City Council’s 2023 Top 10 Accomplishments
Hold on to the memories, They will hold on to you
As we are at the end of one year and beginning another, I wish to look back on the top 10 accomplishments we achieved on City Council in 2023.
In February, we approved the purchase of the Las Brisas site at 1002 Marion Drive. The site was the former Garland Clinic and Hospital – the first hospital in Garland which opened in 1954 – then later was the Las Brisas Residence Club. The buildings fell into disrepair over the years and the dilapidated site was purchased by the City. Rather than redevelop the site with more homes, we approved a plan to turn the site into a city park to be enjoyed by local residents.
In March, the Council approved a Landscape Master Plan for the Valoris Health Park. The area northwest of the Shiloh Road and Walnut Street intersection is designated to be a future public hospital. The site is currently home to the VA Hopsital in what was the old Baylor Garland Hospital building. The landscape plan will guide us as we improve the streetscape, add trail connectivity and plan for a healing garden to make the area attractive to a hospital operator in the future. I urge you to go see the beautiful mural that has already been painted on the side of one of the buildings in the Health Park.
(The mural at the Valoris Health Park. Photo courtesy City of Garland.)
Also in March, we were presented and approved an Economic Development Strategic Plan. The comprehensive plan looks at how Garland is positioned to compete with neighboring North Texas cities and provides guidelines for achieving economic success in the future. Already it is influencing our thinking as we look at proposed zoning change requests and future economic development programs. The plan gives me great hope for the future of our City.
Garland’s Senior Center was closed last year for renovations as part of the 2019 Bond Program. However during the renovations, extensive structural damage was found that would require more money to fix than was budgeted for renovations. In April, we discussed input received from senior center patrons and approved a plan to rebuild a new and larger center than the previous one. The new building at the same location will have more amenities and spaces for various activities and programming for our seniors.
In July, the Fire Department presented its master plan for Council approval. This important plan will help us best allocate our resources to reduce fire risk, provide efficient fire and EMS services, and the best training and education programs for our firefighters in the near and long term. The plan provides measurable and achievable strategic planning goals that our Department is already implementing to improve itself and improve public safety.
Our downtown and surrounding area was designated in September as an official cultural district by the Texas Commission on the Arts (TCA). The recognition of the “Bankhead Cultural Arts District” which includes the Granville Arts Center, the Landmark Museum and the Plaza Theatre as well as the retail establishments and historic neighborhoods around downtown allows the city to be eligible for cultural district funding through TCA. These funds will be used to add programming to and awareness of our significant cultural assets in the area.
October 14 marked the long awaited reopening of the downtown square. Over 10,000 people helped celebrate the day by enjoying skateboarding and BMX stunt shows, fishing demonstrations, live music and food and even a drone light show. Local favorite LeAnn Rimes capped the festivities with a concert–returning to her hometown where she lived as a child. I look forward to attending many more local events on our renovated downtown square next year.
We ended the year in December with three important items including approving a conceptual redevelopment plan for Lou Huff Park. This park formerly had a recreation center which largely served the minority community surrounding the park. The proposed plan will honor that history and add opportunities to once again build community by once again providing gathering spaces and outdoor activities.
We also approved the expansion of Tax Increment Finance District #1 to include additional areas near the Forest-Jupiter rail station and around the Walnut Road/Jupiter Road intersection. This will provide funding to revitalize these areas which have been ignored for too long.
(From the December 4, 2023 Work Session note)
Finally, we approved a new development process for zoning applicants. This will shorten the time needed for approval and lessen the expense required to rezone property in Garland. I believe that this will allow Developers to be more innovative and prolific with their redevelopment requests without having the large financial burden if the project is denied at the Plan Commission or at the City Council hearings. This should lead to higher quality and more frequent developments occurring within our City.
As always, it is my extreme honor to represent you on the City Council. We are blessed to live in such a wonderful City such as Garland. I wish you and your family the happiest of blessings this holiday season. If there is anything I can do for you, please do not hesitate to reach me at 469-560-6099 or council7@garlandtx.gov.
I’ll end the year with a song from the biggest artist of the year Taylor Swift and her song New Year’s Day. Thanks for the great memories this year and let’s make next year even better.