Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

Happy New Year! As we start 2024, we want to share what is on the horizon over the next 12 months.

CAPITAL PROJECTS

This year, $2,025,000 is allocated for street projects. In November, the City Council selected the following hot mix overlay road projects: Canal Ave (27th St to Hwy69 frontage road), Seattle (18th St to the dead end), 19th St (Queen to Seattle), 20th St (Queen to Seattle), 20th from Queen to Canal and Queen (dead end to dead end).

Using grant funds, the City plans to resurface Hill Terrace (Ave H to 365) and Hilldale. Concrete street rehabilitation includes repairs to Nederland Ave (railroad tracks to 1st St).

At a later date, the City Council will likely designate additional street projects. Utilizing the Coronavirus Local Fiscal Recovery Funds, the City will invest over $2M in water and sewer lines and upgrades to the water treatment plant; the City anticipates beginning the design phase of this work this Spring.

Large-scale drainage projects are on Seattle Ave near 27th Street and North 36th & 37th Streets between Nederland Ave and Helena.

In terms of quality of life, the City has budgeted several projects. At Tex Ritter Park, landscaping improvements and electrical repairs will be completed; this project is scheduled to be awarded in January and would be completed by early May.

At Doornbos Park, the tennis courts will be re-surfaced and the court lights will be repaired; anyone interested in the tennis court re-surfacing including pickleball striping should contact the Parks Department.

The Doornbos Park Pond Rehabilitation project has been awarded; construction is scheduled for completion by late April. In addition, the large canopy near the new inclusive playground is being replaced.

EVENTS

Community events in 2024 include the Nederland Heritage Festival (March 12–17), the “Fireworks Extravaganza” at Doornbos Park on July 4, National Night Out and Monsters in the Park at a date to be determined in October, the NEDC’s Fall Market on Boston Avenue at a date to be determined in October, the Nederland Chamber of Commerce’s Trunk-R-Treat on Oct. 31st, the Veterans Day Ceremony on Nov. 11, Christmas on the Avenue on Dec. 7, and the Nederland Chamber of Commerce’s Lighted Christmas Parade on Dec. 10.

TRASH COLLECTION

The City collects trash placed by the curb twice a month. The City is divided in half – South & North; South is picked up the first and third week of the month, and North is picked up the second and fourth week of the month.

South is the area south of Nederland Avenue to include the northwest corner of Nederland (Viterbo Road area north to include Sterling Ridge and the Lakes of Nederland subdivisions); North is the area north of Nederland Avenue.

The City will pick up four cubic yards of trash; the trash must be placed by the street or curb by 7 a.m. on Monday.

Customers are asked to separate their trash into separate piles for tree limbs (no longer than 6 feet in length), building materials or demolition debris, white goods (appliances) and leaves, grass clippings, small twigs, etc. in trash bags.

Customers are asked to not place their trash under or near electric, telephone or cable television wires as this poses a danger to the solid waste driver and to not place the trash in a drainage ditch.

Finally, the City does not pickup tires, broken concrete, concrete products or hazardous waste.

TAXES

The City of Nederland’s property tax rate is $0.467607 per $100 assessed taxable value.

The City Council unanimously adopted this tax rate, which was the “voter-approval” tax rate; the tax rate was necessary to fund five new public safety positions (one firefighter and four police officers).

The four police officer positions are part of a new agreement with NISD; the City is increasing the number of school resource officers assigned to NISD campuses from three to seven.

The City is paying 100 percent of the cost for these four additional officers for the first two years of the 7-year agreement. This was the fifth year that the City reduced the tax rate.

By utilizing the tax rate of $0.467607, the City of Nederland will continue to have the lowest municipal tax rate in Jefferson County.

Property appraisals are completed by an entity independent of the City Council – the Jefferson County Appraisal District.

I want to thank the City employees who were instrumental in staffing and organizing the various Christmas activities that took place last month, including Christmas on the Avenue and the Christmas parade.

And I want to thank our employees for their generosity during the holiday season – donating more than 1,500 pounds of food, donating hundreds of toys, donating gifts for senior citizens and donating blood.

City Council meetings are on the second and fourth Monday of each month at 4:30 p.m. at Nederland City Hall; a Zoom option is available if you cannot attend the meeting in-person.

If there are any questions regarding City operations, please contact the City Manager’s Office at 409-723-1503.

Chris Duque is city manager for Nederland. He can be reached at CDuque@ci.nederland.tx.us.