1st Annual African American History Celebration

I had the opportunity to attend the 1st African American history celebration at Centennial High School today. There was a slight mix-up in the start time; I thought it was 10AM and they had actually started at 9:00AM. When I arrived at 9:45, the program was in progress. Our City Manager, George Purefoy and his wife Debra, were in attendance as well as our City Secretary, Nan Parker. Also, Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Joy West was also present from the Council.

Shana McKay Wortham from Frisco ISD spoke which was followed up by an awards presentation. Congratulations are in order to the following persons and organizations:

• Frisco Resident & Historian Bro. Jimmy Jones
• Frisco Residents of Color
• Todrick & Monica Johnson, Owners of Epitome Magazine
• Jake & Vinita Reed, owners of Frisco Thunder Arena Football Team
• Bob & Andree King, owners of Farmers Insurance Agency in Frisco Square
• Pastor Hugene & June Purdy, Trinity Resource & Ministries Coaching
• Dr. Bryan Bullitt, Frisco Chiropractic
• pastor Arthur Maxwell, Himilton Chapel Baptist Church
• George Purefoy, City Manager, City of Frisco

Presentations were made by Deputy Mayor Pro Tem Joy West on behalf of Mayor Mike Simpson, the Frisco Boys and Girls Club, the Frisco Police Department, Frisco Chamber of Commerce, Nan Parker, Frisco City Secretary and a few others. While the program was long (I stayed until after 12:00pm), the content was very rich and the event was a huge success. I look forward to seeing this event continue to grow.

Chambe of Commerce Quarterly Luncheon

If you have never attended the Frisco Chamber of Commerce quarterly luncheon, you should make the time to do so. The room is always filled with local elected leaders and business people.

Aaron Demerson, Executive Director of the office of Governor- Texas Economic development and Tourism, was the guest speaker. I had met and gotten to know Aaron in 2007 when I spent the day with Texas One at Texas Stadium. Aaron is a great Representative of Texas.

Aaron discussed the Texas One program and shared some of the economic data of the business community in Texas. I introduced some friends to Aaron and I was happy to see that he already was close friends with the Frisco Chamber of Commerce President, John Land. Our very own Scott Johnson, who is a candidate for the Frisco City Council this year also serves on the board of the Texas Economic Development Corporation. All in all, a great day!

Frisco Rotary

I was invited by a friend to attend the Frisco Rotary, which I have done on several previous occasions. I always enjoy a good lunch with my friends, but this day was even more special. Several guests attended including the main speaker, State Representative Ken Paxton.

Representative Paxton did a great job bringing the audience up to speed on upcoming State issues, including the complex TxDOT review, appraisal caps, education and many other things. Ken is always a pleasure to listen to as he is a wealth of information and he is always working hard to represent our City. Next time you see Representative Paxton, thank him for his efforts on our behalf.

It was also a pleasure seeing Congressman Sam Johnson at the same luncheon. Congressman Sam Johnson is a great role model for our community. I have had the pleasure of spending a considerable amount of time with Congressman Johnson and his wife, Shirley, over the last seven years. We are very fortunate having him serve us and our Country. Sam has sacrificed so much for our Country, from serving in the military, being a POW and now as a Congressman.

Thanks are in order to DBU for hosting the Rotary every month. Dallas Baptist University is another class act that adds to the family atmosphere and ethical leadership in Frisco.

Collin County Community College

For this entry, I thought I would touch on Collin County Community College, or as we call it, Collin College. Frisco is a successful city because of the partners we have to help build our community. Collin College is a key partner in many of the things we do. Not only does Collin College provide an education for our citizens, but they also participate in several city programs including the Tax Increment Finance District, which has helped build Stonebriar Mall, Pizza Hut Park, DR Pepper/Stars Center and helped keep our property taxes low.

I serve on the Collin County Community College Education Foundation which helps provide scholarships for students. With over 40,000 students and 100 degree and certification programs, Collin College is a very important educational institution. I serve on the board and also on the executive committee as the secretary of the organization along with several community leaders. I am very lucky to have the honor of serving with this board of very experienced community leaders and volunteers. We are always looking for new donors and board members to help provide scholarships - we always have more scholarship requests than funds to meet it. Please consider becoming part of the team!

Worldcamp Dallas 2008

While attending the City Council meeting tonight, I heard about an interesting conference that is being held at City Hall in the Council Chambers. John Pozadzides gave a presentation about the conference he would like to bring. For all you bloggers out there, this is probably an interesting event to attend held right here in our City.

