Monday, March 18, 2013

Word from the President


Hello FMWC Friends,

As we enter the whirlwind month of March, the wind is not the only thing that is busy.  Your Franklin Mountains Wilderness Coalition is busy working with many other organizations to make the next Poppies Festival a huge success.  Additional information about that event is in this newsletter.  If you can help out, please do.  And, plan to attend.  It will be a great event.

The coalition of organizations working to preserve Castner Range as open space continues making progress on this complicated issue.  If you can make the time, please consider getting involved.  Public support is critical.

The next meeting of the FMWC will be Wednesday, March 20th, at 6:30pm.  Judy and Jamie Ackerman have graciously agreed to have us meet at their home.  The address is 3344 Eileen Dr in Northeast El Paso.  If you have any questions, you can contact her at 755-7571.

I look forward to seeing you at the meeting and at the Poppies Festival.

Sincerely,
Scott Cutler, 
President, Franklin Mountains Wilderness Coalition

March 2013 Upcoming Events:


FMWC Monthly Meeting
March 20, 2012 from 6:30p.m.
Home of Judy and Jamie Ackerman
3344 Eileen Dr.  El Paso, TX.
For more info, please call
Judy Ackerman at 915-755-7571. 

Saturday, March 23
2013 Franklin Mountains
Poppies Fest  on Castner Range

10:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m.
El Paso Museum of Archaeology
4301 Transmountain
Free Addmission

Wednesday, April 10
TxDOT Public Meeting
on New State Park Entrance
6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
Canutillo High School
6675 South Desert Boulevard



Poppies Fest Planned for Saturday, March 23


The seventh annual 2013 Poppies Fest on Castner Range will take place on Saturday, March 23, 2013 at the El Paso Museum of Archaeology at 4301 Transmountain Road. The day will feature a full program of nature talks, wildlife displays, educational exhibits, demonstrations, a live wolf, Houdini the Harris Hawk, children’s activity center, music and food vendors. Everyone is welcome to come out and enjoy the beauty of the mountains and the poppies during this free educational family fun event.

If you are interested in making a donation for this event please contact Pat White at 915-591-3562 or pat_white@hotmail.com. If you are interested in helping as a volunteer contact Sylvia Price at slyfox7tx@att.net. 

If you are interested in becoming a sponsor or vendor for this event please contact Lisa Gutierrez at 915-269-1239 or lisamarie177@juno.com.

FREE Admission and FREE Parking at El Paso Community College NE Campus, FREE Shuttle service provided from 9:30 am to 5:00 pm. This event celebrates the marvelous open space in Northeast El Paso where we frequently enjoy a stunning spring display of our native Mexican Gold poppies. This festival is an opportunity to enjoy our beautiful outdoors while learning about what our mountains and desert have to offer. It takes place on the 15 acre grounds of the El Paso Museum of Archaeology. The museum’s Chihuahuan Desert Gardens boast examples of more than 200 native plants.

Castner Range is a former artillery range known for its cultural, geologic and unique biology. If the rain and weather cooperate, it is most known for its beautiful and vast display of Mexican Poppies in the spring. 

Poppies Fest, 2013 Event Details
What:  2013 Franklin Mountains Poppies Celebration on Castner Range
When: Saturday March 23, 2013 Time: 10am – 4pm
Where: El Paso Museum of Archaeology (4301 Transmountain Road)

EPCC Celebrates Earth Day


EPCC Recycling Program will be celebrating Earth Day on the month of April. We are aware of the importance of reminding people, not only about recycling, but saving all our natural resources. That is why we would like for FMWC to have a free table at all our events in order to spread your mission!  We hope you can join us as many events as you can.
Dates and Locations
These are the dates for our the events
from 10 am to 1 pm:
Mission Del Paso Campus
10700 Gateway East
April Wednesday 17
Northwest Campus
6701 South Desert Rd
April Friday 19
Valle Verde Campus
919 Hunter
April Monday 22
Transmountain Campus
9570 Gateway Blvd. North
April Wednesday 24
Administration Service Center
9050 Viscount Blvd.
April Friday 26
Rio Grande Campus
100 West Rio Grande Ave.
April Monday 29
For more information contact the Mayra Cordero
mcorde30@epcc.edu, (915)831-3325 Office,
(915)727-8200 Cell

Volunteer for the Friends of the Arroyo


Saturday, Mar 30th has been set for the spring workday, in which Friends of the Arroyo,
El Paso High School students, and interested citizens are invited to meet at the Tennis Club parking lot,  N. Virginia (bellow Robinson St.), at 9 am.  We will do trail work, trash pickup and vegetation trimming until lunch time.  
The park partnership for the upper section of Arroyo Park, established by the late Dr. Billy Rodgers, remains vacant.  For more information contact Matt Carroll, Senior Leader Friends of the Arroyo, 2friendsofthearroyo@gmail.com

Council Passes Scenic Corridor Ordinances


Unanimously, City Council this morning passed three ordinances which, in effect, establish the new NW Master Plan, the smart code re-zoning necessary, and the preservation of 55% of the open space by transferring 658 acres to the State Park and protecting key arroyos with smart code. It was a major victory for environmentalists and conservationists and a win-win for all including the development community. In addition, City Planners have begun to add the critical tool known as green infrastructure/low impact development to their planning.

Following presentations by Planner Carlos Gallinar and former City and now EPWU attorney, Lupe Cuellar, I had these words:

“Mr. Mayor and members of the Council,

For the record, I am Jim Tolbert, the citizen who authored the petition to preserve land in the scenic corridor along Transmountain in northwest El Paso. That petition was sponsored by the Franklin Mountains Wilderness Coalition. Along with others I coordinated and spearheaded a successful drive to collect enough signatures to bring the issue to your attention.

