Are You Plano's Fittest Neighborhood?
As the new season begins, Plano’s BEST Neighborhoods Division is challenging you and your neighbors to Fall into Fitness! Rack up minutes Sunday, November 1 to Monday, November 30 by walking, jogging, dancing or any other movement. The top neighborhood will win a prize! To compete, you must be a registered neighborhood with the BEST Neighborhoods Division.

Check if your neighborhood is registered, and if it’s not, register for free! Registration opens for the competition Thursday, October 15. Spots are limited, so make sure to sign up early to take on the challenge. Email best@plano.gov or call 972-208-8150 with any questions.
Attend the Virtual 2020 Neighborhood Summit
Join us Saturday, November 7 to engage with Garland, Plano and Rowlett residents on ways you can invest in your home. Topics include establishing your neighborhood values, building a neighborhood network, how to preserve or increase your home value and do-it-yourself home improvement tips from the experts. Residents from Plano, Garland, Rowlett and surrounding communities are welcome to join us. Register now!
Quail Creek Wins the National Good Neighbor Day Photo Contest!
Residents voted and selected Quail Creek-Hunter’s Glen as the winner of this year’s contest. “Our neighborhood had a sidewalk chalk competition this Spring. My girls and I spent hours creating a 'Spring Disney Binge' themed front walk. Love our neighborhood!”

Thanks to everyone who submitted pictures for the Good Neighbor Day Photo Contest! We loved seeing how your neighborhoods have come together during this time.
Mental Health Tips for Life in the Time of COVID-19
  1. Keep Up Your Routines: Keep your schedules and routines as close to how they were before the pandemic as possible. Try to keep set times for work, meals, activities and sleep.
  2. Be Kind: You may feel anxious and worried, just as others around you do. On frustrating days, remember everyone is going through a tough time, so try to show kindness to yourself and each other.
  3. Keep Social but Socially Distant: In this time, it's easy to become socially isolated. If you feel alone, reach out to a friend via Skype or Zoom. Even a friendly phone call or text message is sure to brighten both of your days. Take a walk and wave to a neighbor from afar. Keep up with old acquaintances and reach out to those you might feel are in need of a friendly chat. 
  4. Make the Best Out of the Situation: Use the strange situation to be creative. Create a new game to play by yourself, with family or virtually with friends.
Get Ready for Winter with These Tips
Winter is quickly approaching and now is the time to prepare your home for the winter season. Think about these chores before the holidays arrive:
  • Make sure your heating system is functioning properly. There are three type of heating systems: high efficiency, boiler and gas. High efficiency systems have PVC pipes which should be cleared of any obstructions. Boiler systems should be cleaned on a yearly basis and gas systems should be cleaned every three years.
  • Clean your chimney and fireplace. To prevent fire hazards, your chimney should be cleaned by a chimney sweep. Check your chimney for cracks and debris such as nests and tree leaves.
  • Change the batteries in your fire and carbon monoxide detectors: 27% of house fires occur during the winter months. Check that your alarms are functioning properly.
  • Prevent your pipes from freezing: Frozen water pipes are a serious threat to your home’s plumbing system. Unheated pipes near windows and doors should be insulated. In addition, you should disconnect water hoses during the winter months.  
  • Perform maintenance on your water heater: During the winter months, your water heater should be flushed to remove sediment. Sediment collecting at the bottom of your tank creates hot spots that damages the tank and causes failure. Removing sediment from your water heater saves you money and prolongs the life of your water heater.
Work Safe and Smart with the Day Labor Center
The City of Plano Day Labor Center provides a safe place for contractors, including homeowners and business owners, to connect with laborers to exchange daily pay for work in an organized, supervised environment. To keep our customers safe and healthy during COVID-19, we are practicing social distancing and encouraging contractors and laborers to wear a mask while negotiating and driving to the job site.

At the Day Labor Center, you'll be directed to call 972-941-7060 for immediate assistance. Laborers are selected for contractors to interview based on the skills necessary for the job. Wages are negotiated and job details are discussed in the presence of City staff prior to leaving the site. Whether you’re looking for manual labor, landscaping, construction or cleaning, the Day Labor Center has workers ready to help with your job!
Looking to Beautify Your Neighborhood?

Apply for a Neighborhood Revitalization & Beautification Grant! The pre-application for the Spring 2021 cycle opens in November 2020. Contact Senior Planner, Kala Krishnan by email or call 972-208-8150.
Join Us For BEST Break: Special Edition Roundtable

The BEST Neighborhoods Division invites you to connect through BEST Break, our virtual version of Neighbors Connect! Our first roundtable will be Wednesday, October 21, 6:30 p.m. Meet Plano neighbors and discuss how you and your neighborhood have been connecting and engaging over the past six months. Share your challenges and triumphs! Register now.
Congratulations, Shoal Creek!

Congratulations to Shoal Creek for winning the 2020 Nuttiest Neighborhood Award! Thank you Shoal Creek, and all participating neighborhoods, for contributing to the North Texas Food Bank. Participating neighborhoods collected 6,410 pounds of peanut butter!
Are You in Need of Emergency Housing Assistance?

Collin County Cares offers emergency assistance with rent, mortgage, utilities and food for Collin County residents who lost 15% or more of their income since March 1 due to COVID-19. Low and moderate income Plano residents who don’t meet this criteria but are at risk of losing their housing can apply for assistance through the City’s Homelessness Prevention Program by calling the Assistance Center of Collin County at 972-422-1850.
GET TO KNOW OUR TEAM
Maria Castillo
Neighborhood Planning Tech
Serving Plano Since 2019

Describe your role within Neighborhood Services.
As a Neighborhood Planning Tech with the BEST Neighborhoods Division, my role is to ensure we provide Plano neighborhoods the best opportunity to be Beautiful, Engaged, Safe and Thriving. Many days include connecting our neighborhoods with available resources and supporting the BEST team with technical assistance.

What made you decide to take this career path?
While studying Political Science at A&M, I was encouraged to take an Urban Planning course by my professor. I loved the subject and pursued Urban Planning. I believe cities are the key to inclusivity, community and accessibility. I especially love learning about the importance of neighborhoods and the uniqueness and history of each one.

Where would you like to travel?
I visited Turkey when I was 15. I would love to visit again and drink Turkish tea by the Mediterranean Sea!

What do you like to do on your days off?
I love to hike, read, draw on Procreate, travel and visit new coffee shops across DFW.

What makes the neighborhood where you live special?
I live in a neighborhood in East Dallas and I love that it’s in close proximity to downtown Dallas, Lower Greenville and a short drive to White Rock Lake. I also love the diversity of my community and all the great food.
Thank you for making our community a better place!