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HomeMy WebLinkAboutMayIn response to the replies from our recent citizen's opinion sur- The West University Place Zoning and Planning Commission vey, we are investigating the relative expense of privatizing our recently presented to City Council the results of a six month study Solid Waste Department as compared to the cost of performing of housing density. Their report, in part, pointed out that approxi- the same services by our City. Because of the many benefits de- mately 80% of the lots in West University were 50' x 100' in rived from having our own people perform this function, the ad- size. When originally platted, the developers envisioned and built vantages of a change, if any, to a private company must be very modest one and two story homes which typified the 1930-1940 persuasive and very significant. i`-Some of you may not know that we now successfully use pri- vate companies in two areas formerly staffed by City personnel. A janitorial service replaced three City employees for approxi- mately a 50% reduction in costs. The contract is competitively bid for one year, with our having the right to extend it for an addi- tional year. So far, it has been a successful operation. lifestyle. Today, we see these homes being replaced with sub- stantially larger homes and garages. Higher ceilings, third floors and two story garages make some lots appear or "feel" crowded. Frequently, a new home or even a major renovation will affect neighbors' homes by changing drainage, availability of sunlight, air movement, green space and trees or noise. The Zoning and Planning Commission study focused on safety (fire and police officer access), property values, dramage, usable Several years ago, the City contracted for a company to care for yard space and architectural limitations. Their findings helped us aintenance of the city's grounds and right-of-way. Overall, this understand our City's changes in character and appearance over _s proven to give better service at one-half the previous cost. recent years. Although much study and public awareness efforts The various park grounds and esplanades have never been so well remain ahead. Most members of the Zoning and Planning Com- maintained. In times of rapid growth, the company sends in big- mission feel that a modest increase in yard space may be neces- ger crews, something the City could not do with its limited num- sary to allow proper fire protection in certain instances. These ber of employees. We never had the flowers and bedding plants potential changes would likely affect only a small percentage of that presently beautify our City when City employees had the re- new homes being built; effectively, only those homes Nvhich would sponsibility of maintaining the grounds. presently maximize the buildable space allowed in the current ordinance. Other issues discussed were the front building line The City has a print shop in the Community Building that may be the next to go. It will free tip space and we probably can get the same service from a printing company. However, one good expe- rience with contracting for certain City services does not mean we will be equally successful in other areas. We understand that and will be very cautious in any extension of this process. You will be given ample time to voice your opinion after all the facts are in. Bill Watson, Mayor (porch exception) and the height of two story garages. The citizens who serve on the Zoning and Planning Commis- sion are serving you well; the supporting documents, interview reports and data gathering efforts portray an efficient group. Thank you, Zoning and Planning Commission for your ongoing efforts to make the City of West University Place the quintessential 21st century urban community. Torn Ruching, Council Member Celebrate Spring At Parkfest Food, fun and friends add up to a wonderful time and that's what Parkfest, set for May 14, is all about! Ride a trolley to Colonial Park from the Little League field from 11AM-4PM and enjoy games, pony rides, dunk tank, face painters, shooting gallery, moomvalk and much more. Skeeter's is furnishing the food, Liz Tally's band is providing the C&W music, and the Friends of the West University Place Parks Fund, Inc. is sponsoring this great day for the entire family. Come have a good time while you contribute to the ongoing improvement of West U. parks. To volunteer, call Co-Chairmen Linda Masera at 664-9492 or Connie