Downtown Plan Redevelopment

Recent changes were made to the Downtown Redevelopment Plan Framework following the July 10th Special City Council Meeting. To get more information on these new changes and what was discussed at the meeting, please us the following links:

July 10th Special City Council Meeting
| Meeting Agenda | Presentation |
Resolution - Guiding Values | Resolution - Eminent Domain |
| Resolution - Lozano Plan |

El Paso Fire Department Supports the Miners!

On Wednesday, June 21, 2006, the crew of Fire Station # 8, C- shift, which included Lt. Marcelo Morales, FST. Gustavo Tavares, and Firefighter Lorenzo Melendez, participated in a commercial for UTEP supporting Coach Mike Price and the UTEP football team.

The El Paso Fire Department has always supported and have been big fans of the UTEP football team and were more that happy to be able to show that support by participating in the “We Believe” commercial. The El Paso Fire Department wishes Coach Price and the UTEP football team another great season.

Tuition Assistance Program (TAP)

Is there a college degree in your future? The City of El Paso’s Tuition Assistance Program (TAP) gives you the means to help you pay for your education! Apply to day! Have any questions? Click on the following link to read an informational flyer on the Program. View Flyer

The New El Paso Open Space Plan

Let the planning begin! Development Services has teamed up with the Open Space Advisory Group and the community at large to create an Open Space Plan.

The Development Services Department & Open Space Advisory Group held their initial planning meeting on June 28th, initiating the community planning process. The meeting highlighted the City’s first step in developing a long-term plan for citywide open space conservation by creating the Open Space Advisory Group (OSAG). OSAG is a network of selected individuals who share an interest in preserving open space within the community.

Why do we need to plan and protect Green Infrastructure?
Green Infrastructure is a critical component of community livability for several reasons:
• Cost savings & incentives
• Supports sustainability
• Provides better uses for limited resources

For more information & FAQs on Green Infrastructure, click here.

What’s the next step in the planning process?
Community meetings will be held to engage the community perspective. Input will be collected and implemented throughout the development of the Open Space Plan. Here is a tentative schedule of meetings to take place:

Questions? For more information contact:
Chuck Kooshian, Lead Planner
915-541-4632
Or
Frank Delgado, Planner
915-541-4730

The mountains, the desert, the river…El Paso wouldn’t be the same without them!

City Hall Café Now Renamed!

The City of El Paso recently held a contest to name the café located on the 1st floor of City Hall. After deliberating over and sifting through many entries, a winner was selected!

Congratulations to Martha Calderon, whose idea – Sun City Café – was selected as the name for the City Hall café.

Be on the look-out for daily lunch specials at the café!

Veterans Park Recreation Center Now Open to the Public

The City of El Paso Parks and Recreation Department has now opened the recently renovated Veterans Park Recreation Center for the public. The center located at 5301 Salem, which houses a gymnasium, a day care facility, meeting rooms and large multi-purpose rooms, will be available to serve the needs of people of all ages.

The center, originally built in 1977 will be one of the main focal points for recreational use by the many Fort Bliss troops that are moving to northeast El Paso along with the existing citizens. The center, which is surrounded by a large-acreage park with tennis courts, soccer fields, and the Veterans swimming pool, has served the needs of this northeast community for almost 30 years.

The daycare wing of the facility was enhanced along with the addition of surveillance video cameras, a remodeled locker room, improvements to the multi-purpose gymnasium and new playground equipment being added to the facility.

City Employees’ Ingenuity Produces Innovative Program

Oscar Gonzalez and Jose Granillo, both GIS employees at the El Paso Water Utilities, helped to create a program to view GIS information from both the EPWU and the City of El Paso.

Since the program was created in-house, no license will be required to load it on any computer within the City of El Paso’s network.

The program
This program provides an efficient, computer-based GIS tool that field and office personnel can use to display and manipulate sets of EPWU geographical layers as needed to perform their respective job duties. The map layers available through the viewer include: City boundaries, subdivision plats, water assets, sewer assets, engineering as-build drawings and streets with their respective attribute information

How long did it take to develop
The GIS Viewer has been in production for four years, and continues to be enhanced as new technology advancements become available

Granillo, GIS Manager and employee of 9 years, and Gonzalez, GIS technician with almost 5 years of service with the City, have worked diligently to meet the goal to set a GIS network that will supply information to all the City of El Paso computer network, which will meet their individual needs at a minimum cost. As part of their ongoing work, they are currently providing the Street Department with vital information for the department’s use.

Thank you, gentlemen, for your efforts and demonstrating what an asset we have in our employees.

