Old Town gets facelift, starting Tuesday

If Burleson City Council members approve the $1 million- plus contract on March 16, the facelift that would make getting around Old Town easier will begin on March 17. The goal of this project is to make Old Town Burleson more welcoming for visitors and safer for drivers, walkers and bicyclists, while maintaining its character and charm. The corner of Wilson and Ellison streets - landmark is Burleson Visitors Center at 124 W. Ellison St. - is the starting point of a project that is expected to be complete in September 2015. That intersection will be closed in all directions, for approximately four weeks, starting March 17. The project encompasses one block on Ellison (from Wilson to Main Street) and three blocks of Main (Renfro Street to Eldred Street). The construction team will maintain access to all restaurants and stores during the work. Read More 

BFD opens their house to you April 18

Where else can you take the whole family, for free, and see an air ambulance, fire trucks, an extrication demonstration, play games, and eat hot dogs? It has to be the Burleson Fire Department's Open House! Save the date for Saturday, April 18, 12 p.m.-3 p.m., at Burleson Fire Station #1, 828 S.W. Alsbury Blvd. Plans are still being finalized, so be sure to check back to see what you don't want to miss!  

Catch up on what's being built in Burleson!

What's being built in Burleson? Thirty-four residential permits valued at $6.34 million plus were issued in February. The average home value of the newly permitted home is $186,485. The average square footage of those new homes is 3,017. The City issued new commercial permits to Senior Focus Living, 301 Elk Dr., a commercial remodel at 1161 S.W. Wilshire Blvd. (new police department), and Awards by Mastercraft remodel at 225 Exchange St. There are 27 active permits, seven completed projects, and 15 commercial certificates of occupancy applications. For all the details, go to the February 2015 Building Permit & Activity Report.  

March 28 is the day to hunt eggs

Be adventurous and dive in for Easter eggs, race against your peers for prize eggs at Hidden Creek Sports Complex, or enjoy a leisurely stroll through fields dotted with eggs at the City's Russell Farm. Whatever you choose, make sure your calendar is cleared for Saturday, March 28. The fun begins at 10 a.m. with goggles and swimsuits for the Aqua Egg Hunt at the BRiCk's indoor pool. Children up to age 11 will be divided into four age groups for hunts in the play structure area and the lap pool. This year, Bunny Daze is moving to Field #1 at Hidden Creek Sports Complex. The free festivities start at noon. The Easter egg hunt starts at 1:30 p.m. And, Joey the Donkey and all his farm friends are hosting a free Easter egg hunt at Russell Farm for children up to 4 years old. That free hunt is at 3 p.m. Read More  

Are you registered to vote?

If you haven't registered to vote, the deadline to do so and still be eligible to vote in the May 9 Burleson City Council election is April 9. You need to register with the county in which you reside. Go to the Texas Secretary of State Voter Registration page. Two of the three races are contested. Place 1 incumbent Stuart Gillaspie did not draw an opponent. Place 3 incumbent Jerry W. Allen withdrew his name from the ballot. Seeking the Place 3 seat are John Garrison, Shannan Sutter, Curtis E. Hawk and DanO Strong. Place 5 incumbent Dan McClendon is being challenged by Mark Hotchkiss. The election is for three-year terms. Early voting is Monday-Friday, April 27-May 1, 8 a.m.-5 p.m.; and Monday-Tuesday, May 4-5, 7 a.m.-7 p.m., at Burleson City Hall. Election Day is May 9, 7 a.m.-7 p.m.  

We have a recycling center!

If you have items that need to be recycled, please take advantage of the City's Compost/Mulch/Recycling center at 610 Memorial Plaza, behind Fire Station #2/next to Burleson Memorial Cemetery. The center is open Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, 9 a.m. - 3 p.m.  The center is for City residents only (bring a trash/water bill for proof of residency). Check out the Recycling FAQs on the City website.

Burleson will honor Vietnam veterans with celebration March 27

Major General Lester "Les" Simpson will be the guest speaker for the Friday, March 27, fourth annual Vietnam Veterans Celebration at Veterans Memorial Plaza in Burleson. The event begins at 2 p.m. The Burleson Heritage Foundation and the City of Burleson are hosting the event. The celebration will include the presentation of colors; the Burleson Police Department's firing team and "Taps" by a bugler; and representatives from Burleson, Cleburne, Arlington, Midlothian and Fort Worth Police serving with the Pipes and Drums Corps. Burleson Mayor Ken Shetter and Congressman Roger Williams are also scheduled to speak at the celebration. Read More 

It's a triathlon for Tiny Tots!