Spencer at 669-1720. Mayor Bill Watson (665-3969) Mayor Pro Tem Tom Rushing (666-0434) City Council Members Teresa W. Fogler (664-6433), Linda Lewis (662-5812), Stan McCandless (669-1830) City Manager Michael Tanner (662-5812) 3800 University Boulevard - Houston, Texas 77005 o.'e G 3e Lovers A sell-out crowd partied its way through a pre-Valentine evening at the third annual Park Lover's Ball in February and raised over $50,000 - all of which will go to en- hance and enlarge the park spaces in West U. This figure includes $10,000 which Commissioner Steve Radack announced at the Ball will be set aside for West U. Park use from Harris County, a decision based in large part on the huge grass roots inter- est and enthusiasm of West U. citizens. Members of the Friends of the West Uni- versity Park Funds, Inc., the fundraising entity for the Parks and Recreation Board, have announced that the fourth annual Park Lover's Bail will once again be at the Wyndham Warwick Hotel in February, 1995 with dancing, auctions and more. Continuing with the names of Park Lover's Ball sponsors which began in the last issue of Currents, the Friends wish to recognize and thank the following companies and in- dividuals for their generous contributions to the Ball: ABB Vetco Gray, Inc., Accente, Acces- sory Place, Acoustic Hearing & Allergy Center, Alley Theatre, Alyson Jon Interi- ors, Paula and Gary Amaon, Apple Travel, Ginger Barber/The Sitting Room, Baker- Jackson Nissan/Olds, Beauty Warehouse, Beck's Prime, Bering's, Clint Black and Lisa Hartman, Boys to Men, Alex Brennan- Martin, Brennan's, Cafe Chino, Winfield Campbell, Carrington's Bluff B&B, Cartier, Celebrity Sports Gallery, Chocolates, Etc., City of West University Place, Collegiate Cleaners, Jeep Collins, Darla and Guy Comeaux, Cornelius Nurseries, Contem- porary Arts Museum, Creative Flooring, Datel Tool Company, Doug Dawson, Deco- rative Arts, Inc., Discovery Zone, Edloe Deli, The Elm Chest, Estate Sale Manage- ment/Virginia McNeely, I.S.A., Europe in the Village, Festivities, Fine Toon Cartoon Art Gallery, Fleet Feet Sports, Flower Cor- ner, Dr. Gerald Ford, Friends Board Mem- bers, Gwen and David Fulibrook, Fu's Gar- den Restaurant, Gap Stores, Zina Garrison, Goode Company Restaurants, Harry Gor- don Jewelers, Caroline Graham, J. Gray Photographers, Grotto, Guatemala, Norm Hanks, Haagen Dazs, Bobbie Hardy, Holi- day Inn Crowne Plaza, Home Entertain- ment, Inc., House of Coffee Beans, Hous- ton Ballet, Houston Gymnastics Academy, Houston Museum of Natural Science, Cathy Hunt, Iowa, Gayle and Danny Jack- son, Jalapenos, JIv1I-I, JoAnn's, Karen and Mark Johnson, Johnson & Gibbs, Just Add Water, Kahn's Deli, Linda and Bob Kelly, Barbara Kenna, Key Auto Werks, Kinko's Graphics, Patty and Bill Kleh, Mary and Wally Knapp, La Griglia, la Madeleine French Bakery and Cafe, Lancaster Hotel, Le Peep, Leslie & Co., Linda Lewis Handwoven Originals, Little Tootsies, Odette and Bob Mace, Main Street Theater, Jeanne Marosis, Marshall Field's, The Matthews Group, McDugald-Steele, Ginni and Richard Mithoff, Carl Moore Antiques, Munchkins Books for Children, Nellie's Hallmark, Diana Parker, Parks Board Mem- bers, Louise Pearson, Patricia's, Pet Spoil- ers, Post Oak Grill, Prego, Ritz-Carlton, Gary Ross, Ruckel/Dillon Landscapes, Carlos Ryerson, Dr. Enrique Sanchez, Jacqueline and Richard Schmeal, Phyllis Segal/Roanne Stern, 77005 Open Commit- tee, Sherwin-Williams Company, Skeeter's Grill, Small Miracles Maternity, Society for the Performing Arts, Spec's Liquors, Sunset Blvd. Animal Clinic, Surroundings, Rene and Eddie Taubensee, Karen and Jay Taylor, Thompson+Hanson, Tony K's Home of Fine Spirits, Tony's, Tropical Travel, Video Central, Village Frame Gallery, Vil- lage Greenery & Flowers, Villager's Cor- ner, West University Bank, Wyndham Warwick, Dr. Paul Young, Young Brothers Taekwon-do Pamela and Hayne Blakely Kathryn A. Kimbrough Douglas A. McKinnon Dr. and Mrs. Sheldon Rub enfeld Stuart and Anita Gaylor Richard and Elizabeth Schneiders Rodney and Linda Gray If you are interested in purchasing a paver, please contact Mark R. Spradling at 758- 2828. Page 2 r_l ® -1 d- ~J C:9 - C9 Sunday, May 15 @ 1:30 p Join the West U Elementary PTA for the first spring family picnic. No, not a fundrai ser... Just a relaxing fun time. We will have a K-2 vs. 3-5 teacher - parent softball game. Sure to be MUCHO FUN! The picnic will be "Bring Your Own Grub" (BYOG). Mark your calendars now! Ev- eryone is