Dean Highland Neighborhood Association

Category: Current Projects

  • Our 6th Annual Gathering Recap

    Hey Dean Highlanders,

    Thanks to all who came out to our 6th (6th!) annual summer gathering at the police department parking lot. We even had a ninja attend:

    Check out the rest of the pictures!

    Don’t forget: there will be no conservancy initiative cleanups during June and July, so enjoy your respite! Our next cleanup will be August 8th. Keep your eyes on these pages for more details.

    If you haven’t already, be sure to sign up for the “Voices from Dean Highland” oral history project. You’d be leaving a legacy for those you love, and you’ll also be helping Dean Highland to establish itself as the premier neighborhood of not only Waco, but Central Texas too.

    Please be sure to renew your membership with us if you haven’t done so since January of 2026. We are trying to revamp and synchronize our data collection tools to better serve y’all, and in order to do that we need the most up-to-date information available.

    If you have any questions, give us a holler. Stay cool out there!

  • Our Conservancy Initiative recap for Saturday, May 23rd

    Hi Dean Highlanders,

    Our last neighborhood cleanup before the summer break was a big hit. We didn’t find any guns (this time!), but we did do something different and tackled one of our streets directly instead of relying on the City to maintain the rubbish.

    Ten Dean Highlanders — that’s right, ten – showed up to pitch in this time: Austin from Pine, Tinker from Pine, and the Strietzels from Maple.

    Most of you will know Austin and Tinker thanks to their longtime service as board members of the Dean Highland Neighborhood Association, but the Strietzels are still relatively new so give them all a hearty greeting next time you see them (perhaps at our 6th annual summer meet-and-greet gathering!).

    We hit 27th Street with all we had, and did a good bit of work on it. I know many Dean Highlanders were, and are, grateful for our efforts.

    A conservancy for Dean Highland’s Hillcrest Memorial Park? Run by the neighborhood association? You better believe it, baby!

    Catch you all at Saturday’s (May 30th) sixth annual meet-and-greet gathering in the police station parking lot.

  • Our Conservancy Initiative cleanup (this Saturday, May 23rd) will be…27th Street!

    Hi Dean Highlanders,

    Our bimonthly Dean Highland Conservancy Initiative cleanup will take place along 27th Street this Saturday (May 23rd). We are going to meet on 27th and Cumberland and then go all the way down and all the way up 27th, like so:

    We will meet at 10am on 27th and Cumberland. Just walk there. Ride your bike. Bring the kids. Bring the dogs. Oh, we will also need a pickup truck since our erstwhile president will not be able to be there this Saturday. This will be our last cleanup before we take the long, hot months of June and July off.

    That’s right, Dean Highlanders, we won’t be doing any guerilla-style conservancy initiative cleanups in June or July due to the heat. So be sure to get on out and join us this Saturday for our last cleanup before the Fall!

    Check out our past cleanup efforts.

    If you have any questions, you know what to do!

  • “Voices from Dean Highland” spotlight: Jim SoRelle

    Hey Dean Highlanders,

    Please allow me to introduce Dr. James “Jim” SoRelle, a now-retired historian who worked at Baylor for several decades. He and his wife have also lived in Dean Highland for several decades, and are currently residing on Maple Avenue.

    Jim actually grew up in Dean Highland, and while he hasn’t stayed here his entire life, his memories of this neighborhood are absolute treasures. He continues, even in retirement, to be an active member of the DHNA and is a regular at our conservancy initiative cleanups.

    His heart is his greatest asset to the Dean Highland neighborhood, and we have been lucky to have Jim and his family as neighbors for so long. The SoRelles have given and given (and given) to Wacoans for a long time, and it’s always been done humbly, gracefully, and with a grateful heart. His efforts for our conservancy initiative reflect this “attitude of gratitude” time and again.

    Dr SoRelle contributed to the “Voices from Dean Highland” project on September 14, 2024. Given that the neighborhood association’s stated goals are service, advocacy, and fellowship, please be sure to give Jim a hearty greeting if you see him out and about at one of our service projects, advocacy efforts, or raucous quarterly meetings. If you would like to collaborate or fellowship with him, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and I’ll try to introduce you.

    If you, or somebody you know and love, wants to participate in this project, shoot me (Brandon Christensen) an email and we’ll get started.

    You can read more about our “Voices from Dean Highland” project here. You (yes, you!) and your story are way more interesting and important than you think, and this project is something that your kids and grandkids and other loved ones will appreciate long after you’re gone. Check out some other “Voices” spotlights here.

  • Happy Mother’s Day: your Dean Highland Conservancy Initiative wrap-up (May 9th)

    Oh boyohboyohboy Dean Highlanders,

    You missed a good one. Let’s start with the pile of garbage we collected and left for our partners (City of Waco Public Works Dept. and Keep Waco Beautiful) at Mitchell Park:

    Our two pocket parks are in good shape now, thanks to our consistent, service-based conservancy initiative.

    Check out the action in our alleyways, too:

    Yes, that’s a real gun. And, yes, it was wrapped in a plastic bag. Jim from Maple and I (Brandon from Wenz) found it in the alleyway off 27th and in between McFerrin and Summer:

    Pro tip: if you find a gun laying around one of Dean Highland’s alleyways, don’t do what Jim and I did and pick it up or examine it or play cowboy with it. Don’t even touch it. Call the Waco Police Department immediately and they’ll dispose of it properly. I ended up taking the gun — even though it had really cool potential to be a neighborhood historical artifact – to the police station:

    Our boys in blue were able to dispose of the gun properly. There’s a never a dull moment when you get out and get involved in your neighborhood!

    Our next conservancy initiative service project will be on May 23rd (a Saturday). Be on the lookup in these pages for more information soon.

