Anna Eby resigns District 1 council seat
District 1 City Council Member Anna Eby resigned from her position on the council on Friday.
“With regret, I am announcing my resignation from the Georgetown City Council,” said Eby. “I have unexpectedly had the opportunity to fulfill my dream of moving out to the nonprofit animal sanctuary in north Georgetown that I have built over the last two years. Because I will no longer be living in my district, the City Charter requires me to resign. This was not an easy decision to make, as I had every intention of completing my second term of service on Council. However, despite the timing, moving was ultimately the best decision for me. Serving Georgetown and District 1 has been one of the greatest honors of my life, and I am very grateful to everyone who has supported and encouraged me over the last four years. This job is not easy, but it is very important. Thank you to my colleagues on Council, both past and present, with whom I have had the pleasure of serving. I would also like to recognize and thank City staff for their tireless work on behalf of our community. I urge all Georgetown voters to vote and all current and future council members to continue to prioritize public service founded in nonpartisanship and integrity. Thank you to the voters of District 1 for giving me the opportunity to serve in this role. I look forward to being active in other capacities and continuing to support the Council’s vision for Georgetown.”
Eby was elected to the District 1 city council seat in 2015 and was re-elected in 2018.
“The giving and public servant genes are a large part of Anna Eby’s DNA,” said Mayor Dale Ross. “From her public service on the Georgetown City Council and Georgetown Animal Shelter Board to starting the Blue Moon Sanctuary, an animal rescue organization, Anna’s contributions to her community have been significant. In short, as a result of her hard work and talent, she has left Georgetown a better place than she found it. It has been an honor and privilege to serve with Anna on council and I wish her all the best.”
At the city council meeting on August 6, the city council will review the process to fill the District 1 seat, which will include a special election in November.
Kittens at the Library on Aug. 8-9
Kittens from the Georgetown Animal Shelter will take over the lobby of Georgetown Public Library on Aug. 8-9 with the goal of playing, snuggling and purring their way into a new family. Kittens will be available for adoption from the library, 402 W. Eighth St., from 10:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. each day.
Visitors may cuddle, play with and adopt kittens at the library. Adoption fees are $35 per kitten during the event, and kittens will be able to leave directly from the event. Cardboard carriers will be provided.
Georgetown Animal Shelter is the municipal animal shelter for the City of Georgetown and takes in all stray and surrendered animals from within the city limits. Even as the city grows exponentially, the shelter has maintained a save rate of 90 percent or more for the past four years, classifying the shelter as a no-kill shelter.
The animal shelter currently has a large number of kittens and cats, and staff hope the event at the library will help them find new homes.
The Georgetown Animal Shelter is located at 110 W.L. Walden Drive. For more information about the shelter, visit pets.georgetown.org.
City begins street maintenance projects this summer
Street resurfacing on city streets with hot-in-place recycling has begun and is expected to continue through the summer. Additional street resurfacing projects include a high-performance surface seal treatment, which is expected to begin in late August.
The work schedule can be affected by weather conditions, mechanical issues, and product availability. For updates on the paving schedule and a complete list of projects, visit transportation.georgetown.org/2019-street-maintenance-projects.
Below is the list of resurfacing projects planned for this summer by treatment type:
Hot-in-place recycling
The City is using hot-in-place recycling for the following street maintenance projects. This treatment is an alternative to mill and asphalt overlay and extends the life of the pavement asset preserving the City’s investment as well as providing a new asphalt surface.
High-performance surface seal
The City will be using a high-performance surface seal treatment in portions of Sun City, including neighborhoods north of Sun City Boulevard, Georgetown Village, University Park and Raintree. As part of the surface treatment, a sealant is applied to the surface of the roadway, reducing damage from UV radiation and vehicle traffic.
On the day work is scheduled in the Sun City, University Park and Raintree neighborhoods, the streets will be closed to traffic and street parking from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m.
In Georgetown Village, streets closed for repaving will be closed for 24 hours from 7:30 a.m.-7:30 a.m.
Georgetown to host thousands at statewide tennis tournament
The United States Tennis Association announced this week that Georgetown won the three-year bid to host the Texas Slam, one of the largest junior tennis tournaments in the country. Approximately 1,000 participants ages 11 to 18 compete in the annual tournament.
Georgetown submitted a proposal to host the 2020-22 Texas Slam tournament. A special selection committee was formed to review all the proposals. Because of the unique nature of the Texas Slam, the selection committee focused on the strength of the proposals as it relates to the commitment and involvement of the host community. The committee highlighted the more than 150 tennis courts in Georgetown, as well as the more than 3,500 hotel rooms in the area.