You can get additional at John's blog at http://onemansblog.com or the official web site at http://wordcampdallas2008.eventbrite.com/.

All you WordPress users may want to check this one out.

Coffee with "The Maher"

The first "official" coffee with "The Maher" went really well. Le Peep was relatively slow that morning and only three tables had people having breakfast. However, it turned out that I knew all three tables. So, after saying hi to everyone, we were well into our 7:30-8:30 time.

I am looking forward to meeting even more citizens as we continue our campaign. I am hoping to see some new faces in the coming weeks, so please do not be shy. This is very informal, just bring yourself and I will provide the coffee and muffins. If you have specific questions or just want to talk about Frisco, everything is on the table! Let's discuss infrastructure, schools, taxes, city government, transportation issues, rail, zoning or anything else you would like.

Time: 7:30-8:30AM
When: Every Monday morning
Where: Le Peep Restaurant at the South West corner of Stonebrook and Preston Road.

Daddy/Daughter Dance

This is one event my 9-year old daughter, Layna, thinks about all year long. She will usually bring it up at least once a month if not more often and always ask if it is getting close. I can't recall how many I have been to, but I think I attended it the very first year it was held!

If you have never been to one of these, it is hard to put it in words. If I were to try; one of those words would be "amazing". Everything about the Daddy/Daughter dance is "amazing". It has grown to be the largest one in the Country (yes, I said Country). I remember having to wait in line 6 or 7 years ago at 8AM just to get tickets and back then, it sold out quickly. Of course, sold out meant about 500 tickets and it was held at Frisco High School.

Well, it has expanded just a little bit. Now, four dances are held on a Saturday, starting at 2PM. Approximately 5,500 dads and daughters attended this year and some came from as far away as California and Houston. Amazing!

If you tried to go to dinner on Saturday, you probably saw a whle bunch of little princesses, not mention having a long wait for seats. You see, part of the tradition is taking your princess to dinner either before or after the dance.

This year was a little bit tricky. Collin College Education Foundation, where I serve as a board member, was holding their annual fundraiser, Collin Cabaret, at the same evening and the same location (The Frisco Convention Center). And no, I didn't even consider skipping the Daddy/Daughter dance - it was not an option knowing how much Layna was looking forward to an evenin out on a date with her dad. Val to the rescue!!! Val and our friend, Terri Green, attended for me and they were able to enjoy the show while Layna and I were tearing up the dance floor right next door.

The dance ended at 9:30PM and Layna had the opportunity to mingle with some adults at the cabaret as we caught the end of it. It was important to support the College as they provide so many scholarships to those that really need it.

Layna and I really enjoyed the evening. We started out with dinner at Macroni Grill in Frisco with 4 other fathers and their daughters. The young ladies were all very beautiful and excited to be going to the dance. After a great dinner, we left for the last dance of the evening at 8PM. We won't talk about my dancing abilities, so we will just skip right to the end; my favorite dance. Since it is a slow dance, I do just fine. In fact, I'm always afraid to look up because I don't really want to see grown men crying :-) In case you have not guessed it, the song is "Butterfly Kisses" by Bob Carlisle [LYRICS].

All in all, one of my favorite evenings of the year.

Proclamation Record

After having served on City Council for over seven years, I can factually say I have never seen so many proclamations at meeting as I have tonight. Mayor Mike Simpson nevers lowed down as he read each one and recognized every group. The Boy scouts and their many recognitions won hands down with numbers, but all the groups are to be commended. The council chambers were full with the friends and family members of those being recognized.

The record number of proclamations is an indicator of the type of community we live in. The quest for excellence and accomplishment is very telling of the type of citizens we have living in Frisco. What it is yet another Eagle Scout, or an award for community service; we are fortunate to live in Frisco.

A presentation was also given titled The Looming Transportation Crisis. The presentation discussed the age of our road system along with other transportation issues.

Newsletter Correction

The Friscofirst newsletter went out this morning and I am sure this Blog is getting a lot of previews since I mentioned it in there. A quick correction to the newsletter: The link to the Warren Harris web site is incorrect and did not work. Warren Harris can be found at http://www.warrenharris.net

The picture also did not work for some. Here it is:

Coffee with "The Maher"

If you review my old blogs, you will note that I am meeting someone for coffee or lunch on an almost daily basis. A week or so ago, my campaign team and I discussed having a regular scheduled meet the candidate coffee on a weekly basis. Then we promptly put it on our CALENDAR

So, come on out to an informal "Coffee with The Maher" every Monday from 7:30-8:30AM at Le Peep at 7151 Preston Road (at the SW corner of Preston and Stonebrook). MAP.

