August 2009 AACOG Region Newsletter

AACOG's Alamo Service Connection in collaboration with several other key organizations has launched a “Do You Have a Cool Neighbor?” Campaign. The goal of the campaign is to create public awareness about heat-related signs and symptoms along with recommended courses of action. Featured Speaker Mary K. Dunn, PhD will conduct interactive sessions on heat-related signs and symptoms.

For more information about this campaign, click on the links below. To find out how you can join us in spreading the word about this effort, call Martha Ramirez at (210) 362-5217 or e-mail mramirez@aacog.com.

"Do You Have a Cool Neighbor? Campaign Press Release

Heat Related Signs and Symptoms

Cool Your Neighbor Presentations

Community Resource List for Heat Related Assistance

AACOG will host a Planning and Zoning workshop for planning commissioners, elected officials, and staff, on August 11, 2009, in the Al J. Notzon III Board Room, 8700 Tesoro Drive, Suite 100, San Antonio, TX 78217. This workshop is sponsored by the Texas Chapter American Planning Association in cooperation with the City Planners Association of Texas, the Texas Association of Regional Councils, and AACOG. Click here for more information or to register for this upcoming workshop.

Three Tons of Air Pollution Reduced for San Antonio Area during June

The Alamo Region kept 6,211 lbs. of ground-level ozone producing chemicals from the air last month by participating in the Walk & Roll Corporate Challenge and logging over 1.6 million alternative commute miles.

Winning organizations of this challenge were United States Automobile Association (USAA) in the Overall Achievement (most miles overall) category, San Antonio Water System (SAWS) in the Large Organizations (more than 1,000 employees) category, and Lake | Flato Architects in the Small Organizations (fewer than 1,000 employees) category. Runners-up were the City of San Antonio among the large organizations and the San Antonio-Bexar County Metropolitan Planning Organization among the small organizations. Read this press release

This monthly feature in the AACOG Region Newsletter spotlights our AACOG Board Members. This month features City of Natalia Mayor Ruby Vera, who was appointed to the AACOG Board in June 2009. Previously she was the Chairman of the Economic Development and Environmental Review Committee (EDERC).

Education and career highlights: "I worked for the Government at Kelly AFB and retired eight years ago. In my 32-year career as a civil servant I held many jobs. The last 15 years of my career were spent working at the "Wing" level as the Wing War Planner/Readiness Officer/Deployment Officer and the last three years as the liaison for the Wing and Kelly USA. After being elected and serving two years as Councilwoman/Mayor Pro Tem, I became Mayor of Natalia in 1997 and served as Mayor until May 2003. I ran again in 2005 and have been Mayor since then.

What do you like best about your work as the Mayor of the City of Natalia? "It has always been about being able to bring about change and a better quality of life for the community."

What is the best advice you have received in working as an elected official? "To check your personal feelings at the door and do what you believe is best for the entire community."

What excites you about being an AACOG Board Member? "Being able to participate in the future shaping of our AACOG Region. AACOG oversees so many issues/programs affecting all of its members, and I want to be a part of the process, because this process will affect all future generations whether they are in large cities or in the rural communities."

What do you enjoy doing in your space time? "Spare time is spent reading and working in my yard."

What is going on in Natalia? "The City of Natalia recently received a grant for $5,000 for Downtown Beautification and the entire community has jumped on the band wagon and is starting their own painting/cleaning/sprucing up that makes everyone feel good about where they live/work and play. We put up decorative lights; the high school Ag department made benches, trash cans, and welcome signs; and we have landscaped most of the downtown area. We are really seeing a revitalization of this area."

Natalia Mayor Ruby Vera and Natalia High School will host an AACOG Community Awareness Workshop at the Natalia High School Cafeteria (8th & Kearney in Natalia) on Tuesday, August 18, 2009, from 5 to 7 p.m. Residents from Natalia and the surrounding areas are encouraged to attend.

AACOG Programs to be featured at the workshop include the Alamo Area Agency on Aging, Alamo Regional Transit, Housing and Weatherization, and Workforce Solutions-Alamo.

