Today Cedar Hill (Duncanville, Tex.), Vol. 43, No. 29, Ed. 1 Thursday, December 18, 2008 Page: 1 of 18
This newspaper is part of the collection entitled: Texas Digital Newspaper Program and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Zula B. Wylie Memorial Library.
Extracted Text
The following text was automatically extracted from the image on this page using optical character recognition software:
To see why talking with Edward Jones about pour
»•*, all today.
Ctiartn D. Piytofl, AAMS*
Financial Advisor
241 E. FM1382 #318
Cedar HID, TX 75104
(In Kroger Shopping Cntr)
972-293-2010
■
I, ■ v ' ' ' . '
" i
i INSIDE
Opinion................4
Lifestyles...............5
Religion..............6-7
Sports .............11-15
CHISD honor rolls ... .16-17
v www.todaynewspapers.net
v . -r 'ri
Vo I. 43 No. 29
YSMTEIUI IN THE FII1B.
CAU §72-2812563
FARMERS
Gets you back where you belong:
AUTO • HOME • LIFE • BUSINESS
CBDAR s~IBRa*V 37P 29S
CEDAH rwi—
Cedar Hill s oldest newspaper — serving residents since 7 965 '
0 94922 5618611 2
Cedar Hill Today "jf
irvs.3’« ^ C*?-* -‘Ac
By STEVE SNYDER
News Editor
ij. ‘ ' »'•;
A face familiar to many Ce-
dar Hill community leaders and
business owners should become
even more familiar in the future.
Amanda Hinton-Skinner has
been named the new president
of the Cedar Hill Chamber of
Commerce. She starts Jan. 5,
after having been unanimously
approved by the chamber’s
board of directors during its
Dec. 5 monthly meeting.
City OKs biz incentive
Parks and Recreation Director
Meadors announces retirement
Today photo by STEVE SNYDER
Amanda Hinton-Skinner (right) shares a light-hearted
moment with Carolyn McKee during a Chamber Night
Out at McKee’s house Dec. 12.
“Amanda was the recom-
mendation of a six-person
Search Committee after a thor-
ough process of screening can-
didates for the president’s posi-
tion,” Mullen said.
See HINTON, Page 3
By STEVE SNYDER
News Editor
Economic times, while not
perfect, are not horrible in
Cedar Hill.
The Cedar Hill City Coun-
cil approved a $230,000 eco-
nomic development incentive
at its Dec. 8 meeting. Details
will be in the Dec. 25 issue.
In other action items, the
council approved a $441,000
contract with Kimley-Horn &
Associates for engineering
services related to the wideri-
ing and improvement of
Pleasant Run Road east of
U.S. 67.
The Cedar Hill city budget
for fiscal 2008 got several
tweaks in the meeting. The
2008 fiscal year ended Sept.
30; the changes were essen-
tially to “clean up” some bud-
get line items.
In other city news, Parks
and Recreation Director Steve
Meadors is retiring, effective
Dec. 31. The city has a retire-
ment party planned for him
Jan. 9 from 2-4 p.m. at the
Cedar Hill Recreation Center.
“Steve has greatly stepped
up leadership of the depart-
ment,” City Manager Alan
Sims said.
In discussion items, Sims
gave the council an overview
of a Jan. 6 workshop, which
will discuss the Cedar Hill
Police Department taking over
the operations of the Cedar
Hill Independent School
District Police/Department.
Sims sank that, when the
city kept officers in the school
district ye/ars ago, the two
entities split the cost 50-50.
Sims,/said he had initiated
discussions about the possible
takeover, saying he was not
satisfied with all parts of
CBlSD police operations.
/ : ; ”
See CITY, Page 2
CHISD teachers
i, • •/.* '• • '•
r • .. V •;/
pass federal muster
Christmas holidays, historic style
..............
By STEVE SNYDER
News Editor
Cedar Hill Independent
School District teachers are
highly qualified, .p$r federal
standards.
Dec. 8, CHISD Director of
Human Resources Shana Nix
gave the Cedar Hill School
Board an update on where the
district stood in relation to the
No Child Left Behind legisla-
tion, specifically on teacher
skills. Nix said all teachers who
Jare teachers of record in the
^district meet the “highly quali-
fied” standard under NCLB.
* This is especially important
«t the secondary level. Teachers
there most have either graduate
classes in their subject special-
ly or else pass special state test-
ing.
« Also, school districts across
the country had to review the
background of their parapro-
fessionals, such as teacher
aides, to determine if they meet
a new “highly qualified” stan-
dard.
Nix said paraprofessionals
have to have either 60 hours of
college or pass a state test to
meet the “highly qualified”
standard.
~Next, Chanda McGhee,
director of Student Support and
Community Services, gave the
board an update on a counselor
incidence response plan.
Counselors at CHISD
schools developed an incident
response plan to have an orga-
nized and effective response to
students, staff and parents fol-
lowing a school or district cri-
sis. Plans include notification
to district personnel, teachers,
students and parents. Plans also
include specific instructions to
the counselors as the “crisis
response team” to assist stu-
dents in coping effectively.
