City of The Colony E-Newsletter • Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023

Council reduces tax rate, approves 23-24 budget

During its regular meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 20, The Colony City Council voted to approve the Fiscal Year 2023-2024 city budget. The new budget includes a half-cent reduction to the property tax rate, going down from $0.6450 to $0.6400 per $100 valuation. This is the 23rd straight year the city has either reduced or maintained the tax rate. Budget highlights also include funding that represents the Council's continued emphasis on improvements to the city's streets, alleys, and sidewalks. Visit our website to watch replays of the meetings for more information about the budget process. Public hearings on the tax rate and budget were held at regular meetings on Aug. 15 and Sept. 5.

Who's ready for Fall weather and championship golf in The Colony? We're just days away from the 2023 Ascendant LPGA benefitting the Volunteers of America tournament, running Oct. 2-8 at The Golf Clubs at The Tribute. Visit AscendantLPGA.com for all the details about tickets, parking, and special events. New this year is BITE by the Lake, an upgraded culinary experience located behind the 18th hole featuring signature menu items from a variety of local restaurants, bars, and chefs. Patrons will have access to all-they-can-eat bite-sized samples throughout tournament play Friday-Sunday. See you there!

Citywide Fall Clean-Up Oct. 21

The City of The Colony and Republic Waste Services will be hosting the annual Citywide Fall Clean-Up from 8 a.m. to noon Saturday, Oct. 21, in the parking lot of Hawaiian Waters. Residents of The Colony may bring trash and refuse, such as large tree limbs, furniture, appliances, lumber, remodeling debris, fencing materials and scrap metal for convenient disposal. Visit our website for more information or call 972-624-3131.

National Preparedness Month underway

September is National Preparedness Month. We encourage our residents and businesses to take some time to visit the Emergency Management section of our website for a wide variety of preparedness tips in advance of the fall storm season, including information about storm sirens. #DYK? Outdoor sirens are intended to alert people who may be outdoors so they may seek shelter. Outdoor sirens are not an effective means of alerting people who are already indoors. Visit TheColonyTx.gov/BePrepared for more details.

PD launches Take Me Home Program

The Colony Police Department has introduced an exciting new program to the City of The Colony - the Take Me Home Program. The program was developed to better assist individuals with disabilities who may need extra help communicating in an emergency situation. This kind of assistance may be necessary if the individual is unable to speak or properly identify themselves, or if they become disoriented, or act in a manner that could be misinterpreted by first responders. This program is a free service available to any City of The Colony resident who may have trouble communicating and is aimed at individuals with Autism, Down Syndrome, developmental or cognitive disabilities. The program is also intended to assist senior citizens who suffer from Dementia or Alzheimer's. For more information, click the photo to visit our website or contact Mental Health Officer Carlos Henderson at [email protected], or call the PD's non-emergency line at 972-625-1887.

Fire up your imagination with a library card from The Colony Public Library during Library Card Sign-Up Month! Bring your valid photo ID to the Circulation Desk and we’ll issue you a free card. Have a library card, but can’t find it? We’re offering FREE replacement cards during the month of September. Stop in and get your replacement today!

Veterans Day event set for Nov. 10-11

The City of The Colony's Parks & Recreation Department is excited to share the full lineup for The Colony's annual American Heroes 2023 event. Performing on Friday, Nov. 10, will be Vertical Horizon and special guest, The Unlikely Candidates. Saturday, Nov. 11, will feature Chris Cagle and special guests Austin Snell and Chad Cooke Band. Tickets are not required for any of these concerts, but VIP seating tickets, and a wealth of additional event information, will be available for purchase at SaluteAmericanHeroes.com. Or, call 972-625-1106 for more details.

What else is In THE News?

The community is invited to the 2023 National Night Out with The Colony Police Department on Tuesday, Oct. 3. TCPD's event will take place from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. at The Colony Police Department, 5151 North Colony Blvd, and will feature an Open House & Touch-A-Truck activities. For more information or to register your own block party, contact Community Resource Officer Rick De La Cruz or Officer Brian Lee at 972-625-8273.
Looking ahead, The Colony City Council meeting originally scheduled for Tuesday, Oct. 3, will be held at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Oct. 4, due to National Night Out.
A few of our businesses recently received phone calls from scammers pretending to represent the city's Water Department in an attempt to solicit excessive payments on phony utility bills. While Utility Billing staff will in fact call customers whose accounts are at least two billing cycles past due in order to discuss payment options and avoid disconnection of service, we do not demand immediate, full payment by wire transfer, cash apps, gift cards, or cryptocurrency - the tools by which scammers collect their gains. If you ever doubt the authenticity of such a call, hang up and call us at 972-625-2741. For more information, check out a recent WFAA news story about similar incidents in North Texas.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in coordination with the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), will conduct a nationwide test of the Emergency Alert System (EAS) and Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) at approximately 1:20 p.m. (CT) on Wednesday, Oct. 4. The WEA portion of the test will be directed to all consumer cell phones. The EAS portion of the test will be sent to radios and televisions. Visit FEMA's website for more information.
Speaking of emergency tests, the City will NOT be conducting its monthly test of the outdoor warning system on Wednesday, Oct. 4. Typically the test is made at noon the first Wednesday of every month. Visit our website for more info about storm sirens.
The field is set for the upcoming City Council Election on Nov. 7, 2023. Visit the Election page of the city's website or contact the City Secretary's Office at 972-624-3106 for more information.
Don't forget! Ongoing weather conditions have necessitated continued implementation of Phase 1 of the City's Drought Contingency Plan (PDF). Residents are encouraged to follow a twice weekly watering schedule determined by your address. Visit www.TheColonyTx.gov/water (PDF) for more information.