invited; teachers, parents, secre- taries, custodians and staff. City Currents of West University Place, Texas is published by the Communications Committee Larry Massey, Chairman Production provided through the efforts of Susan Freeman, Susan Fiedle and Steve Griffith City Currents welcomes your contributions. Forward them to 3814 University Blvd., Houston, Texas 77005 c/o Chief Griffith by the 10th of the month preceedin' publication to assure consideration. It is the policy of the City of West University Place not to discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, national origin, sex, religion, age, veteran status or Newcomer's Club Check this month's calendar for events. If you would like to join this active group, call Suzanne Gutherie at 664-8410. .St 1ll -®r t-n T _ 1 tv 2-aI1.tLi U r l P 3 age Sunday Monday aesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Newcomer's Club @ Newcomer's event Friends of W.U. Parks Building and 7:30 pm, Council @ 10:00 am, Board @ 6:15 pm, Standards @ 6:30 Chamber - Annual Houston Museum Conference Room Pro, Council Board Meeting of Natural Science, Chamber Main Foyer - Parks Board @ 7:30 Soccer Board @ Private Tour of pm, Conference Room 8:00pm, Southside Faberge' Exhibit Place RSVP- Amy Martin @ 432-7739, special tour by Betty Ayers 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 City Council Recycling Zoning and Planning Newcomer's Park F'est Workshop @ 6:30 Committee @ 7:00 @ 7:30 pm, Council monthly coffee @ pm, Conference pm, Police Chamber 10:30 am, Colonial Park Room Deparment Community Building, Second Saturday City Council sponsored by The Concert @7:30 pm, Meeting @ 7:30 pm, Houston Bread Co. Community Building, Council Chamber Childcare provided featuring Rosalie Sorrels, Tickets sold at door, ca11347-3235 or495-2923 formore 8 9 10 11 12 13 information. 14 West U Classic Car Communications Zoning Board of Newcomer's After Newwcomees picnic Club @ 3:00 pm, Committee @ 7:30 Adjustment @ 7:30 hours social @ @ 4:30 pm, Colonial Savages pm, Council pm, Council 5:30 pmto 7:30 pm, Park Playground Chamber Chamber Calypso's, 5555 Morningside AARP @ 2:00 pm, WestU Community Center 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 City Council Historical Society Workshop @ 6:30 Meeting @ 7:30 pm pm, Conference Room City Council Meeting @ 7:30 pm, Council Chamber To volunteer, call Carolyn Rappazzo at 60-2262 Presented by Friends of West University Place Parks, Inc. Purkfest`94 Milton Rice T,.11 ,,y Store t University - 4' a O o D - I I a H Case . . . I f ~7 Liz Tally's C Band Skeeter's Fajitas Blue Bell lee Cream Eason Design cession IV: (2 wee-,s) Man,._ru Thur. July 18-July 28 Level/Age: Time: Beg./3-4 9:15-9:55am 10-10:40am/10:45-11:25a Beg.5yrs&up 9:15-9:55am 10-10:40am/10:45-11:25am Adv. Beg 9:15-9:55am 10-10:40 ann/10:45-11:25am Intermediate 10-10:40am 10:45-11:25 am Stroke Tech 9:15-9:55am Adv. Swim. 10:45-11:25am Tot I 9:15-9:55am Tot II 10-10:40am Session V: (2 weeks) Mon thru Thur. August 1-11 Level/Age: Time: Beg./3-4 9:15-9:55am 10-10:40 am/10:45-11:25am Beg.5yrs&up 9:15-9:55arn 10-10:40 annl10:45-11:25am Adv. Beg 9:15-9:55am 10-10:40 an /10:45-11:25am T-ntermediate 10-10:40am 10:45-11:25 am Adv. Swim. 9:15-9:55am Tot I 9:15-9:55am 10:45-11:25 am Tot 11 10-10:40am Summer Swim Teain: A fun competitive program. Practice begins Monday, May 23 in the afternoons and moves to early morn- ings beginning Monday, June 6. Registra- tion for residents is May 7-May 13. Non- resident registration starts May 16. New member skills test will take place Saturday, May 21 at 6:00pm. Swim team enrollment is limited to the FIRST 120 swimmers. Afternoon practice meets Mon-Thur May 23-June 2 8 yrs & under 3:15-4:00pm 9-12 yrs 4:00-4:45pm 13 yrs & up 4:45-5:30pm Morning practice meets Mon-Thur beginning June 6 10 yrs & under 7:00-8:00am 11 yrs & up 8:00-9:00am Fees: $50 res. $65 n/res. Swim Team Coach: Rebecca Barth Croke Coach: Lisa Womac Youth Weight-Lifting Camp: Designed to teach children the proper form and tech- nique of weight lifting. Open to youth 12- 18 yrs. Limited to 10! -I _ f _ 9 DaY/Tima Tue & Thur 10:30am-Noon Dates: (10 weeks) June 6 - Aug 8 Class Fees: $45 res. $55 n/res. Instructor: Bryan Smink Adult Programs Aqua Running: An excellent cardiovas- cular workout using different running and kicking techniques. Class limited to 15! Day/Time: Tue & Th 10:15-11:15am Dates: (7 weeks) June 6-July 25 Class Fees: $38 res. $43 n/res. Instructor: Pat Sacaris