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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2007-07-27 Euless Articles / DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE tW I 4,-'' MAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY CRIM HENNIG MCKAMIE RIDGWAY(2) BOYETT BRO YOUNG McDONALD COLLINS C. BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN IjLIBRARYREF ANIMAL CNTR DATE DISTRIBUTED 1 I -7 /0 '7 DATE OF ARTICLE 7//s-R h s / 6 7 NEWSPAPE' ; , ... >4.) / FROM THE LOCAL LEADERSHIP I Tyson. Carl has served participated by their "sail over thirty years with boats."The library continues . - � volunteer service to Euless: to have educational, as well 1 . Many years were on the as entertaining,programs for ' ", Planning and Zoningall our citizens.Do check out Commission followed by the new garden reading area I years of service on the city at the library: ' ; , council.W hin3 well. Please plan to participate As-you can see there are with your Euless neighbors � �`� k , �f ,. many changes occurring in in welcoming the Troops at xF a ' ` -"" our city, but we all know the DFW Airport during the I Mayor Saleh that change can be good. week of August 20-26. This Euless We are working on our has been such a heartwarming THE T CITY OF Facilities Plan.and you will program that has been I E UL;E S S see some changes at Texas supported throughout Star Conference Centre, North Texas. Our city has How fortunate we are the Library and the Senior been a participant since the Ito have such lovely green Citizens Center within this beginning of the program, landscapes,lakes full ofwater next year. and we are so proud of all of and better ozone days. Did In the meantime, the you who have been there to I you know that with all the Public Works facility welcome our troops. rain we have had, it cleared located on Westpark Way Please read through up the air and we have had' and South Pipeline Road is the many activities listed the best ozone days in years? now completed. The Public in Euless Today and We welcome our two Works employees have; participate, but better still, ' waited a long, long time for VOLUNTEER our time newest council persons, Tim Stinneford and perry a home in Y Euless. Previously ,and talents. We have the emen they were located on Central best volunteers anywhere Bynum. Both gentl I have volunteered for Euless Drive in Bedford. and we always welcome for many years and decided The summer reading more. "TOGETHER WE to take the next step and program at the library is ARE MAKING CHANGES I volunteer full time. They are almost completed and I hope many of you FOR THE FUTURE OF eager to serve our community EULESS." and to get to know more of Program and enjoy joined the ed our I you. library this summer. If you locate the bulletin board in Sadly, we are saying farewell to our long serving the children's section you Icouncil person,Carl can see how many children DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE /OF / IVZAYOR CITYCNCL CITYATTNY CRIIVI HENNIG h1CKAhIIE RIDGlVAY(2) BOYETT BROWN YOLJNG iMcDONA LD COLLINS C. BARKER GE TCHELL LIBR.4RY ADMIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR DATEDISTRIBUTED 7 ) 2 7 / e7 DATEOFARTICLE 7 121 107 NEWSPAPER FCVST DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE /OF l 1 I MAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY CRIM HENNIG MCKAMIE RIDGWAY(2) BOYETT BROWN YOUNG McDONALD COLLINS/I C.BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR DATE DISTRIBUTED —7 I a 7 0 -3 DATE OF ARTICLE 7 l a 3 l U NEWSPAPER FWST Promotions Getchell- Rodriquez Gary McKamie has been named Euless city manager. Other promotions: Loretta Getchell,to deputy city:man- ager;and Vicki Rodriquez to finance director. I I I I 1 1 1 I I 1 I • DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE OF MAYOR CITY CNCL CITY ATTNY CRIM HENNIG MCKAMIE RIDGWAY(2) BOYETT BROWN YOUNG McDONALD COLLINS C.BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARYADMIN LIBRARYREF ANIMAL CNTR I DATE DISTRIBUTED -7 / 7 /[� 7 DATE OF ARTICLE 7/� l v NEWSPAPER FWST Afterear slop dispute, .ngY g apartment rabegins UPDATE I EULESS I 8 111.