“The committee has worked hard over the past several weeks evaluating all of the proposals for the Slam bid,” Junior Tennis Council Chair Robert Rubel said. “After careful evaluation of all bids, the volunteer committee unanimously selected Georgetown as the future home of the tournament.”
The Texas Slam is expected to fill an average of 400 hotel rooms per night for seven nights and generate an economic impact of $1.8 million per year. Georgetown will host the annual tournament for three years starting in 2020.
“I’m looking forward to hosting the thousands of people who will visit and spend the night in Georgetown for the Texas Slam,” Mayor Dale Ross said. “Tourism, particularly sports tourism, is a big part of our local economy. The Texas Slam is a great way to showcase our world-class amenities – from our award-winning parks and trails to Southwestern University to the Most Beautiful Town Square in Texas – these are what sets Georgetown apart from other cities.”
About USTA Texas
USTA Texas is one of the 17 sections of the United States Tennis Association, the governing body of tennis in America. USTA Texas is the third largest of the sections. USTA Texas is devoted to promoting and developing the growth of tennis in Texas.
City earns budget award
The City of Georgetown was recently recognized by the Government Finance Officers Association with the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award. The award is for the budget document for the fiscal year that runs Oct. 1, 2018, through Sept. 30, 2019. This was the thirtieth consecutive year that the City has received this recognition.
According to GFOA, this award reflects a commitment by the governing body and staff in meeting the highest principles of governmental budgeting. To receive the award, the City had to satisfy nationally recognized guidelines for effectively presenting a budget. The guidelines center on ensuring the budget is an effective policy document, financial plan, operations guide, and communication device.
“We work very hard on putting together the budget document every year,” Georgetown Finance Director Leigh Wallace said. “It’s great to be recognized for continuous improvement. We couldn’t have won this award without the great support from employees across the City, as well as the City Council.”
The award is given based on an examination of the City’s budget document by a panel of independent reviewers. To review the budget document, visit finance.georgetown.org.
About GFOA
The Government Finance Officers Association is a professional association serving more than 19,000 appointed and elected local, state, and provincial-level government officials and other finance practitioners. It provides publications, training programs, services, and products designed to enhance the skills and performance of those responsible for government finance policy and management. The association is headquartered in Chicago, Illinois, with offices in Washington D.C.
Award winners announced in Texas Society of Sculptors Annual Summer Show
Harry Angel is a sculptor who creates graceful carved and polished wooden sculptures, often from mesquite wood, working around all the wood’s cracks and imperfections. He has exhibited work in the Texas Society of Sculptors Annual Summer Show previously, but this year he took the First place. The news was announced at an awards reception held at the Georgetown Public Library July 21.
This year’s exhibit award recipients are:
- First place: Harry Angel for “#183 Lady #3”
- Second place: Bob Coffee for “Arm Wrestlers”
- Third place: Matt Donner for “Hard Rain Is Going to Fall”
- Honorable mention: Cass Hook for “Cosmic Interlude”
- Honorable mention: Kalena Powell for “How the Light Gets in: Self Portrait”
- Honorable mention: Bob Ragan for “Night at the Opera”
- People’s choice: Ken Law for “Shumla” (pictured)
- Librarians’ choice: John Mark Luke for “Spirit Takes Flight”
Each award is accompanied by a cash prize. The Georgetown Arts and Culture Board provided a total of $2,200 to fund the awards.
The juror for this year’s awards was Nick Ramos, an award-winning graphic artist and curator based in Georgetown. Over the years, Ramos has curated exhibits at the Georgetown Art Center, and has created and organized projects including “Build Hope Not Walls” and “Picture Circus.” He is currently working on projects including “The Mailbox Project” and “Portraits of America,” a traveling exhibit.
Ramos says, “Sculpture has a special place in my heart, as it reminds me of my father’s work in iron and clay. I always admired the shapes and forms that he created. Not many know, but I actually proposed to my partner with a sculpture that my father created, because that meant more to me than a ring. Over the years, I always visited and wandered through the TSOS exhibit, admiring the amazing work. It gives me great honor to be invited to judge this year’s competition.”
For 12 years, the Georgetown Public Library has hosted the Texas Society of Sculptors’ annual summer show. The competitive, juried exhibit is a popular tradition in Georgetown that includes sculptures throughout the building on both the first and second floors. Participating sculptors work in wood, glass, bronze, ceramics, and more. Most pieces in the exhibit are available for purchase.