Adult Racquetball League: A fun com- petitive league designed for both men and women. Registration begins May 16. Format: Men's & Women's Single and Co- Ed Doubles (7 games, best of three(3)) Dav Time. (Men's Singles) Tue 7:00-9:00pm (Women's Singles) Wed 7:00-9:00pm (Co-Ed Doubles) Thur 7:00-9:00pm Dates: (7 weeks) June 6-July 21 League Fees: $30 res. $35 n/res. Tri-Swim: A specially designed program to help the tri-athlete improve swimming skills, times and endurance. Master swim- mers welcomed!! Class limited to 15i Day/Time: Tue & Thur 8:00-9:30pm Dates: (9 weeks) June 6-Aug. 15 Class Fees: $55 res. $60 n/res. Instructor: Jane Snyder Sand Volleyball Tournament: The City of West University Place invites all levels of Volleyball Teams to get together and par- ticipate in our Sand Volleyball Tournament on Saturday June 18, 1994 starting at 8:30 a.m. Bring your beach towels, suntan oil and ice chest and make a day of it at the Colonial Park Recreation Center. Pool will be open to team members at no charge. Registration is at Colonial Park, 4130 Byron, from May 2 to June 15, 1994. We will follow a Double Elimination format (guaranteed two(2) games.) Awards and T-shirts will be given. Fee for this event is $50.00 per team. Call the Parks & Recreation Department at 668-8096 or Colonial Park at 668-7642 for more information. Open to fast (6) six teams to sign-up. Aqua Fitness: An excellent cardio-vas- cular workout which uses all muscles of the body. Class limited to 30! Day/Time: Mon & Wed 8:00-9:00pm Fri 7:00-8:00pm Dates: (9 weeks) June 6-Aug. 8 Class Fees: $73 res. $78 n/res. Instructor: Cheri Lewis Women on Weights 101: This class is an exciting 10 week strength training program designed for women only. Open to women 20yrs & up. Day/Time Tue & Thur 1-2:30pm Dates: (10 weeks) June 6-Aug 8 Class Fees: $45 res. $55 n/res. Instructor: Audrey Stewart West University Library Summer 1994 Schedule Preschool Storvtime: Recommended for children ages 3 to 6, is presented every Tuesday at 11:00 a.m. Storytime is a com- bination of stories, songs, fingerplays and occasional crafts. The Summer Reading Club: Begins on May 23 and ends on July 30, and is for both readers and listeners. The theme for this year's reading club is Familiar Faces... Faraway Places, thus many of the summer programs at the Library will be multi-cultural in nature. Children who read or have 10 books read to them between these dates will receive a certificate. The End of Summer Celebration will be held on Wednesday, August 3 at 3:00 p.m. at the Senior Services Building, 6104 Auden. Everyone is welcome to attend. Wednesday Afternoons: The library also offers a variety of programs and crafts on Wednesday afternoons during the summer at 3:00 p.m. for children of all ages. Crafts and activities are recommended for chil- dren ages 6 to 12. June 8: Craft: Chinese Dragons June 15: Program: Funny Stories June 22: Craft: Anansi the African Spider June 29: Program: W.U. Police Officer July 6: Craft: Russian Nesting Dolls July 13: Program: Viva Italia! July 20: Program: Puppet and Variety Show July 27: Program: International Film Fest West University Branch Librarv A Harris County Public Library 6108 Auden Houston, Texas 77005 668-8273 Hours: Monday: LOAM-8PM Tuesday-Thursday: LOAM-6PM Friday: 1 PM-6PM Saturday: LOAM-5PM ITY PLACE May 1994 Crime Close 3111 Bissonnet - Avent window was bro- i~ ,,Q Cnrner arc Burglary of Habitation 6428 Brompton - At 7:00 pm on March 13, a friend coming over to visit this resi- dent saw a Latin male, getting on the resident's bicycle in the driveway. The friend yelled at the suspect and the suspect abandoned the bicycle in the adjoining yard. The friend started to chase the subject, but stopped when the suspect turned toward him and started to reach for something in his waistband. Note: Do not try to appre- hend suspects, call the police as soon as possible. 3936 Arnold - Aresident observed a Latin male using a screwdriver to pry a window screen off a window of this residence. Using a cellular phone in his car, he noti- fied the Police Department. Officers ar- rived and caught the suspect before he en- tered the residence. Thanks to a watchful resident! Burglary of Building 2712 Arbuckle - A bicycle was stolen from an unlocked garage. 6424 Community - A Jet Ski was stolen from a garage. 2814 Georgetown - A bicycle was sto- len from an open garage. 