San Marcos — The new year is a natural time for many to resolve to “turn over a new leaf” of some kind. We commit to eating better . . . exercising more . . . getting our personal finances under control . . . spending more time with loved ones. All good causes, and all on my list again this year. However, this year I also added a new item to my list. I resolved to further my personal commitment to San Marcos' emerging focus on quality of life improvements throughout the community that are designed to demonstrate what a great place San Marcos is to live, work and play.

The beautiful new campus entrances that Texas State has installed, the movement to beautify our community with enhanced greenscapes, and the decision last year by our City Council to provide single-stream, curbside recycling to all residents are perfect examples of simple recent enhancements. These actions not only improve our daily lives, but also show potential residents and businesses that are shopping for new homes, that San Marcos is a progressive, emerging community along the IH-35 corridor. It truly deserves a closer look.

Ask any realtor or economic development professional what prospects look at when they are considering a new community. More often than not, the first response is quality of life. Thankfully, San Marcos already offers a nice quality of life. However, in order to differentiate ourselves from our neighboring communities (competitors) to the north and south, we have to improve that quality of life even more. More and more research indicates that a green community has an even greater appeal to the types of residents and businesses we want to attract.

When we start to talk about going green, there are some that will fear that we are giving in to radical environmental agendas. Not so. Instead, we are promoting rational environmental agendas that make good sense for everyone.

It is important to provide good information to the residents and businesses within our community. This includes resources and encouragement for them to live green and to help attract emerging new green industries to our area. In this case, going green also means generating green. You know, money.

One of the ways we are helping to fulfill our green vision is the Chambers' upcoming Green Living Showcase. The Showcase will take place at the city of San Marcos Conference Center at the Embassy Suites on Saturday, March 20. This exciting new event will bring together homeowners and business people for a great day of workshops, exhibits and demonstrations that will provide all participants with many tools and resources to help them move toward a cleaner and greener future. There will be tips on green building, energy efficiency, water conservation, recycling, commuting solutions, alternative energy ideas and earth-friendly products. There will truly be something for everyone. And entrance to the event is free.

So that's my professional commitment to green, but I also have a personal one. Here's a short list of easy ways I'm living greener and improving the overall quality of life in our community:

• Built a highly energy-efficient home

• Installed rain barrels at my home

• Used more native and drought tolerant plants and grasses in my landscaping

• Turning off lights in unused areas

• Taking advantage of our curbside, single-stream recycling program

• Combining errands and carpooling when appropriate to save fuel

• Saving paper by limiting the e-mails I print

• Using a personal coffee cup and water glass at work to save on disposables

• Turning off the faucet while I brush my teeth

• Using reusable shopping totes instead of plastic bags

• Replaced traditional light bulbs with compact fluorescent bulbs

• Changing the air filters in my home heating and cooling unit every month

• Unplugging appliances and other electronic devices when they are not in use

Are you ready to go green? Consider my list from above and join the many of us within our community who are working to improve it for all. Join the Chamber's Natural Resources Committee or plan to attend the Showcase on March 20. For more information, please call the San Marcos Chamber of Commerce at 393-5900.



Clay DeStefano is the administrative director of PR & Marketing for Central Texas Medical Center.