Wylie Today

Dog Daze Dog Wash

101 Keefer Street

August 9th

Starting at 8:30 until the last dirty dog is washed!

 
Come out and give your doggie a spa day! 

 
Volunteers will be washing dogs, clipping nails, expressing glands, and for the little princesses,

painting nails!  Bow and bandanas are also available along with homemade doggie treats!  After your doggie is all clean, have their picture taken with our wonderful photographer! 

All proceeds will be donated to the Screws family to assist with medical costs associated with their Great Pyrenees/Lab mix, Phoebe, who has a medical condition requiring expensive medication.  The Screws family is active with SPIN, a rescue group that helps Great Pyrenees find forever homes and works tirelessly in saving dogs from cruel conditions and getting them healthy and rehomed.

 
Prices:

 Wash:  $5-15 (depending on the size of dog)

Nails:  $5

Anal Gland expressing:  $5

Spa package:  $20-25 (includes all of the above,

plus bandana or bow)

 
Pictures:  $5

Yesterday, the 3rd Squadron 124th Cavalry of the Texas National Guard left Wylie as they are being deployed to Iraq. Matthew James and Jim Kellogg were gracious enough to pass along some photos of the event. The top photo and next four were provided by Mr. James. Click on the images to view the larger version.

The following images are provided courtesy of Mr. Kellogg.

(Click image for full 2 page pdf file)

New Trash and Recycling Service Begins September 1

More Services, Same Low Price:

• - Weekly Recyclables Collection on Trash Day
• - Call-In Brush and Bulk Item Pick-Up
• - Household Hazardous Waste Collection at
•   Clean Up Green Up Events
• - Curbside Christmas Tree Recycling
• - Excellent Customer Service
• - No Increase in Basic Fees

The City of Wylie is pleased to announce that Community Waste Disposal (CWD) has been selected as the City’s solid waste and recycling provider beginning September 1. Please continue to use the Allied Waste carts through August 29.

CWD was selected based on their reputation for excellent service; overall low cost; strong recommendations from the cities of Frisco, Allen and Little Elm; and a unanimous recommendation from the Solid Waste Citizens Advisory Committee made up of Wylie residents.

Delivery of your new grey trash cart and blue recycling cart began July 15. In order to ensure a smooth transition from Allied Waste to CWD, be sure to read the Trash and Recycling Guide attached to your new trash cart. The guide contains information on pick-up schedules, brush & bulk call-in details, pick-up guidelines and recycling guidelines.

Allied Waste will pick up your old carts after your last scheduled pick-up.

CWD is committed to providing excellent customer service. Please contact CWD, 972-392-9300, option 2, if you have questions concerning the transition or services. Additional details can also be found at CommunityWasteDisposal.com. You may also contact the City of Wylie Utility Billing Department at 972-442-8130.

Dear Friends, Supporters and Citizens of Wylie,

I hope you and your family are having a great Summer! We have been busy at our house with planning our vacation, attending summer camps, visiting with family and friends and supporting our community. I wanted to write to you again this month and share with you some of the activities that are happening in and around our city.

I hope you all have taken advantage of the Summer Concert’s at Olde City Park , as well as movie night last Friday evening. The concerts have been great and it has been so much fun to get out and visit with our citizens at these events. These activities really help Wylie keep that “hometown” feeling. I hope you and your family are planning to attend the Wylie Independence Day program (Fireworks) at Founder’s Park this evening at 9:30pm.

I had the opportunity to attend the June Chamber of Commerce luncheon and listen to Chamber President, Mike Agnew, talk about the State of the Chamber, and all the things they are doing to support our community.

Many of our new businesses are also attending the Business Card Exchange on Wednesday mornings at Woodbridge Golf Club, and this has been a good way to connect with our small business owners and support them as they grow their business here in Wylie.

Also, as you may have noticed, dirt is beginning to be moved at the location of our new shopping center, Woodbridge Crossing. Soon you will have more shopping options available to you right here in Wylie , Texas !

This year’s high school graduation once again highlighted our outstanding Wylie students and their parents, It was an honor for Tammie and I to be able to attend that great event and represent our city.

This past month I also had the opportunity to speak at the Wylie Rotary Club luncheon and share with them our plans for the future of our city.

I have also had the opportunity to visit with Congressman Ralph Hall and Congressman Sam Johnson about our city. They are anxious to support us as we grow forward.