4025 Tennyson - Some tools were sto- len from an open garage. Auto Theft 4004 Bellaire - On March 11 at 10:00 pm, a 1982 Cutlass "low-rider" was stolen from the parking lot of Seekers. The ve- hicle belonged to an employee. An officer investigating a suspicious juvenile call saw the car being pushed down the street. The thieves saw the officer, got in their vehicle and fled. 6707 Academy - A Southwestern Bell Telephone company vehicle was stolen from the parking lot. The keys were in the vehicle. 6700 Academy - During the day of March 3, unknown suspect(s) attempted to steal a 1993 Suburban. Burglary of Motor Vehicle 5700 Rutgers - Three sets of Lacrosse equipment were stolen from a vehicle. ken out of a vehicle. No missing property. 2800 Georgetown - A resident called the Police Department at 4:00 am when he heard noises from several juveniles near his house. Officers responding found five suspects driving down Belmont. A bicycle and several pieces of suspicious property were found in the vehicle. The property had been taken from two vehicles that had been broken into in the neighborhood. The bicycle had been taken from a garage. All of the suspects were arrested. The young- est juvenile was 10 years old. Senior Alert A group of individuals specialize in fraud against senior citizens. The most common types of crime were recently detailed in a publication from the Texas Attorney General's Office. An excerpt follows: Confidence Swindles The Pigeon Drop scam typically involves at least two con artists and an envelope containing a large sum of money that was purportedly stolen or lost by drug dealers. The con artists convince the victim - Usu- ally by consulting a "friend" or "attorney" - that after a period of time, they can split the money amongst themselves. However, each of the parties must demonstrate their commitment to the venture by putting up some of their own money as a deposit. When the victim gives the swindlers his or her money, they place it in an envelope with one containing cut up paper. Only too late does the victim realize he's been swindled. The bank examiner scam usually begins when a prospective victim receives a call from a phony security officer claiming to be investigating a bank teller suspected of stealing money from depositors. The con artist asked the victim to help with the in- vestigation by withdrawing cash from the bank and making sure that the suspected teller handles the transaction. The victim is later met by bank examiners who take the funds for "laboratory analysis". The ex- aminers promise to return the cash in a few days and they give the victim a "receipt" before disappearing forever. Recently a young man was hit by a car on a residential street. The young man and his brother had been roller-blading from one driveway, across the street, to another driveway. A vehicle was coming down the street. The driver saw the first child dart out into the street. She slowed and then proceeded on. She never saw the second child. The vehicle hit the child and knocked him under a parked car on the street. The boy spent time in the hospital, but will be fine. Part of my comments are meant to inform drivers to be extra careful for young people in our neighborhoods. But let's take a moment and look at some of the ques- tions that we received about this incident. First, people wanted to know if the driver was speeding or had been drinking. Valid questions, however, "no" was the answ,~ both. The driver was not at fault in any,-...y in this accident. Then we were asked if the driver of the vehicle lived here in West U. The concern was that the driver may have been "cut through" traffic. Well, the driver did live here, but if she had not, the result would have been the same. The accident was not the fault of the driver. Whose fault was the accident? The fault lies with the youth. Young people must be taught that streets are for vehicles. They are not bas- ketball courts or hockey rinks or baseball fields or BMX bicycle tracks. If kids use streets, they must recognize the inherent dangers of a 2 ton vehicle that has the legal right of way. Chief Steve Griffith Vandalic at Judson Park Recently, there has been a rash of van- dalism at Judson Park. Kids have been rollerblading down the slides, causing dam- age. The water fountain has been plugged up and left turned on. Sprinkler heads have been removed. A park bench has been bro- ken. Swing set chains have been tangled up and wrapped around the overhead= If you see anyone damaging equipment or using equipment in a manner in which it was