- .i: - ' . '.4r" '... . . I�.._ IrffiY� ��� CVe �s ' .g4., air 4,-,•. ,•..k-.',-...-•.,•i,,,:,,,,-,,-i y. a d.1° ,' taww tea a.� - I A truck is loaded with debris from the Dickey Apartments on Tuesday.The demoli•ti•on of the complex and asbestos treatment are expected to cost Euless over$107,000. SPECIAL TO THE 5-T/BRIAN LAWDERMILK The Dickey Apartments The demolition is expect- "Hindsight is 20/20," Ro- she said. "We just felt like we did not meet city code and ed to be completed byAugust, mine said."We thought it'd be had to do something." I zoning regulations._ said Mike Collins, city plan fine.We had no idea it would ,..' Problems included unsafe Hing and development d rec- be as big as it was." handrails and peeling g paint, By JESSICA DeLE6N tor. • For a few years, the com cityofficials said. The land I jdeleon@star-telegram.com Last Monday, neighbors plex looked nice, Romine was also zoned single-family EULESS—Fern Romine, 74, watched under a tree as crews said.But then it started going residential, and the issue remembers When Dickey began.removing asbestos and downhill:. went to courtin 2003.The city Apartments was the spiffy razed two of the complex s Police cars were there con- forced tenants out that same ' new complex in her neigh- three buildings. stantly,Girouard said.Motor yeas providing them with borhood decades ago. You dont realise what anfists had to watch out for money to relocate. Last week,she was thrilled eyesore they were until they're youngsters who frequently In May, the state District after construction crews de gone,"said Barbara Girouard, ranacross the street. The Court authorized the city to I molished one of the'run 63• apartments weren't painted proceed with the demolition. down buildings. or modernized,she said. "It's a big pile of rubble," Code violations After a 1995 fire, the city A kind heart = I she said. Romine,who has lived in Eu- discovered safety problems, Dickey Apartments owner The city had fought for less for 44 years, said she Mayor Mary Lib Saleh said. Steve Overton, died in 2005. years to tear down the vacant, signed a petition in the late The owners had accumulated Friends told the Star Tele 36 unit complex on Dickey 1960s that asked residents' code infractions every week gram that Overton hada kind , Drive, south of Texas 10, be permission to build the com- "and it got worse and worse," heart, providing a food bank cause it did not meet city code plex.The land was annexed in for his low-income tenants, and zoning regulations. the early 1970s. using groceries that were about to expire. I DISTRIBUTED TO: PA, -- 2'0. 2 MAYOR CITYCNCL CITYATTNY CRIM HENNIG hICKAMIE RIDGIVAY(2) BOYETT BROFVN YOUNG n/lcDOlV,4 LD COLLINS C. BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL C'VTR DATE DISTRIBUTED 7 /A 7 / 0 DATE OFARTICLE 7 / 2 3 / NEIVSPAPER FCVST He accepted residents with poor credit, government housing subsidies and crimi- nal records. In 2003, the complex charged $140 a week for one- bedroom units and $155 a week for two-bedroom units. "He was trying to helppeo- ple having a hard times mak- ing ends meet," his brother, Randy Overton, said. The property will remain in the hands of the ~verton family Collins said that the family is responsible for the costs for the asbestos remov- al, demolition and related clean-up and that the city wiU file a lien against the property to recover expenses. The as- bestos treatment and demoli- tion are expected to cost more than $107,000. 