number of phases. Most of the activity, as of late, as occurred on the North side of 380 where there is a new Walmart, Freebirds, and what not. What is before us tonight, however, is a small, 4 acre portion of land way down on the Southern end of the property and just along I-35. They are asking us to amend an Overlay District for that piece of property in order to provide design, landscaping, signage, and architectural standards.
Come on out!
Upcoming Gas Drilling Panel Discussions
The Denton Stakeholders Drilling Advisory Group (DAG) is hosting two more panel discussion events aimed at educating the Denton community on issues related to gas drilling in Denton. The goal of DAG is to work alongside the official city process as Denton reworks its gas drilling ordinances. Please spread the word on these events…
Council Meeting Preview – October 14, 2011
It’s a relatively short agenda tonight – we’ll start at 4:30pm for a Work Session followed by the 6:30pm Regular Session. Here are some items of interest…
I35 EXPANSION
We’ll return to a discussion we began a month ago regarding the TxDOT Aesthetic Study in preparation for the upcoming I35 expansion. The study suggestion locations for over/underpass enhancement projects, including the possibility of artwork. The council requested and received additional time in order to consult with officials from UNT and the upcoming Rayzor Ranch development site to determine if partnerships could be formed to consider enhancing the I35 intersections at North Texas Blvd. and 380 respectively.
NEW POLICE CHIEF
The selection of Warren Lee Howell as the new Police Chief for the city is up for council approval tonight. There has been much interest in the selection process ever since former chief Roy Minter announced his resignation last year. The Denton Police Officer’s Association and many others urged the city manager to choose a candidate from within and save the money associated with a national search. A national search was conducted nonetheless. Howell was the only local candidate on the list of finalists – he previously worked for the city force before joining up with the county. The announcement of Howell as the sole finalist was a welcome decision by many.
PUBLIC HEARINGS
There are a couple of public hearings for zoning changes in a predominantly industrial part of town. The area is in a newly annexed part of the city on Corbin Road. Come on out if you have concerns relating to this site.
HOMELESS DILEMMA
We are scheduled to hear a citizen report from a gentleman who finds himself stuck between two different ethical obligations. On the one hand, he is hoping to do his part to help with the growing homeless population in Denton. He owns several rent houses and has designated one of them as a place to house homeless, yet working men who need some help getting back on their feet – he charges them a mere $40 a week in order to have a place to stay. But he is finding this attempt at a good deed puts him sideways with our zoning and code regulations – only four unrelated people are allowed to stay in a place of dwelling, yet this man is allowing up to 10 individuals to stay at his rental house. His obligation to the poor is intersecting with his obligation to the integrity of his neighborhood. I look forward to his presentation and to a future conversation with city staff and council on how to address such an issue. At some point, it is in the city’s best interest to encourage such private acts of charity. How to do so and maintain the integrity of our city code and protect our neighborhoods is a worthwhile conversation.
As always, if you have any questions or concerns, please contact me at kevin.roden@cityofdenton.com or 940-206-5239.
Youth Advisory Council – Seeing Denton Through the Eyes of Our Youth
Over 2000 years ago, the youth coming of age in ancient Athens were asked to recite and commit to this oath:
“We will never bring disgrace on this our City by an act of dishonesty or cowardice. We will fight for the ideals and Sacred Things of the City both alone and with many. We will revere and obey the City’s laws, and will do our best to incite a like reverence and respect in those above us who are prone to annul them or set them at naught. We will strive increasingly to quicken the public’s sense of civic duty. Thus in all these ways we will transmit this City, not only not less, but greater and more beautiful than it was transmitted to us.”
What are we doing as a city to help our young people develop their citizenship so as to be future contributing and engaged members of our democracy? What are we doing as a city to foster our children’s sense of civic duty and responsibility? As the father of two young children, I find myself re-discovering the city and its purpose and potential through their eyes.
As such, I am officially launching the creation of Youth Advisory Council for District 1. I am forming the council with the hopes of bringing our younger citizens into the process of local governance. The council will meet once a month to advise me on issues that concern them within the city. There will also be an educational component – through guest speakers, site visits, and projects, the students involved will learn more about their city and gain a greater sense of social and civic responsibility.
The Youth Council is open to students in 5th grade through 12th grade. Although the focus of the group will be toward the needs of District 1, students living outside the district are welcome to apply. Click here to download an application.
Adults – please help in spreading the word to interested parents, teachers, and kids in your neighborhood. Please direct any questions to me at kevin.roden@cityofdenton.com or 940-206-5239.