The coffee is on me, just bring yourself and your questions/comments. Look for a sign on the table if you don't recognize me (here is a picture just in case!)

Continuing my years of being accessible to any citizen, I plan on making the "Coffee with The Maher" a permanent fixture in Frisco, except we will correct the spelling :-)

Maso files for Mayor press release

PRESS RELEASE

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

____________________________________________________

MAHER MASO FILES CAMPAIGN FOR FRISCO MAYOR

Former Mayor Pro Tem Seeks To Keep Frisco

A “Very Special Place To Raise A Family”

FRISCO, FEBRUARY 11, 2008 - Former Frisco Councilman & Mayor Pro Tem Maher Maso today filed his candidacy for Frisco Mayor for the election to be held May 10. Maso is seeking to replace his longtime friend and current Mayor Mike Simpson who is not seeking reelection due to term limits.

"I have a deep passion for Frisco and want to make sure our close-knit community continues to improve," said Maher. "I've worked with our Chamber of Commerce to grow our economy, helped our children as a volunteer coach and served on the City Council where I kept taxes low and fought for more state funds to reduce our traffic. Now I want to bring my enthusiasm to the Mayor's office."

"We all know Frisco is the best place to live, work and raise a family," added Maher. "As our Mayor, I will use my experience and energy to keep our community a very special place to raise a family."

Looking to get an early start on the campaign, Maher was waiting on the doorsteps of City Hall when it opened this morning, the first day candidates can file for office.

"My family is excited to start my campaign for Frisco Mayor," said Maher. "I can't wait to talk to our residents about my plans to reduce traffic, grow our economy, keep our taxes low and protect our families from violent crime."

Though it is early in the campaign, Maher has already received the endorsement of Senator Florence Shapiro, former Frisco Mayors Bob Warren and Harold Bacchus, former Frisco Councilmembers David Buck, Gary Downey, Mike Zapata and Kelly Doster, and former Planning & Zoning Chair Baxter Brinkmann.

Maher and his wife of almost two decades, Val, and their three children moved to Frisco in 1992. He was first elected to public office in 2000 and was re-elected in 2002 and 2004. Maher was the longest serving Mayor Pro Tem in Frisco, appointed by his colleagues five times from 2003 to 2007.

Maher was chosen as the Frisco Citizen of the Year in 2005 and one of the 21 for 21st Century leaders in 2004, which is given to Collin County leaders who have demonstrated leadership in varied fields in the new millennium. Maher is the Vice President of several privately held corporations and serves on the board of directors of Network Cybernetics Corporation.

A more detailed resume of Maher's civic, business and elected experience is attached. For more information about the campaign, please call 469-556-2631 or visit www.masoformayor.com.

Maher Maso Biography

Education & Certifications

Bachelor of Science in Business Management, graduated with Honors. Executive MBA - Graduation in 2008 - University of Texas at Arlington

Texas Municipal League - 350+ hours in Government training including State Certified Public Funds Investment Officer

Boards and Commissions

Frisco City Council

- May 2000-June 2007

- Mayor Pro Tem, May 2003-June 2007 (5 appointments)

- Deputy Mayor Pro Tem, 2002-May 2003

- Chair of Budget & Audit sub-committee, 2003-June 2007

- Frisco Tax Increment Finance District Zone Board, 2000-June 2007

Collin County Community College District Education Foundation

- Mission Statement sub-committee Chair

- Audit sub-committee review member

- Executive Committee Member and Secretary, May 2007-Present

Frisco Public Library Foundation

- May 2007-Present

Frisco Square Management District (FSMMD)

- Board of Directors, May 2000-June 2007

Arts of Collin County Commission

- Commission Member & Vice-President, 2004-Present

- Treasurer, May 2003-2004

- Founding Steering Committee Member, 2002-2004

Frisco Association for the Arts

- Advisory Board, 2007-present

- President, 2005-2007

- Vice-President, 2002-2005

- Board of Directors, 2000-2007

- Member since 2000

Leadership Frisco

- Chairman of the Board, June 2003-2005

- Curriculum Committee Member, 1997-2005

- Facilitator & co-Facilitator, Regional Government Day, 2003-2007

- Facilitator, Local Government Day, 1999-2002

- Interview Committee, Class 1

Frisco ISD

- Technology Committee Member, 1997-present

- Clark Middle School Campus Committee,e 2006-May 2007

- Curtsinger Campus Committee, 1997

Collin County Council on Volunteerism

- Board of Directors, 2006-Present

Association of Mayors, Council Members & Commissioners (AMCC)

