2010 Holiday - East Kessler Park Neighborhood Association

P.O. Box 224382
Dallas TX 75222
EAST KESSLER PARK NEIGHBORHOOD ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER
Unique Developments
Coming to Our Unique Area
East Kessler Park
Neighborhood Association
Fall General Meeting
Tuesday, November 16, 2010
Hitt Auditorium @ Methodist • 7:00 PM
Katherine Homan, Community Affairs Liaison
Our Fall General Meeting will be held at 7:00 PM on Tuesday, November 16 in the Hitt Auditorium of Methodist Hospital. Come to learn:
❇ How the Federal Emergency Management Agency is redrawing
flood-risk maps as a result of the Trinity levees' decertification by
the Army Corps of Engineers. During this appeal and protest period,
individual residents can file appeals or protests on the base flood
elevations and new flood zones – two factors that will influence
new insurance rates.
❇ About the updated plan for reconfiguring Beckley Avenue north
of I-30 and at its intersection with Commerce Street. By redistributing space to provide lanes not only for vehicular traffic but also for
people-friendly walking and biking, Beckley Avenue will become
Dallas' first complete street.
SELLING MORE HOMES IN
• KESSLER PARK
• EAST KESSLER
• STEVENS PARK
214.752.7070
HewittHabgood.com
THAN ANY OTHER REALTOR FOR THE
PAST 10 CONSECUTIVE YEARS.
• NORTH OAK CLIFF
❇ What is shaping up at the corner of Sylvan and I-30. This planned
mixed-use development is LEED Certified energy efficient and will
be another draw for the green friendly and organically minded
consumer.
As you can see, there are lots of unique developments going on immediately around our neighborhood. Be sure to be on hand to find out all
about it. We look forward to seeing you there!
Hit the Lights!
Christian Johnson O 214.763.8767
an Ebby Halliday Company
HOLIDAY 2010
Join us for the
EKPNA Holiday Party
Friday, December 3, 2010
At the residence of
Tim and Louise Herfel
940 Kessler Parkway
7:00 PM - 10:00 PM
Join your friends and neighbors
for our annual holiday potluck
party. We will provide the ham,
turkey and drinks; please bring
your favorite party food to
share. We look forward to
seeing you there!
Many thanks to Tim and Louise
for graciously allowing us to
use their house for the party!
Now’s the time to light up East Kessler Park for the holidays! Several
members of your neighborhood association board will be driving around on
December 12 in search of the best holiday light displays. Categories include:
Best Light Show; Best Holiday Classic; and Best GREEN Design.
Winners will be announced on our website and via email.
Membership Update
Golf Course Gets Facelift
Julie Hartin, Membership Chairperson
Tim Herfel, President
Many thanks are in order to all partygoers and renewing
members who joined us on a fine Saturday last month
at the home of the gracious Tim and Louise Herfel for
our first annual Fall Thing. We had a fabulous turnout!
The music of Trinity River Folk and the singular Bugs
Henderson was so much fun. Thanks to the hard work of
the committee members, we had great libations (free
beer and wine thanks to our sponsors), Burguesa burgers, and tacos from El Tizoncito. Thank you to all of
you—you know who you are--who brought delicious
food, came and danced and played, and made it a really
easygoing, enjoyable event.
City-owned Stevens Park Golf Course is
getting a facelift. Monies from the
2003/2006 Bond program and Dallas
Water Utilities are being used to
improve Stevens Park.
Improvements include:
During the Fall Thing, 37 members renewed with us! We
are thrilled so many of you chose to support East
Kessler by contributing $25 to the neighborhood. Some
of you were kind enough to give more, whether for
beautification or simply whatever the Board determines
needs the most work. Big thanks go to you!
- $1.0M for a Service Center/Maintenance and Cart
Facility
- $3.5M for golf course greens, T-boxes, bunkers, cart
paths and fairway reconstruction, including complete
hybrid grass varieties coverage
- A recycled water system including pump station and
course irrigation, creek bank erosion protection and
stabilization
Construction will be begin December 2010 and the
Grand Reopening of the golf course expected Fall 2011.
More good things happening in North Oak Cliff!
