Oct. 4, 2024

This is the latest edition of Week In Review — a series of weekly messages from the Mayor and City Council to help Richardson residents and businesses keep up to date on municipal events. If you would like to sign up to receive this in a weekly e-mail click here.

Throughout the year, the City Council or City Plan Commission will hold meetings on topics of significant interest to local neighborhoods or the community in general. Links to view all City Council or City Plan Commission meeting documents that may have topics of interest to you can be found here:

City Council | City Plan Commission

City Continues Recovery Efforts Related to Last Week’s Cyber Security Incident 
On Monday, City of Richardson IT restoration teams successfully re-established internal network communication lines temporarily disabled last week, affecting online customer portals on the City’s website and mobile applications. While the restoration marks a major step forward in the ongoing efforts to fully reactivate the City’s internal network, the process to take down, check, and restore sections of the network is causing intermittent outages for services like the City’s 24-hour response telephone line and utility billing. (Alternate backup phone number for the City’s 24-hour response line: 972-744-4487.) 

The City’s network has been in a state of lockdown as restoration and forensic teams work to progressively restore services and investigate the source of an unauthorized access incident that occurred Sept. 25. Utility billing and other online payment systems were not directly impacted. However, the connections to the City’s website (www.cor.net) and MyRichardson mobile applications are experiencing temporary outages as IT teams incrementally restore parts of the network. 

More information: www.cor.net/CyberFAQ 

Cottonwood Park Ready for 55th Cottonwood Art Festival This Weekend 
Crews have been readying Cottonwood Park this week for the City’s biannual Cottonwood Art Festival taking place Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 5-6. Numerous booths will display the work of almost 200 artists from across the nation, two stages will feature live music throughout each day and food and beverage vendors will be on site.   

ArtStop, a colorful, interactive children’s area, will offer activities starting at $2 per activity per child. Be sure to cast your vote in the Chalk the Walk Contest’s People’s Choice Award at the festival website on Sunday!  

Admission to the festival is free.  

Festival Location / Hours 
Cottonwood Park is located at 1321 W. Belt Line Rd.  

Parking 
Free parking is available across from the festival grounds at the Richardson High School football stadium (1250 W. Belt Line Rd.). Shuttles are available throughout the weekend to and from the parking area.  

Website: www.cottonwoodartfestival.com 

National Night Out Brings Neighbors, Police Together  
Richardson held its National Night Out event Tuesday night, with hundreds of Richardson residents gathering at 114 registered parties across the city at parks and in neighborhoods. Police officers stopped by each event, and some gatherings saw appearances from Richardson Fire personnel, “Nat the Knight” and other costumed characters, Richardson City Council members and Miss Texas Annette Addo-Yobo. The Police Department collected 6,834 pounds of food through its Can-Do Food Drive held during the event, and the “Richardson Replants” initiative gave away free trees (see story below for more information). 

This is the 35th year for Richardson to participate in National Night Out, a program created by the National Association of Town Watch that is designed to promote police-community partnerships, neighborhood camaraderie and help in crime prevention and enhancing quality of life.  

“Richardson Replants” Provides 100 Trees at National Night Out 
The second Richardson Replants tree giveaway was held during National Night Out this week, providing free trees at three Richardson parks and one neighborhood block party. Once again, the tree giveaway proved popular and people lined up, taking home a collective total of 100 trees (25 at each location). 

This fall, 500 total trees (Desert Willow, Chinkapin Oak and Peach) will be given away to Richardson residents—upcoming giveaway locations and dates include:   

The City Council created the Richardson Replants initiative to help replace trees lost during the severe weather event on May 28 earlier this year. An additional 500 trees will be distributed next spring, potentially offering other species depending on availability from other nurseries.   

Website: www.cor.net/RichardsonReplants  

Tree Giveaway at Tree Care Presentation Tomorrow Afternoon 
The third “Richardson Replants” tree giveaway will happen tomorrow afternoon, Oct. 5, from 1-2 p.m. as part of a Library-sponsored tree care program taking place at City Hall. Come learn about tree planting and maintenance from representatives from the Texas Trees Foundation, then take home a free 5-gallon tree to plant. Topics include proper tree placement, planting techniques and general care.   

The lecture is open to all, but the trees will be available on a first-come, first-served basis (while supplies last) to Richardson residents only, with proof of residency (state-issued ID/DL or water bill), one tree per address.   

Details: 

Website: www.cor.net/RichardsonReplants  

Applications Open for Charter Review Commission 
The application period opened this week for Richardson residents to apply to be a part of the upcoming Charter Review Commission. The City’s Charter, a document that establishes the municipal government structure and provides for the distribution of powers and duties among the various branches of government, was established in 1956 and is required to be reviewed at least every 10 years.   

