In Denton County, we have the good fortune of having several community gardens dedicated to providing fresh produce for local families, educating students about horticulture, and helping those in need.

The Denton County Master Gardener Association (DCMGA) has helped with many of our community gardens, establishing the Precinct 2 orchard and vineyard located at the county building on Rosemeade Parkway in Carrollton. Former County Commissioner Ron Marchant was instrumental in the creation of this garden years ago and it continues to this day. DCMGA earned a second-place award in research for establishing the public orchard. Fruits grown in the orchard are given to area food pantries.

At Flower Mound First Baptist Community Garden, church members plant, tend and harvest vegetables and herbs, using the harvest for family gatherings. Community residents also can plant in sections of the gardens for their own use.

As the largest community garden, Shiloh Garden in Denton has grown more than 340,000 pounds of produce in the last 13 years. Families are welcome to help with gardening and harvesting of the crop that is given to local food pantries.

The St. Arbor Community Garden at the Frisco/Little Elm border encompasses more than 1.5 acres where organic fruits and vegetables are grown. Nutritional classes to focus on canning and preserving fruits and vegetables are also provided. The garden project is a collaborative effort with the DCMGA, Little Elm ISD and Little Elm Rotary.

I recently had the privilege of learning and touring a community garden project just south of Sanger off Milam Road.

The 14-acre garden was launched by First Refuge Ministries in 2021 on property owned by New Life Church to help supply a grocery store established in the Linda Tutt High School in Sanger. The project, known as the THRIVE (Together Harnessing Resources to Give Individuals Voice and Empowerment) North Texas program, allows students to operate the store while also helping families and individuals in need. The THRIVE program, under the leadership of Texas Health Resources, is currently being created with other school districts in the region.

With assistance from Texas Health Resources and DCMGA, the Sanger community garden has produced 2,397.6 pounds of produce to date.

The organizers have created a master plan to potentially expand the scope of the garden known as Community Strong Farms. The plan includes adding a hoop green house, an orchard, a composting classroom, a community garden where families can grow their own fruits and vegetables, and much more.

While the plans are still under development, this project represents yet another opportunity for entities to collaborate to further develop additional resources for those in need of nutritious food and to educate our future generations. I am especially excited that Rotary Clubs here in Denton County are partnering with each other to apply for a Rotary District 5790 matching grant to install new sustainable infrastructure for this garden. As the District Governor for Rotary District 5790 this year, I have placed food insecurity as a top priority for service projects and am pleased our 64 local Rotary Clubs across North Texas are working individually and collaboratively to help tackle this problem.

Like the Victory Gardens planted during World War I and World War II, many work together to provide land, instruction and seeds for individuals and communities to grow food for themselves and to help others. Throughout both World Wars, millions of victory gardens sprung up across the U.S. to help feed families and the troops.

Almost 80 years later, Denton County is at the forefront of an initiative to collectively work together to feed our neighbors nutritious food and to educate our younger generations – an initiative for which we should all be proud.

Connect With Us: If you have any questions or comments, please let me hear from you. My email is [email protected], and my office number is 940-349-2820. For more information, register for my newsletter at Dentoncounty.gov/countyjudgenewslettersignup.

It’s hard to believe we’re already in September! This is always a busy time for the Town, as we finalize the upcoming fiscal year’s budget, which goes into effect on Oct. 1.

The proposed budget – which will be voted on and approved this month – currently totals $352 million. I’m thrilled that the budget proposes providing property tax relief to our residents by decreasing the tax rate and raising the homestead exemption. This was accomplished by using the Town’s dedicated sales tax funds to provide additional funding for operations, maintenance, and capital needs. The budget proposes a property tax rate of $0.378278 per $100 value – the lowest in the Town’s history! On top of that, Council has already voted to increase the homestead exemption from 12.5 percent to 15 percent in the new fiscal year. So what does that mean for you? A homestead exemption lowers the property value used to calculate property taxes owed. It has been a priority of Town Council’s for many years to increase homestead exemptions. In 2018, Flower Mound passed its first homestead exemption at 2.5 percent, and in subsequent years, has continued to raise that number to provide property owners additional relief. This means after the increased homestead exemption, the owner of a $450,000 home in Flower Mound will pay approximately $1,446.91 to the Town in 2025 property taxes, about $42.64 less than what they paid in 2024. Those taxes are used for a variety of quality services, including police, fire, streets, utilities, parks and recreation, and much more. To find your estimated tax payment for the 2024 tax year, visit www.flowermound.gov/mytaxdollars, select the My Tax Dollars calculator, and enter your estimated home value.

