Celina receives Platinum Certified from Texas Scenic City

On Oct. 2 the Texas Scenic City Certification Program awarded the city of Celina with their highest Platinum Certification award.

Raha Pouladi, the senior planner for Celina, stated, “Platinum certification means that Celina is among the State’s elite for design standards and visual aesthetics that apply to new development.”

The Scenic City Certification Program is a nationally recognized one-of-a-kind model, developed to provide communities with a comprehensive set of standards and evaluations for the design and development of public roadways and spaces.

Any Texas city may apply to the Scenic City Certification Program for an objective review of its existing municipal infrastructure ordinances as they relate to the model standards. Assessment is points-based, and every city applicant receives a detailed, scored evaluation that identifies both strengths and areas for improvement.

Official certification is earned by cities that score points in the upper range and meet threshold standards for landscaping, tree planting, and sign regulation. Program managers from the Texas Scenic City said, “Celina scored 308 out of a possible 338 total points, earning Celina the Platinum Award. Only 17 cities have held the top award from 2010-2019, and making that distinction rarely happens on the first attempt but rather through ranking up throughout the five-year certification period.”

Dusty McAfee, director of development services for the city, stated, “To our knowledge, Celina is the first city to earn Platinum certification on its initial application, and less than 20 Texas cities overall have earned the Platinum distinction.”

“Several neighboring cities took years to earn the highest certification level, and some are still attempting to climb the rankings,” said Madhuri Mohan, planning manager.

Certification in the program is good for five years, at which time Celina will have to reapply for a new evaluation to retain certification status. City Manager Jason Laumer stated, “I am very proud that the city has earned this prestigious award. Two of our 2018 Strategic Plan goals were to plan and beautify and brand the city. It's been a multi-year effort to update long-range planning documents, modernize ordinances, revise agreements, and amend internal policies to place us in the best possible position to manage our growth.”