May 2015 City Connection
CITY
CONNECTION
Volume 11, Issue 8
May 2015
Calendar
May 2015
5 - City Council workshop at 4:30 p.m. -
meeting at 6 p.m.
6 - Yard Waste Trimming Collection
7 - Planning & Zoning Commission -
City Hall at 12:00 p.m. (noon)
13 - Heavy Trash & Large Yard Waste
19 - City Council Meeting at 6:00 p.m.
20 - Yard Waste Trimming Collection
21 - Planning & Zoning Commission -
City Hall at 5:30 p.m.
25 - City closed for Memorial Day
27 - Heavy Trash & Large Yard Waste
June 2015
2 - City Council Meeting at 6:00 p.m.
3 - Yard Waste Trimming Collection
4 - Planning & Zoning Commission -
City Hall at 12 p.m. (noon)
10 - Heavy Trash & Large Yard Waste
16 - City Council Meeting at 6:00 p.m.
17 - Yard Waste Trimming Collection
18 - Planning & Zoning Commission -
City Hall at 5:30 p.m.
24 - Heavy Trash & Large Yard Waste
Submit requests for Heavy Trash pick-up
before noon on Monday, the week of the pick-up
at 294-5796.
Learn more about
City events at
www.huntsvilletx.gov
Sign up for our digital newsletter,
“This Week in Huntsville!”
The City’s new bi-monthly, digital newsletter is really taking off, with new residents
signing up and new features to keep everyone informed. Never miss an event
again - sign up for your free This Week in Huntsville newsletter!
Did you notice the disaster preparedness kit special issue on our Web site? Check
it out! To subscribe, log onto the City’s Web site, www.huntsvilletx.gov, click “e-
news Subscriptions” on the left-hand side of the page, enter your email address
and select “This Week in Huntsville.” You’ll automatically receive a free, digital
newsletter twice each month!
Mayors and Councilmembers not only see to the health, safety, and wel-
fare of the community through the actions they take at Council meetings,
but also fulfill ceremonial duties. The most common of these are attend-
ing social functions as representatives of the City, giving welcome ad-
dresses at gatherings or events, and presenting proclamations for special
days, weeks, or months of recognition.
Spring is an especially busy time for proclamations, as many national or-
ganizations and initiatives are acknowledged, such as National Tourism
Week, Municipal Clerks Week, and Hurricane Awareness Week, to name a
few. Additionally, local groups hold public and private events such as the
Relay for Life of Walker County and SHSU or Denim Day at SAAFE House,
to which they invite local leaders to attend and often deliver proclama-
tions.
On April 15, 2015, the City of Huntsville proclaimed National Library Week,
encouraging all citizens to take advantage of the opportunities that librar-
ies offer. As stated in the proclamation, libraries create potential and pos-
sibility within the community, effect social change through their commit-
ment to provide equitable access to information for all library users, and
open up a world of new resources for individuals throughout.
National Library Week supports more than the resources made available
for use, it also supports librarians and patrons of the public libraries within
the community. Councilmember Tish Humphrey had the honor of not only
presenting the proclamation, but also reading a short story to the children
of Huntsville. Be sure to visit the Huntsville Public Library soon, to see
what all the proclaiming is about!
National Library Week Recognized
“Being a part of National Li-
brary Week was beyond inspir-
ing,” said Councilmember Tish
Humphrey. “We have an amaz-
ing library here in Huntsville
and it’s great to see that so
many young children and
adults are utilizing their re-
sources and taking advantage
of learning opportunities.”
Did you know there are twenty different ways to properly retire the United States flag,
and only one correct way to retire the Texas flag? Did you know it is bad form to talk
about destroying a Texas or United States flag, and that the correct terminology is to
retire a flag? Local Boy Scout Matthew Fields does, and as part of his Eagle project,
he’d like to help you learn about this as well.
Matthew’s father Chuck Fields is also interested in the correct handling of flag dis-
posal, and has been an ongoing instructor for local Boy Scouts in correct protocol.
Last year, Matthew constructed Flag Deposit boxes and placed them at City Hall and
the Walker County Courthouse to provide easy drop-off locations for local residents
who have flags that are due for retirement.
“Just put it in the box,” Matthew said, “we will pick up year -round from both loca-
tions, and store the flags until we have our annual ceremony in October.”
Each fall the Fields host a camporee, and alternate retirement of United States and
Texas flags, as Chuck Fields said the two should not be handled at the same time.
"You never retire the Texas and U.S. flags in the same ceremony,” Mr. Fields also
informed us. “Each deserves its own time for respect. This year we’re retiring Texas
flags.”
Matthew said learning about the process and how to correctly handle the flags in all
situations has been really interesting for him, especially hearing the stories about
flag history.
The Fields welcome those who are interested in knowing more or would like to at-
tend this year’s retirement to contact them at vipercf1213@yahoo.com, and, of
course, to continue to use the flag deposit boxes year-round.
Heavy Trash Fee/Yard Waste Changes
Went Into Effect April 3, 2015
On February 3, the City Council conducted a second reading and adopted the City’s updated
guidelines for heavy trash pick up charges and yard waste bagging requirements (fee sched-
ule changes for Solid Waste were approved on January 20).
Heavy Trash Pick Up
Effective April 3, 2015, customers who call in for Heavy Trash Pick Up Service will have a
$25.00 charge added to their City of Huntsville utility account bill each time the service is
used.
This service is for residential customers only with an active utility account and a call-in is
required. Requestors call 936-294-5796 to leave information on the voice mail in order to
be added to the pick up list. They must leave a name, service address, account number,
contact number, and a description of the item or items to be picked up.