A lot of great things are happening in our community. In the coming weeks, you will start to see activity on the expansion of FM 1378. We will soon be holding a ground breaking ceremony for our new City Hall, Public Library and Recreation Center . Additionally in the coming month’s we will be continuing with our neighborhood revitalization program in some of our older parts of town. It is truly an exciting time to be in Wylie , Texas .

Please mark you calendars for our first Wylie Town Hall on August 11, 2008 at the Bart Peddicord Community Center at 7:00 pm. More details will be forthcoming about this event. We had hoped to schedule this sooner but with all the Summer vacations, we had to hold off until August.

Also in the planning stages is a meeting with our Home Owners Associations to get feedback from them on issues, concerns and ideas within their neighborhoods; and the Mayor’s Quarterly Breakfast. This breakfast will serve as an informal meeting with 15 to 20 citizens to come in and visit with the Mayor and staff on a quarterly basis. Citizens will be randomly selected to attend from our list of people who receive the eWylie Newsletter.

And, check out my updated web site with information about the office of the Mayor and upcoming events at www.erichogue.net

I believe in Wylie and my goal is to promote and grow our city in a positive way. When our citizens think of Wylie, I want them to think, “It’s good to be home.”

Until next time, may God bless the great city of Wylie , Texas as we continue to grow forward!

Your Mayor,

Eric Hogue

Rick and Alicia White are special citizens of Wylie, Texas. They are a unique couple that spend vast amounts of personal time and money helping and contributing to the world class Wylie Fire Department. They are always found on a fire scene early, documenting the events not just for themselves and Wylie citizens, but for the Wylie Fire Department itself.

Alicia said, “We are privileged to be allowed to get up close and personal on the scene of an incident. We capture scenes no one sees but a few. We see the intimate expressions on faces and the compassion these guys and gals give. But more importantly, we feel that we are part of a unique and loving family. The fire and police departments have let us become an integral part of them.”

Rick and Alicia post many of the photos they take on their website, http://www.wyliephotos.com. Here, one can see just what kind of quality photographs are taken and provided to the Fire Department. One can also get a feel for exactly how early and often they arrive on a scene.

So how does the Fire Department feel about Rick and Alicia? I was able to speak to Fire Chief Randy Corbin about them and not surprisingly, he had only good things to say. “I’ve been here for 18 months now and our arrangement is that Rick and Alicia are reserve members of our Fire Department. They arrive early on a scene, even in the middle of the night and their photographs are timely and professional. They help us with training, investigation and documentation photographs which really help us. ”

Cheif Corbin continued, “Rick is very technical in the communication business and we’ve really been able to tap into his knowledge bank. We’ve turned to him quite often as a technical consultant before and during our planning of an overhaul of our communications systems. Whether he is sharing his knowledge or pointing us to the right contacts to talk further, he has just been so extremely helpful and knowledgeable.”

Rick and Alicia White are special members of this great community and city in which we all live. They put a tremendous amount of time and effort to be of service to the community and the departments that make Wylie special. Wylie is lucky to have such fantastic and involved people living within it’s limits.

I hope Wylie Today can continue to bring readers some of the fantastic photographs or as some might say, “works of art”, that Rick and Alicia White produce.

Photos © 2008 Rick and Alicia White - click images for larger photos

The City of Wylie continues making the Summer events one to remember for ages to come. There is no concert tonight as tomorrow night is movie night at Olde City Park! The flick starts at 9:30, kind of late, I know, but you can’t watch a movie in the sun. You just can’t do it.

The first movie of the series is Bee Movie! We rented this movie a while back and the kids absolutely loved it. It’s good for the parents, as well. I’m not going to tell you about how it brought a tear to my eye. Because it didn’t. I’m cold and a man and I just don’t tear up during animated kid flicks. I don’t care if dreams are realized after long and traumatic journeys, I don’t tear up. So I won’t tell you about that part.

Wait…

Yeah, anyway. Tomorrow night, June 27th, 9:30 pm at Olde City Park. Bring your blankets or chairs, snacks and drinks and enjoy a movie with your neighbors in the park. Shrek 3 will be the feature presentation on July 25th.

Cheers!

The Wylie ISD Board of Trustees may be asking you to increase ISD taxes this year. Trustees listened earnestly to the WISD finance director during the second budget workshop Monday night, May 18th. The tax relief program implemented by the State of Texas last year is causing serious fiscal concerns with school budgets.