Council Meeting Preview – September 20, 2011
Today’s meeting is full of items. Here’s some insight into the life of a City Council Member… The back-up material for today’s meeting consists of 805 pages. We don’t actually receive this material until around 5pm on the Friday before the Tuesday council meeting. Somewhere in the midst of working full time, spending time with my family, changing diapers, completing household tasks, spending time at the annual Blues Fest, and enjoying the cooler weather, I have to make it through all of these pages in order to be prepared to vote my conscience by Tuesday afternoon. Hence, it is pushing 1am on Tuesday morning and I have finally completed my study of this material. All this because I love this great city!
Today’s meeting begins with a Work Session at 3pm, followed by a Regular Session at 6:30. There’s a lot on the agenda (click here to see it), so get yourself an addictive beverage to get you through the potentially long meeting tonight. Here’s what you might find interesting on tonight’s agenda…
MOBILE FOOD TRUCKS!
I’ve been an advocate of these for some time. Up until now, our city ordinances have not been accommodating to such a food truck culture like you might see in Austin or Portland. One of the primary reasons is that our current ordinance prohibits mobile food trucks from staying in any one place for longer than 15 minutes. The question before us today is whether to direct staff to work on ordinance that loosens such regulations or whether to stay with the status quo.
I have argued in the past, including in this article from last January, that beyond the obvious benefit to our appetites, these food carts bring about the possibility of community betterment. Just last Wednesday, I hosted over 50 citizens in my home to hear their thoughts on this subject. I look forward to hearing the thoughts of my fellow council members today on this issue.
WALK SAFELY FROM THE A-TRAIN
We will be reviewing a design plan for sidewalks, streetscape, crosswalks, and pedestrian signals to connect the A-Train on Hickory to the other side of Bell Ave. This is a needed project in order to ensure that Denton is an attractive destination to potential train riders.
REDISTRICTING PLANS FINALIZED
After hearing from concerned citizens, certain boundaries on the latest redistricting map have been tweaked in order to accommodate the concerns of Denia neighborhood residents and Southeast Denton residents. The latest change involved the return of most of the downtown square into District 1 – it had previously been given over to District 2 as part of the now-infamous “finger” that extended below University Drive. I expect the latest plans to pass. Once this is all finalized, make sure you know which district you are in!
BUDGET APPROVAL
After months of discussions, it appears the final version of the city budget is set for approval tonight. If you still haven’t taken a look at it, you can access it online here.
SEX OFFENDER ORDINANCE
I mentioned this was coming in the last council update – it’s a type of ordinance that is becoming increasingly popular among cities as a way to lower the number of sex offenders residing in their city limits. In our case, this ordinance proposes a 1500 foot radius around places where children typically gather (parks, schools, etc.) – within which sex offenders where the victim is a child cannot live. A vote on this is part of the consent agenda.
ZONING CHANGES
We will hear a series of five public hearings requesting some sort of zoning change. The most significant of which involves a tract of land on the corner of Eagle and Bernard, just South of the UNT campus. There developers are hoping to put four stories of student housing with parking underneath. Eagle Drive is beginning to be transformed into higher density student housing. This brings about the possibility of encouraging more mixed use projects (similar to what we are about to see on the new Fry Street apartments) in order to bring Eagle Drive into a more pedestrian-friendly area.
Hope to see some of you out tonight!
Council Meeting Postscript – September 13, 2011
Yesterday’s meeting only consisted of a work session. No action items were on the agenda (meaning we were no voting on anything), therefore there was no need to hold a Regular Session. Typically, Regular Sessions are held the first and third Tuesdays of each month. The second Tuesday of each month is reserved for additional time to work through issues that are coming before the council for a vote at a later time. Here’s what might be of interest to you from yesterday…
MORE BUDGET FOR BIKES
I can’t be more punny than the Denton Record-Chronicle article about it this morning, City to pump up bike lane funding… The initial budget called for $50,000 for this year’s implementation of the yet-to-be-approved bike plan. Ever since budget discussions began, there has been an interest among some members of council to pull additional funds from the $333,000 fund that has been set aside for council initiatives this year. Because the bike plan has yet to be official approved and because many of the other items of interest vying for this money still need to be properly vetted, it has been our goal to move forward with an approval of the budget and leaving the allocation of this fund to a later date.
