The City of Georgetown Texas has created a page on Facebook, and I’m a fan. (I really am a fan! We’re so lucky to live in this town.) 533 fans so far. It’s a great way to stay up to date on what’s happening in the city. I’ve asked the city if they can give me a direct link to their Facebook page. If they do, I’ll post it here. Otherwise, just go on Facebook and search for Georgetown Texas.

This afternoon, the city posted a message about the many fire hydrants that have been opened in the middle of the night around town, wasting hundreds of thousands of gallons of water. Horrible! Another hydrant was apparently opened in Katy Crossing last night. The city would like all of us to be on the alert, to help catch the water wasters. Here’s their most recent comment in its entirety:

Our hydrants do come with specialized nuts that require a special wrench to open. This is part of the mystery. They are not, however, tamper-proof though the option for a tamper proof nut is available.

In reference to the Katy Crossing incident, unfortunately yes, more hydrants have been opened and more of our water has been lost, and possibly… Read More damage has been done to the roads below the hydrants because of this water flow. Police, Fire and Georgetown Utility Systems are working together in an effort to detect and respond to any future incidents.

If you notice anything suspicious, such as a sudden unexplained, significant drop in your water pressure late at night, please call GUS dispatch at (512) 930-3555.

So if you’re taking a middle-of-the-night shower and suddenly the water slows to a trickle, wipe that soap out of your eyes and rush to the phone. Just remember: Call GUS!

The Geography of Jobs - TIP Strategies

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The real estate market is picking up, folks, in a big way. Every agent I’ve talked to is seeing the same thing. They’re all busy, busy, busy. One agent told me that a house he’s had listed for a year has suddenly received four offers. Lots of activity at the closing table these days. Most of the activity seems to be in the under $200,000 range so far, but that’s typical. Sort of the trickle-up theory of economic recovery.

Now is a fantastic time to buy a home, if you’re in a position to do so. If you’re looking for real estate in the Georgetown, TX area, and you don’t have an agent already, please contact me at 512-876-6544 or jenel@hometowngeorgetown.com. I can put you in touch with an honest local lender, as well. (Local is important when it comes to home loans, if you want the sale to go smoothly.)

My brother and his wife are visiting this week. They live in Germany, and my sister-in-law is German, so my husband and I took them for lunch at the Monument Cafe for some good made-from-scratch American cooking. (The Monument has the best biscuits on the planet.) We ate too much and decided to walk off a little of the overeating by strolling around the square. We noticed that three people were inside the Masonic Lodge at 7th and Main, where Romeo’s used to be. The people had tools and notebooks and looks of determination. Exciting!

A few steps later, we bumped into Chris Damon, who owns that building as well as local marketing powerhouse, GX Creative. Chris spoke fluent German, much to my sister-in-law’s delight, who has been in the States for a few weeks visiting a family who drifted away from our German heritage generations ago. Then, in English, he shared a few details of the restaurant with me.

The restaurant will feature northern Italian cuisine, with cream sauces, rice dishes. (I’ll take this opportunity to put in a plug for gnocchi.)

The family who is starting the new restaurant made a name for themselves in Connecticut as restaurateurs. I’m afraid I didn’t have a notebook with me on our stroll, so I’ve forgotten some of the details. Such as the name. I’m drawing a complete blank on the name. (Anyone who knows, please feel free to post a comment.) When I heard about the northern Italian cuisine, my mind was buzzing with thoughts of food. Even though I had just eaten too much at the Monument. What can I say, I’m a foodie. I do remember that Chris said the restaurant will open as soon as the TABC gives them their liquor license or in September, whichever comes first. They will be a wonderful addition to Downtown Georgetown.

By the way, if you’re looking for a job, I found their ad on Craigslist, looking for restaurant help.

Chris is still looking for tenants for the second floor space at this location. He mentioned that he would love to get a quiet lounge-type tapa bar in that location. If you’re interested, you can contact Chris through GX Creative.

Open auditions for You Can’t Do That, Dan Moody! will be held June 15, 16, 17, and 18 from 7 to 9 pm in the sanctuary of First United Methodist Church, 410 East University Avenue, Georgetown. Roles are available for men and women of all ages and for some children.

You Can’t Do That, Dan Moody!, written by Tom Swift and Ken Anderson and directed by Tom Swift, is based on Ken Anderson’s popular book of the same title. Performed in the Williamson County Courthouse in the very courtroom in which the famous trial took place in 1923, You Can’t Do That, Dan Moody! will take you back in time.

The Georgetown Palace Theatre and the Williamson County Museum will present the historic play in the Williamson County Courthouse on weekends from September 4 through October 11, 2009. (Fridays & Saturdays at 7:30 pm; Sundays at 2:00 pm)

Contact Tom Swift at (512) 863-1245 or (512) 818-3999 for more information.

