281 bridge, Park Road 4 fed funding sought

“We definitely need both of them,” Precinct 1 Commissioner Bill Neve said during the regular Tuesday meeting of the Burnet County Commissioners Court.

County Judge Donna Klaeger said she will ask the Capital Area Regional Transportation Planning Organization to release federal money for the two major road projects during a CARTPO session Dec. 5 at the Capital Area Council of Governments headquarters in Austin. 

After much discussion, the commissioners agreed adding a left turn lane at Park Road 4 near Delaware Springs Boulevard and the construction of a new U.S. 281 bridge over Lake Marble Falls are the county’s top two transportation needs.

Funds for both projects would come from an economic stimulus package Congress and the president could approve by February, officials have said. 

The turn lane will cost about $10 million, and the bridge will cost about $25 million, according to CARTPO officials.

Both projects will relieve congestion and enhance driving safety when completed, Neve said. 

Project design and environmental and utilities clearance has already begun on both the park road and bridge projects, as well as 100 percent right-of-entry and 75 percent right-of-way acquisition, Klaeger said. 

“We do have a plan,” Klaeger added. 

Three years ago, CARTPO approved the new turn lane at Park 4, months before federal officials balked on an agreement to provide money for the project, Klaeger said. 

Several officials from neighboring counties will also ask CARTPO for transportation money during the Dec. 5 meeting, Klaeger said. 

Although Klaeger, Precinct 1 Commissioner Ronny Hibler and Marble Falls City Councilman Brian Shirley are CARTPO members, they cannot vote on funding issues involving their own jurisdiction, Klaeger said. 

Also regarding local transportation, the commissioners authorized Hibler and Precinct 4 Commissioner Joe Don Dockery to continue holding informal talks with Marble Falls officials about putting in a traffic signal the U.S. 281 and Max Starcke Road intersection. 

The county has an interest in the matter, because the County Courthouse South Annex in Marble Falls is located near the intersection, Dockery said. 

Burn ban

Turning to another matter, the commissioners accepted a recommendation by County Environmental Services and Floodplain Director Herb Darling to keep the burn ban in place for the unincorporated regions of the county. 

Persistent dry weather with little rain has forced the commissioners to impose the ban since June. 

“Conditions really haven’t changed,” Darling said. 

The average Texas Forest Service Keetch-Byram Drought Index for the county is 612 with a high of 749, Darling added. 

KBDI measures the potential for forest fires based on daily water balance, and the highest index of 800 indicates extremely dry conditions. 

‘No wolves’

In other business, Darling attended the Hill Country County Coalition meeting last week in Fredericksburg by Klaeger “to know where they are headed.” 

“It was a good meeting,” Darling recalled. “There were no wolves.” 

The coalition recently drafted a resolution aimed at providing Burnet and 14 neighboring counties more options over rural land use management, including buffer zones, setbacks, population density and impact fees. 

At this time, the coalition has no “clear-cut sponsor in the (state) House or Senate” for their resolution, Darling said. 

Recently, the commissioners have indicated they will not sign the resolution until they hear more from constituents. 

Opposition to impact fees was voiced by the Building Industry Association of Highland Lakes representative Jayne Mortensen when the commissioners met last week. 

Jail job fair

About 225 applicants filed for positions “across the board” during a recent job fair in Burnet for the new private-public county jail, Neve said. 

The jail remains on track to open near the Ellen Halbert Prison Unit for Women in April, Neve added. 

“That is really going well,” Klaeger said. 

Neve is president of the Burnet Public Facility Corp., chartered by the state to supervise construction of the jail financed by private revenue bonds. 

Job seekers may still apply for positions at the jail at the Texas Work Force Center in Burnet, 1001 W. Buchanan Drive or online through the Burnet County Web site, Klaeger said.

Also related to justice matters, the commissioners signed a resolution in opposition to the Sunset Commission’s recent recommendation to eliminate the Texas Juvenile Probation Commission. 

Recently, the Sunset group came forward to recommend elimination of the probation commission, as well as the Texas Youth Commission, to create the new Texas Juvenile Justice Department. 

However, abolition of the probation commission may allow the state to impose unfunded mandates and force the county to build a “county juvenile detention center,” Klaeger said. 

“That would cost a whole lot of money,” Klaeger added. 

Representatives from each of the 166 juvenile probation departments plan to visit lawmakers to protest the Sunset group’s finding next month in Austin, Mark Bittner told the commissioners. 

Bittner is chief probation officer for the 33rd Judicial District and Gillespie County. 

During a presentation from Burnet County Community Service Coordinator Lonnie Rogers, the commissioners heard county probationers performed community service for several local groups valued at more than $165,000 January through October. 

Turning to another matter, Neve reported state Rep. Jimmie Don Aycock, R-Lampasas, told him lawmakers will probably lean toward setting appraisal caps rather than revenue caps on property taxes during the 81st Legislature. 

Aycock met Neve during the representative’s recent visit to Burnet at the Herman Brown Free Library in Burnet. 

“The way the economy is going, it may be a moot issue for a while,” Dockery quipped, referring to property appraisals. 

During discussion over recycling, the commissioners heard the Interface Industries recycling center in Burnet will no longer accept newspapers, plastic, junk mail or scrap metal. 

“The recycling market is flooded,” an Interface representative told the commissioners. 

Klaeger said she recently spoke to Llano County Judge Wayne Brascom and questioned whether a regional landfill needs to be established soon. 

“We need to talk,” Brascom said, Klaeger recalled. 

Also during the meeting, the commissioners: 

n Directed the Human Resources Committee to develop a written policy to allow county employees one day off with pay every five years on their employment anniversary. 

n Granted former commissioner George DeSpain an exemption from subdivision regulations to divide more than 96 acres among his heirs.

n Signed a grant consideration agreement offered by the National Rifle Association for ammunition, Tasers and other gear for the Sheriff’s Office. 

raymond@thepicayune.com