There are several priorities of Town Council that are reflected in the Fiscal Year 2024-25 proposed budget. Public safety is one of those. The proposed budget funds a fourth medic team and ambulance, which will help us uphold target response times and better serve the quickly growing western side of Flower Mound. On the police side of things, the proposed budget expands our School Resource Officer (SRO) program, with one new SRO and one new SRO Sergeant.

Maintaining and growing our award-winning parks, trails, recreational amenities, and special events is another priority reflected in this budget. A dedicated special events team is proposed, which will enhance our event offerings and focus on the creation of a new signature fall festival for residents of all ages to enjoy.

Our outstanding staff members keep everything running in town. This budget includes a merit increase and market adjustments to remain competitive in the local marketplace and reward performance. It also includes a cost-of-living adjustment to our retirement plan through the Texas Municipal Retirement System (TMRS).

The proposed budget includes several critical capital improvement projects, from signal and street projects to water and wastewater updates. To help support the ongoing maintenance and improvement of our infrastructure, this budget has nine new Public Works positions.

There is so much more I could write about our budget process and how Town staff and Council make decisions about what is included and how it’s funded. But thankfully, since I don’t have the space here, you can explore all of that and more in our new digital platform.

This is the first year the Town is utilizing ClearGov to present the budget in a device-friendly, easy-to-use, and transparent format. You can learn more about our financial strategy, break down budgets by department, see summaries of the Town’s funds and their sources, and more. Town staff values input from residents, and this change will hopefully encourage more community members to participate in our annual budget process. To learn more and see the FY 2024-2025 Proposed Budget, visit www.flowermound.gov/proposedbudget. And if you have feedback, be sure to join us on Monday, Sept. 16 at 6 p.m. at Town Hall (2121 Cross Timbers Rd.) for the proposed budget public hearing. If you can’t make that meeting, you can always email Town Council at [email protected] with your thoughts.

I look forward to hearing from you, and I’m excited to see this budget – and all of the exciting projects and initiatives contained within it – come to life in October. Thanks for reading!

It’s almost time for a new fiscal year to begin in Denton County, October 1 through September 30. And this year should be an easier year for the county and its taxpayers, as there have been many improvements in the process over the last couple of years and we are thankful for that on behalf of our taxpayers.

For instance, we appreciate receiving the certified tax roll from the Denton Central Appraisal District in time to meet the statutory deadline this year. This was not always true in the past, and thus delayed all taxing entities (county, cities, school districts, etc.) from setting their individual tax rates.

The new tax rolls show that Denton County has a net certified taxable value of $192,068,281,684 as of July 20, 2024, higher than the estimated $174 billion net certified taxable value in 2023.

The senior-freeze adjusted taxable value is $171,088,612,116. This includes an estimated more than 54,000 properties taking the over 65 exemptions, a tax saving measure I pushed through several years ago.

The Denton County Commissioners Court-recommended budget total for this coming fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1, is $416,424,762. The proposed tax rate will be $0.187869 – the lowest since 1986 and lower than the current tax rate of $0.189485!

Our Commissioners Court anticipates officially adopting the FY 2024-25 budget and tax rate on Sept. 10, following the public hearing during our regular Tuesday meeting. You are welcome to attend the Court meeting which begins at 9 a.m. at the Denton County Administrative Courthouse, 1 Courthouse Drive, Denton, 76208. Visitors are welcome to speak with a three-minute time limit. Forms to request to speak are available just outside the Courtroom.

After all the Denton County taxing entities approve their tax rates, the property tax notices will then be configured and sent out by the Denton County Tax Assessor/Collector’s Office to every property owner. Years ago, Denton County worked with area entities to bring most of the property tax notices under one roof to make it easier for taxpayers, who then only receive one bill instead of separate ones from different entities (city/county/school district/etc.). Currently, the county contractually collects property taxes on behalf of more than 140 entities.