“When we began the task of preserving land in its natural state, I had no idea that our work would have such positive, far-reaching results. Rather than insisting on one way or another, we chose to work together, to find accommodation, compromise and consensus. As citizens, City Planners, attorneys, employees and agents of the PSB/EPWU, State Park officials, environmentalists, conservationists, recreationalists and consultants we were constant in our effort to stay true to the spirit and conditions of the petition while maintaining the integrity of our various value systems and institutions. We not only worked through our distrust of one another, but, there came a time, when it became apparent that all shared the same goal of making El Paso an even better place to live.

“Now we on the verge of preserving 658 acres of natural open space by transferring that land to the State Park. We will protect precious arroyos through the use of smart codes as we more intelligently design a place to live that is livable, workable, walkable and in better harmony with the natural environment. The re-doing of the NW Master Plan, the utilization of smart codes, the new knowledge of a great tool called green infrastructure/low impact development will improve community and recreation and foster the value of natural open space. It will make us a more productive, healthier and it will be a boost to our commerce.

“It has been said that following environmental principles is contrary to business. That to be “green” is to be anti-business. 100 years ago if you favored separating residences from factories with new-fangled zoning rules, you were labeled anti-business. As we know now zoning fostered better business and living standards. Back in the 60’s and 70’s if you favored cleaning our air and waterways, you were labeled anti-business. However, improving the quality of our air and waterways has led to more productive communities and healthier and happier work and living spaces. Today, one favoring modern development practices and green infrastructure/low impact development is often labeled “anti-business”. The truth is that being green is not the antithesis of commerce – but the partner. Our care for the environment, our natural world and our eco-systems of which we as humans are just a small part, will only lead to better lives for us all.

“There are so many to thank for this day: those who worked so hard on the petition drive; the Dover Kohl team; all the citizens who participated in the charrettes: the Franklin Mountains Wilderness Coalition particularly Scott Cutler, Judy Ackerman, Pat White, Joyce Ford, Jane Fowler and Richard Teschner; City Staff particularly Matthew McElroy, Carlos Gallinar, Elizabeth Gibson, David Coronado and Lupe Cuellar. State Park officials: Deirdre Hisler and Dr. Cesar Mendez. For the PSB/EPWU – Dr. Rick Bonart, Ed Escudero and Katherine Brennand and especially Pat Adauto and Risher Gilbert and ultimately John Balliew and Mr. Ed Archuleta. Thanks also to Charlie Wakeem and the Open Space Advisory Board for its hard work. And I thank you on City Council for your patience and for allowing this work to be done deliberately and well even if it took more than a year; and I thank you, Mayor Cook, for your leadership and wisdom, and our city attorneys headed by Sylvia Firth.

“Today in El Paso there are those who would divide us. There are those who want our city to be “us against them”, “my group against your group”. But look what we accomplished together: a new vision that is pro-commerce as well as green. We overcame our mistrust of each other and we happily discovered that we were working side by side and shoulder to shoulder. To those who would divide who see only negatives let us respond together that we can be visionary and innovative. We can grasp for our future. Let us all remember that El Pasoans work best when we work together.”

TxDOT Holds Public Meeting To Discuss New Park Entrance


The Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) El Paso District will conduct a Public Meeting for the proposed Franklin Mountains State Park entrance project on: Wednesday, April 10, 2013 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Canutillo High School 6675 South Desert Boulevard, El Paso TX 79932 
The public meeting will be conducted in an open-house format. Those wishing to attend are encouraged to do so at their convenience between the hours of 6:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m. Maps of the project area and other displays will be available for review and comment. TxDOT staff will be available to answer questions. All handouts will be presented in English and Spanish. Parking will be available in the school parking lot.

The purpose of the meeting is to provide information about the proposed project and gather input from the public. The proposed project would consist of reconstructing the existing entrance from Loop 375 into the Tom Mays Unit of the Franklin Mountains State Park. The project was initiated due to concern expressed by the public and the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department (TPWD) regarding safety and access to the park.

After evaluating several alternatives, TxDOT and TPWD determined that reconstructing the existing entrance to include grade-separated access from the Loop 375 frontage roads would be the preferable build option. The proposed design would depress the park entrance below the Loop 375 mainlanes. This proposal would allow for safe ingress and egress into and out of the Tom Mays Unit, maintain traffic flow on Loop 375, and provide pedestrian crossings under the Loop 375 mainlanes.

Persons interested in attending the Public Meeting that have special communication or accommodation needs are encouraged to contact the TxDOT El Paso District Public Information Officer, Blanca Del Valle, at (915) 790-4200 at least two working days before the meeting. TxDOT will make all reasonable efforts to accommodate special needs as requested. 

Written comments from the public regarding this project are encouraged. Comments may be submitted either at the Public Meeting or within 10 days after the meeting. Written comments may be emailed to the following address: Blanton & Associates, Attn: Loop 375 at the Franklin Mountains State Park Entrance, 5 Lakeway Centre Court, Suite 200, Austin TX 78734. Comments may also be e-mailed to ELP-FMSParkEntrance@txdot.gov.

Comments must be postmarked on or before Saturday, April 20, 2013 to be included as part of the public record. If you have any questions or would like to discuss the project in more detail, please contact Ms. Martha Gandara, TxDOT Project Manager, at (915) 790-4255.