For more information about this workshop, click here. To find out about hosting an AACOG Awareness Workshop in your area, contact AACOG Public Relations at (210) 362-5200.

AACOG is hosting the annual University of North Texas Public Funds Investment Act Workshop August 24-25, 2009, in the Al J. Notzon III Board Room, 8700 Tesoro Drive, Suite 100, San Antonio, TX 78217. The training provides a total of 10 hours of PFIA training and CPE credits. Registration for both days (10 hours) is $270 on or before August 17th or $290 after August 17th, registration for one day (5 hours) is $135 on or before August 17th or $145 after August 17th. Click here for more information or to register for this upcoming workshop.

Next-Generation Call Solutions Help AACOG 9-1-1 Program Prepare for Tomorrow

In August 2009, the AACOG 9-1-1 Program will transition to an IP-enabled infrastructure for flexible, remote call handling at their Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs). The first two sites to implement this Next-Generation 9-1-1 solution from industry leader PlantCML will be the AACOG Auxiliary PSAP and the newly constructed Bandera County Jail and Justice Center. These two PSAPs will serve as host locations with Atascosa, Frio, Gillespie, Karnes, Kendall, and Wilson Counties becoming remote locations on the Sentinel Patriot network.

This transitioning to Sentinel Patriot comes on the heels of a recently negotiated five-year contract between AACOG and Verizon Business. The contract includes preventive maintenance for all AACOG PSAP sites and designates a technician to provide 24/7 regional support.

Also related, the AACOG 9-1-1 Program is working in unison with Contact One of Austin, Texas on a Regional Geodatabase Design and Standardization Project. Presently, five of the seven counties have completed the project: Atascosa, Frio, Karnes, Kendall, and Wilson with Bandera and Gillespie Counties slated for completion in the upcoming month. To find out more about AACOG's 9-1-1 Program in the Region, contact Fran Randall at (210) 362-5214. For more on Next-Generation 9-1-1, click here.

The San Antonio Mobility Coalition's 5^th Annual State of the District Luncheon will be held on August 28, 2009, from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Pedrottis North Wind Ranch in Helotes. The luncheon will feature remarks on the Texas Department of Transportation’s developments and accomplishments over the last year and into the future in the AACOG Region.

Regional legislative leaders will provide comments on actions taken by the legislature in regards to transportation funding issues and how they will affect our region, as well as the outlook for the next legislative session. Speakers at the Luncheon will include TxDOT District Engineer Mario Medina, State Senator Jeff Wentworth, and State Representative Mike Villarreal. Click here for more information on this workshop.

The Counties of Atascosa, Bandera, Bexar, Comal, Frio, Gillespie, Guadalupe, Karnes, Kendall, Kerr, Medina, and Wilson, located in the AACOG Region, will be holding criminal justice community planning meetings for the purpose of identifying problems experienced by communities in each county; to include identifying local needs, gaps in service, and resources available to find solutions in each community. The areas of interest are criminal justice, juvenile justice, and victim issues. Other areas of interest are mental health/substance abuse and Homeland Security issues. Furthermore, community planning identifies the gaps between community needs and resources. An effective community plan exists as a dynamic tool for improving the quality of life for the citizens of each county. For information on how to participate in your local County Community Plan, please contact Marcela Medina at (210) 362-5250 or Veronica Avalos at (210) 362-5290 or visit www.aacog.com/criminaljustice.

In September, AACOG will host two events on behalf of the Houston Advanced Research Center (HARC) and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) in the AACOG Al J. Notzon III Board Room, 8700 Tesoro Drive, Suite 100, San Antonio, TX 78217.

On September 28, 2009, from 2:30 to 5:30, HARC will hold a Hydrogen Education Workshop that will be open to anyone interested in the latest hydrogen technology such as fuel cells, and applications including transportation. This afternoon session will include an "idea session" related to introduction of / applications of hydrogen-powered vehicles & transportation in the community.

On September 29, 2009, NREL will teach a day-long Hydrogen Code Session. The primary audience is staff from local governments interested in learning about safety code related to hydrogen fueling and engineering related to hydrogen fueling infrastructure. The focus is on public safety and engineering for this session.