Commission members must be qualified voters of the City who have been residents of Texas for at least one year and residents of Richardson for at least six months, who hold no elected public office and are not in arrears in taxes or other liability due to the City. Applicants should be able to commit to the required volunteer time for service on the commission (it will meet from January-May 2025) as well as show an interest in the specific workings of the commission.   

Once the application period closes, the City Council will review applications and schedule interviews before appointing a commission. Any recommendations the commission makes for changes will go to the City Council, which will determine if an election will be called in November 2025 to modify the Charter.  

More information: www.cor.net/GetOnBoard 
Current City Charter: www.cor.net/government/charter-code-of-ordinances  

Give Input on City’s Solid Waste Master Plan at Open House Tuesday 
The City of Richardson is in the process of developing a Solid Waste Master Plan (SWMP) that will guide the future of the City’s solid waste services. The purpose of the plan is to establish a clear vision for the trash and recycling collection goals, strategies and priorities. As the City works to develop their SWMP, public involvement is essential to the project’s success. The City invites you to participate in an Open House to help inform decisions regarding solid waste in our community.    

Details: 

Website: www.cor.net/communityengagement 

Cultural Arts Master Plan Survey Ends Sunday 
The City of Richardson is seeking community feedback via a survey (through Sunday, Oct. 6) regarding cultural arts preferences/experiences, as part of a study underway to update the City’s Cultural Arts Master Plan. Responses will help guide the future of the City’s cultural arts offerings through grants, community events, programming and other forms of cultural arts support.  

Richardson’s Cultural Arts Master Plan began in 2013 and provides a comprehensive strategy for the City’s support for programs, projects and services related to the arts in Richardson.  

The Cultural Arts Master Plan survey is available online and runs through the end of the day on Sunday, Oct. 6.  

Survey link: Shaping the Heart of Richardson | Engage with BerryDunn (mysocialpinpoint.com)

Monday, Oct. 7 is Last Day to Register to Vote in November Election 
Voter registration applications must be postmarked by Monday, Oct. 7 or brought in person to your county registrar’s office by the end of business hours on that day in order to participate in the Nov. 5 general election.   

The postage-paid application to register is available online here (for printing out). Voter registration may also be completed at your local county registrar’s office and when renewing a driver’s license or State ID online (or replacing it or changing your contact information). (Read about expanded Driver’s License Office hours in the story below).  

List of county registrar locations: click here  
Website: www.votetexas.gov  

Texas Driver’s License Offices to Offer Saturday Hours Oct. 12, 26 
The Texas Department of Public Safety announced this week that select offices across the state will be open for half days on select Saturdays through the end of October to serve additional customers needing to renew or replace their driver’s license or identification card (dates vary by location). Some offices may also issue new IDs.   

DPS’s Region 1, which includes Dallas-Fort Worth, has six offices scheduled to be open 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Oct. 12 and 26; the closest to Richardson are the Carrollton office (4600 State Highway 121) and the Garland office (350 W. Interstate 30).  

An appointment is required for the Saturday services and can be booked online at www.txdpsscheduler.com. Note that appointments fill quickly; DPS is asking customers to be sure to cancel their appointments if not needed so someone else can take their spot.  

More information: Click here 

Drone Delivery Service Expanding in Richardson 
Drone delivery service is about to expand in North Texas, with airborne packages set to take flight to more homes and businesses within Richardson. First offered in Richardson in late 2022 by the Walmart Neighborhood Market on Buckingham Road, the service is planned for the Walmart Supercenter on North Garland Avenue (through drone company Wing) and is currently being tested for deliveries to locations up to six miles from the store, which includes several Richardson neighborhoods.   

About 1,000 items will be eligible for drone delivery by Wing, usually small packages weighing under 2.6 pounds. The drones fly about 65 miles per hour at 200 feet above the ground, and a remote pilot guides the drone using camera images for navigation and safety.  

Richardson is no stranger to automated delivery—in addition to being among the first 11 cities in Texas in 2022 to be offered drone delivery from Walmart, Richardson welcomed robot delivery in 2019 as UT Dallas began utilizing robot food delivery across campus, and FedEx tested a personal delivery vehicle known as “Roxo” in 2021 in neighborhoods near Berkner High School.  

