01-30-2013-Midweek - Wise County Messenger

Deer CreekBldg 4TM6 WISE COUNTY MESSENGER, Decatur, Texas, Wednesday, January 30, 2013DECATURCouncil re-funds bonds, calls for spring electionBY BOB BUCKELbbuckel@wcmessenger.comWhen you get a chance tosave a cool half-million, youdo it.That’s what the City of Decaturdid on Monday eveningwhen it re-funded a series of10-year-old water and sewerbonds at a significantly lowerinterest rate.According to bond adviserMurphy Davis, whatthe city actually did was sell$3,475,00 in 2004 bonds anduse that money to purchasetreasury securities that matureon March 1, 2014 — thedate those bonds are callable.Proceeds from those securitieswill pay off those 2004 bondsnext year — then the city willsave an average of $51,762 ayear over the next 10 years asit pays off the new bonds.“We’re not extending yourdebt, just refinancing it at adifferent rate,” Davis said.Davis praised the city for itsstrong financial performance,which earned it an A-1 ratingfrom Moody’s Financial Serviceslast month. That ratingis a major reason the city canget an interest rate of 2.71 onthe new bonds — compared tothe 4.64 it was paying on theold bonds.“Building up those reservefunds helps maintain that A-1rating,” he said. “That’s aboutprimo as far as a city this sizegoes. You have a great cityhere.”The rating also means thecity doesn’t need to buy insuranceon the bonds — anothersaving.Three seats on ballotThe council also called anelection to elect, or re-elect,three members to the citycouncil.On the ballot for the May 11election are places 2, 4 and 6,currently held by Susan Cocanougher,Jason Wren andRandy Bowker. All are twoyearterms.The filing period opens today(Wednesday, Jan. 30) andruns through March 1. Earlyvoting is April 29 throughMay 7 at City Hall.The council also voted tohold the election jointly withDecatur Independent SchoolDistrict — with the reservationthat it’s possible eitherentity might not have an opposedelection, in which casethey would be allowed by lawto cancel. Both the city andschool district set aside fundsto handle their own election,and if they are able to holdvoting jointly, both come inunder budget.The council also: approved the use of theHarmon Park skateboardpark on Saturday, May 25 fora competition to be hosted byShredderz, a local skateboardshop; approved a zoning variancefor the Wise CountySheriff’s Posse to allow theconstruction of a monumentsign with an electronic messageboard. The propertywhere the Sheriff’s PosseArena is located along FM51 South is currently zonedSingle-Family, a zoning whichprohibits such signs. gave final approval to anordinance lowering the speedlimit on U.S. 380 to 55 mphfrom Chico Street to the westcity limits. voted to cancel the council’sFeb. 11 meeting due tothe expected lack of a quorum.That day is Wise CountyDay at the state Capitol inAustin, and at least threecouncilmembers are expectedto attend. The following Mondayis a federal holiday forPresidents Day. With no casespending from the Planning& Zoning Commission whichwould require hearings andthe publication of notices, thecouncil opted to just handleeverything on the fourth Mondayin February.Prior to the meeting, in awork session that began at5:30, the council heard annualreports on the airport,planning department, publicworks, civic center, MainStreet program, fire and policedepartments, finance departmentand the library.ANNUAL REPORTSDFD has a waiting listDecatur Fire Chief MikeRichardson reported on hisdepartment’s activities for2012 and going forward.The DFD currently hasthree full-time administrativepersonnel, nine full-timefirefighters, seven part-timesupport personnel and 22volunteers. A new system fortraining and utilizing volunteers,modeled after the Cityof Frisco, has been “very successful”Richardson said, andhas actually increased thenumber of volunteer applications.Under the system, ratherthan being constantly on-call,volunteers work a 12-hourshift every nine days. This allowsvolunteers to scheduletheir time, come in, do theirshift, do their training and gohome or to their other jobs.Consequently, the DFD nowhas volunteers from Boyd,Rhome, Alvord — even onewho lives in Bedford.