** Thanks to Jesus Carrera for assisting with this article.

Engineering’s Own Receives Prestigious Award

The Engineering Department would like to extend well-deserved congratulations to Irene D. Ramirez, Assistant City Engineer, for her recognition as the first El Paso Engineer to become the recipient of the Government Civil Engineer Award for the 2006 year by the Texas Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers.

The award recognizes Ramirez for her long-time meritorious service to the Texas Section and acknowledges her continual accomplishments as a Professional Engineer in the public sector. Nominees considered for this award are evaluated by their achievements in the following areas:

• Years in public service and involvement with elected officials and the media
• Engineering achievements in Public Service
• Civic, humanitarian and social activities
• Professional activities
• Publications, papers and presentations

A native El Pasoan and City of El Paso employee for over 24 years, Irene has worked her entire professional career in public service with the City of El Paso and is currently serving her third term as the El Paso Branch’s Texas Section Director. Inclusively, Irene Ramirez has held every office in the El Paso Branch and most recently completed her service as Co-Chair for the 2005 Fall Quad Section Meeting in El Paso hosting Professional Engineers throughout the State of Texas. Additionally, in February of 2005 she was honored as the El Paso Engineer of the Year, by the Texas Society of Professional Engineers (TSPE).

“Irene is an incredible asset to the City and this department. We are extremely proud of her accomplishments, and she is most certainly deserving of this notable merit,” Rick Conner, City Engineer.

Preceding information provided by Kelvin Kroeker, PE
El Paso Branch President - American Society of Civil Engineers

Employees Discuss Experience at Major Women’s Conference

Lorrine Quimiro and Jennifer Nielsen were both selected to attend Power Pipeline 2006, which took place in late June. Power Pipeline was created to provide emerging women leaders with the opportunity to interact with and learn from experienced women leaders. Each year, through the Power Pipeline program, the Foundation for Women's Resources invites a select group of emerging women leaders between the ages of 25 and 35 to spend a weekend sharing experiences and building relationships with each other and established leaders from the Foundation, Leadership Texas alumnae and other accomplished women leaders.

We asked each a couple of questions to get their take on what this amazing experience meant to them:

What happened at the conference in general?

Quimiro: “The organizers did an amazing job of putting together the Power Pipeline program. There were structured sessions to discuss items like "Work-Life Balance" and "Putting together a Personal Strategic Plan" as well as time to meet informally with other participants and mentors.”

Nielsen: “It was focused on bringing women leaders who are early in their career together to deepen leadership skills, receive mentoring from some of Texas' top women in business and government, have frank discussions about work-life balance, and to build state-wide relationships with each other.”

How did it benefit you or affect your life?

Quimiro: “ It has opened the door to new opportunities, new friendships and a new enthusiasm for everything that I do. Speakers such as Duy-Loan T. Le of Texas Instruments amazed me. In 2002, Duy-Loan became the first Oriental and the first woman to get elected TI Senior Fellow in Texas Instruments’ 75 years of history, joining 4 other men who hold this prestigious title TI world wide, and today she remains the only woman with this title. She has been married for 20 years and has two brilliant sons. She discussed the five principles she lives by and how those principles have helped her achieve her personal definition of success.”

Nielsen: “ It was an inspiring weekend all around. In addition I feel that I gained some new perspectives and tools to help me meet major challenges ahead in both my personal and professional life.”

Would you recommend it to other women? Why?

Quimiro: “ I recommend Power Pipeline for any young woman who is looking for professional growth and personal enrichment. You cannot pass on the opportunity to spend a weekend putting together the building blocks that will lead you to your own personal definition of success.”

Nielsen: “ I would highly recommend it to other women because the organizers (the Foundation for Women's Resources) work hard to create an environment of honesty and trust among the group. Very authentic, very real discussions and workshops led to some stunning moments of truth for everyone involved. It was great to meet other energetic women facing similar challenges and have a chance to share solutions, frustrations, and successes.”

Supervisor’s Academy Graduates

Congratulations to all employees who completed the June class of the Supervisor's Academy.

June 2006 Class:
Thomas Maguire, Ziad Al-Dasouqui, Thomas Burrell, Jr., Lucinda Chavez, Sandra Hinojos, Mario A. Ortega, Richard Razo, Steve Teran, Martin Val Verde, Rudy Castaneda, Mike Herrera, Daniel Rodarte, Gabriel Silva, Russell W. Still, Francisco Betancourt, Miguel Huerta, Christopher Rice, Raul Chairez, Jesus Rodriguez, Joaquin Sanchez, Tomas Sigala and Jorge Vargas.

