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Meeting dates changed
Del Carmen Consulting presented Burleson city council members with a police department strategic plan Thursday.
Council members took no action on the recommendations because the presentation occurred during a workshop session before the council meeting.
The group studied the Burleson Police Department to determine strengths, weaknesses and future needs, said Burleson City Secretary Amanda McCrory. The department is in good shape overall, crime rates are low, and residents feel safe for the most part, according to the report.
The main drawback, according to the report, is a lack of community involvement between the department and residents.
Burleson has one community resource officer, McCrory said, and council members hope to add more. The officers will function similarly to Fort Worth’s neighborhood police officers, who focus on a specific area and work as a liaison between those neighborhoods and the police department, she said.
Another pressing problem, one McCrory said the council has been discussing for some time, is the need for a larger police station to meet the demands of the growing city.
During the regular meeting, Council members voted to move council meetings to the first and third Monday of each month beginning in 2009. The council presently meets on the second and fourth Thursday of each month. The move should make it easier for the city to do business the next day, McCrory said. Council members hope it will also encourage more residents to attend meetings.
The council approved the first reading of a measure to disannex a 72 acre tract of land. A second reading and vote, at the next council meeting, is required for final approval. Council members also voted to a portion of Burleson’s extra territorial jurisdiction to Joshua.
The council held six public hearings on gas well drilling permits. Four passed, one was tabled and another withdrawn.
The council approved a well permit for a site on 902 NW Jones Drive, which attracted several speakers. Some opposed the permit, McCrory said. Others expressed concerns about lighting, noise levels and truck traffic on Farm-to-Market Road 731. Burleson ISD officials spoke in favor of the permit, however.
A second permit requested by Chesapeake Energy for a site on 646 NE Alsbury Blvd. was tabled. Several commercial business owners in the area voiced concerns over possible effects on property values.
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