After receiving property tax funds from you, our taxpayers, the Tax Assessor/Collector’s Office then sends the allotted funds back to the entities across Denton County.

You can visit Texas.gov/property taxes to find a link to your local property tax database on which you can easily access information regarding your property taxes, including information regarding the amount of taxes that each entity that taxes your property will impose if the entity adopts its proposed tax rate.

Your local property tax database will be updated regularly during August and September as local elected officials propose and adopt the property tax rates that will determine how much you pay in property taxes.

As you may know, three new members of the Denton Central Appraisal District Board of Directors representing taxpayers were elected by you recently. Angie Cox holds Place 1 and can be reached at [email protected]; Lisa McEntire is in Place 2 and is available at [email protected]; and Rick Guzman holds Place 3 and can be emailed at [email protected].

The Board Chair is Roy Atwood. He can be reached at [email protected]. Other members include: Charles Stafford, vice chairman, [email protected]; Ann Pomykal, secretary, [email protected]; David Terre, Place 5 member, [email protected]; Alex Buck, Place 6 member, [email protected]; and our Denton County Tax Assessor/Collector Michelle French, who holds Place 9.

We appreciate the hard work of these individuals as well as the Denton Central Appraisal District employees and our Tax Assessor/Collectors Office, all of whom are dedicated to ensuring a smoother operation for everyone.

Contact Commissioner Dianne Edmondson by email at [email protected] or phone her at 972-434-3960. You can also stop by her office in the Southwest Courthouse, 6200 Canyon Falls Drive, Suite 900, in Flower Mound.

It’s finally the “ber” months! The “ber” months are my favorite. It means my birthday, cooler weather, football, pumpkin spiced everything, and the holidays. It also means the start of Harvest Market Days. We have so many talented neighbors that we created a space where they can share their skills and goods with the community and surrounding area. The vendors are Harvest residents only and features everything from crafts, baked goods, art and must-haves for the home. Harvest neighbor Jarri Bunde, owner of A Taste of Paris in Harvest, had a great point. She said, “Harvest neighbors love to shop small and local and it doesn’t get any more local than your neighbor’s business right down the street or around the corner.” While that is true, the market is also about connecting with neighbors, building relationships, creating entrepreneurship, and teaching the younger generation to create.

Harvest neighbor and owner of the Argyle Craft Cart said “…the market has helped me grow my business. I have also had the privilege of getting to know other neighbors with small businesses. We bounce ideas off each other and have built a fun little networking community. Everyone is always trying to help each other succeed.” That is what it is all about—creating a place where relationships are formed and where they flourish.

The market is a natural culture builder because it brings people together in a unique way. “The market makes Harvest feel like a small town/community versus just an ordinary neighborhood,” said Bunde. This is what our lifestyle program is all about and seeing it come to life is what fills my cup. It doesn’t stop there. Our market helps develop entrepreneurship. We have many neighbors who have discovered new talents and skills that are profitable. Even our young people are becoming crafty and selling at the market. Harvest Neighbor Dan Rollins said, “My 9-year-old daughter was inspired by seeing other kids her age selling crafts. So, we came up with a logo and she has been selling homemade fluffy slime. It has boosted her confidence and is now something she is so excited to do…not to mention she sold out every time and made money!” That is one of my favorite stories because it has impacted Rollins daughter in a way that will help her in her day-to-day life. A person that feels confident and empowered can conquer anything.

The market doesn’t just impact our vendors, it’s also fun for the patrons. “I have loved going to Harvest Market Days with my kids. They love going booth to booth looking at all of the items the vendors are selling. They also love seeing their friends there and the other kids who are selling things. My favorite vendors have been the Argyle Craft Cart and Clay Hands Clay Heart,” said Brenda Boss.

We would love for you to support local by shopping local. Mark your calendars for Saturday, September 14th from 9-1 p.m. for the next Harvest Market Day. Our market runs from March-May and September-November on the second Saturday of the month on the Harvest Event Lawn, which is across from the Farmhouse Coffee & Treasures. We also partner with our sister community, Pecan Square, to host a holiday market in December. All the dates and details can be found on our Facebook Page: Harvest by Hillwood.