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Click the LITTER BUTTON to report littering
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KOCB Honors J Scotts Aflorist
December 2nd 2014
Keep Orange County Beautiful has presented its Quarterly Beautification Award to Scott Hasty, owner of J Scotts Aflorist in Pinehurst.
The presentation was made by Harry Vine, Sandra Cash, Shirley Zimmerman, and J David Derosier from KOCB, to Scott and his staff including Kay Stone, Adam Potts, Alaina Morris, and Troy LeBlanc. Also present were Amy Comeaux and Lee Reeves from Sabine River Ford.
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Sandra Cash, a longtime member of KOCB said, “Ever since Scott moved his design skills into town we have been blessed with the most impressive floral arrangements I have ever seen. We are proud to honor not only his work that beautifies his customers’ homes and businesses, but also what he has done here in the shopping center. We need more like him.”
Scott said, “This is my life. My staff and I feel our unique and custom designs can only be expressed by listening to our customers and designing to what we hear. Our success is based upon how well we listen.” From what KOCB has heard, they must be listening real well.
Mr. Hasty has won numerous awards for his design work, including the Allied Florists “Houston Cup” in 2003 and he then went on to win the Texas Cup that year. In July 2006, Scott was inducted into the prestigious floral organization, AIFD.
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Surreal Estate (This is a long way from how it is in Orange County)
Nov. 18 2014
Houston Gets $300,000 for Illegally Removed Oak Trees on Kirby
By Angelica Leicht Tue., Nov. 18 2014 at 9:30 AM
http://blogs.houstonpress.com/news/surreal_estate/
Remember those massive oak trees that were illegally removed in front of the Wendy's off Kirby a few weeks ago? You know, the ones that triggered a massive uproar after they were chopped down in the middle of the night illegally.
Well, the City of Houston is about to get those dolla, dolla bills, y'all. The issue has already been settled, and to the tune of a $300,000 settlement, no less.
The four trees, which ranged in size from ten to 20 inches in diameter, were situated at the corner of Kirby and North Boulevard in a public right-of-way, and had been planted more than a decade ago by Trees for Houston volunteers.
The trees were illegally chopped down in the middle of the night without a permit as part of a construction project to renovate a Wendy's drive-through, and the city, which has been cracking down on improperly removed trees, was pissed.
The city agreed to the settlement amount last Friday, just three weeks after the illegal removal, in which it will receive $300,000, the worth of the trees based on estimated values.
"Our trees are valuable resources and their preservation is important to the city," Mayor Annise Parker said in a statement. "We have a fair process for developers, but when they violate our policies we will not hesitate to prosecute to the fullest extent of the law."
The City of Houston says it has recovered more than $1 million for improperly removed trees this year.
So should you have any massive trees in a right-of-way that you're thinking about chopping down under the cover of night, perhaps you should think twice, or be prepared to bust out a few hundred thousand for a settlement. 'Cause the city ain't playin'.
See also: http://swamplot.com/city-reportedly-planning-legal-action-against-kirby-dr-wendys-late-night-tree-whackers/2014-10-30/
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Our partner Southeast Texas RC&D in the news November 26th 2014
Group helps environment behind the scenes
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TXDOT brings in new trees to Orange. Let’s hear it for the Great State of Texas!!!! November 20th 2014
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ORANGE, TX - Less than half a century ago what is now the heart of Orange and what is still referred to by many as “the Circle” was a beautiful Forest with towering Pines and majestic Bur and White Oaks. Children from 28th Street, Ridgemont and Roselawn affectionately called it “The Woods.” It was an idyllic place to spend time growing up and exploring the world. Many would meet up there and roam free from the circle to the bayou.
With the passage of time, the beautiful forest was removed making room for commercial endeavors and concrete parking lots; the almighty dollar taking precedent over the environment and the trees came down in the name of progress.