- 2006 Nominating Committee

2006 Relay for Life

- Honorary Chair, 2007

Collin County Bond Committee

- Facilities committee, 2002-2003

Plantation Resort Homeowners Association (PRHA)

- President, 1993-1995

Misc. Civic and Local Organizations

- YMCA Boys Basketball Coach, 2002-2003

- YMCA Girls Basketball Coach, 1998-2003

- YMCA Girls Basketball Assistant Coach, 2006-present

- Frisco Baseball/Softball Association Coach, 1997-1999

- Frisco Baseball/Softball Association, Assistant Coach, 2005-2006

- Frisco Chamber of Commerce Membership Drive Co-chair, 2007

Memberships

- Heritage Association of Frisco

- Frisco Association for the Arts

- American Planning Association

- Plano Symphony Orchestra

- Frisco Chamber of Commerce

Awards and Recognitions

- Frisco Citizen of the Year, 2005

- Voted one of the 21 for the 21st century leaders in Collin County, 2004

- 7-year recipient of recognition for continuing education from the Texas Municipal League with 350+ hours, 2000-2007

- Accepted 5-year award on behalf of Frisco from TML for 5 consecutive years of continuing education

- Awarded Proclamation of Outstanding Service by Mayors of Allen, Plano & McKinney, 2004

- Inside Collin County Business "Portrait of a Leader" Recognition, Inside Collin County Business, 2005

- Certificate of appreciation, Stonebriar Village Neighborhood Committee, 2007

Ready for the Rain?

Because it is coming our way... I will never complain about the rain in Texas, especially after the drought we went through recently. I am quickly trying to get my outdoor things done before it comes.

Several exciting things are taking place in the campaign. First, you have probably already seen the press release about being the first to file for Mayor. If not, I will post it here. My campaign Manager, Andrea Wright, her daughter and her Mom, Rosa Cross, all joined me as we waited for the doors to open at City Hall.

It was exciting to take the oath (picture on left) as I submitted my application. Leading a city of over 100,000, which we will shortly be, is a job that I take very seriously. I am honored that so many have placed their trust in my candidacy and I will work very hard to be your public servant.

I rushed from City hall to meet a citizen for a coffee to discuss several issues. As always, I enjoyed the meeting. The "short" meeting, which really was about an hour and a half long rolled right into another lunch-time meeting with a Frisco resident. Now you know why I have gained some weight :-) I really do enjoy enjoy meeting with our citizens as it is a great opportunity to offer insight about our city and also learn from the wealth of knowledge in our community.

On a personal note, Brandon, my son, took his written exam for his private pilot license. He recently turned 17 and has enough hours to receive his certification. That alone made my day a very happy day. Brandon recently flew his first cross-country solo flight and wrote about it. When I have a minute, I will place it on this blog. For now, you can find it here: http://www.group3txwing.org/content/0802/newsletter0802.htm (it is about 1/2 down the page, just search for Brandon Maso).

Leadership Frisco

Friday, February 8th, was a day that I was looking forward to for the last several months. I have been involved in the Leadership Frisco program since the first year when I served on the original curriculum and applications committee. Every since that first year, I have been involved in some form or fashon with this outstanding program that is sponsored by the Frisco Chamber of Commerce. Besides serving on the curriculum committee over the years, I also served as Chair of Leadership Frisco for two years.

Friday was the culminiation of working on the agenda over the last several months. With received feedback from last years class; we wanted to change things up a bit. The day was really about regionalism and learning about the partners around us. The new format worked really well! First; we met at the Embassy Suites for the ride to the City of Prosper. Little did the class members know that I would have them as a captive audience in the van ride to Prosper! I think some of them were planning on taking a nap on the way since we left early; but I never pass up an opportunity to help educate :-)



On a serious note, I really enjoyed it. I think we touched on just about every part of city operation. The class has some very good questions and before we knew it, we were in Prosper. The Prosper presentation was outstanding as the class members learned about the issues that a small town has to deal with. It was not that long ago that Frisco was that size (in fact, I was here, in 1992, we were approximately 6500 population). The also learned about how much that Prosper and Frisco work together.



From there, we packed back into the van for the drive to Plano city hall. Yep, you guessed it, another opportunity to "present" to the class. I should call it the rolling presentation :-)



Plano was an oustanding venue for the class to learn about the challenges that a mature city faces. City Manager Tom Muehlenbeck and Mayor Pro Tem Sally Magnuson presented to the class and they realy enjoyed it, especially the question and answer session. The class was able to see Tom's passion for Plano.



