Want to stay connected to Denton County? Watch for my column each month for updates and events happening in Precinct 3 and around the county.
Denton County #1 in Health Rankings
The 2018 County Health Rankings were released mid-March, and Denton County ranked first in Texas for health outcomes. This is exciting news for our county and all the communities within it, as health outcomes are primarily determined by the length and quality of residents’ life within Denton County.
Denton County also scored as one of the healthiest counties within the state for multiple health behaviors and factors, such as access to exercise and graduation, education and unemployment rates.
The healthy communities we live in are not created by accident, but by local organizations, leaders and teamwork that has provided our county with a wealth of healthy resources. National Public Health Week is April 2-8 which opens the door for us to celebrate these wins and learn together on additional public health topics like behavioral health, environmental health, and more.
You can find more information on the CHR for Denton County and others at http://CountyHealthRankings.org.
Tax Office Online Queuing System Changes the Way You Wait
The month of January is the Tax Office’s busiest time of the year, and in January of 2017, wait times at the Denton County Tax Office averaged between 45 and 90 minutes per customer. One year later in January 2018, as a result of a new queuing system, the longest wait times never exceed 30 minutes, with average wait times dropping below 15 minutes in all tax Office locations.
As of the end of March, you can now reserve your place in line for Denton County Tax Office services prior to arriving to the office by going to the tax office website, selecting the office location and getting in line before you arrive at an office. This new service, “Wait Anywhere,” serves as an online check-in system.
Denton County Tax Office first began testing the queuing system in the Carrollton location in October 2016. This allowed customers for the first time to sit and relax while waiting their turn to be served. Since then, the systems have been added to all tax office locations.
Once the system was in place in all locations, the tax office began monitoring each location with a global dashboard interface, making the Denton County Tax Office the first users in North America and only the third government entity in the entire world to do so.
All Denton County residents can find the current wait times for all six locations conveniently on the tax office website and make a decision which office is the best for their purposes. Once a customer decides which office to visit, they may also click on “Get in Line Today” and actually get in line prior to traveling.
Simply by entering their mobile phone number and selecting the service type they need, the system will generate text messages that will inform them of their anticipated arrival time to the selected location. If a customer needs more time or decide to cancel, a simple one-character response to the prompt can add to their anticipated arrival time or cancel altogether. Once the customer arrives in the office, they simply check in at the kiosk with their phone number.
Future innovations of the queuing system will allow customers to make appointment times for future dates and times. This will be very effective for customers who have high volume or transactions that are more complex and need more than a few minutes to complete their work.
Early Voting Starts April 23
May 5 is Election Day for the city and school elections. Early voting starts Monday, April 23, and runs through Tuesday, May 1. Log on to votedenton.com for hours and locations. The last day to register to vote is April 5.
As always, you can find all voter information at http://votedenton.com, including a list of candidates, sample ballot, and more.
Flower Mound Chamber 29th Annual Golf Tournament April 4
Golf season is just around the corner, and there are lots of opportunities to play golf for a good cause. The Flower Mound Chamber of Commerce is hosting their 29th Annual Golf Tournament April 4 at Bridlewood Golf Club.
Registration and the putting contest begins at 11:00 a.m. and the driving range opens at 11:30 a.m. After lunch and the putting contest, the shotgun start is at 1:00 p.m., and an awards dinner follows the afternoon of golf. Go to http://bit.ly/FMChamberGolf for more information.
Denton County Dash April 7
The Denton County Dash is a free community event to bring awareness to the impact of cardiovascular disease in Denton County – and an opportunity to get out and move.
Cardiovascular disease is the no. 1 killer of Denton County residents, yet many of the risk factors are preventable. In Denton County, about 63.9 percent of residents are obese and about 4.6 percent of adults from Denton County are in risk of cardiovascular disease. These conditions can be prevented or controlled with regular physical activity and balanced eating.
Let’s stop being passive and get active.
With a 5K, 1-mile walk and kids and senior activities, there are plenty of activities to get moving and enjoy the weather at Lone Star Toyota of Lewisville Railroad Park with Denton County Public Health.
The Dash also hosts a health expo with free raffles, prizes and educational booths, like learning how to grow herbs with the Denton County Master Gardeners Association or Seniors Helping Seniors, where local high school students can assist you with your mobile device, tablet or laptop.
Register at https://www.playtri.com/all-races/denton-county-dash-5k. Get active for a good cause – we can’t wait to Dash with you!
