Frisco City Council notes — 1/6/09

by Jeff Cheney of Blogging Frisco

The first meeting of the new year certainly brought some exciting change. We are exciting to unveil the launch of our new online webcasts. You can now watch the City Council meetings live from the comfort of your own home. In addition, you will be able to access past meetings by simply clicking on the topic of interest and the video will jump to that item. This will bring a new era to how we communicate to our residents and help us bring local government closer to you. You can see this meeting at this link. I want to thank our IT and Communications Department for all of their hard work over the last year in getting this system implemented.

As I mentioned in a previous post, Shelley Holly was formally introduced as the new Library Director. In her report, she stated she expects an increase in library usage because of the economy. She feels that residents will seek out more free programming and low to no cost entertainment as they watch their budgets. If you are not yet a member, you can get your library card online at the City site. In February, the annual spelling bee contest is being replaced with a Trivia Bee. Teams can be formed with up to 8 participants. If you are good at trivia, now is your chance to show that knowledge and pick up the ultimate bragging rights!

The City of Frisco was recognized as a National Award Winner for outstanding participation in the “25th Annual National Night Out” crime, drug, and prevention program. This not only included the neighborhood parties, but also other porgramming such as the Battle of the Badges blood drive, the Police vs. Fire basketball game, and a Health and Safety Fair. This year was the largest # of parties ever hosted in Frisco. We placed #4 in the country for out city size compared to #9 last year. Congratulations to the Police and Fire and all others involved for another successful year.

Council unanimously approved a Memorandum of Understanding between Frisco and McKinney to provide temporary Frisco Fire/EMS response in a temporary fire district in western McKinney. This area is within the Frisco ISD zone and currently can be more efficiently managed by our departments, as opposed to McKinney’s. It is common for cities to work together to share services and a good policy to be a good neighbor. As Chief Bochardt eloquently said, if Frisco’s Department is able to get to someone faster than McKinney, we would rather take that responsibility regardless of their address. As McKinney’s infrastructure continues to grow, they will eventually take back this area of coverage.

A few other points from the meeting:

* The discussion of the Municipal Storm Water Utility System Fee Schedule that was tabled last week was tabled again until the 2nd January meeting. Staff needed additional time to prepare revised estimates.

* Parks and Rec two February events including the Daddy-Daughter Dance and the Trick-A-Trout fishing event at Frisco Commons Park

* Mr. Bobby Baggette was named to the vacant “At-Large” seat on the Arts of Collin County Commission