Live Blog: Thursday’s city council meetings (April 14)

By Colin Killian, Public Communications Manager

Welcome to our live blog from the College Station City Council’s workshop and regular meetings on Thursday, April 14. It’s not the official minutes.

The meeting is being broadcast live on Suddenlink Channel 19 and streamed online. An archive of previous council meetings is available on the website.

6:19 p.m.

The workshop has started.

6:20 p.m.

Consent Agenda Discussion

The council will vote on items listed on the consent agenda during tonight’s regular meeting. No items were pulled for discussion.

6:49 p.m.

Emergency Preparedness

The council heard a presentation about regional search and rescue assets as well as emergency preparedness resources, operational capacity, and guidelines.

Here’s the PowerPoint presentation received by the council: Continue reading “Live Blog: Thursday’s city council meetings (April 14)”

City Council, Public Communications

5 things to watch at Thursday’s city council meetings

By Colin Killian, Public Communications Manager

The College Station City Council gathers Thursday at city hall for its workshop (about 6 p.m.) and regular (7 p.m.) meetings. Here are five items to watch:

Emergency Preparedness: In the workshop, the council will hear a presentation about the area’s search and rescue capabilities and emergency response resources.
Replacement Bomb Suits: As part of the consent agenda, the council will consider approving the $64,000 purchase of two new explosive ordnance device suits. The Police Department’s current bomb suits have expired.
Luther Street Rehabilitation: The council will consider a $1.1 million contract for the reconstruction of Luther Street from Harvey Mitchell Parkway to Penberthy Road. The project will also relocate a waterline.
Rock Prairie Road Widening: The council will consider a $3.94 million contract to improve the capacity of Rock Prairie Road and align additional lanes with the State Highway 6 overpass. The project will extend from Normand Drive to several hundred feet east of the highway. Improvements include concrete pavement, sidewalks, and a new traffic signal at Longmire Drive.
Veterans Park Athletic Complex Build-out: The council will consider a $390,000 contract for engineering services related to design and construction of Phase 1 of the Veterans Park and Athletic Complex Build-Out. The project includes two new synthetic turf athletic fields, lighting, parking, and amenities, and would be financed through the Hotel Tax Fund.

Continue reading “5 things to watch at Thursday’s city council meetings”

Emergency Management, Public Communications

Severe Weather Week marks start of tornado season

Editor’s Note: Gov. Greg Abbott has proclaimed this as Severe Weather Awareness Week. This blog was originally published on April 30, 2014 under the headline “Tornado preparation is important – even in BCS.”

By Brian Hilton, Emergency Management Coordinator

The Bryan-College Station area has had its share of funnel clouds and tornado scares over the years, but we’ve managed to escape any loss of life or catastrophic damage. In fact, straight line winds and microbursts have caused more property damage here than twisters.

Although strong tornadoes are uncommon in our area, that doesn’t mean a deadly tornado couldn’t happen. And even small tornadoes have the potential to be violent.

Since 2000, Brazos County has experienced nine small tornadoes, with three rated F1 (wind speeds of 73-122 mph) on the Fujita scale and the rest F0 (under 73 mph). In December 2006, a F1 tornado moved south to north for five miles across central College Station and did considerable damage to an apartment complex on FM2818 and several businesses along Southwest Parkway and Texas Avenue. Three people suffered injuries.

Continue reading “Severe Weather Week marks start of tornado season”

Fire, Police, Public Communications

Ebola has influenced preparedness of local first responders

By Lt. Chuck Fleeger, College Station Police Department, and Eric Dotson, College Station Fire Marshal

Ebola.

The topic has dominated recent news reports, even on the local level. A virus that originated halfway across the globe has impacted lives in many countries and has affected people in our own state.

We’ve been blessed not to have any instances of Ebola in our community, but recent events have influenced how we educate and prepare our first responders. While the risk of our dealing directly with the Ebola virus is low, it’s important for the men and women of the College Station Police and Fire Departments to be ready if we need to respond to an Ebola-related situation.

Dispatchers are the key Continue reading “Ebola has influenced preparedness of local first responders”

Emergency Management, Public Communications

National Preparedness Month: Preparing for disaster is everyone’s job

By Brian Hilton, College Station Emergency Management Coordinator

All sectors of society – businesses, civic groups, industry associations, neighborhood associations and individual citizens – should plan ahead for natural and man-made disasters. Knowing what to do during an emergency is an important part of being prepared and may make all the difference when seconds count.

In the first few hours or days following a disaster, essential services may not be available and people must be ready to act on their own. With September being National Preparedness Month, it’s the perfect time to review the emergency plans for your family or business.

With the theme “Be Disaster Aware, Take Action to Prepare,” National Preparedness Month establishes four universal building blocks of preparedness. Click each of these for useful tips from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA):

Preparation makes a difference

Continue reading “National Preparedness Month: Preparing for disaster is everyone’s job”

City Council, Public Communications

Live Blog: Monday’s city council meetings (May 12)

This is a live blog from the College Station City Council’s workshop and regular meetings on Monday, May 12. It’s not the official minutes.

Both meetings are being broadcast live on Suddenlink Channel 19 and can also be watched online. An archive of previous council meetings is available on the website.

6:00 p.m.

The workshop has started.

6:20 p.m.

Stormwater Management

The council was updated on the city’s stormwater management program. A consent agenda item in tonight’s regular meeting authorizes the mayor to endorse the 5-year plan that will be submitted to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.

Continue reading “Live Blog: Monday’s city council meetings (May 12)”