[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 153 (Thursday, September 25, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1983]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


[[Page E1983]]
 RECOGNIZING THE RETIREMENT OF MAYOR MARY ANN COURVILLE FROM THE DIXON 
                              CITY COUNCIL

                                 ______
                                 

                         HON. ELLEN O. TAUSCHER

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                     Wednesday, September 24, 2008

  Mrs. TAUSCHER. Madam Speaker, I rise to recognize Mayor Mary Anne 
Courville who faithfully served in the Dixon City Council since 1996.
  Mary Ann Courville, mayor for the city of Dixon, has served the 
community as a member of the Dixon City Council for 12 years, from 1996 
through 2008. She was elected as a Council member in 1996 and was 
immediately selected as vice mayor, serving as vice mayor from 1996 
until 2000. In 2000, she was the first Dixon mayor directly elected by 
its citizens to serve a 4 year term. She was reelected as mayor in 
2004.
  During her leadership, first and foremost she insisted that the 
public be embraced and welcomed to participate in the deliberations and 
decision making process. She always patiently listened to their ideas 
and concerns and tried her best to make sure all viewpoints were 
considered. She has insisted that all who inquired were responded to, 
that they were provided access to documents and information critical to 
local governance, and were accorded the highest respect by the city's 
staff as well as appointed and elected decision makers.
  Mayor Courville actively represented the citizens of Dixon and 
northern Solano County in the offices of our Federal and State leaders, 
regardless of political affiliation. She has been an active participant 
in numerous intergovernmental forums including: the Capital Corridor 
Joint Powers Authority, the Solano County Local Agency Formation 
Commission, Solano County Mayors' Conference, Solano Transportation 
Authority, Solano County Water Agency, and the Yolo-Solano Air Quality 
Management District. She championed local intergovernmental 
collaborative efforts including the Dixon-Solano Municipal Water 
Service, DSMWS, with the Solano Irrigation District, the Dixon Regional 
Watershed Drainage Joint Powers Authority with Maine Prairie Water 
District, the Dixon Resource Conservation District, and Reclamation 
District 2068. She has paid special attention to the needs of and 
opportunities to partner with other agencies serving the Dixon 
constituency such as the Dixon Library District, the 36th District 
Agricultural Association, Dixon May Fair, Dixon Family Services, and 
especially the Dixon Unified School District.
  Her most notable collaborative effort was with the School District 
starting with joint meetings and modest physical improvement projects 
on and around school campuses. Her leadership efforts grew into multi-
agency after-school enrichment programs, complex joint facility use 
agreements, and a jointly-funded COPS on campus program.
  As a leader in the school bond campaign, and through development 
negotiations, the most spectacular accomplishment for Mayor Courville 
was the partnership with the School District in the development of the 
$75 million new Dixon High School campus. Championing joint planning, 
land acquisition, and infrastructure improvements to serve the new 
campus, she was pivotal in complex multi-party negotiations which 
crafted a partnership that resulted in development of the state of the 
art campus, a massive water production and storage facility to serve 
the growing southeast Dixon area, a much needed storm water detention 
basin, and a 400 unit neighborhood, including a dedicated site for the 
development of senior housing. Her efforts helped secure a classic 
``win, win, win, win'' outcome highlighting the best in creative local 
governance.
  Mayor Courville was instrumental in improving public safety in Dixon. 
During her tenure, the Dixon Fire Department staffing was increased 
two-fold, including the addition of paramedic services. A new fire 
station complex was completed and much needed new major equipment was 
secured. She also helped grow the Dixon Police Department and insure 
that new technology and a community policing philosophy was brought to 
the department.
  As mayor, she also focused her efforts on strong fiscal management, 
overseeing balanced budgets year after year while expanding services 
and maintaining prudent reserves. She was instrumental in expanding 
infrastructure, promoting economic development, and attracting new 
housing. A special focus of hers has been to bring passenger rail to 
Dixon, a vision that inevitably will be realized thanks to her.
  Mary Ann Courville has been an absolutely dedicated leader of and 
booster for Dixon for the last 12 years. She has touched so many lives 
through her efforts and has brought welcome change and improvement to 
local governance and our physical environment. She has made it possible 
for Dixon's citizens to sincerely love calling Dixon their home. Her 
leadership will be missed, but Mayor Mary Ann Courville's legacy will 
be evident for generations to come.

                          ____________________