We need everyone to contribute, however. That means
you. That actually meant me (how embarrassingmembership chair and all, don’tcha know). If you pay
the $25 membership fee now, you get 13 months of
membership—you’re good through December of next
year. We’re trying to get everyone on the calendar year
instead of renewing throughout the year to make
remembering easier for us all.
At the risk of sounding like a pledge drive, this is my
little EKPNA pledge drive. Take pity on me and your
unweeded medians: visit our website,
www.eastkessler.org, and click on Make Payment at the
top. Once you contribute, you can feel good knowing
you’ve done your part to keep our neighborhood green,
support our neighborhood improvements (sign
toppers!), and contribute to neighborhood prosperity
and goodwill. And that’s a lot for $25!
Thanks again to all of you who did your part and
renewed your membership. If you are reading this, visit
the website (www.eastkessler.org) or send EKPNA a
check (EKPNA, P.O. Box 224382, Dallas, Texas 75222) and
we’ll get your money working for you. Thanks for
supporting East Kessler, which is truly, as the new t-shirt
says, “More than a zip code: a lifestyle!”
The East Kessler Park Neighborhood Association thanks
Methodist Medical Center for allowing us to use their
facilities for many of our meetings and events.
Your 2008-2009 EKPNA Officers:
“Fernando” an Artistically-Inspired
Pet
Meet Fernando, this issue's Feature Pet! Fernando is a chocolate
Labrador retriever who lives with Daniel Huerta and Steve Park
on Cedar Hill Avenue. He shares his home with a male Chihuahua named Sanjaya and a female wire-haired dachshund
named Chula. Fernando's name was inspired by two very
different artistic influences. The first was the Colombian figurative artist Fernando Botero, Daniel's favorite artist. The second
influence was the Number One Hit Song "Fernando" by Swedish pop group ABBA. Fernando the dog isn't very concerned
with paintings or music, however; he prefers walking along the
Coombs Creek Trail and eating acorns on the deck of the house.
Fernando came to live with Daniel and Steve shortly after the
death of their beloved black lab Clifford. "Shortly after Clifford
died, my vet called to let me know that there were seven baby Labradors at her clinic that she was trying to place,"
says Daniel. "She indicated that they belonged to a client of hers who had taken in a Katrina rescue (Fernando's dad)
and who had impregnated their lab. The client didn't want the puppies, so my vet housed the mother dog until she
gave birth to the puppies. I declined to see them during my first visit to the vet following the death of my black lab.
On the second visit they brought in all 7 puppies to let me play with them. Fernando stood out immediately as he
was very loving and personable."
Fernando will receive a $10 gift certificate to Green Pet, located in the Bishop Arts district. The Featured Pet is selected at
random from the pets listed in our online pet registry. To register your pet, go to the Pet Registry section of our website.
First Annual “Fall Thing” Event a Big Success
What do Bugs, Trinity River, and Musical Chairs all have in common? The First Annual East Kessler Park Neighborhood Association “Fall Thing” Event and Membership Drive! Approximately 150 of our neighbors attended the
October 16th event designed to celebrate what it means to be a part of East Kessler Park. “East Kessler Park Neighborhood Association – 75208 not just a zip code, a lifestyle”, was the message on the t-shirts which were bought up
at the event. The legendary Bugs Henderson highlighted the evening’s entertainment with 1-1/2 hours of simply
outstanding guitar and vocals. Additionally, our locally talented Trinity River Folk warmed up the crowd for Bugs
with some good toe tapping tunes.
The actual event started much earlier with children’s games and face painting, while two of our local vendors,
Burgesa and El Tizoncito taqueria, served burritos and tacos to all. The grillers were busy with hamburgers and hot
dogs to accompany all of the great side dishes and desserts brought by neighbors. Wonderful donated gifts, such as
Arrington Roofing, Dream Café, The Kessler Theater, Urban Acres, Mary Kay Cosmetics, Midway Auto Supply,
Bellini’s Italian Restaurant and Sunset Chiropractic Center were raffled throughout the event.
All of this couldn’t have happened without the support of our fantastic sponsors, specifically: David Griffin and
Company, Shelter Mortgage Company, Grand Bank of Texas and, Methodist Hospital; “The Fall Thing Committee Members” who met many nights planning the seamlessly flowing event; our wonderful Master of Ceremonies,
Jill Beam and her husband Ken; and everyone that attended.