That all changed after last week’s organized push by the Denton bicycle community. Advocates of all ages showed up to the meeting to ask council for $250,000 in first year funding for the bike plan. In addition, a continual stream of letters and emails have made their way to council desks with the hope of continuing the momentum. The attention paid to this plan has caused even county officials to enter the discussion. This week, County Commissioners Hugh Coleman and Andy Eads suggested they might offer matching funds of up to $50,000 each for implementation of the bike plan. That provided strong justification for the council to add $50,000 to the original $50,000 in order to take advantage of this generous opportunity. That puts the total first year investment at $200,000. Instead of pushing for another $50,000 now, I thought it wise to wait until we officially review the bike plan. Because this issue will be coming to us soon, it will provide yet another opportunity to revisit the now $283,000 fund to see if it isn’t prudent to allocate even more than an additional $50,000 to the first year of the bike plan. Stay tuned…
Please take this opportunity to send a letter of thanks to these County Commissioners, Hugh Coleman and Andy Eads.
ROCKIN’ THE SUBURBS?
Planning Department head Mark Cunningham presented the council with some new ideas for a possible Planned Development ordinance to be part of the Denton Development Code. Planned Developments are typically used for larger tracts of land where the developer and city can (ideally) pursue superior and more creative projects by being freed from typical zoning constraints. The city has a history of attempting such ordinances in the past, only to abandon them after finding that the desired end was not achieved. This latest attempt is to define an ordinance that better meets these goals of higher quality development.
One of the most fascinating parts of the presentation were suggested “soft” requirements for Planned Developments that would seem to avoid the pitfalls of traditional suburban planning of the last several years. Mr. Cunningham suggested, among other things, that Planned Developments should be strongly encouraged to provide a mix of housing opportunities within them (to accommodate all levels of income), to provide a mix of educational, cultural, entertainment, and retail opportunities, and to meet a prescribed ratio of job opportunities for a variety of income levels within the development area. This move away from segmenting the city into use-based compartments is an intriguing concept – and certainly a necessary one to combat what is increasingly being understood as an unsustainable model. Our discussion on this was cut short and we’ll visit it again soon.
DME TRANSMISSION LINE MOVE
The council was updated on the progress of the controversial transmission line rebuild that will impact some neighborhoods in NE Denton. Despite a recent report in the Denton Record-Chronicle raising concerns that the council would be using a closed session to discuss these matters, the council ended up having no discussion on the matter beyond what was raised in the public work session forum. The goal is to introduce the preferred line by October 3. Keep an eye on the DME website for updated information on this.
Council Meeting Preview – September 6, 2011
I just might celebrate the recent cold front by overcompensating with a corduroy jacket at tonight’s meeting. The crisp air even has me contemplating the return of my beard. It just seems so unbecoming of a Denton City Council to be without bearded representation.
In any case, things start off with a Work Session at 3:30pm followed by the Regular Meeting at 6:30pm. Click here to see the full agenda. Here’s what you might be interested in…
BUDGET AND BIKES
We will hold the first of our Public Hearings for the 2011-12 Proposed Budget. If you haven’t yet taken a look at it, go here. I’d encourage you to take the time to read pages 17-41 to get a sense on where city money comes from and where it goes. It’s a great civics lesson.
By far the most talked about item on this year’s budget is a surplus of $333,676 that has been set aside for yet-to-be-determined City Council initiatives. Initially conceived to be $192,000, this fund has grown after sales tax revenue has shown a healthy increase. It is important to realize that the last couple of years have been difficult ones for the Denton city budget due to a weakened state and national economy, housing crisis, and subsequent low consumer confidence (which translates into less spending and less sales tax revenue for city budgets). What this means is that there are many good things to fund that have gone unfunded as of late. Here’s what the city council back-up material says about this fund:
Due to an increase in the sales tax forecast, staff increased the level of funding for Council initiatives from the proposed amount of $192,616 to $333,676. As discussed during the August 16th meeting, these funds can be used for additional street maintenance, the implementation of the bike plan, additional traffic signals, Denton County Transportation Authority (DCTA) downtown shuttle operating costs, or any other City Council priority. However, since exact cost information on these programs is not yet available, staff was directed to include these funds in the non-departmental budget for the General Fund. Once additional details are known, staff will bring these items back to the City Council for their consideration at that time.
What is important to note from this is that the City Council will likely NOT make a determination on the precise allotment from this fund before we approve the budget on September 20. Because many of these items require additional study (in fact, the bike plan has yet to be seen or approved by city council), the direction of the council up to this point, has been to hold off decisions on this fund until more information can be had.
