On November 26th and 27th, Coeur d’Alene City Hall will be closed for the Thanksgiving Holiday. Other city offices and facilities will be closed as well. Emergency calls for Police, Fire, and Streets, can be made by dialing 9-1-1. Other city facilities have emergency numbers and can be reached if the need arises: Sewer Back-up 769-2241 and Water 755-9729.

City Hall and other city facilities will open Monday, November 30th, at 8:00 a.m. For more information, please call 769-2204.

Monday, November 9th marks the start of the city’s annual leaf pick-up program. Because leaves can plug catch basins and storm drains, please be sure to keep leaves on your property until Monday, November 2nd. Please rake your leaves and pine needles about one foot away from the gutter line to allow for water drainage. City crews and equipment are limited, thus your help is needed. Leaves will be picked up only once. Please do not put leaves in the street after city crews have completed your area, and do not include bagged leaves, branches, rubble, or refuse.

Due to weather conditions, equipment malfunctions, and unforeseen circumstances, city crews are unable provide a precise schedule of where leaf pick-up will take place. Pick-up will start south of Sherman Avenue and move north. Completion is expected before Wednesday, November 25th.

Leaf-Fest 2009 Tips

Do:

• Have your leaves out by November 2nd – but not much earlier.
• Please move cars off of the street if at all possible during leaf pick-up.
• Keep the leaves about one foot off the curb line to facilitate stormwater flow.
• Be alert for leaf pick-up equipment traveling through your neighborhood.
• Keep a safe distance away from leaf pick-up heavy equipment.
• Recognize that we have a tough job to do in a very short window between when the leaves fall and when the snow flies.
• Understand that city and private trucks are exempted from tarping loads during the leaf pick-up period. Sweepers will follow city trucks to collect remaining/excess leaves.

Don’t:

• Bag the leaves.
• Mix branches, rubble or other refuse in with the leaves.
• Miss the deadline… we only have time for one pass!

If you have questions or need additional information please call the Information Line at 769-2233 or tune into the KVNI 1080 Radio morning show for updates.

Note: There is NO CHARGE to residents who haul leaves, pine needles, limbs, branches, or debris to the landfill. Waste Management will, however, charge for bagged leaves.

Today, Angie Goucher, Director of Specialized Needs Recreation (SNR), was presented the prestigious 2009 National Therapeutic Recreation Society (NTRS) Jean Tague Innovative Program Award in Salt Lake City, Utah at the National Recreation and Park Association Conference. The award is presented to programs and individuals who have demonstrated significant contributions to the field of NTRS at the local, state, or national level.

The city’s Specialized Needs Recreation Program (SNR) is a non-profit organization that provides recreational opportunities for over 3,000 youth and adults who have disabilities and or special needs.

“We are proud of the high quality of our Specialized Needs Recreation program and our exceptionally dedicated staff,” said Recreation Director Steve Anthony. “We are honored to have received this prestigious award from the National Recreation and Park Association.”

For further information on this award or the SNR organization, please contact Angie Goucher at 755-6781 or visit the website at www.snr.bz.

The Coeur d ‘Alene Parks Foundation is seeking diverse, passionate, and community-minded people. Heading into 2010, the Parks Foundation Board is focusing its energies on fundraising and land acquisition and would like to make this another successful year. The organization is committed to recruiting people who represent all of our north Idaho communities. In particular we are seeking people who are committed to north Idaho parks and bring with them expertise in some of the following areas:

• Fundraising and event planning.
• Non-profit board governance and/or committee experience.
• Networking and community engagement.
• Land acquisition.
• General expectations include:
• Willingness to work collaboratively with other directors to maintain positive relations among the board members and other committees.
• A willingness to develop and share knowledge, skills, connections, and expertise to enhance the foundation.
• A willingness to grow the Parks Foundation through networking and community partners.

  The deadline for applications is November 30, 2009. If you are interested in making a difference and giving back to your community, contact Kim Stearns at kim@cdaparksfoundation.org or visit the website at www.cdaparksfoundation.

City Hall is typically open from 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m. weekdays, but citizens can now access City Hall 24-hours a day, everyday. By dialing 676-7405, citizens will be able to leave a message regarding any city issue, problem, or complaint - any hour of the day. Messages will be monitored every day, and appropriate departments or individuals will be directed to address the issue and get back to the citizen who called. Citizens will be asked to leave their name and number.

Remember, the City 24-Hour Hotline number is 676-7405.

The citizens of Coeur d'Alene have another way of communicating with the Police Department without calling the business number or 911 and having a police officer respond to their house. This phone line allows a person to leave information regarding a particular crime, criminal activity in their neighborhood, drug activity, a hit and run vehicle, recovered stolen property, dogs running loose, illegally parked cars, or other information regarding the quality of life in their neighborhood. The caller is able to leave their name or remain anonymous, if they wish. The phone number for the TIP line is 769-2296. The TIP line is operational twenty-four (24) hours a day, 365 days a year, and will be monitored on a daily basis. The phone number will not take the place of the Department's regular business phone number 769-2320 or the emergency number 911. The TIP line will give citizens another convenient and quick way to inform the police about concerns that they may have in their neighborhood.