El Paso International holds Employee Appreciation BBQ

On Thursday June 29, 2006 the El Paso International Airport held an Employee Appreciation BBQ to thank all of its hardworking employees. Held in the La Placita Conference Room from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., the BBQ was a thank you from EPIA management to all of the employees. Certificates of Appreciation were also awarded.

Recognize an Employee You Know!

If you know a fellow employee who has made an achievement at work, in their personal life or even someone whose efforts should be recognized, help us to congratulate or recognize them in The Employee Connection! Send us an email at elpasopio@elpasotexas.gov.

HEALTH AND WELLNESS

Skin Cancer Facts You and Your Family Should Know!

GENERAL

• More than 1.5 million skin cancers are diagnosed yearly in the United States.

• One in 5 Americans and one in 3 Caucasians will develop skin cancer in the course of a lifetime.

• Nationally, there are more new cases of skin cancer each year than the combined incidence of cancers of the breast, prostate, lung, and colon.

• More than 90 percent of all skin cancers are caused by sun exposure, yet fewer than 33 percent of adults, adolescents, and children routinely use sun protection.

• A person's risk for skin cancer doubles if he or she has had five or more sunburns.

MELANOMA

• The incidence of melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, is rising faster than that of any other cancer. There are now nearly 8,000 melanoma deaths every year.
• One person dies every hour from skin cancer, primarily melanoma.
• By 2010, melanoma is projected to rise to one in 50 Americans.
• While melanoma is uncommon in African-Americans, Latinos, and Asians, it is most deadly for these populations.

MEN/WOMEN
• The majority of people diagnosed with melanoma are white men over age 50.
• Skin cancer is the #1 cancer in men over age 50, ahead of prostate, lung and colon cancer.
• Middle-aged and older men have the poorest track record for performing monthly skin self exams or regularly visiting a dermatologist. They are the least likely individuals to detect melanoma in its early stages.
• Men over age 40 spend the most time outdoors and have the highest annual exposure to ultraviolet radiation.
• In the past thirty years, skin cancer has tripled in women under age 40.
• After thyroid cancer, melanoma is the most commonly diagnosed cancer in women 20-29.
• Researchers have found that rates of basal and squamous cell skin cancers in women under 40 have more than doubled since the seventies.

TEENS/CHILDREN
• One blistering sunburn in childhood more than doubles a person’s chances of developing melanoma later in life.
• It is estimated that 2.3 million teens visit a tanning salon at least once a year.
• In the past 20 years, there has been more than a 100% increase in the cases of pediatric melanoma.
• Less than half of all teenagers use sunscreen.
• The effects of photoaging (skin aging caused by the sun or tanning machines) can be seen as early as in one’s 20’s.

With all of these facts in mind, here are some Sun Safety tips that will help you protect yourself AND your family all year round.

1. Seek the shade, especially between 10 A.M. and 4 P.M.
2. Do not burn.
3. Use a sunscreen with an SPF of 15 or higher every day.
4. Apply 1 ounce (2 tablespoons) of sunscreen to your entire body 30 minutes before going outside. Reapply every two hours.
5. Cover up with clothing, including a broad-brimmed hat and UV-blocking sunglasses.
6. Keep newborns out of the sun. Sunscreens should be used on babies over the age of six months.
7. Examine your skin head-to-toe every month.
8. See your doctor every year for a professional skin exam.
9. Avoid tanning and UV tanning salons.

TAKE ADVANTAGE

Shelter Rentals at Parks and Recreation a Big Hit!

Parks Shelters for Rent available in all areas of City for a nominal fee.

The City of El Paso Parks and Recreation Department services many people in the community with their numerous shelters. The Shelters are located in various parts of the city. Listed below are four of them:

These four shelters are available to rent through the Parks and Recreation Department. The rentals of the facilities vary from weddings, small quinceañeras and birthday parties, to anniversaries, family reunions, graduations and first communions. Each of the shelters has a capacity for 100 people.

The average rental fee for a minimum of three hours is $90 before 6:00 p.m. and $120 after 6:00 p.m. The fee comes with the rental of 100 folding chairs and 12 tables. The rental is available up to 1:00 a.m.

Two shelters that are currently being renovated and will be available in the future are the Sunrise and Arlington Shelters in Northeast El Paso. Sunrise Shelter is located at 3800 Sunrise and has 1680 square feet. The Arlington Shelter at 4715 Junction has 1769 square feet. The Arlington Shelter is the only facility that does not allow rentals past 11:00 p.m.

