The City of Smithville recently received a grant from the National Safe Routes to Schools through the Texas Department of Transportation to improve our streets and coordinate programs to help encourage our youth to walk and bicycle safely to school. As part of the Smithville Transportation Plan, parents, teachers, administrators, and community members identified several dangerous practices on the streets surrounding the elementary and middle school complex. Among them, many cars stop in the center of the street to let children off where they are endangered by cars passing on both sides of them. The Safe Routes to School Team discussed the success in improving safety that Bishop Street and 4th Street at Brown Primary have had since becoming one-way streets. For this reason, the Team added the request to turn 9th Street (from Bishop to Wilkes) and Wilkes Street (from 9th to 6th) into one-way streets during school hours to connect with Bishop and complete the U-turn around the schools. On Monday August 9th, the City Council will entertain an ordinance that would go into effect prior to the school year to require these streets to become one-way during school hours. The City is seeking your input on this project. Please log on to our "One-Way Street Poll" to let us know if you support this measure or have any concerns. If you provide contact information, city staff will contact you to address those concerns. A copy of the Smithville Safe Routes to School Plan, adopted by the City Council on November 9, 2009, is also available at the front desk at City Hall. Thank you for your participation and input on this important project.
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FEMA has released more information about threats of wildfires in Texas. Please remember that Smithville is hosting a "firewise" workshop on Saturday, February 11 from 9AM-11AM at the Recreation Center to give you the information and tools you need to reduce the threat of wildfires near your home.
If you have a child in school in Smithville, please take our survey to let us know about how you feel about allowing students in your care to walk or bike to school. This is required through the grant we received for Safe Routes to School, and your answers will help us measure how well the program is working. Thank you for your participation in this important survey!
If you haven't seen it yet, watch the Day Tripper Episode 303 on Smithville. It features Zimmerhanzels, Tom Tierney, Main Street, Buescher State Park, and many other familiar places.
Please check out our local historian David Herrington's website about Smithville History. He and Carol Snyder literally wrote the book ("Images of America: Smithville") so he knows what he's talking about!
We always knew it, but Smithville is now officially a member of "Communities of Character" through the International Character First program. The character traits emphasized include: Loyalty, Justice, Self-Reliance, Self-Discipline, Integrity, Honor, Patriotism, Respect, Honesty, Responsibility, Compassion, and Perseverance. Smithville’s participation in this program is a natural extension of its strong tradition of service. Citizens take great pride in the many programs and projects that have been accomplished as a result of tenacious and committed volunteers.
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