Genghis Grill, The Mongolian Stir Fry, opens today at Wolf Ranch Mall. It’s located near the water fountain around the corner from Sephora and across the parking lot from Vino 100. As a member of the Georgetown Chamber of Commerce, I got a sneak peek yesterday. My husband and I went for lunch. It was delicious!

(So you all know, my policy here at HometownGeorgetown is that I’m always sincere, and I’m always positive. That means if I didn’t like a local restaurant or get good service from a local business, I simply don’t write about it. It’s the whole “If you can’t say something nice…” philosophy I learned at my mother’s knee.)

The Genghis Grill concept is an interesting one. You “build your own bowl,” as they put it, meaning you choose what goes into your own ultra-customized stir-fry. The lunch bowl is a fixed price of $8.99 no matter which meat, spices, vegetables, sauce, and starch you choose. The dinner bowl is $9.99. Which is interesting because the size of the bowl doesn’t change.

When you choose the starch - more options than just rice or noodles - the gentleman who takes your order will holler out your option, and all the other men in the grill area holler it right back at him. They just opened, so they don’t have it down pat yet, but it should be a fun little moment once they get into it. The food is cooked on a round grill about six feet in diameter, with each order separated by long wooden poles. You can stand there and watch your food being prepared, or go to your table and let the wait staff bring the food to you.

The food was delicious. How could it not be, when I created it myself? They even give you a chance to taste the sauces before you choose. It can be as mild or as spicy as you want. And if you’re not in the mood for Asian, you can even use their ingredients to create your own fajitas. One of the starch options is tortillas. (Are tortillas?)

From a press release submitted by the Palace Theatre: The Georgetown Palace Theatre Guild, in cooperation with the Palace Theatre in Historic Georgetown presents: A Night On The Red Carpet, a Gala Event. This special performance is one night only and features Palace favorites such as Joe Penrod, Rick Felkins, Cliff Butler, Wendy Zavaleta, Patty Rowell, Cathie Sheridan and other special guest artists. This one night only event features songs from such Classics as South Pacific, Cabaret and Annie, and Palace choreographer Jessica Kelpsch rounds out the evening with beautiful choreography to pluck the heartstrings. Join us for a night of song and dance that will leave you wanting more.

The Gala Event is open to the public Saturday, June 6th with a 7:30pm Curtain.

Tickets for this exclusive event are $10.00 for all seats. The Palace seats about 295, with reserved seating paid for in your ticket price. The Palace office in the lobby of the theatre is open Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. for your convenience. Purchase tickets and select seating on-line at www.thegeorgetownpalace.org or by calling 512-869-7469 or 512-869-5081. Visa and Master Card are accepted.

The Palace Theatre is located at 810 South Austin Avenue in Historic Georgetown, just a half-block off the Square.

U.S. News & World Report has named Georgetown Texas one of the 10 Great Places to Retire for Wine-Lovers. One of my favorite ways to spend a special evening with guests is to bring them to Vino 100 Georgetown, a delightful little wine bar at Wolf Ranch Town Center. You can buy wine by the glass or by the bottle, and they often have live music entertainment. Vino 100 also has a black bag wine club that meets monthly. Members get to sample wines, mingle, and then go home with two bottles for their home.

I’m curious about how U.S. News & World Report got some of the facts on their fact sheet about Georgetown. For example, they say that just 32% of our days are sunny. That seems off to me, but maybe I’m wrong. I feel like we have a lot more sunny days than cloudy, but maybe my view is skewed by the current drought. They also say we have .470 square miles of parkland or greenspace. Obviously that number is wayyyy off. That decimal point in the beginning may have been misplaced. 470 square miles, I could believe. We have fantastic parks here in Georgetown, and a lot of them.

Some of the numbers are accurate now but will change soon. (The population change is a given, and articles like this one may bring even more new residents. If you’re looking for a Realtor, email me!) They say we have just one college or university in Williamson County. They’re obviously not counting the Round Rock Higher Education Center, which currently offers undergrad courses from Austin Community College, as well as graduate level courses from Texas State. Nearby, we’ll also soon have a medical school and a nursing school. Who knows what will follow after that.

They also say we have just one sports team in Williamson County. When the Texas Stars start playing hockey in Cedar Park, that number will double.

iKnowWare, a software company based in Georgetown, Texas, has been named one of America’s Most Promising Companies on Forbes.com. “iKnowWare aims to simplify things–and then some–by offering easy-to-use software that allows users access to any data, at any time, from anywhere, even via a smart phone,” Forbes says. According to the iKnowWare website, they also won a 2008 Internet Telephony Product of the Year award for their iKnowMOBILE product, which empowers sales staff and project managers who are away from their desks to access all the information they need from their computers.

Exciting technological advances being made right here in Georgetown!