Yes, tiny tots can do a triathlon! The BRiCk is hosting a Tiny Tots Triathlon on Saturday, April 11, at 9 a.m. This is for children between three and five years old. The tots will bike, splash through sprinklers, and dash to the finish line in this triathlon. Each participant will take home a medal. Pre-registration is required. Sign up at the BRiCk, 550 N.W. Summercrest Blvd. The cost is $15 per child. This is a great event for the entire family, and it promotes fitness! Pre-registration begins Monday, March 16. For more information call the BRiCk at 817-426-9104.

Honor your military veteran with a brick

Do you have a brick at Veterans Memorial Plaza? Burleson Bricks for Veterans began in 2007 with the vision of a dedicated citizen and a Burleson businessman, Betty Shelton and Rocky Bransom. The bricks are located in the City-owned Veterans Memorial Plaza at the corner of Renfro Street and I-35W. Bricks are $15 each and include the military veteran's name, branch of service, and any conflict(s) in which he or she may have been involved.  The Burleson Public Library heads up this program. You can mail your payment in or stop by the Burleson Public Library at 248 S.W. Johnson Ave. The library is open 10 a.m.-8 p.m., Monday-Wednesday and 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Thursday-Saturday. For more information and to fill out the form, go to the Bricks for Veterans page on the City website. 

The Hot Sounds of Summer concert series lineup includes . . .  

It's going to be a hot Hot Sounds of Summer concert series in 2015, starting with sophomore sensation Reagan James, best known for making it to the Top 10 on NBC's "The Voice" headlining on May 29, and ending with crowd favorite Le Freak (pictured), bringing disco back to Burleson on June 26. J.D. Monson, country/classic rock, is the headliner June 5. Journey fans don't want to miss ESCAPE on June 12, and a 2014 favorite, Buddy Whittington is bringing back the blues on June 19. The Hot Sounds of Summer showcases free 90-minute concerts that start at 7:30 p.m., every Friday between May 29 and June 26, at the intersection of Ellison and Wilson streets (124 W. Ellison St.). Read More  

Do you have an animal emergency?

If you have an animal emergency and you live in the city limits of  Burleson, please call the Burleson Animal Shelter. The following situations are considered an animal emergency and should be reported immediately - injured animal, animal bite, wild or aggressive animal, loose livestock, and/or loose or wild animal at a school. Please report animal emergencies immediately to the Burleson Police Department at 817-426-9903. For non-emergencies, please contact Animal Services at 817-426-9283. The Burleson Animal Shelter is open 11 a.m.-6 p.m., Tuesday-Friday and 11 a.m.-4 p.m. on Saturdays. 

Try a lemon or a lime in your water

Are you having taste and odor issues with your water? That should improve during the week of March 16, but in the meantime you can do two things - refrigerate the water in an open container or add a slice of lemon or lime to your water. Is this the first you have heard about taste and odor issues this month? This is what we relayed to you last week . . . Burleson receives its drinking water from the City of Fort Worth's Rolling Hills Water Treatment Plant. The Rolling Hills plant treats the water mainly from Lake Benbrook, Richland-Chambers Reservoir and Cedar Creek Reservoir. Back in early January 2015, the transmission line from the Cedar Creek Reservoir was taken off-line for planned maintenance. As a result, Burleson's water was then supplied mainly from Lake Benbrook and the Richland-Chambers reservoir. However, a few days after the Cedar Creek line was taken off-line an unplanned break occurred on the Richland-Chambers line and it was taken out of service for several weeks for repairs. During that time we were being fed water primarily from Lake Benbrook. It was during this time, due to the high levels of Geosmin in Lake Benbrook, that we experienced taste and odor issues. After a few weeks, all pipelines were back in service and the taste and odor of our water returned to normal. Now the TRWD is performing planned maintenance on the Richland-Chambers line which means our water will mainly be supplied by Lake Benbrook and Cedar Creek. Since the Geosmin level is still high in Lake Benbrook, it is possible we may again experience some taste and odor issues. The treatment plant is going to increase the amount of ozone used to disinfect the drinking water, which may reduce the amount of taste and odor issues during this time period. The planned maintenance on the Richland-Chambers line is expected to take two weeks to complete.