not intended, at any of our parks, please give the Police Dispatcher a call at 668-0330. agel ~ Aave Yo,i Notice-_ T- ~ ` It gains Every Wednesday Morning? If you are a committed recycler, you probably wonder what to do with your bags of recyclables when it's rainy on Wednes- day morning. You have diligently separated paper, glass, and aluminum from your other garbage, but most of us don't have the space to save the bags until the next week. While it is still best to hold it until the next week, if possible, we have GOOD NEWS! The Solid Waste Department has reassured us that we should still put our paper bags out, as usual. However, please make note of the weight of each bag--that is what presents a problem on wet days. If the bag is really heavy (glass is the usual culprit), add an- other paper bag for extra support. We don't want to have glass thrown onto the streets by accident when the bags break. If you have aluminum cans to leave on the curb, turn down the bag to prevent water from accumulating in the cans. Dut your recyclables out early (Don't wait r the sun to appear). On rainy days, the routes are run more quickly and you will miss the truck if you wait until afternoon. Again, thank you for doing your part to re- duce the amount of solid waste that goes to the landfill. BUY PRODUCTS MADE FROM RE- CYCLED MATERIALS. 3M now offers two kinds of "scouring" pads for the kitchen, both made of 100% recycled plastic. They are the Scotch-Brite Never Scratch Soap Pads and the Scotch Brite Never Rust Soap Pads. Read labels! If you have a choice, buy recycled. YOU SHOULD FEEL GUILTY EVERY TIME YOU THROW AN ALUMINUM CAN INTO THE GARBAGE CAN. It is cheaper to collect, process and remelt alu- minum (and mixed metal) cans than to mine and transport the "original" ores. Recycling aluminum cuts related air pollution by 95%. Recycling one aluminum can saves enough energy to operate a television set for three hours. Aluminum is recyclable an unlim- ited number of times UNLESS it has been rown into the garbage. Empty them, `smash them flat and save them for Wednes- day. THIS MONTH'S QUESTION: Ask your- self how much garbage you generate each day. Are there ways you can shop differ- ently? Could you reuse any of the contain- ers you discard? Each person in the U.S. produces about 4 lbs. a day. Free Soil and Mulch? Soon most lawns will be mowed once a week or more. Instead of leaving several bags of leaves and clippings to be picked up, why not make yourself some free, rich soil? Composting is easy, rewarding and fun. It can save you money--by reducing the cost of garbage collection for the City (and personally for you when we begin vol- ume-based fees for trash pickup), and by eliminating the cost of purchased soil and mulch! So how do you compost? You build (or buy) some kind of container for your yard. It can be as simple as chicken wire wrapped around four posts or as fancy as the (hope- fully recycled) plastic tumblerslbins de- signed for composting. In an open pile, add new materials to one side and move composted material to the other side. I use Soilsaver, a covered bin that is raised slightly off the ground and has doors on the bottom for removal of the composted soil. You simply add your compostable materi- als, water, and wait! If you are really lazy like me, you wait for it to rain, but to speed up decomposition, you should water your compost during dry spells. Don't water too much or the pile will get mildewy. Occasionally turn the pile to aerate the material and speed up decomposition or add composting worms, get a Compost Tumbler which rolls the stuff with a hand crank, or get Soilsaver, to which you add materials at the top and take out the com- post at the bottom. The drawback to both the Compost Tumbler and the Soilsaver is the small size. Ideally have both an open compost pile and one of the above. Then you could move "almost cooked" material from the pile to the tumbleribin to finish "cooking" What materials can you compost? Grass clippings, leaves, use small sticks, weeds (the "cooking" kills their seeds), and more. If you have a lot of tree limbs that fall to the ground, you might want to invest in a wood-chipper (or borrow or rent one) and use the chips in your compost. Just remem- ber, some fertilizers, herbicides, pesti- cides, etc., are very long-lasting and will turn up in your compost. So, use "organic" products in the first place, especially if you plan to use your compost in a vegtable gar- den. I