'Rt this point, we really don't know what we're going to do," Overton said. Romine would like to see condominiums or town hous- es built in the complex's place. She hopes it becomes a first step in revitalizing south Eu- less. Saleh noted that a nearby patch onTexas 10 is zoned for stores. "There are a lot of pos- sibilities," she said. Girouard would like to see single-family homes. "No more apartments," she said. She's grateful the buildings will hally be gone. "I was beginning to doubt it," Girouard said. "I think ev- erybody in the neighborhood is glad." This report ~ncludes material from the Star-Telegram archives. Timeline 1972 The city annexed the complex from Fort Worth and designated it as nonconforming because it did not meet zoning regulations. 1995 The city threatened to close down the apartments because owner Steven Overton refused to get a landlord's license and clean the yard. The city and Overton reached an agreement that allowed the complex to stay open. Later that year, an accidental fire destroyed several units. 2001 The Euless Zoning Board of Adjustment ruled that Overton must demolish the complex by 2003 because the apartments were in an area zoned as single-family residen- tial. Cities can ask for a nonconforming property to be closed or demolished after the owner recoups his invest- ment. The city said Overton had recouped his $349,049 cost. 2003 Overton sued the city, saying the order for demolition violated due process and discriminated against the residents because many of them had poor credit and criminal back- grounds. The state and federal courts ruled in the city's favor. Tenants were forced to move from the complex, with the city providing financial assistance. 2005 Overton, 59, died of natural causes. 2007 In January, the city filed suit in state District Court to enforce a Zoning Board of Adjustment order to demolish the complex In May, the court ruled in the city's favor and au- thorized the city to proceed with carrying out the board's ruling and putting on the lien for expenses. The court also awarded the city $282,000 in civil damages and $7,090 in attorney's fees. JESSICA DELE~N, 81768M937 DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE / OF 1 iWYOR CITYCNCL CITYATTNY CRIiPl HENNIG MCKAkIIE RIDGIYAY(2) BOYETT BROWN YOUNG k1cDONALD COLLINS C. BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARYADMIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR SHLACHTER, PEROTIN, FUQUAY & CO. GMNG IN HIS OWN QUIET, WAY Gary Terry is retiring from AT&T after 32 years with the phone company. He has given a $1 million cere- monial check to Ramona Bass of the famously wealthy Fort Worth familv, but vou won't .. find Gary Terry on the AT&T - known as SBC for list of most of those years - Terry has worked with almost any ans. community organization you 'Terry is can imagine in Tarrant Coun- the regional ty. Terry vice presi- His volunteer duties take dent of exter- up more than a page, but the nal affairs for AT&T - the he may be best known for his public face of the phone com- work with the American Heart pany for such philanthropic Association. endeavors as backing the Tex- He made frequent trips to as Wild! exhibit at the Fort ust tin to workwith Sen. Jane Worth Zoo, a Bass favorite. Nelson, R-Lewisville, to get a Now after 32 years with the law passed that requires he& company, he6 retiring next defibrillators in airports. Soon month. after, in 2001, he had a heart In addition to being the&- attack in the Austin airport, cal man waving,the flag&Ur and a defibrillator saved his life. Terry has since spoken of- ten to community groups about that moment, and he brings the airport security tape to show what happened. The Vietnam veteran who was wounded twice will be honored at an invitation-only reception at Texas Star Golf Course and Conference Cen- ter in Euless, Holly Reed, a se- nior vice president of external affairs for AT&T, told reporter David Wethe. And there's a good reason why it's private, she said. He's popular. "If he opened it to the pub- lic, half of Fort Worth would be there," Reed said. DISTRIBUTED TO: PA GE klA YOR CITY CNCL CITY A TTNY GRIM HENNIC iMCKAi11IE RIDGFVA Y(2) BOYETT BROWN YOUNG McDONALD COLLINS C. BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARYADkfIN LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR DATE DISTRIBUTED 7 /a /o DATE OFARTICLE 7 /a4 /o 7 NEFVSPf4PER F CVS T PROPERTY VALUES Keller "big ,I gain 'lt had the largest ,'fercentage increase in ;property values this year in 'Northeast Tarrant County. 