For those of y’all not able to attend, it was great food, terrific fellowship and outstanding entertainment. So if you
missed out this time don’t fret. The Fall Thing Committee Members have already had preliminary discussions on
next year’s event. Their challenge is to try and top the home run that was hit. Be sure to check out our website at
www.eastkessler.org to view pictures of the event.
Need Some Neighborly Advice?
Great advice comes from experience!
Trust the mortgage professional with knowledge and
skills to give you the best advantage. Don't leave your
mortgage to uncertainties. An experienced
professional is essential to sound advice.
JUST ASK!
Lisa Peters is an East Kessler Park resident and has been
doing business in the neighborhood since 1983.
Lisa Peters
Vice President Residential Mortgage
Apply Online at www.petersgroup1.com
214-763-6931
ShelterMortgage
LLC
Division of Guaranty Bank Since 1923
Neither Crime Nor Fire Take a Holiday
Liz Smith, Crime Watch Coordinator
As you know, crime traditionally increases during the holiday season. In addition to taking precautions to make sure
your home is safe, please be extra cautious while out shopping. With the hustle and bustle of the season, we all
become distracted but we must endeavor to remain alert to our surroundings. When shopping, park as near the
entrance to a business as possible and in a well lighted area if at night. Do not linger in your auto, for any reason.
Get into your car, lock the doors and leave. Look into your car before getting in. Also, be aware of vehicles parked
near you, especially if they are occupied or if a van or large SUV.
Another concern is Fire Safety. Christmas trees are often the source of devastating fires. Real trees become dry very
quickly and a small short in the lights can quickly start a major fire. Leading causes of fires are electrical, improperly
discarded smoking materials, unattended cooking, equipment malfunction and playing with fire by children.
Each family should have a fire escape plan:
With all the buzz about “green” and “sustainability” I
though some clarifying definitions were necessary.
Hopefully, this will be the beginning of a series of
articles regarding “Green Building”.
“Sustainable development” involves meeting the needs
of the present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs. It requires
no non-renewable resources, impacts the environment
minimally, and helps connect people with the natural
environment.
J D’s Tree Service
Complete Tree Care
Residential & Commercial
Tree Removal & Planting
Stump Grinding
Trimming
Shaping
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55
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33
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Most importantly, make sure your home has a working smoke detector!
Gary Easter, Vice-President
44
- Draw a home escape plan and discuss it with everyone in the family.
- Practice the plan with everyone at least twice a year.
- Have two ways out of every sleeping area. Ensure all doors and windows open easily.
- Designate an outside meeting place, where everyone can meet.
- Teach children how to escape on their own in case you cannot help them.
Green Building vs.
Sustainability
A non-renewable resource is a natural resource (such as
fossil fuels) which cannot be produced, grown, generated, or used on a scale which can sustain its consumption rate. In contrast, resources such as timber (when
harvested sustainably) or metals (which can be
recycled) are considered renewable resources.
Sustainable technologies use less energy, fewer limited
resources, do not deplete natural resources, do not
directly or indirectly pollute the environment, and can
be reused or recycled at the end of their useful life
“Green development” is differentiated from sustainable
development in that green development prioritizes
environmental sustainability over economic and
cultural considerations. Green building is the practice of
creating structures and using processes that are environmentally responsible and resource-efficient
throughout a building's life-cycle. This is done by:
-
Efficiently using energy, water, and other resources
Protecting occupant health
Reducing waste and pollution
Avoiding environmental degradation
Green building does not specifically address the issue of
the retrofitting of existing homes. I hope to cover this
topic and other options in future articles.
Wood Milling
1018 Kessler Parkway s Dallas 75208
214.946.7138 s 214.394.3542
Dr. Susan Nearpass
Now offering:
Chiropractic care
Cold laser
Massage therapy
Reflexology
Infrared sauna
Sunset Chiropractic Center
2407 W. 12th St. at Hampton
Dallas, TX 75211
(214) 339-2020
“In Oak Cliff Since 1949”
Visit our Website: www.eastkessler.org