Hi Dean Highlanders,
As promised, here are the notes from last Thursday’s quarterly meeting. Enjoy!
- Introduction from DHNA’s President, Scott Michael
- Update on the “Voices from Dean Highland” oral history project from Brandon Christensen
- Update on the Dean Highland Conservancy Initiative from Brandon Christensen
- Update on the Texas State Historical Marker at the old trolley stop on 28th & Trice from Brandon Christensen
- Further update (4/27/26): it’s here! More to come…
- A reminder, from President Scott Michael, of Dean Highland’s 6th annual summer gathering. This year it is happening at the police station on May 30th. More details to come.
- A summary, from President Scott Michael, of the current rezoning process that is ongoing in the northwest corner of Dean Highland. We’ve covered this before and here is a link, for context.
- Three representatives from the McLennan Central Appraisal District — Azucena Barrientos, Stephanie Murphy, and Lisa Gonzalez – told us more about the district’s hiring spree for this summer. We’ve covered this before and here is a link, for context.
- A representative of Waco Police Department’s Neighborhood Engagement Team, Officer Janae Draper, gave us an update on policing odds and ends, and gave us a heads up on Unify Waco’s COE at Dewey Park. Unify Waco is part of a citywide anti-violence initiative that features top-notch support from Waco PD. This event, which ran from 10am to 2pm on Saturday April 25th, had exciting prizes & giveaways, free food & drinks (while supplies lasted), free haircuts by Champions, interactive games & activities, local vendors & booths, public safety connections & engagement, and (and!) a live DJ & music. We gave Unify Waco’s COE a shout-out in an earlier newsletter update, but President Scott Michael (unsurprisingly, given his long and admirable record of service) went even further and attended the event:
- Teresa Bryant, from the city’s Public Works department, gave us a scintillating update on Waco’s roads improvement schemes. Teresa is an open book and we have long enjoyed her presentations at our quarterly meetings. If you have any roads-related questions or complaints, you can contact Teresa by email (teresab@wacotx.gov) or by phone (254-750-6613) to voice your thoughts.
- Captain Gary Lee, from Waco Fire Department, then brought to our attention WFD’s “smoke alarm program”: Waco Fire Department has partnered with the American Red Cross and will install free smoke alarms in the Waco community upon request. To request a free installation (did I mention it’s free?), click here to get started.
The floor was then opened for comments, criticisms, questions, and complaints. Here is what everybody wanted to discuss:
- how to obtain information on the history of your house (try the county records office on 214 N 4th St, Waco, TX 76701),
- when will the next dumpster campaign be happening (currently unknown),
- can we get a playground installed at Mitchell Park (currently unknown),
- and whether or not we will be hosting our quarterly meetings at Dean Highland Elementary School in the future (given recent events there).
- President Scott Michael was also sure to give a thankful shout-out to Dean Highland Elementary School’s rep., Sylvia, for her willingness to stay after hours and open the cafeteria to us. We wish her all the best in her future endeavors!
If you have any questions, or answers, for us, shoot us an email.