Keep Lewisville Beautiful Spring Cleanup April 7
Every year, KLB hosts its annual Spring Cleanup event the first weekend in April held in conjunction with Keep Texas Beautiful’s Trash Off and Keep America Beautiful’s Great American Cleanup activities. With the help of hundreds of volunteers, this event focuses on a city-wide cleanup of Lewisville with special attention on areas in need. KLB sends out teams to various predetermined locations, where each team focuses on cleaning their spot and reports back at onsite for trash count, a free educational expo and free volunteer lunch.
This year, KLB will be hosting our annual Spring Cleanup 8 a.m. to noon April 7 at Lewisville High School Main Campus, 1098 W. Main St. After the clean up, we’ll have a free lunch for volunteers on site and a door prize drawing!
This is a great event for all ages and is a great way to get your family, business, or organization involved. KLB provides all materials needed and even offers a free volunteer lunch, drinks, goody bags and door prizes. Awards are also given out at the event for adult and youth categories, such as “most unusual piece of trash found” and “most trash collected.”
Volunteers are needed for clean up teams and sponsors are needed for door prizes. Sign up here.
Women of Flower Mound Spring Fling Fashion Show April 14
April 14, the Women of Flower Mound are partnering with The Shops at Highland Village for their most popular FUNdraiser of the year. Stop by from 11 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. to see the latest women’s, men’s and children’s spring fashions provided by The Shops of Highland Village merchants.
In addition, attendees will sample menu items in our “Taste of the Shops” and enjoy a scrumptious dessert table. A Gift Basket fundraiser will give attendees the opportunity to take home beautifully themed gift baskets, as well. With more than 30 themed baskets, there’s something for everyone.
Guests will also receive Shops goodie bags filled with samples, coupons and exclusive offers, and participating Shops merchants will offer specials for Spring Fling attendees to enjoy after the show. This event is open to members, non-members, friends and family, and RSVP’s are open now. Just log on for tickets and information.
Ally’s Wish fourth Annual ‘Boots & Blessings’ Gala April 21
Ally’s Wish is a nonprofit organization that provides a last “wish” to young, terminally ill mothers with small children. Their goal is to provide a memory for the family that will last a lifetime. Ally’s Wish grants wishes by providing services, gifts, transportation, lodging, or any other “wish” the mother may have.
The fourth Annual Boots & Blessings Gala, the major fundraiser for Ally’s Wish, is April 21 at Austin Ranch in Grapevine. The gala evening will include a cocktail hour, a seated dinner buffet and live country-western entertainment from The Breckenridge Band.
Amy Vanderoef, lifestyle expert and WFAA’s Good Morning Texas, is the evening’s emcee. Ginger and Andy Eads are the Honorary Chairs and Lori Fickling is the Event Chair for 2018. Plan to join them for a boot scootin’ good time.
For ticket and sponsor information are on their website.
Lewisville ISD Education Foundation 10th Annual Golf Classic April 23
Don’t miss out on the rare opportunity to play The Lakes at Castle Hills, one of Avid Golfer’s Best Private Clubs in 2017, at this year’s LEF’s Golf Classic April 23.
This year is sure to be an experience even beyond the course. Golfers will get to spend a $50 gift certificate in an exclusive merchandise room only for this tournament. In addition, there will be great door prizes, all kinds of fun at Birdie Island and much more. In-N-Out Burger will provide lunch before the competitive tournament begins.
For the tournament, golfers will get to enjoy the top of the line golf carts at The Lakes at Castle Hills that include bird’s eye views of each hole, including distances. Downloading the tournament cell phone app will help players be even more competitive with live scoring.
Go to the event website for more information.
Did You Know?
The Denton County Health Department facilitates a diabetes support group for type 2 diabetes in our community called “Sweet Talk.” The “Sweet Talk” Diabetes Support Group meets on the fourth Monday of each month.
The “Sweet Talk” diabetes support group was created for Denton County residents who are living with diabetes. Join us and receive valuable information about how to live with diabetes and reduce diabetic complications.
The English Sweet Talk class meets every fourth Monday of the month at 6:30 – 7:30 p.m., except holidays. The Spanish Sweet Talk class meets every third Monday of the month from 6:30 – 7:30 p.m., except holidays.
Connect With Us
Be sure and connect with Denton County on Facebook and on Twitter @DentonCountyTX.
If you have any questions or comments, please let me hear from you. My email is bobbie.mitchell@dentoncounty.com and my office number is 972-434-4780.
