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.