I know many of you who are interested in using some or all of this fund for the initial implementation of the Bike Plan. In fact, citizen communication regarding this issue to the City Council has been undeniably greater than any other budget topic. From the perspective of pure democracy, a robust first year roll-out of the bike plan seems to be what Dentonites are most interested in. You should note that the current budget, apart from this council surplus fund, already recommends $50,000 for the plan in a way that would see this amount repeated in subsequent years. I expect much time spent during the public hearing on this topic alone.
THE AESTHETICS OF AN UNSUSTAINABLE TRANSPORTATION MODEL
Want to have a quick lesson in transportation economics? The Bike Plan just referred to is estimated to cost approximately $25,000 a mile to implement. At first glance, no doubt, that sounds like a lot of money. But consider the following…
- Consultants recently told the city of Denton that we need to invest at least $10 million dollars a year just to maintain the CURRENT condition of our quickly deteriorating roads.
- Texas is about to embark on the most costly road project in history in order to expand I35 for a mere 28 miles. With a total price tag of $4.4 billion, our addiction to cars, gas, and sprawl requires us to pay over $157 million a mile to widen a highway.
- And while most taxpayers expect to be able to drive on highways for free, the lack of revenue requires us to pay fares for much more financially and environmentally sustainable models of transportation, such as the recently-opened DCTA A-Train. Running along a similar corridor, the project cost only $313 million to build.
All this to say, council is being asked to comment on a TxDOT “Aesthetic Study” for this I35 expansion project. If I look disinterested in spending much time thinking through how to make a bad idea look pretty, this is why.
TO CATCH A PREDATOR – DENTON STYLE
We are being asked to consider a new ordinance that would make it illegal for convicted sex offenders to live within 1500 feet of a place where children frequently gather (schools, parks, etc.). Although city data shows that there are no records of Denton sex offenders “reoffending” at the expense of Denton children, there is regional data to suggest that such an ordinance may actually decrease the amount of sex offenders living in our town. Denton currently has 132 registered sex offenders, a number that has risen in recent years. We will look at the arguments for this new ordinance that is being adopted by many other cities around us.
MORE STUDENT APARTMENTS?
The creators of Midtown Apartments, the student housing complex that recently went up on the corner of Carroll and Eagle, are hoping to expand already. The new complex backs up to a series of single family homes fronting Cleveland Street. The owners of these homes have agreed to sell, but because of a difference in zoning categorization, the area must be rezoned in order to allow multi-family housing.
The last couple of years has seen a flurry in new student housing projects like this one. Enough to make many observers question whether or not Denton can sustain the quick influx. The city already has a significant apartment stock. No doubt there will be a “market” for the newest and hippest student housing option (gone are the days of roach pads, students nowadays demand all sorts of bells and whistles when it comes to apartments). But what does this momentum do to the existing apartment areas? What pressures does this bring to neighborhoods in the vicinity of our two universities as apartments want to move in? And what sort of product is being offered when we see these complexes built seemingly overnight?
That last question became all too relevant this weekend with the tragic accident at The Grove apartments on the corner of Carroll and I35. Many questions remain following that incident and I wouldn’t be surprised if you hear some of these surface at tonight’s meeting.
I continue to think that Denton should consider developing a comprehensive apartment policy to address these and other issues.
Reflections on the Closing of the Courthouse Lawn
The headline of today’s Denton Record-Chronicle announced a “closing time” for the beloved downtown Courthouse lawn in response to a summer-long rash of vandalism and micturition. The popular gathering place will now be closed between the hours of midnight and 6am, in hopes of curbing the destructive behavior. This is a decision reached by the Denton County Commissioners (not the city), as the courthouse is property owned by the county. As someone who lives blocks away from downtown, as someone who frequents that area later at night, and as the Denton City Council Member whose district includes the area surrounding the courthouse, I offer the following reflections.
The behavior this new rule is meant to address is clearly unacceptable. I sympathize with Denton County leaders and the courthouse caregivers who are struggling to find a solution to this problem.
Having said that, we must be very careful to understand just what is good about the downtown area and, in so doing, be careful to avoid regulations that will tend to chip away at that goodness. The downtown area has increasingly thrived in recent years precisely because of the sense of place that exists there. Much could be said about this, but here are a few highlights:
- The square area is built to human scale. The downtown buildings have been built with the needs and aesthetics of humans in mind, not the whims of a specific business or the requirements of a car-dependent culture. Compare the feel of downtown to the feel of Denton Crossing (Best Buy, etc.) to capture this distinction. The forthcoming “form-based code” set to be reviewed by city council will ensure that this scale and aesthetic is continued as new development happens.
