On March 29th 2011 at 7;00 pm at the Little Elm Town Hall, Parks and Recreational had a public hearing for the citizens of Little Elm concerning charging people a fee for using the boat docks at the Little Elm Park. They spoke about charging people that do not live in Little Elm a higher fee to use the boat dock and the beach, and also charging the Little Elm residents a smaller fee. No definitive pricing has been established.

EARLY VOTING

ALSO TAKE NOTE:

Town Charter Amendment Propositions on ballot listed below
Town Council appointed a Charter Review Committee in October 2010. Committee members included: Dan Jaworski, Chairman; Jim Manning, Vice Chair; Yvonne Allen-Esakoff, Secretary; Richard Stevens, Perry Bland, Nick Apel, Cynthia Mayes, Audrey McClellan, Mickey Lawson, Joe Cuccaro, Tim Ely, and Susan Chism. As a result of their work, the Committee and Town Council recommend your approval of the following changes to the Town Charter.

PROPOSITION NO. 1
SHALL Sections 4.02, 8.01, 8.02 and 8.03 of the Town Charter be amended to allow the Town Manager to appoint, suspend and remove Town Department Heads without the consent of the Town Council?
Explanation: Current language in the Charter effectively has Town Department Heads working for both the Town Manager and Town Council; the Manager manages the day to day operations, but only Council has the authority to appoint, suspend, or remove Department Heads. Proposition 1 clarifies everyone’s role; Department Heads answer to the Manager and the Manager answers to Town Council.

PROPOSITION NO. 2
SHALL Section 9.01 of the Town Charter, entitled “Planning and Zoning Commission,” be amended to extend the terms of the Planning and Zoning Commission member from two-year terms to three year terms?
Explanation: Both active and past Planning and Zoning Committee members gave testimony that the learning curve of the roles and responsibilities for members of P&Z is considerable. Extending a member’s term would result in having more knowledgeable residents making those important decisions about the future of our community.

PROPOSITION NO. 3
SHALL Section 9.03 of the Town Charter, entitled “Other Boards and Commissions,” be amended to require that all Town and corporation boards, commissions and committees be composed of citizens of the Town of Little Elm, except as otherwise required by law?
Explanation: Currently the Charter is vague whether Town corporation board members should be residents of Little Elm. This Proposition would require Council to appoint only residents of Little Elm to all Board, Commission, and Committee positions, except as otherwise required by state law.

PROPOSITION NO. 4
SHALL Section 4.03 of the Town Charter, entitled “Town Manager-Specific Powers and Duties,” be amended to remove the requirement that the Town Manager provide an annual audit report to the Town Council, which amendment will effectively require the Town Council to hire an independent, outside auditing firm to provide an annual audit of the Town’s financial records?
Explanation: The selection of an external auditor to conduct an annual audit of the Town’s financial records should be done independently of Town staff and the Town Manager. This Proposition places the selection of an independent, external auditor on the Town Council.

PROPOSITION NO. 5
SHALL a new section, entitled “Purchasing,” be added to the Town Charter to provide the Town Manager general authority to contract for expenditures for all budgeted items not exceeding limits set by the Town Council, and to provide for emergency contracts as authorized by law?
Explanation: While the Town Council has previously adopted a formal purchasing policy, the consensus is that expenditure of public funds is of such importance, it should be addressed in the Charter. Further, having purchasing addressed by the Charter, enhances the Town’s ability to increase its financial credit worthiness with potential credit rating agencies.

PROPOSITION NO. 6
SHALL a new section entitled “Charter Review Committee,” be added to the Town Charter to provide for the mandatory appointment of a Charter Review Committee every two (2) years to review the Town Charter for recommended Charter amendments, and to provide for operating provisions of the Charter Review Committee?
Explanation: The current Charter is silent on when the Charter should be reviewed and possibly updated. This Proposition is meant to more formalize the Charter review process and include a better time line for the process as well as afford each member of the council an appointee to the committee.

PROPOSITION NO. 7
SHALL Section 5.02 of the Town Charter entitled “Duties of the Town Secretary,” be amended to (A) require that the Town Secretary perform certain duties as may be required by the Town Council; and (B) remove the requirement that the Town Secretary perform certain duties as may be required by the Town Manager?
Explanation: Current language in the Charter is confusing in that in one section it establishes the position of Town Secretary reporting to Town Council, but elsewhere has the Secretary reporting to the Manager. This Proposition is meant to clarify the lines of separation between the positions of Town Manager and Town Secretary.

We had such a fun time at Mel's Coney Island with loads of laughs and good food! We also got to meet several of the candidates for two At Large Council Seats for Place 1 and Place 6, Linda Brantley and Richard Stevens.

EARLY VOTING STARTS IN MAY FOLKS!
Let's get our homework done on the candidates and incumbents.
Early voting by personal appearance for the May 14, 2011 Town of Little Elm General/Special Election will begin on Monday, May 2nd and continue through Tuesday, May 10th, at NEW locations noted below. On the ballot will be the two above mentioned Council Seats for Place 1 and Place 6.
 

We will get you all the web sites and information possible for all the candidates very soon for YOU to be able to start YOUR due dilligence process on YOUR vote.  

 
ELECTION DAY VOTING LOCATION CHANGES !

On May 14th, Little Elm residents will vote by precinct at the following locations:

Precinct 115:  Little Elm Town Hall Center - 100 West Eldorado Parkway
Precinct 130:  Oak Point City Hall - Naylor Road
Precinct 135:  Little Elm High School - 1900 Walker Road
Precinct 143:  Creekside Amenity Center - 900 Villa Paloma Blvd.
For Precinct maps click HERE

THIS IS A MAJOR CHANGE FROM ALL PAST ELECTIONS.  This is one stop voting; your ballot will have Town council election, school board election for the school disctrict in which you reside; and the Town Charter amendments - all on the same ballot and all electronic.

 
May Elections - Ballots By Mail
Applications for Ballots By Mail must be received by the Elections office between March 15, 2011 and May 6, 2011 for the May 14, 2011 City and School Election. Acceptance of the applications is based on the date received by the office NOT by the post mark date. Applications received before or after the time period listed, will be rejected

For other early voting locations visit  Denton County website: http://elections.dentoncounty.com.

Town Council Agenda and Minutes

We're a group of regular citizens living in Zip Code 75068 that are concerned about the direction our country is headed. You have all heard that all politics is local so we ask you to GET INVOLVED starting right here in Little Elm and from from this little starting point to all over our beautiful America your voices CAN be heard!

 We rally around the following five organizing principles:

1. Limited Government

2. Fiscal Responsibility

3. Individual Responsibility

4. The Rule of Law

5. National Sovereignty

If you agree with those principles, you are invited to join us!