From there, we boarded the bus again (yep, more presentation by yours truley) for a trip to NTTA headquarters. We met in the board room and had lunch served. We didn't slow down though, NTTA gave a presenation, which is always one of my favorites. The behind the scenes in operating the tollway is always interesting. DCTA (Denton County Trasportation Authority) also came to present followed by HTNB, a country-wide engineering firm that excels on transportations.



This is getting long, so I will end it here. The whirl-wind tour was a big success. If you are interested in the Leadership Frisco program, contact the Frisco Chamber of Commerce (or you can e-mail me and I can put you in touch with the right person).



Class 11 of Leadership Frisco should be commended for making this committment to learn about their community:



Bill Blitt
Heather Bowers
Bart Crowder
Dustin Donley
Lisa Kalka
Marc Kirkland
John Land
Kevin Lofgren
Rhonda Martin
Millicent Mayaka
Jose Monzon
Lawanda Penland
Will Russell
Michael Rodgers
Olga Simmons


Also, my gratitude, on behalf of Leadership Frisco, to The City of Plano, Town of Prosper, NTTA, DCTA, HNTB and the Embassy Suites.

A very busy Wednesday

It's days like this that make you want to clone yourself!

The day started out early as I headed over to Robertson Elementary in the Frisco ISD. I will never get used to how many schools we have in Frisco. When I moved here in 1992, we had one elementary, one middle-school and one high school. I lost count of how many we have now long ago! What is interesting is Robertson is in Little Elm and I had one heck of a time finding it!

The Staff at the school obviously love what they do. Special thanks are in order for Principal James Iorio and first grade teacher Nora Davis. Mr. Iorio obviously knows how to run a school; everyone was very friendly and the students were well-behaved. Mrs. Davis helped set up the presentation and made it very easy for me. I had the opportunity to give two presentations about governments and what it was like to serve on the City Council and as Mayor Pro Tem. One presentation was to the first graders and one was to the fourth graders. It is always interesting to see the different kind of questions you get (and boy did they have lots of them)! There is nothing like speaking to elementary students to get you ready for the rest of the day.

Sports Village USA

From there, the Wednesday roll continued. After leaving Robertson, I headed over to Rudy's "Country Store" and Bar-B-Q. If you have not eaten there yet, give it a shot. I think you will be pleasantly surprised. I had a lunch-time meeting with the Sports Village USA folks. Sports Village is a concept that has been a priority for the Frisco City Council since I came on in 2000. It is basically a PSO type facility for the children of Frisco. However, the actual Sports Village concept is much more than that. As the name implies, it is an entire sports village that will be world-renowned and not only will it be a great opportunity for our children who are involved in sports, but also will bring athletes from all over. Keep a close eye on this project as it develops!

Candidate Debate and Batch Plants

What do these two have in common? Nothing besides the fact that I had to be at both places at the same time !! Thanks to the Frisco Chamber of Commerce; a debate was held for the Collin and Denton County Commissioners races. The debate started at 6:00PM and first up were the Collin County candidates. I was happy to see that Council Member Tony Felker (as a Chamber representative) was in attendance as well as Council Member Jeff Cheney and Mayor Pro Tem Dr. Jim Joyner. They are doing a great job representation the City of Frisco. I know that Mayor Mike Simpson wanted to be there, but was splitting duties by attending the Collin County Community College Education Foundation dinner. CCCCD is a great partner for Frisco.

I was able to stay for a good portion of that debate and had to leave before the Denton County candidates came up. You guessed it; I rushed over to the "Batch Plants" meeting.

A quick (very quick) background: What we are talking about are the batch plants on S.H. 121. The City has been working with Turnbridge Manor and Hunter Creek residents over the last few years. I have personally had several meetings with their committee and other interested residents over the last few years. We really got things going when George Purefoy, our City Manager and I met with Frisco Citizens Air Quality Coalition, a group of concerned citizens from that community. Ronda Figueroa helped set up this meeting in March of 2006. The concern is and has been the particulate emissions from those plants along with the odor. The City of Frisco has invested time and money in studying the impact on our citizen’s health.

