Civil Municipal Magazine Aug 2023

185 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 4, ISSUE 8 ROWLET T, TE XAS results from a comprehensive survey that included more than 1,300 respondents are released later this year. Bartram says Rowlett is already searching for more restaurants, florists, home décor retailers, at least one ice cream store, and other community-oriented businesses that will further raise downtown’s regional profile. Another way to drive new residents to the city is to embrace the remote working trend. Rowlett is adding a large co-working space where individuals can lease office space or a desk for anywhere from a day to a month. As Bartram puts it, a worker can simply bring in their laptop, plug, print, and play. Yet keeping young people in the community is important as well. Rowlett city leaders are working with Dallas College and other area schools to create a pipeline of future workers in several fields, including healthcare. Baylor Scott & White Medical Center- Lake Pointe for example has hired recent graduates to work as lab technicians to fill a pressing labor need. Small-town charm with big city resources Residents are the biggest advocates for all that Rowlett has to offer. The fact that it offers small- town charm amid a large metropolitan area is a significant benefit, says Bartram. That includes the Baylor Scott & White Medical Center - Lake Pointe campus which is a nearly 150-bed acute care facility in Rowlett. It has access to more than 500 physicians along with such services as a fast-track emergency department, intensive care unit, women’s services, Level III NICU, interventional cardiology, diagnostic imaging, robotic-assisted surgery, and orthopedics. Rowlett is also just a 30-minute drive from Dallas Fort Worth International Airport, one of the largest passenger and commercial airports in the South with direct flights to destinations around the world. “There are many reasons why people move here but having (access to convenient) resources without the feeling of living in a big city is very appealing,” Bartram says. This demand is why adding affordable housing options is such a priority, Tucker says. Local elected officials are also highly active in not just improving the quality of life in Rowlett but being visible and approachable