Frisco City Council Takes Up Polling Place Issue
On January 5, 2010, the Frisco City Council held a discussion on establishing a polling location at the Heritage Lakes Clubhouse. Around 60 residents showed up in support of this effort which Councilman Cheney noted was extraordinary. THANK YOU!
Frisco City Councilman, Pat Fallon presented several statistics in support of this effort. Over half of all voters in the last election came from areas that would be directly affected by the polling place change. These neighborhoods represent over $5m in tax revenue to the city. Mr. Fallon pointed out that Frisco has fewer voting places per capita than either McKinney or Plano and that this might explain the low turnout figures typically experienced in Frisco City elections. Addressing collocating polling places with LISD directly, Mr. Fallon told the council “If we do it, I feel strongly that they are far more apt to”.
Councilman Jeff Cheney discussed the need to completely overhaul the voting places due to the growth on the west side of town. There were several discussions about various places that might be better for voters than the current places being used. Due to the short timeframe before the next election, Councilman Bob Allen asked that this be considered at future board meetings but requested that the council move forward with directing city staff to start the approval process for Heritage Lakes. Councilman Scott Johnson called the current situation “bureaucracy at its finest”.
WeAreFrisco would like to thank all of the residents who braved the cold and took time out of their day to make this effort happen as well as the council for being so open and cooperative. Although the vote has yet to be taken, the “head nod” factor says City of Frisco will likely approve the polling place at Heritage Lakes after the process is complete and in time for the May elections.
If you were unable to attend, you can watch a video of the proceeding online at http://sire.friscotexas.gov/sirepub/pubmtgframe.aspx?meetid=434&doctype=AGENDA. This was agenda Item 15.
We now need to refocus our efforts on LISD’s Board of Trustees. If you were unable to attend the LISD meeting you may email the board members to tell them you want a local polling place at Heritage Lakes clubhouse. Email addresses for the board members are available online at http://www.lisd.net/info/board/boardmembers.html . While you’re at it, take a few minutes to email the Frisco City Council and thank them for their support. Their email addresses are available at http://www.ci.frisco.tx.us/GOVERNMENT/Pages/CityCouncil.aspx .
|