Richardson Tech Leaders Recognized with Tech Titan Awards 
Several business leaders, organizations and companies with ties to Richardson were honored recently as winners of a Tech Titan Award. The awards are given annually by Tech Titans™, The Technology Association for North Texas, to recognize individuals and companies in North Texas that are transforming the high-tech industry, making contributions locally as well as to the industry overall.  

Winners included: 

More information: www.techtitans.org. 

Traffic Delays Expected on Glenville between Arapaho, Collins 
Due to several emergency gas line repair projects taking place by Atmos along southbound Glenville Drive between Collins Boulevard and Arapaho Road, both northbound and southbound Glenville Drive in that area may shift to one lane on the southbound side between 9 a.m.-3:30 p.m. whenever work is taking place, with flaggers on site to direct the alternate movement of northbound and southbound traffic. The lane closures are expected to take place several times over the next eight weeks and cause major traffic delays—drivers are advised to see an alternate route if possible.   

The work is planned to be completed by the end of November, weather permitting.  

The IQ^® Brew Thursday
The IQ^®HQ, 1302 E. Collins Blvd.
Admission: Free (RSVP requested here as space is limited)
Thursday, Oct. 10
8:30-10 a.m.  

Learn about urban heat islands at the latest installment of The IQ^® Brew, a free, public series that features coffee, networking and informative presentations. Thursday’s presenters are Rose Jones, PhD, and Marsha Prior, PhD, of Rapid Anthropology Consulting, who will explore the gaps and challenges of HAP (heat absorbing pavement), spotlighting public health and urban preservation issues.  

Intro to AI with MS Copilot Tomorrow Morning 
Millwood Creek Room
Admission: Free (registration required; call 972-744-4355 to register)
Saturday, Oct. 5
10:30 a.m.-noon  

Learn about, and tinker with Microsoft's CoPilot to generate text and art. Registration and a current RPL card in good standing required. 

STEAM Activities for Kids at The IQ^®HQ Friday Afternoon 
Richardson Innovation Quarter Headquarters, 1302 E. Collins Blvd.
Admission: Free (Registration is required, call 972-744-4358 to register or visit the Library’s Youth Services Help Desk.)
Friday, Oct. 11
4-5 p.m.  

Library staff will be on hand to help kids ages 6-12 enjoy an hour of fun discovering and exploring science, technology, engineering, art and math, with hands-on activities in two separate groups. STEAM Starters (ages 6-8) will create their own green-haired Halloween gnome “the natural way”; the C-TECH Kids Club (ages 9-12) will explore color theory and how to mix colors while creating the color white, then each make their own color wheel spinner toy. 

www.cor.net/Library

At the Eisemann Center:

• RSO Season Opening Concert Tomorrow Night
  Hill Performance Hall
  Tickets: $25-$85
  Saturday, Oct. 5
  7:30 p.m.
  
  Experience Beethoven's “Piano Concerto No. 3” with pianist Kenny Broberg and Berlioz's “Symphonie fantastique.”
  
  
• Keyboard Conversations® with Jeffrey Siegel Monday 
  Bank of America Theatre
  Tickets: $42-$50
  Monday, Oct. 7
  7:30 p.m.
  
  The program, entitled, “Dances for the Ears!,” will feature the lively, rhythmic music of Bach, Chopin and Spanish composers Granados and de Falla, enhanced by Siegel’s fact-filled and engaging commentary. Audience members can also experience the return of the “Keyboard Cam,” offering a close-up view of Jeffrey’s hands in action, projected onto the screen on stage left.
  
  
• Aida Cuevas Thursday
  Hill Performance Hall
  Tickets: $40-$60
  Thursday, Oct. 10
  7:30 p.m.
  
  Experience the magic of mariachi as the “Queen of Ranchera Music” pays tribute to the legendary Juan Gabriel in this new live performance. With a new album, “Aida Cuevas Canta a Juan Gabriel 40 años después,” Cuevas takes center stage to showcase Gabriel's timeless hits including “Te Lo Pido Por Favor” and “La Diferencia.” 

Due to system outages, the Eisemann Center is currently accepting payments in person by cash only. For assistance, please e-mail tickets@eisemanncenter.com or call 972-744-4650, and we will respond as soon as possible. 

At UT Dallas:

• Filipino Cultural Celebration Tonight
  Student Union and Artemis Rooms (SU.2.905), 2601 N. Floyd Rd.
  Admission: $5
  Friday, Oct. 4
  7-9 p.m.
  
  The public is invited to join UT Dallas students and staff in celebrating Filipino American History Month, recognizing and celebrating the contributions of Americans with roots from the Philippines. The celebration will include music, traditional food and beverages, performances and some cultural surprises!
  