1- (4 (By KATHERINE CROMER BROCK !kromer@star-telegram com IPYoperty values in Tarrant County increased 8.6 percent 'from last year's taxable values, a jump of about $9 billion, ac- cording to certified tax rolls re- leased Wednesday by the Tar- rant Appraisal District. No city or school district in the county saw a decrease, thanks to new construction and expansion of natural gas drilling. Westworth Village had the largest increase in the county, with a jump of 65.8 percent. Last year, the city added a Wal- Mart, a Sam's Club and a hous- ing development. Pelican Bay saw the smallest increase: 0.9 percent. The Keller school district, one of the fastest-growing in the state, had a 12.8 percent increase over last year, the largest jump of all taxing enti- ties in Northeast Tarrant County. Southlake was next, with a 12 percent increase, fol- lowed by the Carroll school district (11.5 percent) and the city of Keller (1 1.3 percent). Kevin Lahner, Keller's inter- im city manager, attributed most of the increase to new construction. Property values in the Grapevine-Colleydle school district rose 10.2 percent over last year. In May, the appraisal district's preliminary values indicated that the district would see a 7.3 percent in- crease. Chief Financial Officer Hank Johnson said the differ- ence in projected and actual values was. caused by more than $2 billion in appraisals that were under protest but have now been settled. The city of Haslet's prelirni- nary increase was 18.2 per- cent, the second-highest in the county. But when the tax roll was certified, it realized only a 7.1 percent jump. It was unclear Wednesday what caused the difference. Mineral values ffom gas drilling have held up, said John R. Marshall, the appraisal district's chief appraiser. But Haslet, which has about 1,400 residents, has some ware- houses and large businesses. changes in inventory or a sin- gle business making changes could have caused a decrease in values in the small comrnu- nity, he said. Tarrant County property values Staff writers Sarah Bahari, ~drienne Nettles and Bill Teeter contributed to this report, which includes material from Star-Telegram archives. ' KATHERINE CROMER BROCK, 81 7-685-381 3 WhiteSettlement ISD $1 2 biltron $1.3 b~ifion 1 3.6% Tarrant Co ~nty $106 b1111on 5' 15 b~ll~on 8 6% 5aurce.TarramnppraiMlDlslrlct .September ZCOSfinal tar rail "July 25,2C07,prel1~1m'ym roll ''"Calculated usmg raw figures DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE / OF2 M,4 YOR CITY CNCL CITY A TTNY CRIM HEIVIVIG MCKAMIE RIDGWA Y(2) BOYETT BROMV YOUNG McDONA LD COLLINS BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARYADhlIiV LIBRARY REF ANIMAL CNTR DATE DISTRIBUTED 7 1.7 7/0 7 M TE OF ARTlCLE 7 107 6 /o NEWSPAPER DMN PROPERTY VALUES TARRANT COUNTY Percent 2006 2007 Change County total $100,671,554,866 $111,143,898,682 10.4% -- - - CITIES Arhngton $16,039,580,069 $17,049,845,220 6.3% Azle $533,308,737 $603,810,880 13.2% Bedford $2,797,116,284 82,913,981,116 4,256 Ben brook . $1,113,194,478 $1,254,967,505 12.7% Blue Mound $67,988,896 $76,568,364 12.6% Colleyville $2,993,610,918 $3,290,686,584 9.9% Crow ley $525,192,694 $608,923,988 15.9% Dal. Gardens $262,141,413 $281,130,892 7 2% Edgecliff Vill. $152,451,159 $171,927,469 12.8% Euless 32,349,723,469 $2,560,447,082 9.0% Everman $136,941,073 $145,859,190 5.0% Forest Hill $347,528,714 $375,860,035 8.2% Fort Worth $32,253,676,189 $36,426,214,376 : 12.9% Grapevine $5,230,966,070 $5,815,838,701 11.2% Haltom City ' ' $1,411,814,650 8'1,534,833,393 ' ' 8.7% Haslet $432,336,676 $457,514,811 5.8% Hurst . $2,097,027,440 $2.242,354,469 r. 69% Keller $3,104,679,120 $3,498,540,342 12.7% Kennedale $365,947,888 $424,059,674 % 15.9% Lake Worth $334,379,609 Lakeside $82,887,362 Mansfield $3,306,962,180 $3,725,148,265 12.6% North Richland $3,287,429,496 $3,489,100,483 ' 6.3% Hills *' . . P Pantego $215,346,554 , $237,326,786 10.2% Pelican Bay- , $24,697,137 $24,367,372 -1.3% R~chland H~lls $390,127,216 $420,543,411 7.8% R~ver Oaks $210,453,500 , $221,179,618 5.1%. . , Saginaw Sansom Park '' . , . ., Southlake ,,: ,. ' .. Tatauga ;' : Westover Hills Westworth $86,022,780 6,462 62.6% Village White $514,906,449 $558,580,099 8.5% Settlement SCHOOL DISTRICTS Arlington 818,435,036,951 $19,609,576,997 6.4% Azle $1,606,707,153 $1,896,408,024 18.0% Birdville $6,438,827,047 $6,909,803,027 7.3% Carroll $4,131,022,751 34,647,397,725 12.5% Castleberry $435,308,545 $477,763,494 9.8% Crowley $3,799,727,148 $4,259,664,022 12.1% Eagle Mtrj- $4,714,767,981 $5,455,200279 '1 15.7% Sag~naw Everman $793,561,256 $945,508,187 19.1% , ,. " ,; Fort Worth 8$0,977,843,921 $23,371,466,901 11.4% Grapevine- $8,866,119,049 $9,926,936,945 12.0% .Colleyv~lle W-E-B ' ' ' $736,02,204.494 $7,994;121,345 ' 5.2% Keller - $8,182,531,434 $9,264,040,801 13.2% Kennedale $812,758,185 $898,772,440 10.6% Lake Worth $609,462,222 $702,376,352 15.2% Mansfield $6,664,503,281 $7,680,305,018 15.2% White $600,929,229 $1,295,518,397 115.6% Settlement . SPECIAL DISTRICTS ' College District $101,119,527,297 $111,675762,742 10.4% R-0-W ~istrfct "'$100.133,314.264 $110,668,933,862 10.5% '.% Emer. Serv~ces . $3,755,570,706 $4,352,615,192 15.9% Dist-1 Regional water 834,653,888,298 $38,720,235,209 11.7% District DISTRIBUTED TO: PAGE 4 OF 2 MA YOR CITY CNCL CITY A TTNY Ch'JikJ HENNIG MCK~IMIE RJDGCVA Y(2) BO YE TT BROCVN YO LING I)IcDONA L D COLLINS C. BARKER GETCHELL LIBRARY ADMIIV LIBRARY REF ANII)IA L CNTR 'Emant county Tarrant County's growth con- tinues to spread, particularly along its borders. The northern, western and southern edges, where there is "Real estate mns'in cycles: Mr. plenty of undeveloped land, have Marshall Said. weke had up years led the way. since 2000." -. Fort Worth is a dominant force The growthin gas drilli' ng in the in the growth of the county's prop- Barnett Shale in Tmant County added nearly $250 million in new ertyvalues. The I3 percent increase values That per- in its tax base is more in line with a cent significantlylow- fast-growing suburb than a city of nearly700,OOO. er than in past years, when the to- tals doubled annually. The faskst-gowing large city Some cities and sc~ool districts in the nation added about $4.2 bil- even reported decreases in the lion in new value, which is greater mineral values. The mineral values than entire value of the for the city of Saginaw droppeh by Mansfield nearly two-thirds to ab'out John Marshall, Tarrant Coun- $530,000. ty's chief appraiser, said residential That was also the case in Den- and ton County, where preGOw wind- along the Interstate 35W corridor fA in tax revenue hm gas dril- in North Fort Worth continued to lingebbedthisyear. Mineraldbes the increases. However, he were down by about $1 billion, said !?TOwth in the 'Or- RodyDurham, the county's deputy ner of the city was also strong. chief appraiser. He said Fort Worth's aggressive mat was a of no has Paid off Mling, the depletion of what was richly. there and the price of [natural] gas The local economylooks strong, going down,,, he said. he said, but there are a few signs of a slowdown. He said there were 17,200 single-family home per- mits issued countywide in 2005, and that dropped to 13,000 last year.