For more information about these two workshops, contact David Hitchcock at (281) 364-4007.

The third edition of AACOG's economic development magazine, Business Images of the Alamo Area, will publish in spring 2010. Preliminary planning for magazine content is underway. If you have ideas for potential stories, or if you are interested in advertising in the magazine, please click here to complete and fax this form to (210) 225-5937, or contact Joe Ramos at (210) 362-5212.

AACOG will host the 2010 Conference on Regionalism from September 15-17, 2010. Local organizations have an opportunity to support and participate in the 2010 conference through sponsorship. Sponsors will have access to more than 400 decision makers from across the state. From exhibit space to conference signage, sponsorship levels accommodate businesses of all sizes and provides generous benefits to donors. To find out more about sponsoring this exciting conference, contact Brenda Williams at (210) 362-5246 or Tiffany Harris at (210) 362-5204. To become a sponsor or exhibitor, click here to fill out and return the sponsorship form.

The Energy Systems Laboratory of the Texas Engineering Experiment Station, in partnership with the Texas State Energy Conservation Office and AACOG, will host its American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air-Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) 90.1 2007 – Update and Overview Workshop on Wednesday, August 12, 2009, from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The free workshop will be held in the Al J. Notzon III Board Room, 8700 Tesoro Drive, Suite 100, San Antonio, TX 78217.

This workshop is intended for engineers, architects, and code officials who anticipate either applying, conforming to, or evaluating the ASHRAE 90.1-2007 code to commercial building projects in Texas and elsewhere. The content includes a cursory coverage of the entire Standard 90.1 document as well as a review of some of the more substantive changes/additions made since the 2004 version was issued. Most of the workshop focus is on the Mandatory and Prescriptive Requirements, while only a brief mention is made of the Energy Cost Budget (ECB) methodology. Participants can be either new to the code or experienced in its use.

Instructor: Larry O. Degelman, P.E., Professor Emeritus of Architecture, Texas A&M University

Topics to be covered:

Workshop introduction & energy code status in Texas.
Highlights of 90.1-2007 and the update changes from the 2004 version.
Alterations and exemption conditions.
Overview of the 90.1-2007 document, climate zones, & envelope criteria
Details of the Heating, Ventilating, Air Conditioning (HVAC) and Service Water Heating (SWH) provisions
Details of the lighting, power and equipment provisions
ECB Methodology, Appendix G, AEDG (Advanced Energy Design Guides), tax incentives and software.

Click here to register for this upcoming workshop. For more information contact Jessica Coffin at (979) 458-0675.

On Thursday, October 1, 2009, from 8:30 a.m. to 12 noon, AACOG will host a 3-hour Texas Notary Law and Procedures Seminar for current new and non-notary participants that would like to receive their Texas notary public commission.

Dixie Lucey, Director of Education for State Notary Commission in Austin, TX will teach the seminar at AACOG's Homeland Security Classroom 6, 8700 Tesoro Drive, Suite 165 (first floor), San Antonio, TX 78217. The cost of the seminar including the course manual is $150.00 per person. The state application and bond fee for non-notaries or those who would like to renew their commissions is $105.00 for a 4-year term.

The course will cover:

The state application and renewal process
Acknowledgement and oath procedures
State record keeping requirements
Certifications and protests
Affidavits, Jurat’s and verifications
Overview of changes in notary laws from the 81^st legislative session
Liability protection
Answers to your notary public questions.

“Notary public training protects the notary and the public from liability and protects the long term validity of documentation,” says Dixie Lucey, Director of Notary Education. To register for the seminar contact:

Dixie Lucey, Director of Education, State Notary Commission
PO Box 10141, Austin, TX 78766
dixielucey@prodigy.net | Phone (512) 497-2253

The State Notary Commission is an educational organization founded in 1990 to promote and enhance the education of notary publics statewide.

The AACOG Region Newsletter is compiled and distributed monthly
by Tiffany Harris, AACOG Public Relations.