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City Managers Office
City Manager Susan Guthrie started this week with "One on One" meetings with the departments, City Council Members and members of the public.
Assistant City Manager Darla Jones and Right-of-Way Officer Willie Higginbotham met with Foremost Paving on numerous occasions to discuss the project status on the Gulf Boulevard Phase 4 Project.
City Manager Susan Guthrie and Assistant City Manager Darla Jones met with the City's Lobbyist Clint Smith to discuss legislative updates and future legislative issues.
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South Padre Island Convention & Visitors Bureau
El Paseo Arts Foundation:
This week, the El Paseo Arts Foundation held their production of
"Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus, LIVE!" on Oct. 18 & 19, 2016.
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Texas Migrant Council:
The
Texas Migrant Council had two very full days at the Convention Centre this past Friday and Saturday for their 40 board members.
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Texas Migrant Council:
Also on Friday,
Tropical Texas Behavioral Health offered numerous breakouts and general sessions to give their 600 plus attendees the opportunity to obtain the continuing education hours needed to maintain their certifications.
Birthday Party:
On Saturday evening the Convention Centre also hosted 85 friends and family members at a joint birthday party for Bobby and Lucila de la Garza. We hope they had a wonderful time!
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Fire Department
This week Fire Inspector/EMC Robert Garcia hosted 3 Fire Prevention Presentations!
- Monday-Esperanza B. Garza Head Start (124 Students)
- Tuesday-Beacon Bay Head Start
- Friday-Edinburg Classical Academy
In 1920, President Woodrow Wilson issued the first National Fire Prevention Day proclamation, and since 1922 Fire Prevention Week has been observed on the Sunday through Saturday period in which October 9 falls. According to the National Archives and Records Administration's Library Information Center, Fire Prevention Week is the longest running public health and safety observance on record. The President of the United States has signed a proclamation proclaiming a national observance during that week every year since 1925.
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Police Department
On Wednesday, Chief Randy Smith,
along with staff from the Police Department and Fire Department, met with Tim Scrivner to discuss the upcoming SPI Marathon .
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Public Works
Daily Maintenance:
The Public Works Crew continues with daily maintenance of streets, rights-of-way and trash pick up.
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East Oleander:
The Public Works Crews have completed painting the stamped logos on East Oleander Street.
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Gulf Boulevard:
Foremost Paving has completed the sidewalk from Gardenia Street to Mesquite Street and has begun pouring concrete for the sidewalk between Retama Street and Atol Street.
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Environmental Health Services
Mosquito Minimization:
Due to national attention of the Zika Virus, EHS staff have been aggressive in the fight to minimize the mosquito population. Staff conducted both larvaciding and pesticide spraying throughout the entire Island. Staff will diligently monitor both weather conditions and mosquito activity to target areas of need. EHS staff frequently attend webinars with updated information about the Zika Virus.
Recycling:
Approximately 524 pounds of recyclable material were collected! Thank you to everyone for doing their part in keeping South Padre Island beautiful!
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Shoreline Department
Beach Nourishment Update:
Due to the weather, operations stopped on Thursday. So far, 20,000 cubic yards of sand has been distributed, moving the discharge pipe south 200 feet. The project is on schedule and will continue operations this weekend, weather permitting.
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Transit Department
Transit Study:
Transit Administrative staff met with KFH Group this week to review and discuss the results of its Transit Efficiency and Effectiveness Study. Topics included assessment of existing service, assessing future demographic and land use trends, stakeholder interviews and public meeting results, and development of alternatives, strategies, and recommendations. The purpose of this project is to measure, analyze, and improve the City's transit services.
Regional Public Transportation Advisory Panel (RTAP) Meeting:
Program Administrator Debbie Carpenter attended an RTAP subcommittee meeting in Weslaco this week to discuss updating the five year regional coordination plan with KFH Group, the firm that was chosen by RTAP to develop the new plan.
Texas Transit Association:
Transit Director Jesse Arriaga participated in a Texas Transit Association Board meeting via teleconference this week. Arriaga represents the rural transit systems in the state of Texas.
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New Bus:
The Transit Department received a new bus this week. The cost of the bus was $82,000, paid for with 5310 (Seniors and Individuals with Disabilities) grant funds and required no local match.
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HOT Tax Permit Registration
Final compliance date was July 1, 2015!
Notices of Violation have been, and continue to be sent to several property owners on the island.
The City of South Padre Island has passed Ordinance 15-03 requiring all property owners who advertise their property for short term rental to register their residential rental unit (s (house, condo, apartment or bedroom) with the City, AND to comply with all applicable laws including the collection and remittance of hotel tax. Register today online at
To learn how to comply with the new City Ordinance, please view the pre-recorded webinar by
clicking here
.
We will also be available by phone to answer any questions you may have. Call Georgina Ramos at (956) 761-8382 or contact by email at
[email protected].
If you have a Rental Property Manager on the island they may be handling the registration process for you.
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Brush Time
The Environmental Health Services Department would like to remind you to please place your brush and bulky items on the right-of way from the 25th to the last day of the month for pick up on the first three workdays of the month. Thank you for doing your part in keeping South Padre Island beautiful!