also add kitchen waste to our pile. My whole family participates. We have a plas- tic covered container (a former cat food container) by the sink that fills up about twice a week. We put in tea bags, coffee grounds with filters, any uneaten fruit, peels, cores, or stems, egg shells, used paper towels or napkins, paper egg cartons, toilet paper rolls and paper towel rolls, pizza delivery boxes, etc. We do not add any meat, bones or fat, as these turn rancid and attract animals to your pile. You can get the Soilsaver and other composting products from Seventh Gen- eration (call 1-800-456-1177 for a cata- logue). Start composting today! Patsy M. Graham, Recycling Committee Member Senior Services Volunteer of the Month-May Duke Landry is a busy person with a mul- titude of skills. Duke has been a Senior Services Volunteer from the very begin- ning. He is an advocate, information gath- erer, delivery man, architect, carpenter, botanical expert, storyteller and this only begins the long list of his talents. Duke's ability to start a job and see it through to the end is evidenced in projects like a wheelchair ramp for a resident, as well as a lobby full of healthy plants which he brought back from the dead. If you have everpicked up a Silver Years News at JMH, you have Duke to thank. He regularly de- livers them to the store for us. We appre- ciate the chats we have with Duke when he drops by the office and value his opinion and positive attitude. Thanks, Duke. You're a great help! Special Events and Trips-May Tuesday, May 3 -A representative from the Houston Grand Opera Guild will present an informative program on opera music, the behind-the-scenes activities and anecdotes of what it is like to be an opera singer. Lunch will follow. IIAM-IPM. $4.00 See Senior, Page 12 Page 12 (2610 Pissonnet) Or just come by and indulge in random acts of tech talk, classic coveting and good cheer! (Non-members welcome!) For additional information, please call Dalia Stokes at 522-2224 (office) or 664-1899 (home). Membership Application If you are interested in joining the West University Classic Car Club, please fill in the information below and send it, along with your $5.00 annual dues, to Susie Gillet, 3401 Tangley, Houston, Texas 77005 or bring it to the meeting. This gets you on our mailing list! Name: Address: Telephone: (Home) Classic: Seniors continued Wednesday, May 1 I-Tom McKeating will be our guest speaker on the subj ect of Tarot card reading. Can these cards speak of the past and hint to the future? Come and see! IIAM-Noon. Donations accepted. Friday, May 13-Senior program at the Museum of Fine Arts on "Classical Tastes in American Art". 9:30AM-Noon. $2.00 Tuesday, May 17-Our building is a poll- ing place for the Silver Haired Legislature. Vote from LOAM-3PM. Friday, May 20-Join us for a day trip to Humble and Lake Houston. We will view a museum, shop, eat lunch at a restaurant right on the Lake and the afternoon will be at a park where we will have some tradi- tional summer fun. (It's a secret!) 9AM- 3:30PM. $15.00 City of West University Place 3800 University Blvd. Houston, Texas 77005 (Office) (Fax) Greater Houston-Galveston Urban Forestry Council Saving Trees During Construction Why save trees? Trees are valuable: According to the International Society of Arboriculture, a specimen shade tree may be worth tip to $27 per square inch of trunk cross section. For example, a tree two feet in diameter could be worth $12,214; a three-foot tree up to $27,482. Property values go up with trees. Real estate agents and homebuyers typically assign 10 to 23% of a residence's value to the trees on the property. Trees save energy three ways: Shade. Ina Miami study, the temperature of an unshaded west wall ranged from 112 to 11717; a similar surface shaded by one large tree ranged from 87 to 92F, a reduction of more than 20%. Shade also reduces heat reflected by concrete or asphalt surfaces. Natural "air conditioning. " Evaporation of moisture from leaves cools air under a tree's canopy by 6 to 8F. Trees can reduce daily air conditioning costs by as much as 50 p ere ent. Reduced air infiltration. As windbreaks, trees can save up to 30% of winter heating bills. Trees clean the air. Over a year's time, one acre of growing trees will absorb all the carbon dioxide pro- duced by an automobile driven 26,000 miles. Trees also trap and remove particulates from the air. Continued next month... BULK RATE U.S. POSTAGE PAID Permit No. 9719 Houston, TX