Hello Contact Team Representative! Happy Spring!
Please share the following 4 announcements with your networks!
Thanks
Margaret
Urban Forestry Board asks Residents for Input on Public Plan to Guide Management of Public Trees
Members of the Urban Forestry Board will be conducting an open house meeting to solicit the public’s input on the Comprehensive Urban Forest Plan. The plan is currently being developed and will guide the way the City manages trees on all public property. The Parks and Recreation Department’s Urban Forestry Program and other City departments are assisting with the development of this plan.
This meeting will allow the general public to comment on existing content and contribute new ideas. Members of the Urban Forestry Board and the Urban Forestry Program staff will be available for discussions.
The open-house meeting will be held on Wednesday, April 11, 2012 at the Northwest Recreation Center, located at 2913 Northland Drive (78757). The community is encouraged to attend anytime between 5:00pm to 8:00pm.
If you are unable to attend, you can still participate by providing feedback beginning Wednesday April 11th at Speak Up Austin! (https://austintexas.icanmakeitbetter.com/). The Comprehensive Urban Forest Management Plan will be located within the ‘Workbench’ category and is listed on the right hand side.
In addition, the community is encouraged to participate in an urban forest survey (www.austinurbanforestry.org) to share their perceptions, beliefs, and desires regarding the urban forest and the way it is managed. The results will be utilized by the Urban Forestry Board in making decisions about the Plan. This survey will close on April 18th.
The City of Austin is committed with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Reasonable modifications and equal access to communications will be provided upon request.
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Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP).
Dear Community Partner:
Healthy People are the Foundation of our Thriving Community and with that in mind, we are working with community stakeholders and partners to produce a Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP).
Attached to this message is a talking points tool that illustrates how facts and voices will build our CHA and CHIP. Together We Thrive presents a way for all of us to begin and continue learning about our community’s strengths, resources, opportunities, and capacity. Determining why some neighborhoods in our community are healthier than others can help us find ways to improve our community’s health and wellness.
We are conducting interviews, focus groups, and forums throughout the county and city. It is essential that the community’s voice is captured in Community Planning. In March and April, we will conduct interviews and focus groups with community leaders and residents throughout Austin and Travis County. We are hosting “My Health, My Voice” Forums throughout the county on the fourth Thursday of each month from February through September. Find dates and locations here: www.austintexas.gov/healthforum.
The next forum is scheduled for April 26, 2012, 6:00-8:00 p.m. in the Manor New Tech High School Cafeteria, 10232 Highway 290 East, Manor, TX 78653
As a valued community partner, we encourage you to help us spread the Together We Thrive message by sharing the attached One-Pager with your network. Also, join us at a health forum near you or contact us if you are interested in participating in a focus group.
With your help, we can build a stronger and prosperous community in which we all thrive. Together, we will do this.
Sincerely,
Shannon Jones
Deputy Director
Austin/Travis County Health and Human Services Department
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VIVA STREETS! SAVE the DATE!
A fun, new festival where a car-free street becomes your playground!
When: May 20th, 10am-3pm
Where: Sixth Street – car-free for 2 miles
(Brazos to Robert Martinez)
Join the energetic fun at VIVA STREETS! ¬ -- a free festival that invites you to bicycle, play, get fit, people watch, and celebrate good health. Everyone is welcome – bring friends, bring the family or your whole team or neighborhood. Connect with the community and celebrate Austin.
Enjoy the spectacle and be part of the show. Come equipped for your favorite activity – walking, biking, running, skateboarding, or inline skating – and then discover new ways to get your move on. Eat, drink and shop along the route. See you there!
VIVA STREETS! is a tobacco-free event.
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Proper Set Out of Trash and Recycling Containers
We need your help! Residents frequently set their trash and recycling carts too close together, causing operational issues for Austin Resource Recovery collection crews. Carts should be placed 5 feet apart and away from mailboxes, cars and other objects. Please help us spread the word to your neighbors, friends and family.
Why 5 feet apart?
The trucks that collect trash and recycling are equipped with automatic arms that pick up the carts. If carts are set too close together or too close to other objects, the drivers have to get out of their trucks to move the carts so the automatic arm can pick up the cart without bumping into or knocking over anything.
The crews can collect materials more safely and efficiently when your recycling cart, trash cart and yard trimmings are placed 5 feet apart from each other and from other objects like parked cars, mailboxes, etc.
What if I don’t have room to set my carts 5 feet apart? We understand that some areas won’t allow for this; simply set the carts as far apart as possible.
Other Important Collection Guidelines:
• Always place the handle of the cart toward your house.
• Your trash cart, recycling cart and yard trimmings must be placed at the curb by 6:30 a.m. on your collection day.
• Do not put recycling or yard trimmings in plastic bags. Plastic bags cannot be recycled in Single Stream Recycling and cannot be composted with yard trimmings.
• Help prevent litter by bagging your trash and allowing room for the cart lid to close.
• Extra bags of trash that do not fit in your trash cart with the lid closed must be placed next to the trash cart and tagged with an Extra Trash Sticker, which can be purchased at most local grocery stores ($4 + tax).
• Extra bags without a sticker will be charged a per-bag fee of $8 + tax.
• Do not put carts in the path of the mail truck or on top of a water meter.
For more information, visit austinrecycles.com.
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Margaret E. Valenti
Senior Neighborhood Planner
Contact Team and Education Coordinator
City of Austin
Planning & Development Review Department
505 Barton Springs Road, Austin Texas 78704
Please note: E-mail correspondence to and from the City of Austin is subject to open records requests
