Cedar Park, Texas

How Cedar Park is governed

Form of government not yet listed.

1 of 14 positions listed. Gray dashed boxes are placeholders waiting for a name.

• Mayor

  Executive

  • Jim Penniman-Morin per Wikidata

  The city's chief elected official. Presides over the executive branch, proposes the budget and represents the city.

  • City Manager / Administrator

    Executive

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    The professional administrator who runs day-to-day operations (in some cities appointed by the council instead of the mayor).

    • Police Chief

      Administration & departments

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      Leads the police department.

    • Fire Chief

      Administration & departments

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      Leads the fire and emergency services department.

    • Public Works Director

      Administration & departments

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      Streets, water, sewer, and city buildings.

    • Finance Director

      Administration & departments

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      The budget, taxes, and city accounts.

    • Planning & Zoning Director

      Administration & departments

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      Land use, zoning, building permits.

    • Parks & Recreation Director

      Administration & departments

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      Parks, programs, and public facilities.

• City Council

  Legislative

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  The elected body that passes ordinances, sets the tax rate and approves the budget.

  • City Clerk

    Administration & departments

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    Keeps the official records, runs meeting agendas and, often, local elections.

  • City Attorney

    Administration & departments

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    The city's lawyer; advises officials and prosecutes ordinance violations.

  • Boards & Commissions

    Legislative

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    Citizen advisory bodies, such as planning, zoning appeals and library boards.

• Municipal Court

  Judicial

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  Hears traffic, ordinance and other minor cases.

  • Municipal Judge

    Judicial

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    Presides over the municipal court.

Website

cedarparktx.us

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Population over time

From 48,937 in 2010 to 77,595 in 2020 (+58.6%).

History

Before the arrival of European settlers in the 19th century, the Cedar Park area was inhabited by Native American tribes including the Tonkawa, Lipan Apache, and Comanche. A Paleo-Indian archaeological site (Wilson-Leonard site) was discovered in Cedar Park in 1973 that showed evidence of continual habitation of the area since c. 5,000 BC.

In the mid-19th century, the community was known as Running Brushy, named after a spring that formed the headwaters of a creek of the same name. In 1873, George and Harriet Cluck, after having run cattle up the Chisholm Trail for many years, bought 329 acres (1.33 km2) of land that included the Running Brushy spring. Their ranch formed the core of the community that became Cedar Park.

Ten years later, the railroad came through. The Austin and Northwestern Railroad, which connected the state capital with the cities of Burnet and Lampasas to the north, was finished in 1882 and passed through Running Brushy and the Cluck ranch. The community was renamed Bruggerhoff, after a railroad company official, but the name was generally disliked by locals, being hard to spell and pronounce. In 1887, Emmett Cluck (son of George and Harriet) changed the community's name to Cedar Park. In 1892, a "strolling park" of 0.5 acres (2,000 m2) was built near the train depot. Austinites would ride the train to Cedar Park for day trips to the park.

Cedar Park changed little until the 1950s and 1960s, when the growth of nearby Austin spilled over. On February 24, 1973, the citizens of Cedar Park voted to incorporate. The estimated population was 1,765. A library followed in 1978.

On May 27, 1997, a strong and destructive F3 tornado struck the town. The tornado was one of 20 confirmed tornadoes that occurred during the 1997 Central Texas Tornado outbreak. It devastated the downtown area of the city, killing one person and nearly destroying the Albertson's grocery store.

In December 2007, Cedar Park Regional Medical Center opened becoming the first major medical center in Cedar Park.

In 2013, the US Census Bureau named Cedar Park the fourth-fastest growing city in the United States, with a population of 57,957.

On April 4, 2016, the city announced it was collecting submissions for designs for an official city flag. Residents had until April 30 to submit proposed designs. On December 9, 2016, Cedar Park unveiled the flag design that won. On August 8, 2019, the City Council voted to rescind that particular design after "pushback on social media" from residents. As of September 2021, the city has no formal flag.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

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