- Business life on the square is diverse and time-staggered. The square is home to offices and businesses that are open during regular business hours. Then there are food establishments and retail spots that come alive late morning and keep the area alive past 5pm until around 10pm. Finally, the area’s music venues and bars start gearing about around 9 and 10pm and keep the downtown hopping just past the last call. A single day on the square sees many births and rebirths of activities and draws from a variety of demographics.
- The square is conducive to socializing. It fulfills what should be a basic political aim of all cities: bringing people together. The businesses provide the basic ingredients of community: caffeine, nicotine, alcohol, food, and commerce. The layout and open space of the area provide an opportunity for humans to interact outside of designated establishments. A table and chairs on a sidewalk outside a wine shop, for instance, effectively blurs the line between public and private space, thus continually drawing us into the public sphere.
It makes sense, therefore, that the courthouse lawn stands as the center of gravity for such a place. We are drawn to this area, almost instinctively. We want to take our ice cream there, we want to take our newly purchase bottle of wine there, we want to dig into the first chapter of the book we just bought at Recycled there, we want to share our coffee with a friend there, and we increasingly want to bring our music there as well. The life observed on the courthouse lawn throughout the day should be understood as a local renaissance of public life for our citizens. Humans were made for this and what we are seeing is beautiful.
As civic life increases in such an area, so do certain negative consequences such as litter, wear and tear, possibility for conflicts, and vandalism. Understanding these issues is an important step in discovering their solutions. County officials, business owners, the newspaper, and various citizens are all forwarding their own narrative of the situation. Unfortunately, most of what I have heard thus far are shallow attempts at cultural analysis built only on anecdotes, cliches, and stereotypes.
THE BLAME GAME
The local paper has helped forward the idea that the vandalism is the result of Denton’s thriving music scene, most of which is centered around the many venues in the downtown area. “This tagging is sometimes obscene and, police say, likely a direct result of the music scene migration from the Fry Street area to downtown,” writes Donna Felder in the opening paragraphs of a front page story on June 25. It’s the old “sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll” line. Perhaps the Psalms of Doug Burr, or the love struggles of Sarah Jaffe, or the occasional tribal rhythms of Seryn are contributing to the delinquency of permanent marker wielding minors. Perhaps something more philosophical is happening – I wrote a review of Midlake’s latest album in which I pointed to the dueling tendency toward both nihilism and love of life present in the lyrics of this great Denton band. Perhaps young listeners misunderstood the meaning of this tension, failed to see its resolution in a clear affirmation of life, and have subsequently taken to the courthouse to release their pent-up nihilistic angst following a hasty listening of this album. I doubt it. And it is irresponsible and unfortunate to pin the blame on an aspect of Denton culture that is enriching to civic life and continually puts us in the national and international media spotlight.
The bars and their late-night patrons are also an easy target of these amateur analyses. At a recent meeting on the subject a local pastor forwarded an account that seemed to come right out of West Side Story. “There are some bars on the square,” he said,” that have rivalries among their patrons. And when those bars close, the rivals often meet in the parking lot behind my church to fight.” Perhaps when the skinny-jeaned patrons of Hailey’s spill out at 2am and cross paths with the looser-legged cliental of the Loophole, tempers begin to flare, but probably not. Just in case, I offer this poetry…
Boy, boy, crazy boy, get cool boy.
Got a rocket in your pocket, keep cooly cool boy.
Don’t get hot cuz man you got some high times ahead.
Take it slow, and daddy-o you can die in bed.
At this same meeting, a police officer offered yet another theory: “You need to realize that as a liberal arts school, UNT has a really big art program – and students these days see this as art.” The statement was offered during a discussion of the various forms of graffiti or tagging that are showing up on downtown buildings. Consider the following two images that have been provided, again by our local paper, of this vandalism.
This one is from the June 8 Denton Record-Chronicle police blotter…
And this one from the June 25 front cover story on the subject…
Say what you will about the state or definition of art, but more than worrying about the reputation of their students as vandals, I suspect the faculty at UNT’s College of Visual Arts and Design would have greater concern that their students are suspected of creating art of this caliber.
The cumulative cultural analysis which has been offered amounts to something like this:
There exists a group of remedial UNT art students who have been wooed by the lyrics and rhythms of the Denton folk scene into embracing anarchy and leading lives of lawlessness. Their lame attempts at performance art, whereby they apparently reenact scenes from West Side Story in church parking lots after consuming too many Old Milwaukee’s at downtown bars, are being mistaken for full-fledged bar fights among rivaling gangs.
