The special Blanco city council meeting on Sept. 1 had a delayed start but was eventually called to order at 6:09 p.m. by Mayor Pro Tem Martin Sauceda. All of the city council members were present. There were no announcements or public comments.
Laurie Cassidy requested the approval of the resolution regarding adopting a policy for the management of all open records requests. The council approved this request and Cassidy was established as the public information officer for the city. Will Daves, city code compliance, updated the council on the ongoing code violation with a disgruntled citizen who has now filed a lawsuit against the city. The city was served on Friday, Aug. 28 and all information is being handled by the attorney. Health and safety and UDC violations are the concern. The citizen was unnamed because this was not part of the meeting’s agenda.
The budget workshop opened at 6:14 p.m. Daves, who also serves as city administrator, said the budget is considered an operating budget. There will be a public hearing before the budget is approved on Sept. 22. The proposed budget can be sent by Daves at a citizen request.
Paula Farley, city financial manager, was also at the meeting to provide additional information.
The city hall budget is $600,000. There is $85,000 budgeted for FEMA, fees which includes a portion of the police department and COVID-19 covered expense software and kiosk, along with the software that goes along with it. It is considered income because it is money to be received, but will not be spent if it is not received.
Franchised fees and right of ways have been moved from the city budget to the park and street budget. The municipal court budget has been raised. Permitting has decreased this past year and will remain at $51,000. Total income is $1.2 million.
Community aid is offered to local community services such as Blanco Historic Preservation Commission, Keep Blanco Beautiful, the Blanco Library, and CARTS yearly. A total of $47,000 has been budgeted for the computer improvements and software. The house cleaning budget increased due to COVID-19. There are 18 employees and one spouse currently on the city’s health insurance plan. Property insurance has increased on buildings which were low. The city hall’s roof needs replacing because there are leaks.
Vacancies for the police department are also included. There is also an open position for the wastewater and sewer project, but it probably will not be filled until January. Certified engineering, legal fees and surveys are included in the budget. Travel expenses increased slightly, but it is expected that will most likely not all be spent. Farley explained that the Texas Municipal Retirement System (TMRS) city contribution has gone down; this year it was 6.73 percent and the upcoming year will be at 6.48 percent.
The parks and streets budget was discussed next. There are currently two employees who work under this department with two vehicles. Recycling fees are one of the primary items in this budget. There are rental expenses and equipment expenses. The majority of the tractors and trailers fall under the parks and streets budget. Farley explained that the insurance of the equipment will be increasing. Expenses for gas and oil for the equipment is also included.
The public bathroom outside of city hall was discussed briefly and the toilet paper and paper towels for these bathrooms are budgeted under the parks and streets budget. Councilwoman Deda Divine offered to check the bathrooms on the weekend. The council discussed having a locked cabinet of some sort to store the toilet paper and cleaning supplies.
Paving materials are budgeted at $100,000. Town Creek Dam is maintained by the city. This year’s Trash-Off event was the largest event and very needed; money will be budgeted for next year. Street lighting is budgeted for $17,000 for over 100 street lights.
A discussion regarding golf cart and All-Terrain Vehicles (ATVs) permits took place briefly; vehicles on the street must be street legal. Police Chief Scott Rubin recommended an ordinance to clarify these permits.
Next, the police department budget was discussed. Rubin explained that a vehicle has been seized , however, this is not done often. Body cameras and vehicle cameras are on the budget. There is $11,000 budgeted to replace one of the desktops. Subscriptions, licensing, training and ammunition are all included in the budget. Investigation supplies were spread out in previous years and these have been combined for this upcoming budget. Equipment for the vehicles are in the police department budget. There is $50,000 budgeted for the radio, lights, sirens, safety equipment, prisoner partition, plastic back seat and cargo box at the back of the vehicles; this is for two vehicles. Minor items that might need replacing such as flashlights were included on the budget.
K9 expenses such as medication and insurance are also listed on the police department’s budget. There was a $10,000 grant received for Officer Maverick. Rubin explained that now when a call is received, it is manually recorded. This way he is able to see how many officers are needed at which time and where. It will be based off community needs, but the data will not be complete until next year. There are 11 total officers, which includes part-time officers.
There are several vehicles that are needed to be replaced and sold. The new vehicles will need equipment added. Most of the equipment in the old vehicles does not work. Vehicles to replace include: a 2015 Tahoe with 100,000 miles, a 2015 Tahoe 80,000 miles, and a 2013 Taurus. An estimate of five more vehicles will need to be replaced in the next budget cycle due to high mileage. Money for vehicle registrations and oil changes was budgeted. Safety equipment will be changed to body armor. Telephones and other items were not included in the budget last year, so there is an increase to the police department’s budget this year.
Rubin explained the “Best Practices” program. “The Law Enforcement Recognition Program is a voluntary process where police agencies in Texas prove their compliance with 166 Texas Law Enforcement Best Practices. These Best Practices were carefully developed by Texas Law Enforcement professionals to assist agencies in the efficient and effective delivery of service, the reduction of risk and the protection of individual’s rights,” states the Texas Police Chiefs website. The police chief explained that the department is striving to meet these standards.
Water and sewer budget were discussed next with Ronnie Rodriquez, city public works and utilities director, present at the meeting. Water and sewer was previously put together, and these budgets were separated evenly for the upcoming year. Breaking up the water and sewer budgets will help show what is spent and where it is spent, more specifically. Expenses are increasing. Current interest income is $13,336 as of Aug. 7. There are over 2,000 total connections with 1,094 active connections.
The meter fees and rates have been adjusted and raised after not being increased in several years prior. Garbage is included in the sewer budget. The loans for the water and wastewater plants are included on these budgets. Items from the old water treatment plant may be used for the new plant and for irrigation. Expenses for employees are included in the budget. The total budget expenses totals $1.4 million. The sewer budget totals roughly $675,000. There eight employees total for the public works and utilities department; this includes three in the water department, three in the wastewater department, and two in the parks and streets department. Additional income might come, but is not listed in the proposed budget.
Councilman Mike Smith would like to see a balanced budget. CIPs were discussed briefly. “A capital improvement plan (CIP) is a community planning and fiscal management tool used to coordinate the location, timing and financing of capital improvements over a multi-year period...usually 4-6 years,” according to www.uwsp.edu. Daves will have additional information regarding the budget at the next workshop which will take place on Sept. 9 during the regular meeting. The meeting was adjourned at 9:23 p.m.