“This allows us to have acouple of volunteers on dutymost nights from 7 to 7,” Richardsonsaid. “It has, to my surprise,increased interest fromguys wanting to get hours, gettraining and get into a professionaljob.”Decatur’s limit for volunteersis 30, so there are currentlyeight spots available —but Richardson said he has 16applicants for those spots.Among the department’s accomplishmentsfor 2012 wereimplementation of a five-yearplan, securing a temporaryfire training facility, improvingthe fire inspection process,expanding fire education efforts,encouraging the use ofsprinkler systems, workingwith the public works departmentto enhance public watersupply firefighting capabilities,upgrading training andadding a tanker.Goals for 2013 includebuilding a portable live-burnsimulator to use in training,initiating a “Ready, Set, Go!”program aimed at preventioneducation for wildfires,reinstituting the CitizensFire Academy and continuingwork in other areas.The DFD’s response timesfor city, county and overallcame down in 2012: from 5:06minutes to 5:02 in the city;10:46 to 10:10 in the county,and 6:59 to 6:12 overall.Police productivePolice Chief Rex Hoskinswent through the statistics,both on crime and on thenumber of arrests and citationsissued by his officersduring the year. The DPD’s 19officers worked 355 accidentsin 2012, made 748 arrests andissued 7,852 citations. Theyresponded to 32,279 calls forservice during the year — thesixth-busiest out of the last 10years.Arrests for DWI, public intoxicationand drug offenseswere the lowest since 2003.The city had no murders, onlyone robbery and one sexual assault,11 motor vehicle thefts,20 burglaries, 84 assaults and187 thefts. Of $231,778 in stolenproperty reported — money,jewelry, clothing, vehicles,office equipment, electronics,firearms and household goods— $63,797 was recovered duringthe year.Airport looks at futureFinance Manager BradBurnett, who recently took onthe additional responsibilitiesof Airport Manager, gave thecouncil a rundown on aircraft,employment, hangar rentalsand companies located at theDecatur Municipal Airport.Currently there are 52 airplanesand one helicopterbased at the airport in 48closed, open and privatelyowned hangars. Employersat the airport — includingDecatur Jet Center, UnitedRotocraft Solutions, Wayne’sAircraft Services/ClearviewHangar, Alamo Aerospace,Garrett & Hasty Propertiesand the City of Decatur —generate approximately 50full-time jobs. The airport’sfixed-base operator (FBO)sold 17,895 gallons of AVGASin 2012, up 8 percent fromlast year. Jet fuel sales weredown, however, by 29 percentfrom 21,412 gallons in 2011 to15,105 in 2012.The airport generatedreveues of $62,845 in 2012,with expenditures coming inat $206,022.Plans for 2013 include refurbishingthe terminal buildingwith paint and tile flooring,and a fence project that willenclose the perimeter of theairport. Six electronically-operatedgates will be installedas part of the $130,000 project,with $13,000 to be paid bythe city and the rest through agrant from TxDOT’s aviationdivision. Burnett said he hasalso contacted Oncor aboutgoing underground with somepower lines on the airportgrounds to eliminate a potentialcause of crashes.A ramp refurbishing is duein 2015 — engineering willstart next year — and thecity will look at expandingboth the width and length ofthe runway. And Burnett saidhe would like to explore thecurrent hangar situation andcome up with suggestions tothe council on how it might beimproved.“There is a lot of interestin people building hangarsout there,” he said. “We needabout 40 t-hangars and a corporatehangar — but rightnow they have to give it backto the city in 20 years, andmost are not willing to dothat. We’ll be coming back toyou to see if there’s a way wecan modify that.”Development downPlanning Director Dedra D.Ragland, AICP, went over herreport with the council, notingthat since the record yearof 2008, development activityin the City of Decatur has “decreasedsignificantly.” Itemslike plats, plans, gas well development,special use permits,subdivisions, commercial andresidential site plan reviewsand zoning changes went from117 in 2008 to 61 in 2012.Fees generated on thoseitems fell from the high of$19,550 in ‘08 to $9,098 lastyear.Ragland said her departmentissued 808 buildingpermits and conducted1,491 