ISD taxes have two parts to them; Maintenance & Operations (M&O) and Debt Service. The Debt Service portion of ISD taxes can not exceed 50 cents per $100 of appraised property value. This portion is used to cover debt incurred by the district through issued bonds. Wylie ISD’s rate is currently 35 cents.

The M&O portion is used for exactly that, Maintenance and Operations of the district. The maximum rate the ISD can use without an election is $1.04. Wylie ISD’s M&O tax rate is currently set at $1.04. The M&O portion of ISD taxes has a ceiling of $1.17. But in order to use the maximum allowed, the voters within the district must agree and demonstrate their agreement at the polls.

Based on the conversation that took place Monday night, I will be really surprised if the WISD Board of Trustees didn’t ask citizens to raise the tax rate with a vote in November. And honestly, it’s not as bad as it sounds because it provides an automatic return on investment from the state.

The first 6 pennies over one dollar mark are referred to as “Golden Pennies” because they are matched by the state at a ratio of approximately 1.25. That means every dollar the ISD generates in taxes using those 6 “Golden Pennies”, the State of Texas gives the ISD $1.25 in return on top of that. Pennies 7 through 17 are also matched, but at a significantly reduced rate.

WISD Superintendent Dr. John Fuller recommended to the Trustees to ask citizens to raise taxes to the maximum amount allowed. Without those additional 13 pennies, teacher and staff raises might be out of the question, resulting in a loss of talented educators to other districts. Dr. Fuller made it clear that he would forfeit his recent raise as well.

Currently, 12% of districts have successfully voted on tax rates higher than $1.04. Dr. Fuller said he expects this number to increase as he thinks many districts will have this item on the ballot in November. His ideal scenario though is for the State legislation to fix the problem they have created.

A summer breeze blows through Olde City Park Thursday evening as folks set up their lawn chairs and kids run around the playground. Friends and neighbors meet up, settle down with a snowcone, and chat while they wait for the show to start.

Newly elected mayor Eric Hogue takes the stage to address the good people of Wylie and introduce the night’s act to cheers and shouts. And then a ripple of excitement runs through the crowd as a pink convertible carries Kraig Parker to the stage. We know it’s not really Elvis, but for one night, we like to pretend that it is.

Mr. Parker, www.thekinglives.com, is by far the best Elvis impersonator (tribute performer?) I’ve ever seen. The crowd seemed to agree, and I think I might have even seen a few ladies swoon.

Each year, the good people of Wylie are invited to a series of free summer concerts in the park. They have been fun in years past when they were held at Founders Park, but there’s something about being in historic downtown Wylie that makes it more special, more fun, more Main Street USA. These are a fantastic way to have fun with your friends and family, meet more of your neighbors, and enjoy what Wylie has to offer. I forgot how much I enjoy these concerts, as much for the entertainment as for the opportunity to visit with my friends.

Visit http://www.wylietexas.gov/Events/concert.htm for a summer concert schedule.

Wylie might not be such a small town anymore, but it definitely hasn’t lost its small town charm. It’s nights like last night that make me love living in Wylie.

Written by Monica Tillery

Photos © 2008 wylietoday.com

Brian from Mad Science visited the Smith Public Library today to entertain the lucky audience of kids home for summer break.

He amazed (and startled) kids with entertaining experiments involving mysterious potions, physics, strange goop, and even fire! It looks like Mad Science is available for group presentations and birthday parties.

I know a soon-to-be 7 year old who would love to have a mad scientist at his next party!
Visit www.madscience.org for more information.

The Smith Public Library has a full schedule this summer of exciting entertainment for youngsters–and it’s all free!  Please visit the City of Wylie website (www.wylietexas.gov) to put these presentations on your calendar. You and your kids can be entertained in the air-conditioned sanctuary of the library, and pick up some books and DVDs for home on your way out.

Written By Monica Tillery

Thursday night, June 12th, is the start of the annual Wylie Summer Concert Series. This year’s event kicks off with a bang featuring Kraig Parker Ultimate Elvis Tribute. Since I never got to see Elvis before he passed on, I’m positive that this experience will fill that void in my life.

Positive.

I’ll be there with my family and most certainly sweating like a roofer in July in Texas. And by there I mean Olde City Park in Downtown Wylie. Don’t go to Community Park unless you want to play basketball or run the track. The show this year is in Historic Downtown Wylie and I’ve heard that quite a few shops will stay open until 7pm or later this year.

So head out early and do some shopping or taste the fudge at Twisted Pepper before the show. I hope to see you there. I’ll post pictures on Friday.