    Also, don’t forget that our 6th annual summer gathering meet-and-greet will be happening on May 30th (another Saturday).

    Our Texas Historical Marker for the trolley stop is on-site now. You can check it out at the triangle on Trice and 28th. The State of Texas butchered the rhythm of my writing on the sign, but it’s there and now Dean Highlanders can rest assured knowing that their neighborhood played an important role in the history of Texas. You can also check it out anytime you’d like:

    If you take a photo of yourselves and loved ones next to the Texas Historical Marker, send it to us at deanhighlandwaco@gmail.com and we’ll post it here!

    And for heaven’s sake, reach out to Brandon from Wenz so you can tell your story for the “Voices from Dean Highland” oral history project.

  • Tomorrow’s (May 9th) Dean Highland Conservancy Initiative project

    Hey Dean Highlanders,

    Tomorrow’s conservancy initiative project will be Mother’s Day themed. We’re going to start at 27th and McFerrin and hit the alleyway between McFerrin and Summer, and then make our way over to Wenz Park, then to the home of a single homeowning mother on Wenz Avenue who needs a bit of help clearing out her backyard, and finally to Mitchell Park.

    There is a church (which used to be a grocery store, something I learned while doing the “Voices from Dean Highland” oral history project!) parking lot that you are welcome to park in. Here is a map:

    The alleyway we’ll be cleaning is kinda cool, too. It ends right smack dab in the middle of the block. We’ll be taking it easy on the alleyway, just doing the half-block up through 27th, and then the two blocks from 27th down to 25th:

    The DHNA board will mostly be out of town or working (or both!) this weekend, so I (Brandon Christensen) will need as much help as possible from any Dean Highlanders who can spare a couple of hours tomorrow morning and a pickup truck. The area we are serving for the conservancy initiative tomorrow is a high need, high impact one.

    The fun starts at 10am! Shoot us an email or text Brandon (530-748-7566) if you have any questions or want to help out!

  • Rezoning Update

    Hi Dean Highlanders,

    The rezoning efforts of the contractor who wants to build a storage unit in the northwest corner of Dean Highland passed the Planning Commission on Tuesday. You can watch it, or read the transcript, by going here and then clicking on either of these options:

    Now that this motion for rezoning has passed the Planning Commission, it will go up for review at an official City Council meeting, where a public hearing will be held at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, May 19, 2026, at the Waco Convention Center’s Bosque Theatre (100 Washington Ave., Waco TX 76701).

    If you plan on attending this meeting, here is some useful information on how speaking at City Council meetings actually works.

    We have more information coming on our fancy new Texas State Historical Marker, where we’ll be cleaning for our May 9th conservancy initiative, what’s in store for our 6th annual summer meet-and-greet, and more, so don’t go away!

  • Quarterly meeting (4/23/26) notes

    Hi Dean Highlanders,

    As promised, here are the notes from last Thursday’s quarterly meeting. Enjoy!

    • 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.

  • The Dean Highland Conservancy Initiative’s April 25 cleanup: A recap

    Hello Dean Highlanders,

    I promise I will get our quarterly meeting minutes posted here (probably on Tuesday), but for now I’ve got a recap of our Conservancy Initiative cleanup that happened earlier today (4/25/26)

    Our latest Dean Highland Conservancy Initiative (DHCI) cleanup was our best-attended one yet! Thanks to everybody who showed up and got sweaty with us.

    We started at 30th Street in the alleyway between Windsor and Live Oak avenues and made our way over to 25th-ish Street, to that empty field where you can get a great view of St. Louis Catholic Church on the other side of 25th Street.

    However, because we had so many Dean Highlanders show up this time (thanks again to Kevin, Candace, Robert, Rick, Skip, Scott, and Katie!), we ended up finishing off the alleyway between Homan and Ethel and tackled a good chunk of the alleyway in between Bosque and Homan:

    Not too shabby, eh? Just imagine if everybody from the Dean Highland Neighborhood Association showed up to the next conservancy initiative event (happening Saturday, May 9th). If you want to learn more about our conservancy initiative, or need a recap, click here. You can always share this link with others who may want to know more about our service-based conservancy initiative, too.

    If you have an alleyway, or a yard or empty lot, in Dean Highland that you think could use a little service, love, and respect, let us know about it here.

  • Quarterly meeting is done, and DON’T FORGET about tomorrow’s (4/25) Conservancy Initiative cleanup

    Well Dean Highlanders,

    Another quarterly meeting at Dean Highland Elementary School is in the books, and it was a real barnburner. We’ll have a recap for you later on, but for now DON’T FORGET about tomorrow’s Conservancy Initiative cleanup.

    Since the Dean Highland Conservancy Initiative’s last cleanup was so massive (thanks, again, to Baylor University, Alpha Epsilon Delta Honor Society, and Sara from Parrott Ave), this Saturday’s cleanup is going to be relatively mellow. Meet us on 30th & Live Oak as we march down the alleyway between Live Oak and Windsor avenues. We’ll end our cleanup in the empty lot on 25th-ish Street that faces St Louis Church on the opposite side of the Dean Highland border. Like so:

    The fun will start at 10am. You can just show up on 30th Street. Walk. Bike. Drive. Bring the kids. Bring the dogs. Bring a neighbor! We anticipate this cleanup to be relatively mild compared to some of our earlier ones, so don’t be shy.

    Oh, and once you’re done doing a good deed for Dean Highland, you should head on over to 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 runs from 10am to 2pm, will have exciting prizes & giveaways, free food & drinks (while supplies last), free haircuts by Champions, interactive games & activities, local vendors & booths, public safety connections & engagement, and (and!) a live DJ & music.