building inspectionsin 2012. Residential projectswere mainly in the Homes ofBriar Crossing, South MartinBranch and GreathouseVillage Estates, while majorcommercial projects includedEasy Rent, Panda Express,Crossroads Church, Casa TorresMexican Restaurant andState National Bank.The department’s majorproject, the Zoning Ordinancerewrite, has taken longerthan anticipated, but “we aremaking progress” she told thecouncil.Therapies can help stem damage from glaucomaGlaucoma is a quiet disease.Those affected by it oftenfeel no pain, and the loss ofeyesight is so gradual that patientssometimes don’t evenrealize what’s happening untilit’s in the advanced stages.Dr. Patricia Young withBridgeport Eye Center saidthere are 15 types of glaucoma.“Glaucoma is a disease thatis related to the flow of the fluidin the eye, not the blood, butthe clear fluid,” she said. “Youmake too much, and it can’tdrain quickly enough or youmake the right amount and itgets trapped in the drain.“Either way the pressuregets too high, and it causesdamage to the nerve that carriesinformation from the eyeto the brain.”WALK-INS WELCOMEDr. Eric Cheng with TherapeuticOptometrist in Decatursaid glaucoma is typicallydiscovered by two things:measuring the pressure inthe eye and examining the opticnerve.“It’s a disease that causespermanent blindness,” hesaid. “It works outside to thecenter, usually slowly so youwon’t notice it.”Glaucoma is not curable,but there are treatmentsavailable to slow the disease.Young said the most commontreatment is eye droptherapy. There are numeroustypes of drops that doctorsmay prescribe, depending onthe stage of the disease, butshe said the most importantthing is to never skip a drop.“Take it when you’re supposedto,” she said. “Consistencyin medication is what keepsyou where you need to be tokeep from losing your vision.”Some patients may also becandidates for selective lasertrabeculoplasty, which willbe available locally in February.Young said Dr. John Belardoof Oklahoma City willtravel to Bridgeport once amonth and do the proceduresat North Texas CommunityHospital.She explained that althoughthe therapy has beenaround for about 15 years,this is the first time it’s beenavailable in Wise County.“We can delay having to usedrops if you get the laser,” shesaid.There are also other surgeriesthat can be performed if thedisease is greatly advanced.Cheng said the onset ofthe disease usually occursbetween ages 45 and 60, andalthough it’s not necessarilyhereditary, a person can bepre-dispositioned for it if theyhave family members withglaucoma.Young said in addition toage and family history, ethnicityand injury can also berisk factors. She explainedthat all patients are screenedfor glaucoma, but additionaltesting is done patients at ahigher risk.Dr. Young has been practicingin Wise County since1995, and Dr. Cheng has beenwith Therapeutic Optometristsince July of 2012. Dr. OliviaLe also practices at TherapeuticOptometrist.Dr. Rebecca J. Bradford Therapeutic OptometristDr. Patricia YoungDoctor of Optometry• Friendly Personal Attention• Pre- and Post-Surgical Care• Treatment of Eye Disease• Co-Management ofGlaucoma• Participating Provider inMedicare & Other Plans• Wide Variety of Frames,Contacts and Sunglasses807 Woodrow Wilson Ray Circle • Bridgeport, TX 76426www.bridgeporteyecenter.com • 940-683-2006THE FUTURE OF EYECARE IS NUTRITIONsrrTHERAPEUTICOPTOMETRISTDr. Olivia Le, O.D.Dr. Eric Cheng, O.D.Monday - Thursday • 10 am - 6 pmFriday • 10 am - 5 pmOpen Saturdays • 9 am - 4 pm800 S. US Hwy. 81/287 • Decatur 76234940-626-00882KPawnJudy Redman, Dr. Rebecca Bradford, Marlene GreenWest Hwy Business 380SearsLowesDecatur BusinessSince 19971451 West Bus 380Building 4 Suite 7 • Decatur940-627-7929MON, WED, THURS, FRI, 9 AM - 5 PM • TUES, SAT, 9 AM - 1 PMState-of-the-ArtDiagnosis and Treatment of Glaucoma,Macular Degeneration, Cataracts andOther Diseases of the Eye.Accepting Most Major Insurances:• AETNA• BLUE CROSS BLUE SHIELD• CIGNA• HUMANA• MEDICAID• MEDICARE• PHCS• TEXAS TRUE CHOICE• UNITED HEALTHCARE*Various Other Plans Including Some Vision PlansEdward H. Fries, M.S., O.D.Diseases and Disorders of the EyeSpecializing in Ocular Nutrition303 South Washburn • Decatur TX 76234940-627-2020www.doctorfries.com