Needless to say, we should be careful about acting upon such hasty attempts at diagnosing problems.
At a time when the city of Denton is hoping to take advantage of a renaissance in urban living among a younger demographic, we should be careful when considering regulations that send a message to that same demographic (college students, young professionals who take part in the night life of the square, musicians and artists and those who enjoy their art, etc.) that they are suspected vandals.
To be clear, destructive, senseless, and criminal activity of this kind has no place on the downtown square. But we must avoid policies that might serve to turn back the momentum of community that is enjoyed by many who live in or visit the downtown area. Here are some other suggestions to consider…
- IT IS OUR RESPONSIBILITY – Those who enjoy the courthouse lawn as a prized public space should seek to take a greater sense of responsibility for its care. We’ve seen groups already emerge this last summer such as the Denton Square Clean Team who have committed to regularly clean up the trash on the courthouse lawn. We should also commit to taking it upon ourselves to confronting people when we see them engage in inappropriate behavior in our downtown area. It is a sad commentary when we have to resort to calling 911 in order to confront a marker-yielding teenager.
- MORE EYES, NOT LESS – Famed urban theorist, Jane Jacobs, is famous for pointing out that watching citizens are more conducive to safe streets than street lights. A 12am closing time on the Courthouse lawn will all but ensure that the responsible citizens will remove themselves from the area, leaving only those who have little respect for the law with no one to see them. Encouraging one or two 24 hour diners or coffee shops to bring a greater amount of life to the area may actually serve to curb the behavior of those who now can act under the cover of anonymity.
- INVEST IN BETTER LANDSCAPING – Ugly spots will be treated as such. It’s no secret that the landscape of the courthouse lawn is not up to par with the majesty of the building itself. The beds immediately surrounding the building have been neglected and are currently an assortment of patches of grass and the occasional drought tolerant bush. As such, they invite trash and mistreatment. Why not team up with local groups to adopt these areas and invest in some better landscaping. This will help us test the theory that beauty begets beauty.
- JUSTLY DISCRIMINATE – No doubt, closing the courthouse lawn at midnight makes it easier for law enforcement officers to move people along – they just get to move everyone along. Have we lost the ability to judge between a homeless guy with his 40 ounce of Bud Ice and a couple on a date sitting on a blanket enjoying a bottle of Pinot Noir? Common sense tells you which is more likely to defecate near the basement entrance to the courthouse. Can we not tell the difference between a group of college students congregating on the lawn after a concert at Hailey’s and a group of teenage post-punk, backpack wearing wanderers digging through the ashtrays looking for a used cigarette to recycle? Again, common sense tells you which is more likely to tag the courthouse with an anarchist symbol. Anyone who frequents the square at night can attest to these distinctions. Let’s find a way to train and empower our law enforcement officials to do so as well.
What do you think? Comment below…
Public Input Needed on Gas Drilling in Denton
Natural gas drilling ordinance revisions will soon be a topic for the City Council to discuss. In order to make sure that citizens are the ones shaping this important policy for Denton, there are several recent initiatives that you should be aware of…
The city has put together a new website designed to educate, answer questions, and update citizens on the upcoming drilling ordinance rewrite – check it out here. As part of the process, the city has organized a committee to help guide the development of policy. Three members of this committee are designated as citizen representatives. They will be hosting their first Public Meeting this next Thursday, August 25 from 6:30 to 8:30pm in the Civic Center in order to receive public input at the outset of this process. A Facebook page has been created to help promote this meeting – please pass around to your friends.
In order to ensure an even broader avenue for citizen input, an independent group of concerned citizens has emerged under the name, Denton Stakeholder Drilling Advisory Group. This group has come about as the result of collaborative discussions between me, UNT professors associated with the Center for the Study of Interdisciplinarity, and several engaged citizens. The purpose of this group is to fully engage the citizenry in a democratic discussion on this important topic and to work with the official city process to provide policy recommendations, developed after directed and purposeful deliberations done in a series of open and transparent meetings. If you are interested in becoming an official member of this group, please contact me or Dr. Adam Briggle.
To officially kick things off, this Advisory Group is hosting a panel discussion THIS MONDAY, August 22 at 8pm at the Environmental Building at UNT, featuring regional experts on municipal gas drilling policy. This event is free and open to the public. Here is a link to the Facebook event so that you can share with your friends. More info can be found on the flyer below…
