Broward County Holds Fall Food Drive

Broward County is holding a “Fall Food Festival” Food Drive to benefit local food banks in time for the upcoming holiday season. The drive will continue through December 15. Members of the public are encouraged to drop their food donations by collection boxes that will be at the following locations: Governmental Center at 115 S. Andrews Ave., Fort Lauderdale; Government Center West at 1 N. University Dr., Plantation; main and regional courthouses; and all Broward County libraries.

View Food Bank Wish List

Vista View Park to Celebrate Its Expansion November 13

Vista View Park reopening ceremonies will be held at 10 a.m. on Friday, November 13. The public is invited to attend, and encouraged to enjoy the expanded amenities at the park, which include: six picnic shelters, two restroom facilities, two basketball courts, a second fishing pier, a paved fitness trail with 12 exercise stations, an additional multipurpose trail and a park office. There are also two new playgrounds, the larger of which, Caitlyn’s Corral, is accessible to children of all levels of ability. It is named for Caitlyn Munson, who died of spinal muscular atrophy in 2002 at the age of 9 months. Additional equestrian amenities include a gate off Orange Drive that provides access to trailer parking for large group trail rides and other special events; and a corral with a universal-access mounting block. More…

County Launches Conservation and Climate Change Challenge for Broward Schools

The Broward County Pollution Prevention, Remediation and Air Quality Division is launching the first Conservation and Climate Change Challenge (C3 Challenge), an educational competition intended to engage students, teachers, school administrators, staff and parents in practical strategies to reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gas emissions school-wide and at home.

Through improved energy efficiency, reduced consumption, increased recycling and changes in transportation behaviors, participants will learn how simple actions, taken together, can create a climate of change. Broward County also created a C3 Challenge Toolkit with educational activities aligned with Sunshine State Standards and Grade Level Expectations that can be downloaded at no cost. Visit www.broward.org/air and click C3 CHALLENGE.

Broward County Receives Economic Stimulus Funding to Help Low Income Residents

Broward County is one of just eight county governments nationwide to receive funds from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services under a new $46 million program, Strengthening Communities Fund, created by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to help promote the economic recovery of people with low incomes.

Broward County will receive $218,150 for the next two years. The County, along with such community partners as Workforce One, Family Central, Community Foundation of Broward and the Children’s Services Council of Broward County, will spearhead regional collaborative efforts to provide training and technical assistance, education and easily accessible information on Recovery Act opportunities to up to 200 organizations that serve the tri-county area’s most vulnerable populations. The Community Partnerships Division of the Broward County Human Services Department will implement the grant.

Broward County Opens Wiles Road Overpass in Coconut Creek

Drivers will have a much easier commute on Wiles Road now that the long anticipated Turnpike overpass has officially opened. The Wiles Road overpass in Coconut Creek bridges the gap that once prevented motorists from driving east or west on Wiles Road once they came to the Florida Turnpike. The absence of the overpass forced commuters to drive north to the Sawgrass Expressway or south to Sample Road in order to cross the highway.

The overpass also expands Broward County bike lanes and connects to the Coconut Creek trail system, which provides increased opportunities for cyclists and pedestrians.

Broward County’s Highway Construction and Engineering Division managed the $21 million project. The design of the overpass included the addition of a reclaimed water transmission line that will allow the City of Coconut Creek to provide approximately 2 million gallons per day of reclaimed water to parks, schools, the proposed Creek Commons development and residential units in the City’s service area.

Additional measures were also taken to protect adjacent residents from an increase in traffic intrusion. Sound walls were raised to prevent glare from oncoming traffic headlights and landscape buffers were set in place to mitigate further traffic noise.

Become a SKYWARN Storm Spotter

The Broward County Emergency Management Division will host training classes for SKYWARN Storm Spotters on Saturday, November 21, at the Broward County Emergency Operations Center, 201 N.W. 84th Avenue in Plantation. The class is intended for those interested in becoming a Storm Spotter or those who are spotters and want to sharpen their skills.

Classes for beginners and advanced Storm Spotters will be taught in a combined class by a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. The Basic/Refresher class is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. Preregistration by Friday, November 13, is required as only 60 seats are available. To register, call 954-249-5343 or email n4hhp@comcast.net.

County Celebrates Recycling in November

In recognition of “America Recycles Day” on November 15, Broward County Waste and Recycling Services and Partner Cities are devoting the entire month to raising awareness of the important role recycling plays in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and slowing climate change.

One of the most exciting events is the introduction of “All-In-One” (single-stream) recycling, which lets residents mix paper, plastic bottles, metal and glass recyclables together in the same recycling container, making recycling easier than ever. Other events include an information display at Broward County Governmental Center Lobby, 115 S. Andrews Ave., Fort Lauderdale, and Broward County Government Center West Lobby, 1 N. University Dr., Plantation, 8:30 a.m. – 4:30 p.m., through November 15; and a free Electronics Recycling Drop-Off, November 14 from 9 a.m.-3 p.m. at the Museum of Discovery and Science, 401 S.W. Second St., Fort Lauderdale. For a complete calendar of fun events for all ages, visit www.broward.org/waste, or call 954-765-4999 for details. To pledge to recycle online, visit www.americarecyclesday.org.

Port Dedicates New Cruise Terminal

Broward County’s Port Everglades has officially dedicated the new Cruise Terminal 18, which will be home to the two largest cruise ships in the world, Royal Caribbean International’s Oasis of the Seas and Allure of the Seas. To accommodate these revolutionary cruise ships, the Port has invested approximately $75 million to more than triple the size of Cruise Terminal 18 from 67,500 square feet to 240,000 square feet. The new terminal will accommodate the more than 5,400 cruise guests and their luggage so that both arriving and departing guests can go through processing procedures simultaneously. Each Oasis-class ship is projected to generate approximately 584,000 passenger movements annually at Port Everglades. The first of the 225,282-gross-registered-ton ships, Oasis of the Seas, is scheduled to begin sailing year-round from Port Everglades in December 2009, with the second sister-ship, Allure of the Seas, to begin year-round sailings one year later.

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Community Update, a monthly newsletter from the Board of County Commissioners, is produced by the Office of Public Communications. Address questions concerning articles to 954-357-6990. To receive Community Update electronically, send an email to publicinfo@broward.org. Please include your first and last name and email address. Hearing impaired residents can call the TTY line at 954-831-3940 for additional information.