Three municipalities border and converge at this major intersection. Over the years attempts have been made by Keep Orange County Beautiful the local non-profit affiliate of Keep Texas Beautiful to replenish the trees so beneficial to an environment fraught with carbon dioxide due to high traffic. Trees absorb these hydrocarbons and replace the air with life supporting oxygen. They reduce runoff by breaking rainfall allowing the water to flow into the earth preventing storm water from carrying pollutants to Adams Bayou and subsequently into the Gulf. Any municipality wanting to prosper and attract business must be environmentally conscious. Tree Canopies are tremendously important to a community’s health and welfare. Conservation and Economic Development go hand in hand.
Texas Department of Transportation (TXDOT) recently takes the environment issue to a new level by planting an assortment of 159 large canopy trees at this major intersection of Hwy 87 and Strickland Dr. 12 – 15 ft tall specimens of Live Oaks, Bald Cypress, Maple, Pine, Birch and various other large canopy trees in 45gallon containers were planted. It is a generous and noble act to protect, preserve, propagate and plant large canopy trees. Keep Orange County Beautiful is pleased to recognize TXDOT for this valuable gift with its ensuing environmental benefits and proud to name them KOCB’s “Hometown Beautification Hero.”
For more information on Keep Orange County Beautiful visit our website at www.KOCB.org.
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County Record article
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Orange Leader article
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Derosier named hometown beautification hero November 4, 2014
K eep Orange County Beautiful’s prestigious Top Banana award was awarded to David Derosier, making him a “Hometown Beautification Hero.” Derosier served as chair of the non-profit affiliate of Keep Texas Beautiful for four years. Under his leadership KOCB whose beautification focus is Trees and Trash has realized many accomplishments. Networking with other organizations, municipalities and entities has been an integral part of KOCB’s beautification efforts and Derosier was integral in this process.
KOCB sponsored two E-Waste Recycling Collections for Orange County in conjunction with Southeast Texas Resource Conservation & Development. Residents and businesses were able to clear out their electronic waste including computers, TV’s, laptops, monitors, DVD, VCR, MP3 players, and other electronic gadgets – anything with a plug or battery and all sorts of household electrical appliances to be recycled. According to Derosier “These devices are bad for our landfills not only because of their bulk and size but all of them contain at least one or two chemicals that can be highly toxic. The need to keep E-waste out of our landfills has become a major issue with municipalities and businesses – and should be foremost in the minds of the general public as well.”
KOCB, together with the Greater Orange Area Chamber of Commerce and the Bridge City Chamber of Commerce presented beautification awards to residences and business that best exemplifies the idea to Keep Orange County Beautiful. The City of Pinehurst was the recipient of a Grant from KOCB for planting crepe myrtles along Strickland Dr. A Project team from Leadership Southeast Texas installed flowers and shrubs at Veteran’s Memorial in front of VFW on Highway 87 in Orange. KOCB added funding for trees, turf and a maintenance watering system. KOCB partnered with American Asso University Women in planting trees lost during the hurricane on Salvation Army property. KOCB participated in Sabine River clean ups with American Airboats; Trash offs with Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center sponsored by Invista; “Adopt a Street” program and many other community beautification programs.
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For his service and dedication to beautifying our community and for adhering to the creed that it is a generous and noble act to protect, preserve, propagate and plant large canopy trees. Keep Orange County Beautiful is proud to recognize David Derosier as our Hometown Beautification Hero. For more information on Keep Orange County Beautiful visit our website at www.KOCB.org.
[Reprinted from the Orange County Record]
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Shred It & Forget It
Saturday Oct 4th 2014
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Better Business Bureau Serving Southeast Texas will host "Shred It & Forget It" on Saturday, October 4, at Kaplan College behind Parkdale Mall as part of an effort to reduce identity theft. Since July 2006, 16 events have successfully been held in Southeast Texas.
Shred-It will provide mobile shredding trucks for the one-day event. BBB invites consumers to bring documents to be shredded for FREE. Bring up to five (5) boxes per vehicle. (Box size is limited to a standard banker's box, approximately 10 x 12 x 15 inches.) For more information, call 409/835-5348 or debbiebridgeman@bbbsetexas.org.
