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InTouch - October 2015 City of Victoria, Texas
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Fire Prevention Poster Contest Winners Announced
Congratulations to the first place winners of the Victoria Fire Department's 2015 Fire Prevention Poster Contest. This year's theme was "Hear the Beep Where You Sleep." Special thanks to the contest sponsors, including Victoria Fire & Safety, Citgo and Rosewood Funeral Home. First place winners from schools in the City and County include (l-r) Cooper Francis, first grade, Industrial Elementary West; Tristen Thomas, second grade, Hopkins Elementary; Cayden Sanchez, fifth grade, Our Lady of Victory; Darcy Leinen, fourth grade, Our Lady of Victory; and Alyse Tise, third grade, Chandler Elementary.
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What is Recylable and What is Trash?
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We all like to do our part to help make the Earth a greener place, and recycling is a great start. The City's residential single-stream curbside recycling program has been in place since 2012 and approximately 70% of Victoria households participate in the program. With the help of our residents, approximately 3,294 tons have been recycled over the past year.
While the recycling program has been successful and popular with residents, one of the challenges to single-stream recycling is the increase in contamination. This simply means that placing non-recyclable materials in your cart jeopardizes the effectiveness of the whole recycling process.
Sometimes folks tend to get a little recycling happy, tossing items into the bin that don't belong there. This is considered contamination. Please help make our recycling program a success by keeping these contaminants OUT. Here's a list of common items than CANNOT be recycled and should be placed in your garbage can instead:
- Styrofoam: Including plates, cups, egg crates, meat trays, packing materials, etc.
- Plastic Shopping Bags: Plastic grocery shopping bags are not accepted in our recycling program. Plastic bags can get tangled around our equipment and cause damage. Instead of putting the bags in your recycle cart, you can return the bags to the grocery store to be recycled (there is usually a recycling bin for the bags located near the store entrance).
- Dishes and Ceramics: When ceramics are recycled with glass they produce an unsellable, unusable product.
- Plastic and Metal Clothes Hangers: A blend of different plastic types are used to create plastic hangers, making them difficult to break down in the recycling process.
- Mirrors: Most people aren't aware that mirrors contain chemicals that cannot be mixed with regular glass during recycling.
- Food-Contaminated Containers: This includes pizza boxes, donut boxes, carry-out food containers - anything that has come in contact with food, including soiled paper towels. The grease and oil that are found on these items can contaminate the entire recycling process, so make sure these items are thrown in the trash. Also, be sure that items containing liquid (such as milk cartons, juice boxes, pickle jars, etc.) are completely empty before placing them in the recycling cart. Any liquids left inside these containers can contaminate and ruin the recycling load.
- Other: Garden hoses, plastic swimming pools, shower curtains and liners, plastic wrap/cling wrap, window glass, yard waste, electronics, light bulbs, hazardous waste, diapers, motor oil containers, plastic storage tubs, plastic waste baskets, air filters, rubber tubing, ice chests and tires.
Recycling carts may not be used for trash, yard waste or any material other than permitted recyclables. Also, hazardous materials such as pesticides, paint, cleaning materials, and electronic waste are considered Household Hazardous Waste and these items can be collected from your home and safely disposed of by calling 1-800-449-7587.
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Purchasing Dept. Earns Award
| The City of Victoria Purchasing Department received the Achievement of Excellence in Procurement Award (AEP) from the National Purchasing Institute (NPI). This prestigious award is earned by those organizations that demonstrate excellence by obtaining a high score based on  standardized criteria. The criteria is designed to measure innovation, professionalism, productivity, e-procurement and leadership attributes of the procurement organization. The City of Victoria is 1 of only 44 government agencies in Texas and 1 of only 65 cities in the United States to receive the award in 2015.
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City Planning Department Recognized
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The City of Victoria Planning Department recently received an award from the Texas Chapter of the American Planning Association for professional standards demonstrated by staff and the  support of City Council and the Planning Commission for Planning in general. The Planning Department was recognized for meeting professional requirements for the Planning Department; increasing awareness of professional planning; encouraging the funding of professional training for Planning Commissioners and staff; and enhancing planning efforts to aid economic development and community image.
