AACOG Region April 2006 Newsletter

Ozone Season 2006, which extends from April 1 through October 31, marks the second year of a three-year monitoring period that will determine whether the San Antonio area can call itself the largest “clean air” region in the nation. Failure to meet the federal standard for ground-level ozone, based on measurements conducted in our region from 2005-2007, would take away that right.

But there’s more at stake than a title. Violating federal air pollution standards can have economic consequences that impact our existing industries as well as our ability to attract new businesses to the area. More importantly, failure to meet the ozone standard means that we are not succeeding in our efforts to keep our air clean through our own efforts, and the result is polluted air that threatens our health. To read this entire article, please click here.

Regional Air Quality Outreach contact: Brenda Williams

Top

LiveGreenFest Clean Air Drive

Go to webpage

Ozone Season is here and AACOG and the City of San Antonio are joining CPS Energy to host LiveGreenFest Clean Air Drive, an event to educate the public on the harmful health effects of ozone pollution and what citizens can do to protect themselves and the air they breathe as well as general environmental awareness and conservation. The event will be held on Saturday, April 8, 2006, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., at Eisenhower Park at 19399 NW Military Drive (just north of Loop 1604). To read this entire article, please click here.

LiveGreenFest Contact: Heather Willden

Top

National Crime Victims' Rights Week

Go to webpage

April 3-9, 2006 is National Crime Victims’ Rights Week in Bexar County – a time for all of us to reflect upon the devastating impact that crime in America has on individuals, families, communities, and our nation as a whole. While nobody expects to be a victim of crime, it’s likely that each of us will experience the hurt that crime causes, either personally or through a crime committed against someone we know.

The theme of 2006 National Crime Victim’s Rights Week – “Victims Rights: Strength in Unity” – speaks to the strength we gain in our collective efforts to fight crime and support victims and survivors, and the unity we share in our concerned commitment about crime and victimization in America. When one person is affected by crime, we all feel its impact. Access to supportive services in our community, and victims’ rights to be engaged in justice proceedings, are what victim justice is all about in America. And victim justice can only be achieved through strength in unity.

So during 2006 National Crime Victims’ Rights Week and throughout the year, it’s important to realize that victims of crime in Bexar County have many rights within the criminal and juvenile justice systems, and many services that can help them cope with the aftermath of crime. If you or someone you know is a victim of crime, help and hope are available. If you or someone you know is a victim of crime, please click here.

Crime Victims' Rights Week Contact: Veronica Avalos

Top

Entrepreneurship Conference Set For April 7

Go to webpage

The Capital Area Council of Governments is partnering with the U.S. Economic Development Administration, the City of Austin, the Austin-San Antonio Corridor Council, and the Institute for Economic Development at the University of Texas at San Antonio to host the Austin-San Antonio Conference on Entrepreneurship and Regional Competitiveness at the Omni Austin Hotel at Southpark at 4140 Governor's Row, Austin, Texas, on Friday, April 7, 2006. Registration is $50 for individuals; tables $500. For more information on this conference, click here.

Entrepreneurship Conference POC: David Partlow, CAPCOG

Top

Kerr County 150th Birthday to include entertainment for all ages and tastes

Go to webpage

Entertainment for all ages and musical tastes will be a hallmark as officials, organizations and the public join in celebrating 150 years since the State of Texas founded Kerr County in the Hill Country in 1856. Dancers from the Lakota Sioux tribe, mariachis representing the area's Hispanic heritage, marching bands and mounted units, civic clubs, military and patriotic groups, floats, historic vehicles and an array of Country and Western and other entertainers are among the scheduled participants in the April 6-9 celebration.

The long list of events has serious elements as well, with county residents 90 years old and above to be honored and Gov. Rick Perry scheduled to join county and city officials and other dignitaries at the courthouse in the center of Kerrville on April 7. Religious music and recognition of the long African-American heritage in the county will come from the pastors and choir of the Mount Olive Baptist Church, and the final official event will be an ecumenical memorial service at Dietert Auditorium on the Schreiner University campus in Kerrville. To read this entire article, please click here.

Kerr County Sesquicentennial Contact: Brian Bondy

Top

April is Fair Housing Month

Go to webpage

AACOG's Board of Directors adopted a resolution recognizing the importance of this month. This year the nation will be celebrating the 38th anniversary of the passage of the Fair Housing Law of 1968 that prohibits discrimination in housing. Since 1969 the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) has recognized and honored fair housing throughout April as a "fundamental human concept and entitlement for all Americans."

As part of the recognition, AACOG will be participating in several Fair Housing events and activities. AACOG operates housing programs such as the Section Eight Housing Choice Voucher Program, the Weatherization Assistance Program, and the Alamo Area Housing Finance Corporation Home Mortgage Loan Program. To read this entire article, please click here.

Housing Program Point of Contact: Rosy Falcon

Top

Regional Awards Nomination Deadline:
May 1, 2006

Go to webpage

AACOG is currently accepting nominations for our 2006 Regional Awards, to be presented to the winners at a special ceremony on June 14, 2006. Current elected officials and public sector employees are ineligible for nomination, unless directly involved in a governmental regional project. Nominations must be submitted to AACOG no later than May 1, 2006.

Categories for nomination are Regional Citizen of the Year, Corporate Citizen of the Year, Community Project of the Year, and Governmental Regional Project of the Year. These nominations are open to the public. For information on nominating someone for this award, please click here.

Regional Awards Point of Contact: Tiffany Pickens

Top

Notice: AACOG Offices will be closed Friday, April 28, 2006 in observance of Battle of Flowers Day.

Newsletter and calendar submissions are encouraged. Please submit any newsletter ideas to mail@aacog.com.

Some publication links were created as PDF files. If you do not have the most current version of Adobe Reader, you may download a free version here: http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/readstep2.html.

To subscribe to the AACOG newsletter, click here. To be removed from our mailing list, please e-mail mail@aacog.com.