City Employees Improve City in Annual Neighborhood Blitz

Most City of San Angelo offices were closed Friday, April 24, as City employees participated in the annual neighborhood blitz.

Many City employees spent their work day painting and making minor repairs to five selected homes in the East Harris Avenue neighborhood between Bell and Main streets, cleaning alleyways and streets, and attending to special projects on City property. Those projects included improving playing fields and painting at Texas Bank Sports Complex, cleaning the Animal Shelter and improving Lake Nasworthy facilities. City crews picked up bulk trash left in alleyways before 8 a.m. Friday in the area bounded by Main, Bell, Rio Concho Drive and the Houston Harte Expressway.

Public safety employees, such as police officers, firefighters and dispatchers, did not participate in the blitz. Among other City departments that operated as usual were Water Distribution, San Angelo Regional Airport and Municipal Court. The water billing office was closed.

At Spring Creek Park on Lake Nasworthy, Raul Deanda, supervisor of lake operations, was directing the cleanup of the horseshoe area. Assistant City Manager Rick Weise and Civic Events Director Sid Walker were painting the railing around the grass areas there. Meanwhile, at the nearby pavilion, James Flores was cooking pulled pork for the work crews. City Engineer Allison Strube looked at her watch. It was 10:50 a.m. The three were anxiously awaiting lunchtime.

Patrick Howard, Director of Planning and Development Services was painting houses on East Harris Street.

“We’re painting houses to improve the curb appeal of the neighborhood,” he said. Prior to the event, the five houses being painted were prepped. The mass of manpower during the blitz was beneficial in getting the homes finished quickly, he said. The city has an application process that determines which houses are worked on for the blitz, Howard said.

“This event lets us get out and into the neighborhoods that we serve and lend a hand,” he said.

The blitz is a two-day effort. On Saturday, April 25, an army of volunteers affiliated with the grassroots organization West Texas Organizing Strategy, local churches and the Angelo State University football team will be painting 21 houses, using supplies provided by Habitat for Humanity through its Brush with Kindness program.

The blitz marks the seventh time City employees have fanned out across a neighborhood in an effort to help revitalize it. Previous efforts have targeted the Lincoln, Fort Concho, Reagan and Blackshear areas. To date:

• 183 homes (many of which were occupied by the elderly, disabled or families with single parents) have been sided and painted.
• More than 700 tons of debris and 700 illegally discarded tires have been taken to the landfill.
• Two Little League baseball fields have been spruced up and both City recreation centers have been painted.
• The Concho River walking path has been resurfaced.

In 2013, the effort garnered the City of San Angelo the City Spirit Award for cities with populations of more than 25,000 from the Texas Municipal League.