Mayor Pro Tem Martin Sauceda called the Blanco City Council special meeting to order at 6:05 p.m. on Sept. 22. There were no announcements or public comments.
The public hearing opened at 6:06 p.m. and provided an opportunity for citizens to express opinions regarding the proposed budget and tax rate. There were no public comments during the hearings and the special meeting continued at 6:08 p.m.
The city’s wastewater task force, a combined effort with Protect Our Blanco, will be composed of council members Matt Lewis and Deda Divine, Public Works Director Ronnie Rodriquez and City Administrator Will Daves representing the city and Protect Our Blanco members John Ransom, Gabriel Gregerman, Joe Day and David Baker. It will also include Meadows Center facilitator Nick Dornak. At its meeting earlier this month, the council agreed
Dornak said that he has talked with the city engineer, Tom Turk, and the Meadows Center will compensate Turk for his time during this project. The Meadows Center facilitator also informed the council that he was planning on having a meeting with the task force sometime next week. There was no action needed.
The council discussed the proposed budget and tax rates. The city hall budget, which is composed of city council, code compliance, municipal, community aid and COVID-19 lines, includes an increase in salary/wages and health and property insurances. Funds for computer and operating system upgrades is also included. The total proposed expenses for the city hall budget are $607,557.46 and with a proposed income of $1,244,401.36.
The public works budget is a conservative revenue budget and will run separate profit and loss for water and wastewater for the first time. Public works includes water treatment plant, wastewater plant, and parks and streets. Proposed expenses for the water treatment plant totals $1,397,256.57 and $2,092,831.28 is the total expected income; the water treatment plant total proposed expenses is $679,948.81 with expected income of $772,512.66; and the parks and streets proposed expenses is $290,746.98 and expected income that totals $110,000.
The total proposed expenses for the police department are $1,287,446.13 and expected income is $71,103. This is an increase of $257,153.97 from the previous year, however the payroll/salaries in the 2019-20 budget were not entered correctly. There is a change from one part-time employee to a full-time position, and Police Chief Scott Rubin restructured the pay rate of the officers that will allow for a long-term reduction over the current plan. A security fence at the police department and the implementation of a vehicle replacement program have been included in the budget numbers. Asset sales, grants, fundraising and donations are expected to offset some of the costs.
The total proposed expenditures for the budget is $4,262,955.95 and the total expected income is $4,290,848.30. There is a projected budget overage of $27,892.35. Council member Mike Smith moved to approve the proposed budget, Ordinance 2020-O-012, and Council member Keith McClellan seconded. The motion carried unanimously after a roll call vote.
The maintenance & operations (M&O) tax rate and debt rate were approved by council next. The M&O is $0.1470 per $100 valuation and the debt rate will be $0.2033 per $100 valuation.
Lewis moved to approve Resolution 2020-R-010 and Deda Divine seconded. There was a roll call vote and the motion carried unanimously.
“...this budget will raise more revenue from property taxes than last year’s budget by an amount of $30,102 which is a (3.7 percent) increase from last year’s budget. The property tax revenue to be raised from new property added to the tax roll this year is $7,708.00…” states the resolution.
The 2020 ad valorem tax rate and levy of $0.3503 per one hundred dollars of assessed valuation of all taxable property within the corporate city limits the City of Blanco was approved by council unanimously with a roll call vote. The city’s ad valorem rate and levy tax rate has decreased from 2019. In 2019, the tax rate was $0.036150 per $100 valuation. The approved budget and tax rate for FY 2020-2021 can be found on the city’s website at: https://www.cityofblanco.com/page/20/financial-transparency.
A lengthy discussion took place next regarding temporary food truck vendor permits. Businesses that made 51 percent of more in alcohol sales (bars) were ordered to close by Gov. Greg Abbott at the end of June. Restaurants were able to remain open while adhering to social distancing guidelines. On Aug. 25, a new amendment from the Texas Alcoholic Beverage Commission (TABC) allows bars to reclassify as restaurants by partnering with food trucks and outside food vendors. The emergency rule is adopted under Government Code 2001.034 and Alcoholic Beverage Code 5.31.
“Many establishments that would have otherwise remained shuttered will be able to reopen and operate in a safe manner due to these amendments. This result will not only help mitigate the economic crisis in the State of Texas resulting from the COVID-19 disaster, it will also protect the welfare of thousands of members of the regulated industry and their employees who rely upon the income from these establishments to support themselves and their families. Without the option offered by this rule amendment, many of these establishments will be forced to close permanently within the next 30 days. Thus, the commission finds that an imminent peril to the public health, safety, or welfare, or a requirement of state or federal law, requires adoption of a rule on fewer than 30 days’ notice,” reads the amendment.
Currently there is a 10 day/month temporary permit for $150 (not on city property and with the permission of the property owner) or a permanent food truck vendor permit for 12 months that costs $1,200 and must go through the city’s planning and zoning commission before it’s presented to the council. The city does not currently have a place for food trucks to congregate. The two food trucks that are currently in town are grandfathered in.
Having a farmers’ market was also discussed during this time. Lewis moved to approve the temporary variance. Lewis proposed that due to COVID-19, food trucks associated with businesses may apply for a temporary food vendor permit for up to 30 days (instead of 10) for up to six months and this will apply for up to 12 months for $150/month. Divine seconded and the motion carried.
The council went into executive session at 7:01 p.m. to discuss wastewater plant issues and returned to the special meeting at 7:35 p.m. No action was taken on the executive session matters. The meeting was adjourned at 7:36 p.m.
The next regular city council meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Oct. 13 and citizens are encouraged to participate/attend in person (there is a 10 person limit currently due to COVID-19) or via GoToMeeting. The meeting will also be streamed live to the city’s Facebook page.
