This week the Fire Department responded to twelve (12) calls for service. Eight (8) calls were in the City, and four (4) were in the County. Seven (7) of the calls were EMS related, three (3) were environmental calls, one (1) was a motor vehicle accident, and one (1) was a vehicle fire. The Fire Department responded to one of the worst vehicle accidents in Jack County in many years, and we want to thank them, the Sheriff's Office, EMS, and DPS for their dedicated service to our residents.
Animal Control had a potential case of rabies with a dog; however, all tests came back negative. We do want to take the opportunity to remind everyone to keep your animals either in the house or in the yard. We continue to experience issues where people either do not ensure their dogs cannot get out of the fence, or they simply let them out to run. As a result of several adoptions, we finally have limited space in the Shelter, so we will be picking up stray animals.
We were also made aware of someone illegally hunting on City property behind the Animal Shelter. We have posted a notice at the "deer blind" for the individual(s) to remove the blind and stop hunting on the property, and we provided the individual(s) the opportunity to remove the blind. If it is not removed in a timely manner, the City will confiscate the equipment.
The Friends of the Animal Shelter will be hosting a "Pet Photos with the Grinch" on December 6th, 2025, from 10am to 12pm at the Shelter. The event is sponsored by Double L Florist. We invite everyone to bring your animals out for a photograph.
On behalf of the Jacksboro Independent School District, we want to remind everyone that N. 6th Street, adjacent to the Elementary School is designated as "No Parking". We ask that anyone dropping a child off at the Elementary School use the designated "Drop Off" areas. Safety for our children is our biggest concern.
The reenactment at Fort Richardson this past weekend was a huge success. According to Mr. Robert Frie, Park Superintendent, the Fort welcomed 1,249 people to the reenactment. We want to thank Mr. Frie and all the employees at Fort Richardson for their continued support of our community, and we invite everyone to visit the Fort or their trail system.
Distribution and Collection responded to twenty-three (23) calls for service, to include water leaks, sewer issues, and re-reading water meters. As you may have noticed, ONCOR has been doing a lot of work around town trimming trees and replacing electric poles. This will continue for several more weeks as they work to improve the electric infrastructure in and around town.
The Police Department extended a conditional offer to a new recruit this week. Our goal is to send this individual to the Police Academy in January. As our Police Department continues to grow and regroup, we are able to provide additional services to the City.
Parks and Recreation Department unfortunately had to spend time removing graffiti from Pine Street Park. We would ask anyone that has any information about people destroying our parks to please contact City Hall with any information you might have. It is unfortunate that a small number of people destroy or attempt to destroy our parks and other recreational facilities.
As a reminder, we have "de-activated" everyone's access code to Twin Lakes Activity Center. We have placed a sign at the entrance instructing everyone that has a current membership to contact City Hall to reactivate their code and confirm their membership. We are also reestablishing a one-year membership for anyone interested. If you have any questions or concerns, please contact City Hall at 940-567-6321. We also want to remind everyone that sharing entrance codes is not allowed, and memberships can be cancelled if we determine this has been happening.
Christmas on the Square is scheduled for December 4th. The City will be putting up the Christmas Tree and the Sled next week. The events include a cookie crawl, a wassail and Christmas punch contest, hot chocolate, and carolers beginning at 4:30. At 6:30pm the Christmas Light Parade will begin. The theme for this year's parade is "Christmas Over the Decades". This year, at the end of the parade Santa will be carrying a piece of the time capsule. He will deliver the time capsule to the Courthouse lawn, and we will have a short ceremony and burial of the capsule. This year Santa will also visit with kids and take pictures on the Courthouse lawn near the sled.
Due to the holidays, trash collection next week will be delayed one day on Thursday and Friday. Additionally bulk collection will be delayed until Friday. The normal trash pick-up for Thursday and Friday will be delayed one day.
City Facilities will be closed Wednesday - Friday next week, and we will not be publishing a Weekly Activity Report for next week.
As a reminder, the Grocery Gift Card Drive supported by multiple organizations is still open until December 10, 2025. The goal is to help recipients purchase items that are not available at the Food Pantry.
Our Employee of the Week is Lieutenant Alvin Bilby. Lt Bilby is the number two employee in the Jacksboro Police Department and works tirelessly to ensure all our Jacksboro residents are safe. He has an extensive military and law enforcement background and brings an incredible wealth of experience to the City. As a Jack County native, he is also an important asset to our community by bringing a "hometown" attitude to his job in law enforcement.
Our next City Council Meeting is December 8, 2025. As a reminder, we only have one Council meeting in December due to the holidays.