Mark your calendar as the Sci-Tech Discovery Center holds a Jack-o-Lantern Launch from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Nov. 2. Folks are invited to donate their used pumpkins to science so they can be catapulted into a nearby field. Families who donate a pumpkin will receive a ticket for free admission to Sci-Tech Discovery Center (limit two tickets per family or group). (Photo by David Minton/Denton Record-Chronicle)
The Frisco City Council voted 4-to-1 Tuesday to approve a specific use permit for a child care facility on property west of Legacy Drive off Warren Parkway. Several residents who are part of a coalition of nearby residents called Protect Our Legacy spoke in opposition to the project. Some cited overall concerns about the surrounding commercial development. Others had concerns about increased traffic congestion in the area, the day care’s proximity to a planned RaceTrac gas station and concerns about the site’s grading. Council members had a lengthy discussion and tried to address some of the concerns. The day care complied with all city codes and regulations, according to city officials. Tuesday’s vote requires city staff to prepare an ordinance, so the permit will come back to the council for a second vote at another meeting. View the video of the discussion at the City Council meeting here.
The Frisco Community Development Corporation will hold two public hearings on Thursday on upcoming projects. The first public hearing will be on the $25 million the entity plans to spend as part of its participation in the agreement with the Dallas Cowboys to build an indoor practice facility and special events center on land the CDC owns at Warren Parkway and the Dallas North Tollway. The second public hearing will be on a matching contribution of up to $100,000 for display track at the Museum of the American Railroad. The meeting starts at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at Frisco city hall. Click here for the full agenda.
The city council on Tuesday also approved hiring M. Arthur Gensler Jr. & Associates Inc. as the architect for the Dallas Cowboys indoor training facility and special events center. The vote was part of the council’s consent agenda, which includes other routine items, so there was no discussion about the firm.
The council also reaffirmed on Tuesday the appointment of David Porter to serve on the Frisco Economic Development Corporation. Council member Tim Nelson requested the appointment be revisited Tuesday, saying he made an error in voting for Porter at the Sept. 17 meeting. Nelson said he learned after the council vote that Porter had reached his term limit on the board. Nelson said he believed term limits were a good thing. Without Nelson’s vote, Porter would not have been appointed, so Nelson wanted to acknowledge his error and discuss what could be done. Nelson and others at the meeting made it clear that Porter did nothing wrong. And while the discussion veered into support for Porter, the problematic process the council uses for board appointments and other issues, Frisco Chamber of Commerce president Tony Felker told the council that the only issue it had to decide was whether a council member could change a vote after the fact and what precedent that might set for future issues. Rather than vote on that, the council simply voted to reaffirm Porter’s appointment. Watch the video of the meeting for the full discussion.
Frisco ISD’s Early Childhood School will hold a Fun Run from 6 to 7 p.m. today for its students. Frisco High School cross-country athletes will be helping out. Preschool age children (ages 3 to 5) and their families in the Frisco ISD area are invited to participate. The event will also include a health fair with local businesses and organizations. The school is at 10330 Red Cedar Drive.
Frisco City Council members discussed some options during a work session Tuesday for the silo property on Main Street between Toyota Stadium and the historic downtown district. The property along the railroad tracks has several grain silos that are no longer in use. There has been some interest from developers for this area that city officials have long envisioned as being something special. Frisco owns the land and several nearby parcels. “The vision is to tie the new Frisco to the old Frisco and make sure it flows from one to the next,” council member Jeff Cheney said. The consensus was to keep the silos and move forward with some sort of master plan for the area that also ties in the Heritage Center. And while that plan make take some time, council members said they would be open if the right opportunity came along.
State Rep. Pat Fallon, R-Frisco, will hold a Town Hall meeting from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Tuesday at Griffin Middle School, 3703 Eldorado Parkway in Frisco. Fallon will summarize the 83rd Legislative Session and the three special sessions that followed. Attendees can ask questions – no holds barred. The meeting will also include a brief presentation by the Texas Conservative Coalition. Representatives will also be there from the Denton County Fallen Soldiers Memorial, a traveling tribute that will be on hand to view at the event.
Stage 3 water restrictions continue in Frisco despite all the recent rain. Frisco Public Works Director Gary Hartwell told City Council members Tuesday that the city met the goal set by the North Texas Municipal Water District to reduce its annual water consumption by 10 percent. The city recorded a 11.1 percent reduction in water use last fiscal year even as it continued to grow in population. When Daylight Saving Time ends next month, the restriction on watering between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. is lifted. But Hartwell recommends people turn off their automatic sprinklers during the winter months when the grass goes dormant.
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