This specific meeting was asked for by the City and George Purefoy and Richard Abernathy, City Attorney, were in attendance. Turnbridge Manor and Hunter Creek residents had a wonderful turnout and spirited discussion occurred. The main thrust of the evening had to do with the APAC-Texas' asphalt plant permit renewal. Several options were presented to the homeowners. If you want additional information on the meeting from the homeowner side or any additional background, contact Carolyn Lis at lisfamily@tx.rr.com.

Mayor Pro Tem Dr. Jim Joyner and Council Member Jeff Cheney came in towards the end of the meeting (it was mad dash from the campaign debates) and interacted with the homeowners. I want to again thank them for their dedication!

That's it for busy Wednesday. I think I got home around 10:00PM, but who knows.. you lose track on those busy days!

Can't believe January is over

Think about it, 1/12th of the 2008 is already over with. My kids are no longer babies and the hours really fly by! With the speed of time, I'm trying to fit more and more in to a typical day and it does not seem to be working :-)

February 1st started with a long day at a class in Forth Worth (have I ever told you how much I enjoy learning? I do!). I drove straight home late in the day to attend Mardi Gras Frisco 2008 at St. Francis of Assisi church with my wife Val. We really enjoyed the evening as it has been an annual event for us.

Saturday, February 2nd, was also a very long day. I woke up early to get to the Frisco City Council mid-year worksession. The mid-year work session was an idea I floated in 2000 when I was first elected to office and everyone, at that time agreed. Since then, the Frisco City Council schedules a mid-year work session which is typically held in February on a Saturday. I left the mid-year at around 1PM to go to my 9-year old daughters basketball game (a double header).

We have so many great events in Frisco that you will never lack for something that is family friendly to do. After the basketball games, we headed over to the world Olympic Gymnastics Academy (WOGA) international meet at the Embassy Suites. Mayor Mike Simpson welcomed the large crowed and we watched several US teams along with 8 different countries international elite's compete. All I can say is Wow!

Monday, February 3d, was a little more relaxed. Besides the normal family stuff, we had two different campaign meetings with groups that are helping the Maher Maso for Mayor campaign. Did I mentioned we are always looking for volunteers? Just visit our web site and look volunteer link.

Tuesday, February 4th was back to the hectic pace. I started the morning early by meeting citizens who support Frisco adding a dog park. I am always happy to see our citizens take action to attempt to improve our city. I rushed from there to the Frisco Downtown Merchants association meeting. This is another group that works very hard to improve Frisco and downtown Frisco. Amazingly, I actually had a chance to do some work in the afternoon and then headed over to City Hall for the City Council meeting. Turnout was good and several important issues were covered:

The Texas primary is March 4th and early voting starts February 19th. For additional information, you can visit the City Secretary's web site.

I also heard about the Daddy Daughter dance numbers. There are very few tickets left and I believe there are over 5000 purchased so far. So, if you want to take your daughter, you better hurry and contact the Frisco Parks & Rec. department.

The Frisco PD gave an update about sexual offender buffer zones from schools and parks. They said that the growing trend of governmental agencies is to adopt local ordinances regulating where registered sex offenders can reside within their respective jurisdictions. Buffer zones are not consistent between offenders who have been jailed and released and those that are on parole (one is 500' and one is 1000'). The PD is suggesting that it is a consistent 1000'. Of course, nothing is every simple. What tends to happen is that sexual offenders are "funneled" to certain neighborhoods that do not have nearby schools or parks, which can create problems. The PD currently has no enforcement ability with parolees. The Frisco PD is working on an ordinance to increase the buffer and give us the ability to take enforcement action against parole violators. It was decided that they will bring back an updated ordinance for Council to consider.

Staff also discussed the fact that we received a federal grant of $275,000 for a signal system communications project. Staff demonstrated how it helps by providing real-time status of traffic lights and allows synchronization and modifications without having to visit the actual intersection.

February on a Roll

The campaign is really starting to pick up steam. I can tell when I am sending and receiving hundreds of e-mails with the Maher Maso for Mayor campaign team. Our large group is very active and you should start seeing visible signs of the activity all over Frisco. Now you see why we came up with the name TeamFrisco2008!

Tuesday, February 5th started out with a morning meeting at It's a grind with a concerned citizens group. I had to start very early so I could make the downtown merchants association meeting at the Chamber of Commerce at 8:30AM.

Several daytime meetings later, I made it home to spend some time with the family and then off to the City Council meeting. It was an interesting meeting, but one of the key things that caught my attention was the sexual offender ordinance that was being discussed by Council. I was disappointed, of course, that any new ordinance modification would grandfather those near parks and schools. I am studying this issue carefully and will attend the next Council meeting when it is brought up again.