This year’s exhibit opened Sunday, June 23, and lasts through Saturday, Sept. 20. An exhibit catalog is available for those who would like to walk through the exhibit and see all 72 pieces.
The library will also host a sculpture demonstration featuring several of this year’s sculptors demonstrating their techniques and processes in clay, bronze, wood, stone and glass. The free event will be held in the library lobby, 402 W. Eighth St., on Saturday, Sept. 21, from 1 to 3 p.m.
For more information about this year’s exhibit and events, contact Fine Arts Librarian Dana Hendrix at dana.hendrix@georgetown.org or TSOS Exhibit Coordinator Linda Wilde at lzorawilde@gmail.com.
Applications for fall Citizen Police Academy due Aug. 12
The Citizen Police Academy is a 12-week course taught by police officers and firefighters to educate citizens about the Georgetown Police and Fire departments’ protocols and procedures.
Classes in the fall 2019 academy include code of criminal procedure, criminal and accident investigations, lethal and less-than-lethal weapons, crime scene investigations, victim services, response to resistance, officer safety, and Fire response. The deadline to apply is Aug. 12 at 5 p.m.
Weekly classes are on Thursday evenings starting on Aug. 22 through Nov 7. Class sessions are 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. The first class will be held in the training room of the Public Safety Operations and Training Center, 3500 D.B. Wood Road.
There is no charge to attend the academy, but seating is limited and applications are accepted on a first-come, first-served basis.
Applications are available at the Georgetown Police Department reception desk at the Public Safety Operations and Training Center or by emailing a request to randy.mcdonald@georgetown.org. All applicants will be notified of acceptance via email.
SportClips Way street renaming event July 11
On Thursday, July 11 at 9:30 a.m., the City of Georgetown will officially change a street name to SportClips Way to honor the headquarters of Sport Clips Haircuts in Georgetown. New street signs for SportClips Way will be revealed at the event to mark the renaming of Briarwood Drive.
Sport Clips representatives, City of Georgetown officials, and Georgetown Chamber of Commerce members will be at the street renaming event, which will be at the Sport Clips headquarters location at 110 Briarwood Drive. The new Sport Clips headquarters office address will become 110 SportClips Way.
Sport Clips is a national hair care franchise with more than 1,800 locations in the U.S. and Canada.
Blazin’ Beer Crawl on Aug. 3
You’re invited to Georgetown’s first craft beer crawl event on Saturday, Aug. 3. The Blazin’ Beer Crawl from 3 to 6 p.m. is a self-paced walking event featuring craft beer tastings from Central Texas breweries inside of our Downtown retail stores and restaurants. Ticket holders will receive a map of all of the participating locations and can choose which order to sample and visit merchants. Hot and spicy snacks will be available at various participating merchant locations.
($25) General Admission Ticket includes a keepsake tasting glass and a map of all of the participating merchants (Ticket sales are limited to ages 21 and over; identification will be verified at pickup).
($55) VIP Admission Ticket includes a keepsake tasting glass, event hat, swag bag, and a map of all of the participating merchants (Ticket sales are limited to ages 21 and over; identification will be verified at pickup).
Proceeds from the event benefit the Georgetown Main Street Façade and Sign Grant Program, which has awarded over $469,000 in grant funds to downtown business and property owners.
Low Cost Shot Clinic for Pets July 27
The Georgetown Animal Shelter will conduct its next low-cost vaccination clinic of the year on Saturday, July 27, 8:30-11 a.m. The walk-in clinic is for cats and dogs. Help protect your pet from diseases they can pick up outside!
Pets may also get a FREE microchip with the purchase of any vaccine. No appointments. Cash or check only. The shelter is located at 110 Walden Dr., Georgetown, next to the McMaster Athletic Fields.
Dog Vaccines:
Rabies $5
DHPP Combo $10 (Distemper, Hepatitis, Parafluenza, Parvo)
Bordetella $5 (Kennel cough)
Cat Vaccines:
Rabies $5
FVRCP Combo $10 (Rhinotracheitis, Calicivirus, Panleukopenia)
All dogs must be on a leash and cats should be in a carrier. Payment is by cash or check only. (Debit or credit cards not accepted.)
The shelter has committed to offer several more low-cost clinics this fiscal year. The dates of the next clinics are:
- Saturday, September 21, 2019
- Saturday, November 16, 2019
The clinic will be held at the City of Georgetown Animal Shelter at 110 W.L. Walden Drive near the McMaster Athletic Fields. Contact the shelter at (512) 930-3592 or by email at animalsvc@georgetown.org. The City of Georgetown Animal Shelter website is pets.georgetown.org.