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July 16th 2014
Bob's Tree Preservation is in town working on trees in Shangri La
Residents of Orange and Orange County who were here in 2005 remember the devastating effects of Hurricane Rita on the trees in this area. Many an old tree fell damaging the property they stood on. In many cases the trees toppled on homes further devastating families’ property. Sandra Cash of Orange remembers Rita. Cash called in tree expert Bob Thibodeaux to help spread the word on how to keep the trees up this hurricane season. His talk in downtown Orange was attended by maintenance supervisors from several local municipalities including Orange and Pinehurst. Cash loves trees especially live oaks and does not want to see another calamity like Rita which took out 30 percent of the tree canopy in Orange. She is part of keep Orange County beautiful, and her main focus is trees keep Orange green. Thibodeaux of Bob’s Tree Preservation out of Church Point, Louisiana, is an admitted tree hugger. He says if you take care of your trees, they will take care of you by their beauty and providing needed oxygen in the air. Thibodeaux has some simple tips to keep trees healthy and up right this summer. Make sure you have good soil quality because the soil determines whether a tree is going to fall or not. Thibodeaux also emphasizes proper pruning techniques, and that means not over pruning. More often than not the less pruned the better according to Thibodeaux. He pointed out coastal trees like a healthy live oak in its natural setting can slow down winds by as much as 70 percent. Thibodeaux recommends bio-degradable fertilizer and avoid using any synthetic herbicide or fertilizer. Recycle dead material back into the soil to refurbish minerals and nutrients. He recommends cities like Orange join Tree City USA to increase awareness of trees and the benefit of their preservation. The cost to join Tree City USA is $2 per capita in the city seeking membership.
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As published on
www.KOGT.com
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The Southeast Texas Regional Planning Commission is hosting a Household Hazardous Waste and Scrap Tire Collection Event on Saturday, May `7th 2014, from 8 am to 1pm at the Bridge City Intermediate School parking lot - 1029 West Roundbunch Road.
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SETRPC-May 17th 2014
Household Hazardous Waste
Scrap Tire
Collection Day
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The Better Business Bureau serving Southeast Texas will host ”Shred It & Forget It” on Saturday, April 12, from 10am to 1pm, at Central Mall in Port Arthur as part of an effort to reduce identity theft.
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Shred It & Forget It
April 12th 2014
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Presentation to
Golden-K Kiwanis Club
Orange
April 2nd 2014
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Orange, TX March 31st 2014
Deep in the Heart of Beautiful, Downtown Historical Orange lives a magnificent and stately, century old LIVE OAK TREE. It is clear that this Fourth Street specimen with its knurled roots and huge canopy has survived many a high wind and hurricane in its long lifetime. Recently this Live Oak was the recipient of some much-needed tender loving care.
The City of Orange was repairing a sidewalk damaged by a storm or just by years of abuse. Street and Drainage crew headed by Division Manager Mike Marcantel noticed that just a few feet away the sidewalk buckled from the protruding roots of this stately tree. Marcantel said, “Some citizens would have requested that the roots be removed in order to replace the sidewalk. This would surely weakened the tree and make it very vulnerable to high winds.”
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Tree-wise as well as streetwise the crew removed only the buckled sidewalk and replaced the area with sand and soil covering and protecting the roots.
It’s generous and noble to protect, preserve, propagate and plant large canopy trees. Keep Orange County Beautiful, the local non-profit affiliate of Keep Texas Beautiful is proud to recognize the City of Orange’s Street and Drainage Department, as our Hometown Beautification Hero.
Published in the County Record, April 16th 2014 and the Orange Leader, and KOGT.com
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This event was hosted by Shangri La Botanical Gardens and Nature Center & sponsored by Invista.
Here are a few stats: We filled two 40-yard dumpsters with trash; 309 participants, including participants from Japan and Mississippi joined us & we had 5 boats on the bayou. 61 pizzas donated; Gloves donated by Invista (event sponsor); Garbage bags donated by DuPont, JanPak, TXDot, and Sabine River Authority; Grabbers donated by Sabine River Authority, TCEQ, SETX Resource Conservation & Development, Keep Orange County Beautiful, DuPont; Orange safety vests donated by TXDoT. During the lunch celebration, 192 prizes, which were donated by area businesses, were distributed! A huge thank you goes out to all involved!
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Community Trash-Off 2014
February 1st 2014
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