Superintendent Horace Wil-
liams said the crisis response
team got its first real-life test
Dec. 5, due to a bus incident.
See BOARD, Page 2
m
: |w
r F
•
t
Vi- ■■■
HKE&iju • *8tss»Rw
fikhta
Today photo by STEVE SNYDER
The Cedar Hill Historic Society’s second annual Holiday Progressive Dinner Dec. 5 started at the home of Frances
and Gary Reed in the Depot House at 132 Potter St., and society members and guests shared appetizers and
admired the Reeds’ Nutcracker collection and other Christmas decorations.
Red-light cameras remain in effect after district court ruling
Decision could be overturned on appeal, or addressed by Legislature
By DANIELLE PARKER and
STEVE SNYDER
Today Staff
After receiving a citation in the mail,
most Cedar Hill and Duncanville violators
bite the bullet and pay the fine, but not
Lloyd Ward, a Dallas attorney. After receiv-
ing his citation, Ward did some research and
discovered possible violations from the red
light camera vendor ACS that issued him
his ticket.
Ward found that ACS operates under a
business license, not an occupational
license necessary to collect photos and
information for prosecution, according to
the Private Security Act. And, District Judge
Craig Smith agreed with him last month.
The Private Security Bureau of the Texas
Department of Public Safety, however,
released a statement explaining that the red
light cameras do not fall under the same
regulations as photos taken by private inves-
tigators, because red-light violations are
civil, not criminal.
“The photographic traffic signal
enforcement systems ... are operated and
overseen by the municipalities, not by the
contractors,’ DPS private Security Bureau
said. “The contractors’ activities are gener-
ally ministerial, and are performed af the
direction of city employees. Thus the
municipalities are the entities that “secure
.for. use at hearings assnriatftd
“Photographic traffic signal enforcement
systems are operated for the express pur-
pose of detecting a violation or suspected
violation of a traffic-control signal.”
Judge Smith sided with Ward, saying
ACS is operating illegally in the state of
Texas and should refund fines paid.
Citations in Cedar Hill are typically $75
for each offense, but do not count against
driving or insurance records.
For Duncanville, its purpose behind
implementing the traffic signal enforcement
systems in July 2006 was public safety,
according to Duncanville City Manager
Kent Cagle.
“We have a number of intersections in
Duncanville, and it is difficult to have our
officers to monitor each one,” Cagle said.
“Our only intent is to keep our citizens safe
the best way we know how.”
A list of frequently asked questions
about red-light cameras, linked on the city
of Cedar Hill’s website, stresses the same
point, saying that the cameras are a safety
issue and not a revenue program.
Cedar Hill has six cameras at four inter-
sections - eastbound and westbound FM
1382 at U.S. 67, the U.S. 67 southbound ser-
vice road at FM 1382, and Belt Line Road
at North Clark, Waterford Oaks and Joe
Wilson roads.
dent Robert Eden said. “I do not see how
making a rolling right turn at a red light at a
deserted intersection at 2 a.m. threatens
public safety.”
Duncanville has placed two cameras at
four of its intersections, which annually
costs the city $468,288.
“We. have to pay that amount, and any
money we make after that is split 50/50
between the state and invested to upgrade
our current traffic signals,” Cagle said. “It is
an expensive program, but we believe it is
worth the investment.
A common complaint among local dri-
vers is tickets received for right turns on red
lights.
“My sister, my husband’s friend and I
have all gotten a ticket at Hwy. 67 and
Danieldale for making a right turn on red.
And we all stopped,” Duncanville resident
JoDee Meyers said. “But the police officer
said that you have to stop before the white
line, and if you cross the white line at a
speed greater than two miles an hour the
camera will go off. So a stop is not a stop
when it comes to the red-ligty camera.”
An officer views each violation before a
citation is issued, as Cedar Hill Mayor Cory
Spillman and Councilman Wade Emmert, a
lawyer himself, note. They indicated that
this should address Judge
caught by the cameras question the effec-
tiveness of such a system.
Photo courtesy CITY OF CEDAR HILL
Cedar Hill has six red-light cameras at four locations.
with the photographic traffic signal
enforcement system, and as governmental
entities, they are exempt from the licensing
requirement.
“I believe the purpose of our traffic laws
is to protect the safety of citizens. *Auto:
mated law enforcement enforces the letter
of the law, not the intent,” Cedar Hill resi-
decreased accidents at some intersections,”
Eden said. “But, what has been the cost to
“safe” drivers anddpes die benefit justify
the cost to the public at large?”
Sea CAMERAS, Page 3
Upcoming Pages
Here’s what’s next.
Search Inside
This issue can be searched. Note: Results may vary based on the legibility of text within the document.
Tools / Downloads
Get a copy of this page or view the extracted text.
Citing and Sharing
Basic information for referencing this web page. We also provide extended guidance on usage rights, references, copying or embedding.
Reference the current page of this Newspaper.
Morris, Angel Jenkins. Today Cedar Hill (Duncanville, Tex.), Vol. 43, No. 29, Ed. 1 Thursday, December 18, 2008, newspaper, December 18, 2008; Duncanville, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth601912/m1/1/?rotate=270: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Zula B. Wylie Memorial Library.