Each of the shelters also provides an electric stove, refrigerator and sink. All renters must remove all decorations, pick up trash and wipe the stove clean before departing. Security Guard services are also handled through the Parks and Recreation Department.

• All rentals require a $10 processing fee and an $11 per hour charge for security guard services if alcohol is served.
• A minimum of $130 is required to reserve a shelter with the balance due two weeks before event.
• All reservations must be in person and can be reserved up to six months in advance.
• There is a separate fee schedule for any for profit events.

For more information contact the Parks and Recreation main office at 541-4331.

Get Romantic with Gladys y Su Trio at Alfresco! Fridays

The City of El Paso Museums and Cultural Affairs Department is pleased to present Gladys y Su Trio at Alfresco Fridays. The local band will perform Friday, July 21, 2006 from 5:30-7:30 pm at Convention and Performing Arts Plaza (between the Abraham Chavez Theatre and Judson F. Williams Convention Center). Admission is free and outside food or beverages are not allowed. Tours of the Plaza Theatre will also be administered. Admission is $1 per person.

For additional information call or visit the City of El Paso Museums and Cultural Affairs Department at (915) 541-4481, www.elpasotexas.gov/mcad/alfresco.asp

Captain Radio to Perform at Music Under the Stars
Chamizal National Memorial, Sunday, July 23, 2006 at 7:30 pm

The City of El Paso Museums and Cultural Affairs Department is pleased to present Captain Radio at Music Under the Stars World Festival on Sunday, July 23, 2006. The free concert is held at the Chamizal National Memorial at 7:30 pm. This presentation is supported by Mid-America Arts Alliance with generous underwriting by the National Endowment for the Arts, the Texas Commission on the Arts, and foundations corporations and individuals throughout Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Texas.

Formerly Radio Flyer and Captain Radio and the Flyers, the band has now simplified its name to Captain Radio. Band members Joe Mares, Rick Armstrong, Brian Russo, Gary Hollis and Rick Benitez are veteran musicians who have been performing professionally since the late 60’s and early 70’s. Additionally, they are all accomplished singers who can easily handle lead or harmony. Most importantly, they believe that they are entertainers first and foremost, and that their job is to get the audience to dance, laugh and have a good time.

For additional information call or visit the City of El Paso Museums and Cultural Affairs Department at (915) 541-4481, www.musicunderthestars.net or call Chamizal National Memorial at (915) 532-7273 or visit www.captainradio.com

Parks and Rec Offers Cheer/Dance Camps

2006 Price's Give Em' Five Monica Perez Dance Camps -- The Event of the Summer.

Price's Creameries will present the Monica Perez Dance Camps to be held on Saturday, July 22, 2006 from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. The City of El Paso Parks and Recreation Department will host this annual event. The camp is for both girls and boys, ages 4-13 years. The fee is $5.00 with two (2) Price's Give Em' Five Bottle Caps or $8.00 per person. (Includes Camp T- shirt).

You can register your children at any one of the following Recreation Community Centers where the camps will be held. Please call the Parks and Recreation department to verify registration information prior to the class.

Location Date

More Classes Being Offered for Seniors at the San Juan Senior Center

The San Juan Senior Center will be offering various classes in the coming months to augment the special classes they already offer the seniors.

The center is announcing that they are offering Tai Chi classes every Friday from 10:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. and the cost of the class is only $5 per month. A ceramic class is being held on Mondays and Wednesdays or Tuesdays and Thursdays and the fee is also $5 a month. A Porcelain class is being held every Wednesday from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. as well. For more information contact Efren Fraire at 772-8365.

Enjoy Activities at the Multipurpose Center!

You and your family can enjoy the following events that the Multipurpose Center has to offer!

Gus & Goldie Youth Basketball
Boys and Girls ages 4-7 years
(age as of January 1, 2006)
Fee per child: $30.00
Skills camp for paid participants: July 29, 2006 at 10:00am at the Multi-Purpose Center
League play begins Saturday August 5, 2006
Coaches needed.

Gymnastic Tumbling for Kids
Beginners Class (ages 4-6)
Tuesdays and Thursdays 4:30pm-5:30pm
Fee: $15.00/mo
Intermediate Class (ages 6+)
Mondays and Wednesdays 4:30pm-5:30pm
Fee: $15.00/mo

Tai-Chi
Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays
10am-11am
Fee: $20.00/mo
Seniors pay (55+): $10.00/mo

The Multi-Purpose Center is located at 9031 Viscount. For more information on these activities and others that the Center has available, please call 598-1155.

