Tuxedo Park Road will be closed and barricaded for the bridge replacement project starting on Monday, Sept. 21

Tuxedo Park itself will not be closed. The approved detour into the park is the Idaho Road (county road) back entrance accessed from West 13th Street between the intersection with Arizona Ave. and the Riverside Cemetery main entrance.

Construction is expected go through the winter and be completed in the spring. Updates to this project will be announced as they are received.

Crete is a growing and diverse 'community in motion' with over 7,000 residents who call it home. We embrace our pioneering heritage and present-day diversity and continue to thrive with a strong economy, successful school system, and safe parks and neighborhoods.

The City of Crete has nearly 70 full time employees. No matter what role you have with us, you are sure to experience growth, professional development, and career achievements.

(Want to learn more about Crete? Check out City Government, Parks & Recreation, Departments, brand new Library, Business & Industry, and other community links.)

The City of Crete is taking applications for the position of police officer. Hourly salary: $20.91-$28.28 - depending on qualifications and years of service; with benefits and housing incentive. Minimum job requirements include, but are not limited to: Possess a high school diploma/GED, possess a valid driver’s license, meet entrance requirements of the Nebraska Law Enforcement Training Center, and be willing and able to work weekends, holidays, and rotating shifts. Bilingual preferred, but not required.

Applications are due no later than 3:00 PM on Friday, Sept. 25, 2020 and may be obtained from the link below or by contacting the city's Human Resources office at City Hall. The City of Crete is an equal opportunity employer. Applications should be completed and submitted in one of the following ways: 

• Download the application packet, type responses, print as PDF and email to shelby.brown@crete.ne.gov
• Print, write responses, scan, and email to shelby.brown@crete.ne.gov
• Fax to 402-826-4334
• Mail to the attention of Shelby Brown, City of Crete, at PO Box 86, Crete, NE 68333-0086
• Drop off at Crete City Hall - 243 East 13th Street in the utilities drive-thru on the east side of the building

View/download the application packet which includes:

• Letter of instruction
• Application for employment
• Basic qualifications checklist
• Authorization for release of information
• Essential functions

For additional inquiries, please contact:

Human Resources Department
City Hall - 243 East 13th Street
Crete NE 68333-0086
Phone: 402.826.4313 Fax: 402.826.4334
jobs@crete.ne.gov

Individuals interested in the Crete Volunteer Fire Department are encouraged to complete an application for membership.

Basic requirements for candidates are:

• high school graduate or equivalency
• at least 19 years of age
• good health and physical condition
• must be a resident of the Crete Fire District
• no felony conviction (unless waived by department for good cause)
• valid driver’s license
• must become EMT certified within 2 years

Duties and responsibilities include:

Work involves the responsibility for performing appropriate fire department functions in the fire station and assigned districts of response. Work normally consists of routine duties including maintaining fire station and grounds in a presentable condition. Duties also consist of participating in independent study, company drills, scheduled training at the fire department training grounds, fire prevention, inspections, fire fighting and rescue operations in residential and mercantile structures and providing emergency medical services in the field where assigned. Duties in emergency situations may be performed under hazardous conditions during fire fighting and rescue operations in all weather and 24 hours a day. Additional information is available in the Membership Application below.

View/Download CVFD Membership Application

The City of Crete is utilizing a new software system for utility billing, which includes a change in the format of bills customers will receive each month.

Letter-size utility bills will be mailed in envelopes and the online payment portal will switch to Xpress Bill Pay; all changes are effective August 2020.

The new statements will contain all the information as the former bills, including a portion to detach and return with payment. The bottom portion of the bill must be returned with payment if paying in person or by mail. Bills and the envelope will both contain the city’s logo and appropriate information.

Online bill payments will continue to be accepted, but through a new service, Xpress Bill Pay, with billing choices for auto pay and paperless billing. Payment options include direct from a bank account or credit/debit card information, which will not include a convenience fee.