Heavy Trash Pick Up Service is for furniture, appliances, piles of brush not to exceed 4 feet
high, 10 feet in length, and 5 feet in depth, or limbs no larger than 12 inches in diameter
and cut to 5 feet in length.
Yard Waste
Beginning April 3, plastic yard waste bags at the street’s edge will no longer be collected.
Yard waste must be placed at the street’s edge for pick up in one of the following acceptable
manners:
- In paper compostable yard bags which can be purchased from local retailers
- In personal trash cans not to exceed 30 gallons
- Limbs no larger than 4 inches in diameter, cut to four feet in length, must be tied securely
in bundles no larger than 2 feet in diameter, and not weigh more than 50 pounds
For more information and specifics, please go to the City of Huntsville web page under De-
partments/Public Works/Solid Waste/Recycling. Citizens are also welcome to contact the
office at (936) 294-5724 or eherklotz@huntsvilletx.gov.
Hurricane season is just around the corner,
and the City of Huntsville is working to make
sure residents have all the information they
need to prepare their families, homes and
pets for the potential severe weather ahead.
According to John Waldo, Emergency Man-
agement Coordinator, a critical source for
weather preparedness is the Texas Division
of Emergency Management (TDEM) page,
part of the Texas Department of Public Safe-
ty Web site.
“The Texas Division of Emergency Manage-
ment provides extremely valuable infor-
mation for families who are in the process
of preparing for severe weather,” Waldo
said. “From their web page,
http://www.txdps.state.tx.us/dem/, all visi-
tors have to do is click on the ‘Public Infor-
mation & Education’ link, and they’ll be
taken to all the preparedness tips, supply kit
checklists and safety information they’ll
need to get through Hurricane Season.”
The TDEM Web site includes awareness
information on wildfires, severe weather,
flood safety, hurricane and post-storm pre-
paredness, lighting safety and more.
On the Hurricane Preparedness page, read-
ers will find information for evacuation plan-
ning, storm watch and warning articles, and
post-storm information concerning power
outages, debris removal and applications
for financial assistance.
“Since Hurricane Season officially begins on
June 1st, I would recommend starting to
read through the preparedness documents
and gather the supplies you need in ad-
vance,” said Waldo. “Many of the items
which are recommended for an emergency
supply kit are either already in your home or
can be purchased inexpensively.”
John Waldo can be reached at 936-291-
5945.
Proper Retirement of Flags
Stay
Informed!
HPL Events for May!
Regular events
- Story Time is fun and exciting and held every Wednesday morning at 10:45 a.m. Each week we read stories, sing songs
and make a craft that follows the theme of the week.
- Delightful Doodlers is an informal craft period for preschoolers every Monday at 11:00 a.m. Take some time out, let the
children make a super cute craft, and then stay a little bit and play with friends.
- Krafty Kids is a lively and enjoyable craft time for elementary students. We meet every Friday at 4:00 p.m. in the Chil-
dren’s Room.
- Read With The Dogs is an excellent program that helps children who experience anxiety when reading out loud or in a
group setting. The dogs are trained and friendly, and make excellent reading companions. Read With The Dogs takes
place on the third Monday of every month and registration is required.
- The Huntsville Public Library’s Lego Club is held the third Tuesday of every month. The Lego Club meets for approximately
45 minutes and is for ages 5-12. We have icebreaker activities, group work, and show and tell time, and the library pro-
vides all materials. At this time registration is not required but highly recommended. For more information, contact Chil-
dren’s Coordinator, Kristi Glasgow at 291-5910.
- Family Movie Night will be held on Friday, May 8, and Friday, June 12 at 5:30 p.m. The movie night is sponsored by Texas
Children’s Health Plan. All movies are rated G or PG. Complimentary popcorn and drinks are served at all movies. For
more information call the library at 291-5472.
- The Teen Department will host a Teen 3-D Art Activity on Thursday, May 28 at 4:30 p.m. and will have more events
throughout the summer. For more information about this activity please contact Ashley Newsome at 291-5472.
- Family Story Time is the fourth Thursday of every month. We will have a couple of stories, a bedtime snack, and a craft.
This Children are encouraged to wear pajamas and bring a pillow.
Mark your calendars! Summer Events Coming Soon!
- Teen Computer Classes will be held every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday from June 9 -July 16 from 4:00-6:00 p.m.
- Summer Reading Program, Every Hero Has a Story - sign up on Saturday, June 13 at 12:30 p.m. - for ages 0-13
- Superhero Craft Activity - will be June 23, July 7, & July 24 at 3.30 p.m.
- Read for Chocolate - Summer Reading Program for those aged 14-114 begins Monday, June 15th
- Texas Mime Program with Mitch Corley - Tuesday, June 16 at 10:30 a.m. - All ages are welcome.
The Huntsville Public Library Children’s Department would like
to thank all of their sponsors for the 2015 Summer Reading
Program donations. If you would like to donate prizes for the
program, please contact Children’s Coordinator, Kristi Glas-
gow at 291-5910. Donors are still being welcomed through
the dates of the program, but here’s a special thank you to
those who have donated at the time of printing:
#1 Nails * 3 Spoons * Amber Van Roekel, Independ-
ent Scentsy Consultant * Chili’s * Cinestar of Hunts-
ville * City of Huntsville Frank D. “Poncho” Roberts
Aquatic Center * Dairy Queen * DoubleDave’s Piz-
zaworks * Ellen Trout Zoo * Golden Corral * Hunts-
ville Kiwanis Club * Huntsville Lanes * IHOP * Los
Pericos Mexican Restaurant * McDonald’s * McKen-
zie’s Barbeque & Burgers * Olive Garden Italian
Kitchen * Pita Pit * Smoothie King * Sonic * Star-
bucks * Taco Bell * Target * Taylor Nails * Walmart *