This City is at full-speed right now, with major recognitions, initiatives and activities going on. For starters, congratulations to the Airport for being recognized by J.D. Power and Associates as 9th in their 2006 North American Airport Satisfaction Study. This is a major feat for our great City.

As part of our on-going effort to recognize employees that have dedicated their careers to service with the City, we will be having our quarterly Service Award Presentation at the July 25th City Council meeting. Over 20 employees with service records of 25 years and over will be honored -- our largest group yet! Thanks to all our employees who have helped to make a difference in this organization!

On a final note, there are two major planning processes currently underway. Both the Open Space Master Plan and the Parks and Recreation Master Plan are in the process of being developed and vetted. I encourage everyone to find out more about these Master Plans and help in this proactive exercise to look at efficiently and effectively planning growth for our City. Information on both of these Plans, along with a listing of upcoming community meetings, is available on the City’s homepage.

General Links

• Human Resources
• City Employees' Pension Fund
• Police and Fire Pension Fund
• Neighborhood Toolbox
• Employee Newsletter Archive
• City Employee Events Photo Gallery
• The Portal
• City Events Calendar
• City News Page

Benefits Services

• Health Benefits - Access Healthsource
• Dental - Concordia
• Dental – Safeguard
• Vision – Block
• Unum Life Insurance – Disability
• ING Life Insurance – Dependent/Basic/
  AD & D
• ING – Deferred Compensation
• EP Fitness
• Del Sol Medical Center
• Las Palmas Medical Center

Contact Us

Do you have a question, comment or feedback on the Employee Newsletter? Let us know!

Send us an email at:
elpasopio@elpasotexas.gov

We value your opinion!

Pay Fantastic Attention to Detail
(memo to Fire Staff dated 06-16-06)
by Chief Roberto Rivera

In May of 1968, I was drafted into the US Army. (Yes, I know many of you weren’t born yet.) The fear was that my assignment, after training, would be Vietnam. Two details, one major, one minor, kept me from being sent to the war. 1) I took a Spanish test here at Bliss, and scored well. 2) I hit the rear sight on my M14 with my steel helmet, unknowingly lowering the sight by one click and subsequently missing the farther targets. The first detail made my assignment to the southeast Asia war zone questionable, considering the army had need for Spanish speakers in the Panama Canal Zone. The second detail, one missed by the firing range training sergeants, meant that I was not a good enough shot for the guerilla warfare of Vietnam.

In the second highlight for successful customer service form Tom Connellan’s book, “Inside the Magic Kingdom,” the author speaks about how details, which may not be important or even noticeable to the customer, are a source of pride and evidence of commitment to the workers.

Pay Fantastic Attention to Detail

In 34 years with the El Paso Fire Department, I have seen the extremes from firefighters who give their all, to the few who give the minimum. In the first category is the employee whose attention to detail results in that much better service for the customer. Every fire truck is equipped with a large amount of equipment. Some of it is highly specialized, such as the hose and the nozzles for fighting fires. While learning everything a firefighter can about every piece of equipment may not be of great interest to the external customer, the firefighter will develop a sense of comfort and confidence from absorbing all this detail.

One thousand feet of 5-inch-diameter hose is the compliment carried on most of the department’s pumper units. Charged with water, the hose is actually about 8 inches in diameter. Each hundred-foot section costs $800.00. Would a citizen care about this minutia if his or her house burning? Unlikely. However, were Mrs. Smith or Mr. Ramirez to ask about the hose being able to respond quickly and correctly would definitely help the citizen understand how his tax dollars were being spend?

A few decades ago during a station visit, the officer in charge told the visitor that someone in that station knew exactly where the visitor’s home was located. “That is wonderful,” the woman touring the station, replied, duly impressed. She didn’t accept the challenge and ask who. To this day, I am certain that that captain was right. Back in the days of dispatching by speakers in the station, this was true more often than not. Firefighters had to know where every street in their territory started and ended. They had to know where, along the district boundary lines, an address sat. This assured that the closest company responded. When the neighboring fire company was out of service, the crews had to know the boundaries, streets and hydrants for the next district over also. Currently, the dispatcher announces the address and lists the companies that must respond according to the Automatic Vehicle Locater. Nevertheless, a command of all this detail would guarantee that a computer error would not result in a delayed response.

If the individual firefighter, whose daily duties call for the use of equipment and apparatus, is not well versed in all the levers, buttons, gages and nuts and bolts, then who is? Yes, specialties exist and no one person can know everything. Everyone, though, can pay fantastic attention to details and fewer people will get caught unable to respond to a question or find the specific tool, or a document or identify a process in the most expeditious manner.