The online Xpress Bill Pay link will be accessed on the city website under Quicklinks/Pay Utility Bill Online or under the Public Works tab/Utility Rates and Payments.

(Examples of the new paper bill and the online pay service are located in the photo gallery in this article.)

If customers choose to pay online, they will be asked to sign up for an Xpress account with an email and password. After providing the necessary name and address information, customers will be asked to provided their utility account number, noted in the upper left corner of their new city utility bill, and then be able to choose billing and payment options. Note: New account numbers have been assigned to all city utility accounts.

City of Crete utility bills include electric, water, and wastewater services, and trash collection with optional recycling service.

• A Utility Service Application is available online or in the office and must be filed in person with the Public Works Utility Office to set up a utility account;
• A service deposit is required on all addresses; transferable if the resident moves to a new address within City service;
• All utility billing statements are mailed the last business day of the month;
• Bills are due by 5:00 p.m. on the 15th of each month;
• Bills paid by the 15th receive a 10% discount; accounts paid after the due date are subject to forfeiture of this discount;
• Accounts not paid by the due date receive a courtesy notice; a disconnect date is noted on the original bill and the courtesy notice;
• Pay in person at City Hall during regular business hours by coming into the utility office or using the drive-thru; night drop is available in the drive-thru after hours;
• Pay by mail: City of Crete Public Works Department, 243 East 13th Street, Crete, NE 68333;
• Pay online using the new Xpress Bill Pay service linked on the city website as “Pay Utility Bill Online”

Customers with questions should contact or visit the Public Works Office at City Hall.

The Library building is open to public access with capacity and service limitations in place. Browsing materials and patron computer use is allowed. Face coverings are required. Read more about current services.

Update, Sept. 14: Story Time on Thursday, Sept. 17 at 10:30 a.m. will be held in-person and outside in Library Park, on the northwest side of the building. Adults must accompany children and social distancing will be practiced. If weather seems questionable, please call the library. A video of this story time will post on Facebook on Thursday afternoon.

Story Time at Crete Public Library starts on Aug. 20 with videos posted each Thursday at 10:30 a.m. on the library's Facebook Page, @CreteLibraryNE. Videos of each week's story time will be available for one week only. Staff hopes to return to in-person preschool story time soon and in the time being invites library patrons to follow along on Facebook.

Upcoming story time videos will feature stories on each week's theme, a song or rhyme activity, and a craft kit, which will be available at the library, inside or at the pickup window at 15th and Forest Ave.

Crete Public Library
1515 Forest Ave.
Crete, NE 68333
Phone: 402.826.3809
crete.library@crete.ne.gov

The City of Crete Department of Public Works, in partnership with its wholesale electric power supplier, the Municipal Energy Agency of Nebraska, is continuing to provide four energy efficiency programs to assist in lowering energy costs for local utility customers through energy efficiency improvements.

The programs offer cash incentives to make energy efficient upgrades in the areas of insulation, cooling systems, home thermostats and commercial lighting. The programs are available through March 31, 2021 or while program funds last. Here is a rundown of the four programs:

• Smart Thermostat Program: Provides a cash incentive of up to $100 paid directly to residential customers to help cover the cost of installing a qualifying smart thermostat. 
• Attic Insulation Program: Provides cash incentives of $0.15 / per square foot with a maximum incentive of $300 per existing residential dwelling for attic insulation. 
• Cooling System Tune-Up Program: Provides a $30 cash incentive to residential homeowners who have their cooling system tuned up by a HVAC contractor, regardless of what type or age of cooling system (air conditioner/air or water source heat pump).
• Commercial LED Lighting Program: Provides cash incentives paid directly to commercial customers to help cover the cost of interior lighting upgrades and replacements.

These programs are available to customers of the City of Crete through its wholesale power partnership with the Municipal Energy Agency of Nebraska. For more information on these programs, contact the Utility Office at City Hall, 402.826.4312, or go to www.nmppenergy.org/mean to download program guidelines and application forms.