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Water Conservation
At South Padre Island we're no strangers to water, but we're also no strangers to harsh Texas droughts; which is why we need to remember to conserve water. Please don't leave sprinkler systems or water hoses running unattended for long periods of time and only water your yards and wash your vehicles when necessary. This is just one small step we can take to help reduce waste.
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GOING GREEN
Texas Commission of Environmental Quality reminds you - Resolve to Make a Difference in 2016:
Reduce Junk Mail
Resolve to save time, conserve energy, and preserve trees by opting out of junk mail! Households
and businesses receive over 80 billion pieces of junk mail each year; most of this ends up in
our landfills.
You can easily opt out of offers of credit and insurance on the Consumer Credit Reporting Industry
website at www.optoutprescreen.com. Visit the Direct Marketing Association's Mail Preference
Service at www.dmachoice.org to stop receiving commercial mail from many national
companies. Important: Both secured sites will ask for personal information, such as your address.
Replace Older Toilets
This resolution is a little more difficult and a bit more costly. However, it makes a big difference in
water conservation. Toilets use the most water in the home. By replacing one older toilet with the
most water-efficient type, you can save up to 13,000 gallons of water and over $100 each year. If
just one in four families in Texas replaced one older toilet with a 1.28-gallon-per-flush toilet, it
would save more than 28 billion gallons of water every year. (takecareoftexas.org)
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Recycling
Recyclable items can be taken to Old City Hall every Saturday from 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM.
Items that can be recycled are:
- Newspaper
- Cardboard
- Office Paper
- Aluminum
- Tin
- Plastic
To offer a better recycling service please:
- Compact, crush or break down plastic bottles, cardboard boxes, aluminum cans or any other items that may be reduced in size. This helps us use the most amount of space in the bins.
- Remove any food, liquid, metal fasteners, adhesive materials or other items that may contaminate the whole load.
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Animal Control
Friends of Animal Rescue operates the South Padre Island Recovery Center and Animal Shelter. The shelter is licensed by the State of Texas as an animal shelter and quarantine facility.
The shelter is located at 4908 Padre Blvd and open to the public Tuesday-Sunday from 10 AM to 4:30 PM. We do make arrangements to meet owners after hours if necessary in order to reunite pets with their families. Friends of Animal Rescue can be reached on their 24 hour hotline at 956-772-1171. Animals that are not claimed within 7-10 days are vetted (including Spay/Neuter) and adopted out to loving homes.
Friends of Animal Rescue is a 501c3 nonprofit organization. To see the latest animals found or furry friends up for adoption please check out the Friends of Animal Rescue
Facebook
page.
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Incentive Policy
The South Padre Island Economic Development Corporation and the City of South Padre Island have approved an incentive policy in order to assist qualified new and existing businesses and to benefit the economic climate on the Island. Businesses can apply for property tax abatements as well as sales tax abatements for improvements that will contribute to the economy of South Padre Island. The City and the EDC will evaluate the applications to determine if they meet the established criteria for the programs. You can find a link to the policy, guidelines, and applications on both the City web page (
www.myspi.org) and the South Padre Island EDC web page (
www.southpadreislandedc.com)
For more information, contact Darla Lapeyre, South Padre Island Economic Development Corporation Executive Director, at (956) 761-6805 or
[email protected]
; or Dr. Sungman Kim, City of South Padre Island Development Director, at (956) 761-8113 or
[email protected]
.
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FREE Business Listing
Calling all South Padre Island businesses! Please be sure to update your FREE business listing on the Convention & Visitors Bureau website (
www.sopadre.com
). If you haven't been provided with your login credentials, please contact Carlos Centeno by phone at (956) 761-8390, or email at
[email protected]
. By using your FREE business listing you have the ability to upload images, coupons, business description, and much more. Take advantage of this FREE marketing tool provided by the Convention & Visitors website.
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EVENTS
Looking for even more events? We've added and a new 'EVENTS' tab at the top of this newsletter! Just click that link and you can view our full calendar of events.
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Date
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Event
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Location
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Time
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Oct. 25
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The Quarterdeck Lounge
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7:00 PM
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| Oct. 27 |
Open Clay Classes |
Art Space
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1:00 PM
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| Oct. 27 |
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Louie's Backyard
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6:30 PM
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| Oct. 28 |
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Clayton's Beach Bar & Grill
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5:00 PM
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| Oct. 28 |
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Louie's Backyard
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6:30 PM
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| Oct. 29 |
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Art Space
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10:00 AM
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| Oct. 29 |
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Louie's Backyard
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6:30 PM
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| Oct. 30 |
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NAMAR Event Center
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11:00 AM
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| Oct. 30 |
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Louie's Backyard
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6:30 PM
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| Oct. 31 |
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South Padre Island Community Center
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8:30 AM
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| Oct. 31 |
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South Padre Island Birding and Nature Center
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6:00 PM
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City of South Padre Island 5th Annual Blood Drive
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Parrots and Pirates Halloween Party
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6th Annual Veterans Day Celebration
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