  Event link: Click here
  
  
• Annual Dean’s Lecture: “The Humanities Out in the World” Thursday Night 
  O’Donnell Arts & Technology Building (ATC) 2.602
  Admission: Free
  Thursday, Oct. 10
  6-8 p.m.
  
  Join the Bass School of Arts, Humanities and Technology for a presentation by Dartmouth Professor of German and Comparative Literature Dr. Irene Kacandes, whose influential work in the public humanities bridges disciplines and advocates the importance of the humanities to all fields. Kacandes’ talk offers a different narrative about humanities field graduates and the humanities in the public sphere vs. current talk that “the humanities field is a waste of money.” The lecture will be followed by a Q&A and reception.
  
  Event link: Click here 

Community Chorale Concert, Voter Registration Event Sunday 
First Presbyterian Church of Richardson, 271 Walton St.
Admission: Free
Sunday, Oct. 6
3 p.m.  

The Richardson Community Chorale joins with the Sanctuary Choir of First Presbyterian Church of Richardson to present a concert entitled, “Voices in Unity: Songs of Hope and Peace.” A reception follows the concert. Volunteers from the League of Women Voters of Richardson will be available to help register voters, update address or name changes, and verify registration status.   

The Community Chorale is funded in part by a grant from the Cultural Arts Commission. 

Website: www.rcchorale.org  

Save the Date, Save Materials: RCPAAA Electronics Recycling/Document Shredding is Oct. 19 
Parking lot of The Heights Church, 201 W. Renner Rd. 
Cost: Free for electronics and free for 5 or less boxes of paper; $5/box over 5 
Saturday, Oct. 19 
10 a.m.-2 p.m.  

The Richardson Citizens Police Academy Alumni Association’s (RCPAAA) fall electronics recycling and document shredding event is taking place soon, so if you haven’t been collecting materials, now is a good time to start. All types of electronics are accepted with the exception of old tube-style TVs and bulky CRT computer monitors. Note that “paper shredding” means shredding sensitive documents; non-sensitive paper such as magazines and newspapers belong in the City’s weekly recycling pickup. (Also note that if you shred your own paper at home, the shreds belong in the trash, NOT recycling blue bags.)  

RCPAAA supports the Richardson Police Department (RPD) by enhancing awareness and appreciation of the department within the community, publicizing its services and accomplishments and developing partnerships. The money raised from the recycling/shredding event is used to sponsor year-round initiatives in support of the department. These include things like providing meals and snacks during the holiday season and other activities designed to support the well-being of RPD officers and staff.  

Website: www.rcpaaa.org 

Walk & Talk Bird Tour Tomorrow Morning at Wetland Center
655 Martin Ln., Seagoville
Cost: $10, includes admission; click here to register up to four people
Saturday, Oct. 5
7:30-9:30 a.m. 

Head southeast about 40 minutes from Richardson to explore the John Bunker Sands Wetland Center, located in the middle of the North Texas Municipal Water District’s (NTMWD) 2,000-acre East Fork Wetland Project. The project provides a unique, natural process that helps purify Richardson’s water supply (and that of other NTMWD member cities) while at the same time creating wildlife habitat and enhancing the environment. On the first Saturday of each month from September-May, a master birder teaches how to use binoculars and field guides, keep a life-list and identify birds. Recommended for ages 10 and up. Dress for the weather; wear study, closed-toe shoes or boots. Binoculars are available for loan.  

Website: www.wetlandcenter.com 

www.cor.net/EPI

Detention Officer ($42,252 to $65,796 Salary) 
The Police Department is looking for individuals who can performs all duties necessary for the successful operation of the Detention Division. Valid Texas Driver's License, Class C or above, required. 

Maintenance Helper II ($39,288 - $49,200 Salary) 
The Public Services Department has multiple job opening in Streets, Utilities, Water and Construction and is looking for individuals who love working outdoors doing repair and construction to streets. Texas Drivers License, Class C, required. 

Gymnastics Coach PT ($17.82/hr to $35.70/hr) 
The Parks and Recreation Department is looking for individuals with who enjoy working with people in groups of various sizes and has a passion for teaching. 

www.cor.net/jobs

Pet of the Week
Polk is a sweet 3-year-old American Bulldog that has been waiting for his forever home since June, and he’s ready to steal your heart! Polk is smart, fully potty trained and gets along great with other dogs. Plus, he absolutely loves treats!  If you’re looking for a loyal companion who will bring joy and snuggles to your life, come meet Polk today! 

For information about animals available for adoption, visit the Animal Shelter’s web page here.

City Council Links