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Library Programs
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All programs are held at the Victoria Public Library, 302 N. Main in Victoria, TX, unless another location is listed. For more information, call 361-485-3302 or visit www.victoriapubliclibrary.org.
CHILDREN and TEENS
Baby Time - Every Tuesday at 10 am
Baby Time is for the enjoyment of babies up to the age of 2. Lap play, songs, flannel boards and interactive reading to engage caregivers and babies.
Toddler Story Time - Wednesdays at 9:30 am and 10:30 am, and Thursdays at 9:30 am
Stories, repetitive songs, simple crafts and finger plays to encourage early language development for 2-3 year olds.
Story Time - Thursdays at 10:30 am
Stories, music, games and simple crafts for ages 4 to 5.
Lego Play with Lego Wedo Robotic Kits - Oct. 13, 4:30-5:30 pm
Bring your imagination and build with Legos and our Lego Wedo Robotic Kits! Families of all ages welcome.
TRC-15 Teen Robotics Club 2015 - Oct. 17, 9-11 am
Build robots using Lego Mindstorm EV3 kits! For youth ages 12-17.
COMPUTER CLASSES
We offer three kinds of technology programs on an ongoing basis: Tech Basics, Tech Labs and Tech Extras. Classes range from beginner to advanced courses and are taught at Workforce Solutions of the Golden Crescent Computer Lab and the Victoria Public Library. Visit the Events Calendar at www.victoriapubliclibrary.org for more information.
Tech Labs - Every Wednesday at the Library from 9-11 am. These labs include:
Tech Lab: Skills Practice for learning how to set up an email account, how to download an eBook from the Library's free eBook collection, or how to use one of the Library's computer skills tutorials. No registration required.
Tech Lab: Online Job Application Help for filling out online job applications. Bring the information for your job application to this open lab. No registration required.
Tech Extras are programs on new and popular technology programs. They vary month to month, so be sure to check our newsletter, website and facebook page for upcoming programs.
LIBRARY HOURS
9 am-8 pm Monday through Thursday
9 am-5:30 pm Friday
9 am-5 pm Saturday
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Fun Events & Activities
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Rocktober Street Dance
The Victoria Parks and Recreation Department is hosting a Rocktober Street Dance on Thursday, Oct. 15 at DeLeon Plaza featuring music by the San Antonio Lights, a Journey Tribute band. The dance gets underway at 7 pm and is free to attend.
Movies in the ParkThe Parks and Recreation Department will offer free Movies in the Park this fall. Join us at for "Divergent" on Oct. 17 at DeLeon Plaza; and "The Hunger Games" on Oct. 24 at DeLeon Plaza. The movies start at 7:30 pm and free popcorn will be served. Free Family Fish OutThe Victoria Parks and Recreation Department, in partnership with the Victoria Lions Club, is hosting a free Family Fish Out from 9 am to 2 pm on Saturday, Oct. 10 at Ethel Lee Tracy Park pond, located at 701 East Larkspur. The pond will be stocked with channel catfish to offer fishermen of all ages an opportunity to reel in a fish. For more information, please contact the Victoria Parks and Recreation Department at 485-3200 or email parks@victoriatx.org
Trick-or-Treat at Fire Stations
The VFD Fire Stations will be handing out candy (while it lasts) between 6:30 and 9 pm. The stations are located at: Station 1 - 606 E. Goodwin
Station 2 - 2708 Miori Lane
Station 3 - 4406 Lone Tree Rd.
Station 4 - 2007 Salem
Station 5 - 9508 Zac Lentz Pkwy
Please use caution when approaching the Fire Stations, emergency vehicles may be responding to or returning from incidents. Please do not park in front of the emergency vehicles.
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InTouch Victoria is published by the City of Victoria Communications Office. If you have comments or suggestions please contact us at 361-485-3110 or pio@victoriatx.org.
City of Victoria
Communications Department
700 Main Center, Suite 105 Victoria, TX 77901
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