Granite Shoals holding town hall meeting July 29 on road project
STAFF WRITER JENNIFER FIERRO
GRANITE SHOALS — In an effort to better communicate with residents regarding road improvements, the newly created Road Bond Education Committee will lead a town hall meeting about Granite Shoals’ road infrastructure project Saturday, July 29.
The event is 9-11 a.m. at the Granite Shoals Fire Hall, 8410 RR 1431 West.
During its July 11 regular meeting, the Granite Shoals City Council approved the creation of the new committee and named former councilman Eric Tanner as the chair.
Other members are Eric Carvajal, Tena Collier, former Mayor Dennis Maier, and Robin DeBerard.
City Manager Ken Nickel said council members want to make sure residents weren’t misled about the road project.
Staff members spent about a year examining the road needs of the city and anticipated receiving a $3.6 million matching grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to go along with a $3 million bond that Granite Shoals voters approved in November 2016. The funds would go to upgrades for Phillips Ranch Road, Valley View, and Prairie Creek.
But after the voters said yes, city officials learned from USDA officials in December that the department could only fund no more than $50,000, not $3.6 million.
As a result, the City Council in February decided to go back to voters in November 2017 to reconfirm they still want to spend $3 million on road improvements. Nickel said staff members, assuming voters will vote yes in November, have been using 2017 to reconfigure how best to use the funds. They still are looking for grant opportunities, he added.
City leaders know the $3 million in bonds won’t cover the work they wanted to accomplish on the three roadways when they believed the USDA would match with $3.6 million.
“The City Council felt it was real important our residents know what $3 million will get us,” Nickel said. “The council created a committee, recently appointed for the purpose of communication to our residents.”
In other business, Nickel shared with the council some residents’ desires to donate specifically to the Deer Management Program, which will begin its second year in November.
Last year, the program required hunters and the city spend $5,000-$6,000. When the committee hosted a town hall meeting in June about the program, several people in attendance asked how they could donate to it.
The council’s response was to ask staff members to accept donations and request donors make it clear the money is for the Deer Management Program. People can make contributions at City Hall during regular business hours. City Hall is open 8 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday-Friday and located at 2221 N. Phillips Ranch Road.
“We already have $2,000 in expenses, and we haven’t started the program,” Nickel said.
Nickel noted the city has spent $1,000 on targets for a training class led by certified instructors Jason Brady and Todd Holland. The class is 9-11 a.m. Saturday, July 22, at the Granite Shoals Fire Hall. The class costs $15, and spots are limited.
Perspective bow hunters must pass both written and field tests before they are allowed to participate in the Deer Management Program.
The city manager said three individuals who serve on the Wildlife Advisory Committee have reimbursed the city the money spent on the targets.
Sign up for the class by calling City Hall at (830) 598-2424.
3 thoughts on “Granite Shoals holding town hall meeting July 29 on road project”
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Once again, another “Road Meeting” farce. They initially wanted about $2 million for a redo of only one road and never for any “streets” as people were led to believe. Now they will be trying to keep the bond money primarily for that original purpose.
REPEAT- Not a single dime of any of the approved bond money will go toward the repairs of any city street other than the major arterial of their choice. The signage and advertising for the bonds vote last year was a lie and not the truth as it clearly stated the bonds were for improving streets. They were not for improving any street other than 3 arterial s of which now they are trying to still do only the initial one only. This has been a continuous farce from the beginning. The bonds vote should be nullified and canceled due to the vote purpose being impossible to be done. This is just another BS farce like the Sewer bonds a few years ago. Unfortunately many people have very short memories.
Don’t just take my word for it, pay attention to the details that have and will be presented. Then also drive on all of the dirt streets east of Prairie Creek and note that these families have paid taxes for many years after they were annexed and still have dirt streets for their kids to play on and vehicles to be damaged from. Their taxes have been ripped off and they were lied to just like what has been and will be going on now. I was on the streets committee also and learned truths.
Sorry for the ignorant voting block that always backs the incumbents and their folly s. They are the real problem with Granite Shoals and the reason many still refer to GS as Ghetto Shoals. The truth is the truth. The newly formed committee is just another farce to provide some type of legitimacy for their farce. Sad there is not much interest in more accurately investigating and reporting the truth by any local area news nor other reporting organization.
Just curious. Where are the hunters allowed to hunt? I live on Lakewood Dr. One morning, a buck walked by my kitchen window with an arrow through his neck. Fortunately it was not a deep wound. My point point is, how qualified are these hunters when they are allowed to go to these sites for the hunt? Could a map be inserted in the picayune for us to see how close the deer are being hunted? I also thought the doe were the only one’s being hunted? Note, the buck I mentioned earlier? This happened during the hunting season.
Some people do not give a damn about deer gender when hunting. These individuals have never been weeded out. You may wish to consider that the first year a estimated more than 800 lbs of deer meat was missing AND the non-profit pantry s that are involved are forced to pay for all processing at more than $40 per carcass. One last note,. the two persons named as “instructors” are hunters also. One is the chair of the deer committee and the other is on the City Council and was the prior chair of the committee. Both will not answer where the more than estimated 800 lbs of meat disappeared to.
I was on that committee at one time and was concerned about the neighborhood hunting as you noted. Hunting inside the city became the most important item for both of the chairmen and another council member who is also a avid hunter, named Mark Morren. Despite the purpose stated in the establishment of that committee. One of the several reasons the no-feeding ordinance was forced to be repealed by a popular vote of the people