Cathedral City a
Finalist for the National League of Cities Awards for Municipal Excellence
Today, the National League of Cities (NLC) and CH2M HILL
announced that the City of Cathedral City is a Finalist for the 2006 Awards
for Municipal Excellence. The Awards for Municipal Excellence recognize
outstanding programs that have significantly contributed to the quality of
life in their city. This year, cities and towns from 38 states and
Washington, DC sent in nominations.
“Cathedral City has demonstrated its leadership and
creativity and is being recognized as a Finalist for the Awards for
Municipal Excellence,” said Don Borut, NLC’s Executive Director. The Cove,
35th Avenue and Dream Homes Neighborhood Assessment District Sewer and
Street Improvements Project is illustrative of the type of projects that are
improving the lives of residents in cities and towns across the country.”
Nominated programs have been judged on the following
criteria: successful public-private partnership ventures; productive citizen
and community collaborations; effective management of municipal resources
(public or private); innovative government policies; project implementation
with tangible results; and/or the ability to replicate the project in other
cities.
The Cathedral City Neighborhood Assessment District
Funded Project exemplifies a successful public-private partnership with
three diverse neighborhoods in the City and $51 million of needed
infrastructure has been funded through leveraging local, state and federal
grant funds with property owner tax assessments over a 30-year period.
In addition to giving superior projects the recognition
they deserve, the Awards for Municipal Excellence serve to highlight
programs that other cities can replicate. For instance, the 2005 Silver
Winner, Des Moines’ “It Started with Pots” city beautification program,
provided the inspiration for a similar program in Lexington, Ky.
"As a global leader in full-service engineering,
construction and operations, CH2M HILL endeavors to deliver innovative, yet
practical, solutions to our clients,” said Howlie Davis, CH2M HILL Senior
Vice President for State and Local Government Affairs. “We applaud the work
of our municipal leaders as they follow a similar path of innovation,
resulting in a brighter future for their citizens."
The winners of the 2006 Awards for Municipal Excellence
will be announced at the National League of Cities’ Congress of Cities and
Exposition in Reno, Nev., December 5-9, 2006.
In 1989, NLC partnered with CH2M HILL to create a
recognition program, naming the awards the James C. Howland Awards for Urban
Enrichment. It honored a founding partner and chief executive officer of
CH2M HILL, James C. Howland. Today, the Awards for Municipal Excellence
continues on the tradition of this prestigious recognition program. Detailed
information about the Awards for Municipal Excellence can be found on the
NLC website at www.nlc.org and future features in Nation’s Cities Weekly.
Cove Project
Groundbreaking Event
The Cove Improvement District, Phase One groundbreaking
event will be held September 13th at 1:30 p.m. The location will be
Cathedral Canyon Drive at Grove Street. This is the beginning of the largest
public works project in Cathedral City’s history.
Soccer Park
Groundbreaking
The Soccer Park groundbreaking event will be September
30th at 3 p.m. at 30th and Santoro. Building a soccer park was one of the
goals of the Parks Master Plan, which came from citizen focus groups and
public meetings that identified community recreational and other needs. Park
lands in Cathedral City Fall short of the recommended standard.
At its last meeting, the City Council approved eight
contracts for equipment, sod and services to make the Soccer Park a reality.
The soccer park will be built using state grants and redevelopment funds
that do not come from the General Fund and can not be used for city
operations such as police, fire of other city services.
Junk Your Jalopy
September is “Junk Your Jalopy” Month. If you live in
Cathedral City, get your inoperable or junk vehicle removed and towed during
the month of September. Please call the Cathedral City Code Enforcement
Division at 760-770-8200 or 760-770-8205 to schedule a removal appointment.
The program is only offered through September.
Cans
for Cash
Help out local schools! Start saving your aluminum
beverage cans and take them to you local elementary or middle school in
Cathedral City between September 15th – 30th. Look for the Cathedral City
Recycles container at the school of your choice. The school that collects
the most cans will win $2,500 to be used wherever the funds are needed:
books, supplies, equipment, computers, etc. The challenge is sponsored by
the City of Cathedral City Environmental Conservation Division, The United
States Conference of Mayors, Burrtec Waste and Recycling, and S.C.R.A.P.
Gallery. The $2,500 comes from the State of California Department of
Conservation Bottles and Cans Grant Program.
Speaking of Burrtec
As of July 1, 2006, Burrtec Waste and Recycling Services
acquired the Waste Management of the Desert operations headquartered in Palm
Desert, California. Burrtec is a family owned business founded in 1967 in La
Mesa, CA. Headquartered in Southern California, the Burrtec Family of
Companies operates in five Southern California Counties and is estimated to
be one of the ten largest haulers in the United States.
Other than the name change from Waste Management to
Burrtec, there are no changes in service or drivers – even the phone number
is the same. Pick-up days and waste requirements remain the same as well.
Street Re-Striping
Begins
Public Works began re-striping streets this week and plan
to stripe all major streets within the next two months. They are also in the
process of repainting all crosswalks. When done, Public Works will have
striped all arterial, secondary and collector roads.
Traffic striping was identified as one of the top
priorities of the Streets and Transportation Committee. The City’s new
striping machine was purchased with funds from the Traffic Safety Fund which
comes from local traffic fines and NOT the General Fund. The paint and man
hour-costs will be funded by annual Measure A funds that come from the
Riverside County Transportation Commission.
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